26th April 2004 Rottingdean 4.15pm – 7.45pm. Light SE breeze, hazy with sun

Sanderling 6E

Bar-tailed Godwit c.100E single flock
Whimbrel c.3E
Arctic Skua 2E
Pomarine Skua 21E
Little Gull c.20E
Mediterranean Gull 2E both 2s
Sandwich Tern c.8E
Commic Tern c.29E

25th April 2004 Beachy 5.30am – 12.15pm. Sunny being virtually calm

Great Crested Grebe 1 on sea

Fulmar c.20
Gannet c.50E
Cormorant c.5
Little Egret 2E quite distant
Shoveler c.12E
Teal c.12E
Scoter c.35E
Velvet Scoter c.12E
Merganser c.6E
Peregrine 1
Oystercatcher c.8
Dunlin 1E
Bar-tailed Godwit c.150E
Curlew 1E
Whimbrel c.10E
Bonxie 1E
Arctic Skua c.6E
Black-headed Gull c.25E
Mediterranean Gull 2E adults s/p
Little Tern c.7E
Sandwich Tern c.20E
Commic Tern c.50E
Collared Dove 1 in Belle Toute
Swift 1
Skylark c.5
Sand Martin 1
Swallow c.20
House Martin 1
Pied Wagtail c.3
Redstart 1
Blackcap h
Whitethroat c.20
Willow Warbler 1
Raven 2
Linnet c.25
Goldfinch c.10
Greenfinch c.3

24th April 2004 Beachy 6.30am – 1.30pm. Sunny with light onshore SE breeze from c.9am to high tide just after midday

Red-throated Diver c.2E
Black-throated Diver c.4E
Great Northern Diver 1E (11.30am) Only seen in silohette but looked very large with long large triangular feet projecteing well beyond the rear of the bird. Head and neck looked solid. Head held slightly ‘down’. Flew quite high above the surface of the sea.
Fulmar c.20
Gannet c.50E
Cormorant c.5
Brent Goose c.6E
Eider c.12E
Scoter c.50E
Common Buzzard 2 circling over Burgess Hill
Avocet 2E
Bar-tailed Godwit c.100E with many in fine s/p
Whimbrel c.20E
Bonxie 3E
Arctic Skua c.12E
Black-headed Gull c.35E
Mediterranean Gull 1E 1^st-s
Sandwich Tern c.50E
Commic Tern c.50E
Guillemot c.3 on sea
Sand Martin 1
Swallow c.20
Blackcap 1
Whitethroat c.15
Willow Warbler 1
Tree Sparrow 1 calling from the tops of bushes alongside Belle Toute Wood
Linnet c.20
Goldfinch c.10

23rd April 2004 Rottingdean 6.00am – 6.15am. Sunny with light NW instead of forecast SE! Ditchling Common 6.30am – 7.30am

Shelduck c.3E

Scoter c.8E
Grey Plover 1E s/p
Blackcap 1
Whitethroat 2
Willow Warbler c.5
Chiffchaff c.5
Reed Bunting 1
Yellowhammer 1

17th April 2004 Beachy 6.00am – 12.00pm. Cold with light NW beoming S briefly before WSW and increasing. Overcast

Great Crested Grebe 1E

Fulmar c.10
Gannet c.5
Scoter 3W, 3E
Sparrowhawk 1
Peregrine 2
Pheasant 3 includind darl almost wholly black female? In Hollow
Common Gull c.40
Kittiwake 1 1^st-s badly oiled east along cliffs
Stock Dove 1
Green Woodpecker 1 found dead just east of Belle Toute Wood
Skylark c.5
Swallow 2
Black Redstart 1 male
Wheatear c.5
Stonechat c.6
Blackcap h
Whitethroat 2
Willow Warbler c.5
Chiffchaff c.2
Goldcrest c.3 including one in song
Linnet c.20
Corn Bunting 2 including one carrying nest material

16th April 2004 Rottingdean 6.15am – 8.00am. Clear with light SE 10-15

Red-throated Diver 1E

Diver sp. 1E possibly Black-throated but couldn’t discern any white shoulder patches.
Great Crested Grebe 1W
Gannet 13E
Brent Goose 44E
Pale-bellied Brent Goose 1E
Shelduck 20E
Gadwall 2E
Shoveler 33E
Teal 6E
Scaup / Tufted Duck 4E (2 drake, 2 duck) couldn’t discern grey mantle
Eider 11E
Scoter 502E
Velvet Scoter 10E
Long-tailed Duck 2E (6.30am & 7.45am) both females, both with flocks of Scoter. Second very close with pale face easily discernable.
Merganser 5E
Red-legged Partridge 1 Ditchling Beacon
Curlew / Whimbrel 2E
Whimbrel 23E
Bonxie 3E
Arctic Skua 10E
Common Gull c.25E mainly 1^st-s
Little Gull 48E
Little Tern 7E
Sandwich Tern 38E with many missed as flying along the beach!
Commic Tern 9E
Arctic Tern 7E a tight fast-flying flock appearing very short-necked, long tailed and upperwings clean lacking any trace of a dark wedge.
Auk sp.1E

