Pagham Birder

Saturday, January 1, 2022

It was pure joy to look out first thing this morning and to see this...

...the possibility of a sunrise following days of gloom and rain.

A few minutes later the sun had risen but was still partially hidden by clouds but good enough to tempt me out for a walk to the North Wall..

A quick check of the Lagoon revealed that the female Goldeneye was still present accompanied by Tufted Ducks and Little Grebe...a long way off though

Then it was along Whites Creek where the usual candidates were roosting or feeding.

Oystercatchers

Oystercatcher, Grey Plover and Lapwing.

Wigeon.

Teal

...and a very distant sleeping Spoonbill(heavily cropped from the above 565mm original!)

As always, plenty of Brent Geese .

...and Lapwings.

There was an enormous flock of Golden Plover wheeling very high over the harbour almost out of sight without bins.(1000+ maybe)

Once on the North Wall, it was evident that the water level had risen considerably since my last visit and there were no waders and just a few Mallards and Coot. A single Snipe did fly up a little later. A couple of Water Rail were heard and a hidden Cettis Warbler shouted from a bramble thicket.

A lone Cormorant was on his usual post.

On the rocks a Rock Pipit posed appropriately!

A pair of Stonechats were in the stable field just prior to my return along Whites Creek (via the dog walk as the incoming tide had completely flooded the path) and all I noted were more Lapwings.