Down on the south coast

Last weekend headed down the south coast to catch up on some long staying birds first stop was Titchfield Haven. Started well with the sound of a Cuckoo so headed to the main scrape where lots of Black-headed Gulls where nesting with quite a few youngs birds with a few Mediterranean Gulls and some nesting Common Terns. The hightlight here was the Avocets feeding with their young along with the Oystercatchers and the Black-tailed Godwits. Watching the colony had a Sandwich Tern fly through a few Little Egrest around and a brief view of a kingfisher fly past.

Adult Avocets

1st broods Avocets

and current brood feeding

Young black-head Gull

Mediterranean Gull in summer plumage

Hunting little egret

Then walked around the other side of the river where we came across a young Goldcrest feeding and Blackcap, Whitethroat and Chiff-Chaff still singing before watching Black-tailed Godwits and a lone Redshanks feeding across the river with a Common tern fishing along the river but no hoped for Greater Yellowlegs.

Young Goldcrest

Hunting Common Tern

Then headed to Pagham Harhour at first quiet on the wader front but a few Ringed Plovers and Dunlin were feeding and a few Curlew were seen with a few Common and Sandwich Tern overhead.

Then a few European Whimbrel were feeding after flying aroung for a bit and checking the features the Hudsonian Whimbrel flew in though distance feeding in the grass where it stayed for quite a while so we had a little walk along the beach with a few Terns feeding out a sea but too distance.

We then returned to the Whimbrels which by now had moved alot closer to the shore with the tide slowly coming in and often the birds were seen flying and feeding pretty near at time which was a good end to the day.

Hudsonian Whimbrel

Pair together showing the size difference

and in flight