11th April 2004 Beachy 7.00am – 12.00pm. Clear with cold NE breeze

Kestrel 1

Swallow 2
White Wagtail 1 flew north along gulley and below eye level so pale grey mantle clearly seen
Stonechat c.5
Willow Warbler c.2
Chiffchaff c.2

10th April 2004 Beachy 7.00am – 12.30pm. Overcast with rain on drive to Beachy but virtually dry there and calm

Grey Heron 1 rock pool off gulley below Cow Gap

Peregrine 1
Red-legged Partridge 2 in gulley behind Wood with one flying off cliff edge!!
Sand Martin 2
Swallow 1
Pied Wagtail 1
Alba Wagtail c.5 over
Stonechat c.10
Song Thrush c.5
Willow Warbler c.5
Chiffchaff c.8
Firecrest 1
Long-tailed Tit 2
Linnet c.10
Goldfinch 2
Corn Bunting h

9th April 2004 Beachy 7.45am – 12.30pm, Newhaven 1.00 – 2.00pm, Coombe Haven c.2.45pm – c.4.15pm. Sunny with light NE

Canada Goose 2W
Shelduck 2 Newhaven
Sparrowhawk 1
Common Gull c.35 Newhaven including some fine ad. Summer
Mediterranean Gull 1 1^st-w Newhaven. Virtually black legs. Two-toned bill being slightly paler at base, dark mask, dark scapulars and tertials and black primaries.
Green Woodpecker 1
Swallow 12
House Martin 2
White Wagtail 3 males Newhaven
Wheatear 1
Stonechat c.5
Blackcap 1
Willow Warbler c.2
Chiffchaff c.5
Firecrest c.4
PENDULINE TIT 3 Coombe Haven - 2 males and a female, the female being colour-ringed with a red ring on its left leg and a metal ring on its right. Absolutely superb. Found by Kevin on call. Males with grey bills being pale grey on lower mandible and fine whitish tip. Legs and eye black. Black highwayman’s mask completely surrounded by soft whitish-grey crown, nape and whitish throat. Mask bridged the base of the bill on the forecrown and bordered with a narrow band of chestnut. Mantle a deep chestnut-rufous being noticeably paler on the scapulars. Wing coverts a darker chestnut with pale tips forming quite a broad greater covert bar. Secondaries and tertials black broadly fringed an icy grey, likewise tail. Primaries with narrow icy grey fringes. Breast on one male had some chestnut crescents (the other lacked such crescents) becoming buff on the belly contrasting with white undertail coverts. Female lacked the chestnut across the forehead and was slightly grayer-crowned (not so white). The mantle was noticeably paler almost a pale brown. Seen pulling white maggots from the reedmace. Would often sit motionless on the reedmace. On one occasion all three flew into a tree and climbed quite high before descending back into the reeds. Also seen in sallows. At least one of the males was heard singing being a quiet tinkling song. They were heard to call on several occasions, being a quiet ‘ts-iiii’ resembling at times a Greenfinch. Sussex 331. First Spring records for the County. Colour ring per the colour-ringing website appears to originate from south Sweden.
Linnet c.10
Yellowhammer 3
Corn Bunting c.2

4th April 2004 Beachy 6.30am – 11.30am. Overcast with light NE

Eider 8E (5 drakes)

Swallow 1
Alba Wagtail 1 on garden in Lane. Probably a first-s White Wagtail as mantle concolorous and grey.
Blackcap 1
Willow Warbler 1
Chiffchaff c.2
Long-tailed Tit 2
Brambling 1 in wood. Ex. Views being a male attaining s/p. Greyish head with orange-yellow bill, black spots on the flanks. Orange scapulars bordered below with white. Orange on throat and across breast.

3rd April 2004 Beachy 6.30am – 11.30am. Mainly seawatching in strong SE becoming a strong SE

Red-throated Diver c.30E several in s/p with dark throats contrasting against grey heads

Black-throated Diver 1 s/p E close with pale shoulders easily visible
Fulmar c.20
Gannet c.40E
Cormorant c.5
Brent Goose c.200E
Pale-bellied Brent Goose 1E
Scoter c.200E
Peregrine c.2-3
Oystercatcher c.12W
Curlew c.3E
Arctic Skua c.9E (8 dark, 1 pale)
Black-headed Gul c.250E
Common Gull c.25E
Mediterranean Gull 14E (1 1^st-s, c.5 2^nd-s, c.8adults)
Little Gull 6E
Kittiwake c.10
Sandwich Tern c.300E
Common Tern 1E close with dark notches on upperwing clearly visible
Commic Tern c.10E probably all Common with well-balanced look and pot-bellied
Puffin 1 probable flew past leading two Cuillemot/Razorbills – noticeable smaller almost recalling a small Grebe. Unfortunately just too distant to discern any plumage details.
Guillemot 1E
Auk sp. c.40E
Firecrest 1 at bottom of lane
Chaffinch 1
Linnet c.30
Greenfinch c.5

2nd April 2004 Ferndale Road, Burgess Hill

Little Egret 1 flying up road as I walked down