Sunday 30 April 2000

30th April 2000 Beachy 5.45am - 11.15am. Light northeasterly, cloudy with drizzle


Brent Goose c.10
Shelduck c.8
Sparrowhawk 2
Whimbrel 1 in field up the lane
Arctic Skua 1
Sandwich Tern 2
Turtle Dove 1
Swallow c.3
House Martin 1
Tree Pipit 1
Nightingale 2h
Wheatear 2
Lesser Whitethroat h
Willow Warbler c.3
Goldcrest 1
Spotted Flycatcher 1

Saturday 29 April 2000

29th April 2000 Beachy 5.45am - 10.45am. Light southerly, sunny with good visibility


Common Scoter c.15
Merganser 4
Peregrine 1
Bar-tailed Godwit c.40 heading east over Cow Gap
Arctic Skua 2
Black-headed Gull c.20 E
Swallow c.5
Nightingale 2h
Wheatear 2
Willow Warbler c.3
Spotted Flycatcher 1

Tuesday 25 April 2000

25th April 2000 Dungeness 3.30pm - 8.00pm. Virtually calm but cloudy


Little Gull 1 adult summer plumage
Little Tern 2
possible Brunnich’s Guillemot 1 summer plumaged individual with interesting head shape but just too distant to be sure

Monday 24 April 2000

24th April 2000 Beachy 5.45am - 11.45am. Sunny and calm.


Cory’s Shearwater 1 ex. flew east only c.150m offshore at 6.40am. Large Shearwater with bowed wings lazily gliding the whole way past us despite no wind, all dark upperwings contrasting with milky-brown upperbody and head. All white underparts with no trace of dark belly, pale collar or uppertail coverts.
Shag 1

Sunday 23 April 2000

23rd April 2000 Beachy 6.15am - 10.45am. Sunny being virtually calm with light westerly


Great Crested Grebe 1 on sea off Birling
Scoter 2
Peregrine 1
Oystercatcher c.7
Whimbrel h
Arctic Skua 2
Guillemot 1 on sea off Birling
Swallow c.3
Nightingale 2h
Lesser Whitethroat 1
Whitethroat c.15
Blackcap c.3
Willow Warbler c.5
Firecrest 1 singing above Hollow
Long-tailed Tit 2
Brambling 2 perched in bushes above Hollow
Yellowhammer 1
Corn Bunting 2

Saturday 22 April 2000

22nd April 2000 Beachy 6.15am - 11.15am. Arlington Reservoir 4.45pm - 6.40pm. Cloudy but warm with light southerly breeze


Diver sp. 1
Gannet c.3
Scoter c.15
Avocet 1
Bar-tailed Godwit 1
Whimbrel c.6
Arctic Skua 1
Great Skua 2
Sandwich Tern c.10
Commic Tern c.50
Short-eared Owl 1 ex. Views including perched between Birling Gap and Belle Toute Wood.
Sand Martin c.75 Arlington
Swallow c.12 Beachy c.35 Arlington
House Martin c.3 Beachy c.50 Arlington
Tree Pipit 1
Lesser Whitethroat h Arlington
Whitethroat c.12
Garden Warbler 1 very well marked white edgings to the tertials
Blackcap c.5
Chiffchaff c.3
Willow Warbler c.15
Jay c.3 probably migrants

Friday 21 April 2000

21st April 2000 Beachy 6.15am - 12.30pm. Sunny but with strong southerly wind


Diver sp. 1
Great Crested Grebe 1
Manx Shearwater 1 ex. close moving East
Gannet c.50 all moving west and virtually all adults.
Common Scoter c.10
Red-breasted Merganser 2
Sparrowhawk 1
Kestrel 2
Peregrine 2
Whimbrel 1
Arctic Skua 3
Great Skua 3
Kittiwake c.100
Sandwich Tern c.20
Commic Tern c.10
Auk sp.1
Green Woodpecker 1
Swallow c.10
Yellow Wagtail 1
Nightingale 1 taped into view - superb.
Redstart 1 male
Wheatear 1
Subalpine Warbler 1 ex. first-year male Chat Vale - hopping around on ground most of the time.
Whitethroat c.8
Blackcap c.3
Willow Warbler c.5
Long-tailed Tit 2
Yellowhammer 1
Corn Bunting 1

