Glynde Reach

In an entirely predictable but still very annoying turn of events, the appearance of the shrike at Glynde appears to have coincided neatly with the only week in the last year that I’ve spent out of Sussex.
But a walk along the Reach today was worth it anyway. The water was frozen, and the landscape surrounding [...]

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Nightingales, Lapwings

Fed up of waiting for a local Nightingale to turn up, I headed over to Arlington to get my fix on Sunday night.
Unfortunately, the weather was deteriorating in preparation for the Bank Holiday. An hour or so listening close to last year’s site produced only a very distant bird, calling from near the hide [...]

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Wild swans at Rodmell

Six Bewick’s Swans reported today yesterday at Rodmell, NW of the river where it meet the track from the village (Nick Pope, via the SOS website).
This is the first local record that I’ve heard of for some time (a couple of years?) – like White-fronted Geese, Bewick’s Swans have been regular visitors to the Ouse [...]

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More on the Ouse

Yesterday, the long-staying Cattle Egret was reportedly still present east of the Ouse, opposite the track from Rodmell (TQ433069). Having pored over my Ordnance Survey map, I think this means it’s technically in Beddingham – a good ‘parish tick’ for bird geeks (such as, well, me).
Nearby, a Cetti’s Warbler called briefly from the reedbed a [...]

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Not far from Firle…

A few reports of scarce raptors in the local vicinity over recent days, with a Hen Harrier seen close to the A27 at the Kingston roundabout , and Merlin reported on private land west of Lewes. (both per SOS site)
Haven’t heard of any Short-eared Owls at Rodmell yet this winter, but it’s surely worth a [...]

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