Saturday 25 August 2001

25th August 2001 Beachy 6.10am - 3.15pm. Virtually calm with light easterly breeze. Sunny at first with two thunderstorms arriving from the sea with associated two heavy downpours. Then becoming very hot and sunny


Little Egret 1 feeding on shoreline below Cow Gap
Sparrowhawk 2
Kestrel 1
Kestrel 1 falconer
Peregrine 2 falconer
Saker 1 falconer at Countryside Centre
European Lanner 1 falconer
Dotterel 3 flew directly overhead heading west over Beachy Head Hotel Garden at c.9.25am before banking, dropping and appearing about to land, when lost to view behind the hedge at the rear of the garden. A walk across the nearby grassy fields failed to relocate them but felt heavy rain associated with thunderstorm hampered chances. Initially heard as they approached from the east, with a mixture of fairly quiet and soft ‘puu-rr’ and ‘pit-pit’ calls being heard, with clearly more than one bird calling and from birds that were not together. Never suggested, and lacked the volume and strident nature of the Golden Plover’s typical ‘peuuw’ note. Concentrated on a single bird which flew directly overhead at a height of no more than 40m. A small, bulky-looking, short-tailed Plover with grey underwings which lacked contrast with a grey breast. Progressively whiter on the belly, vent and undertail-coverts. Prominent pale supercilium noticeable. Short bill. Upperwings appeared uniform brown with wings lacking any contrast and no hint of a wing-bar. On banking, the upperparts lacked contrast with the upperwings giving an overall very uniform appearance. Two birds were initially seen flying c.50m apart, but on banking they joined, and were joined by a third individual. Although quite distant all three birds looked very similar.
Common Sandpiper c.6 Cow Gap beach
Greenshank h
Snipe h
Sandwich Tern h
Tawny Owl 1 Falconer’s bird
Barn Owl 1 Falconer’s bird
Swift c.15
Green Woodpecker 1
Great Spotted Woodpecker 2 Birling lane
Skylark c.5 top fields
Sand Martin c.25
Swallow c.15
House Martin c.25
Rock Pipit 2
Meadow Pipit c.15
Tree Pipit 7
Yellow Wagtail c.50 mainly in top fields
Redstart 3 including a nice male
Wheatear c.10
Whinchat 1
Blackcap 1
Lesser Whitethroat c.5
Whitethroat c.30
Reed Warbler c.10
Willow Warbler c.75
Chiffchaff 2
Spotted Flycatcher c.15
Pied Flycatcher 2