Sunday 16 April 2000

16th April 2000 Beachy 6.30am - 9.30am Sunny with light SE. Selsey & Sidlesham Ferry 11am - 12.15pm


Great Northern Diver 1 SB (not White-billed as chased !). Looked like a 1st-summer with typical pale grey bill with dark upper culmen held virtually horizontally. Dark grey crown and nape with only slightly paler ‘ear-coverts’ not highlighting eye. Grey nape contrasting with good black rear ‘neck-band’. No white spots on wing-coverts visible.
Cormorant 2 SB
Canada Goose 2 Beachy
Peregrine 2-3 (2 dog-fighting overhead)
Avocet 3 SF
Ringed Plover 1 SB
Green Sandpiper 2 SF
Greenshank 1
Black-tailed Godwit c.15 SF
Arctic Skua 1 Beachy, 2 SB
Sandwich Tern c.10
Common Tern c.5 Chichester GPs
Short-eared Owl 1 very pale individual Cow Gap
Green Woodpecker 1
Yellow Wagtail 1h Beachy
Wheatear 5
Whitethroat 2
Blackcap 1
Chiffchaff 1
Willow Warbler 2
Yellowhammer 1
Corn Bunting 1

Saturday 15 April 2000

15th April 2000 Ricardo’s, Shoreham 4.00pm - 7.20pm. Overcast, bitterly cold N


Black-headed Gull c.30
Tawny Owl 1 ex sat on street lamp for 10 minutes in Haywards Heath c. 10.10pm

Sunday 9 April 2000

9th April 2000 Beachy 6.30am - 11.45am. Sunny with fresh NE wind


Sparrowhawk c.3
Hoopoe 1 opposite Chat Vale
Sand Martin 6
House Martin 2
White Wagtail 1ex Birling. Male with pale grey mantle contrasting with neat black nape.
Blackcap 2
Willow Warbler 1
Chiffchaff 2
Serin 1ex male found in Birling Gardens and track. Yellow forehead, supercilium, throat and breast. Upperparts green streaked black. Yellow rump. Flanks white with heavy black streaking, undertails white. Call zi zi tit tit.

Saturday 8 April 2000

8th April 2000 Beachy 6.30am - 11.45am. Sunny and virtually calm


Red-throated Diver 1
Black-throated/Great Northern Diver 1 distant accompanying above individual
Gannet c.5
Greylag Goose 3 prob seen briefly flying away from us at Beachy
Curlew 1
Stock Dove c.3
Hoopoe 1ex Chat Vale walking around probing for food near cliff-edge.
Swallow 1
Willow Warbler 3
Chiffchaff c.6

Friday 7 April 2000

7th April 2000 West Wittering 6am - 7am. Sunny and calm. Ditchling Beacon 5.30pm - 8.00pm


Green-winged Teal 1 male, broad white vertical crescents on sides of breast, lacking Teal’s buffy lines surrounding ear-coverts. Pale orange on forehead. Paired with a female ssp.?
Teal c.20
Buzzard 1 DB
Black-tailed Godwit 6
Mediterranean Gull 2 DB Full s/p lacking any black on primaries. Yelping call.
Swallow 2

Sunday 2 April 2000

2nd April 2000 Beachy. Light SE but cloudy


Black-throated Diver 1
Gannet c.10
Brent Goose c.30
Shoveler 4
Scoter c.200
Velvet Scoter 1 distant female
Red-breasted Merganser 4
Kestrel 1
Peregrine 1
Arctic Skua 4
Sandwich Tern c.25
Common Tern 1
Auk sp. c.8
Wheatear 2
Blackcap 2
Chiffchaff c.2
Goldcrest 1
Firecrest 2
Yellowhammer 1

Saturday 1 April 2000

1st April 2000 Beachy. Moderate SW with rain not far away


Brent Goose c.50
Sandwich Tern c.5
Rock Pipit 1
Chiffchaff c.5
Goldcrest 1
Firecrest 1