Osprey here all day at Powder Mill, Maresfield. This is the one I rescued on Saturday. After it dived into deep mud after stranded fish in the drained lake, I grabbed it and washed it off. 

More auks moving off Portobello this morning with totals of 230E & 370W but those figures don't show what was actually happening. By 08.30 there had been 210 auks moving E and just 10W. After a brief lull there was a U-turn with 360W and only 20E. The movement had pretty well dried-up by 09.30. Also Red-throated Diver (a total of 7W) plus Pintail 3E.

Two sunny circuits of Abbots Wood today looking for Pearl-bordered Fritillaries (four butterflies finally found at Site 2) also produced 7 singing Nightingales (including another rendition of their less familiar alarm call). Also found two Garden Warblers and many Blackcaps, Willow Warblers and Chiffchaffs plus a calling Coal Tit. Yesterday (Mon) there was also a falcon of some sort soaring overhead Abbots Wood which had trailing jesses.

Another 16+ Jays NW over the Bill this morning continued the bizarre sequence of spring sightings of this species. Also 2 Arctic and 1 Great Skua and 150+ Commic Terns. Full details on Selsey blog.

The very recent Chiffchaff and Wheatear invasion involved several of the former calling in all directions this morning between my Herstmonceux plot, Castle and Church, plus a pair of the latter mid-Levels just north of the pylon-line by the Kentland Fleet ditch. A flyover Lesser Black-backed Gull was also a first for me on the Levels this year.

What a lovely day today. Just time, after a lunchtime visit to Ardingly Post Office for a little stroll to the SE corner of Ardingly Reservoir and back. Lovely, one Buzzard flying gently over the dam. Shortly after, nearby, a Bullfinch "singing(!)", then another Buzzard (or the same one) soaring over the reservoir, heading NE. But, another one. A suitor perhaps! A Buzzard (slightly smaller) putting on a very impressive "roller coaster" display - I'm not sure she was impressed! Another male arrived but seemed to take one look at the first one and give up!! A very lovely 20-25 minutes. Roll on tomorrow - I'm sure he'll be trying again!!

Another early start at Peacehaven GC saw me trying valiantly not to bird whilst mowing the greens. However, an enormous tit flock by the 8th green saw that vain hope dashed. Long-tailed, great and blue tits were joined by at least one reed warbler, common whitethroat and a phyllosc (prob chiffchaff). Whilst watching I heard a familiar soft call and found a female bullfinch, as I watched her, I had my attention snapped to a smart adult spotted flycatcher, which later flew off into the valley. At which point I dragged myself back to work! Its all go here.....

A red kite drifting slowly eastwards along the A272 heading east from Petworth, late morning.

After a dreadful seawatch at Worthing this morning with only 4 incoming Swallows, 1 Razorbill and 2 Common Scoter it was pleasant to see a soaring Peregrine over central Worthing. This afternoon my third Red Kite in two days drifted east over Salvington at 2.00pm. What a magnificent creature.

Just to add a bit more red to the skies of Sussex, a red kite thermalled over Adversane in the early afternoon. Also a hobby and at least four buzzards out celebrating the fact that DEFRA has withdrawn the funding for a research project to look at buzzard control around pheasant rearing sites!

Thanks to Martin Kalaher for his explanation of Red Kite movements. There was another one over the B2124 at Laughton on Friday about 15.00.

Barn Owl observed quartering the eastern half of Iping Common for about an hour in the fine sunset this evening. Why are we seeing so many during this winter, often at locations where they're rarely seen? Presumably, in their search for food/prey, they're having to move away from the saturated farmland fields and try their luck elsewhere...and/or was 2012 a particularly good breeding year for them...and/or have some of them drifted over from the continent?

At Climping Gap yesterday (28/9) a variety of migrants were on the move, but the fine sunny weather meant that many were so high they remained unseen and were just picked up on call; 125 Siskins were seen but the true number passing must have been many more. A female Pintail swimming next to a juvenile Gannet close inshore was a bizarre sight, whilst a passing Razorbill, 22 Brent Geese and an Arctic Tern were also logged. A fine Garden Warbler, 3 Yellow Wagtails, 10 Wheatears and 4 Goldcrests were the best of the rest. Today the 'vis mig' was much the same with plenty of invisible Siskins and 50 seen, 74 Pied Wagtails and 18 Wheatears, whilst the golf course held a Redstart, 4 Yellow Wagtails and 3 Whinchats. A neat Lesser Whitethroat was in the horse paddock. Up to 26 Grey Partridges were in the fields adjoining Bread Lane, whilst last and probably least - the crazy nesting Woodpigeon (in a bare tree beside the car park) now has young!

I spent yesterday morning up at Sheepcote and enjoyed a host of birds moving through the totals are as followed; 300 jackdaws, 200 chiffchaffs, 100 chaffinches, 100 pied wagtails, 150 meadow pipits, 150 goldfinches, 30 siskins, 30 redpolls, 10 jays, 30 skylarks, 4 tree pipits, 3 redwings, 1 yellow wagtail, 1 lesser whitethroat, 1 treecreeper, 1 kestrel, 2 sparrowhawks, 1 buzzard and the highlight 1 firecrest by the cafe. A quick seawatch in awful conditions from 7-8.30am produced: 40 gannets mainly E, 15 Brent geese W, 3 common scoter W, 1 guillemot os and a sheawater sp that flew W at about 08.10 but it was too distant unfortunately!

The two Short-eared Owls at Waltham Brooks this afternoon (16.25) were occasionally interacting with one another and giving short yelps whilst doing so.

Yellowhammers have been increasing at this location over the past couple of years. For the third consecutive weekend a pair has been feeding regularly around the base of a birdtable in the garden. Also Blackcaps calling here today and a male Tawny Owl hooting mid afternoon for the second weekend from the same copse.

In the field behind our garden in Storrington, having estimated a flock 100, I counted at least 80 Yellowhammers in the far hedgerow after a noisy neighbour spooked them up. On Wiggonholt Common Crossbills giving some stunning close-up views this afternoon.

Garden Birdwatching in Aldwick: Of the 40 plus Yellowhammers which were with us a fortnight or so ago, only 15 are remaining today. Numbers have dropped dramatically during the last week, as have those of Chaffinches which also numbered around 40 at a peak count. Of those Yellowhammers remaining, at least two were singing today, no doubt stimulated by the sunshine. Late this afternoon the alarm calls of local Blue Tits allerted me to the arrival of a male Sparrowhawk which came out of the blue and sped past the house next door. Within seconds, the male hurtled upwards to intercept two female Sparrowhawks which had arrived overhead, circling. Thereafter, I was entertained to a right ballet of switch-back flying, slow and measured wing-beats and other displays as the birds responded to each other. Eventually all moved away. Local residents? Probably not, but newly arrived migrants.

A flock of Yellowhammers has been regular in one of the fields at Scobells Farm, Barcombe during the winter. Usually about 12 in number but today there were a record 18. Isn't it time they were thinking about setting up breeding territories?

Five yellowhammers spotted along the disused railway track in Barcombe, including two that were pairing up flitting from bush to bush. Also saw and heard at least 20 chiffchaffs.