I continued the vigil after Simon left (see his earlier post) until 12:10 today. Passage overall seemed to slow up, but the diversity increased, with a nice run of good birds every few minutes between 11:15 and 12:00. The totals were (all heading E unless specified); Brent Goose 15, Eider 3 (2 drakes, 1 duck at 11:15), Common Scoter 170, Velvet Scoter 4 (a 3 and a 1 amongst the Commons), Grey Plover 1 (heard only), Whimbrel 15, Bar-tailed Godwit 20, Sanderling 1, Great Skua 1, Black-headed Gull 4, Common Gull 1, Mediterranean Gull 11, Little Gull 1, Arctic Tern 1, Sandwich Tern 49, Red-throated Diver 1, Gannet 15. Passerines arriving off the sea were 3 Pied/White Wagtail, one Meadow Pipit, 2 Goldfinch and 1 Linnet.
It was a particular delight to watch a mixed wader flock cut in from the distance and pass almost directly overhead; featuring 20 Barwit, 10 Whimbrel and a single winter plumage Sanderling; there’s few things I enjoy more about seawatching than picking through the flocks of common waders for something more unusual!

A Whimbrel on Iford Brooks this evening, also a male Wheatear near Iford Farm.

Yesterday morning, at low tide on the Adur at Shoreham Airport, beside two pairs of Oystercatchers a lone Greenshank striding about.

Plenty of Whitethroats in full song in the hedgerow at Portshole Farm, near Selsey. Blackcap and Willow Warbler were singing in the garden at home in Lavant this morning

Late start today arriving on site around 10am, straight away noticed a drake Common Scoter which was always distant, my 4th site record.
A Tern was flying around dip feeding off the surface which turned out to be an Arctic, nice long tail seen while sat on buoy with dark bill, overall shorter and dumpier in appearance than Common Tern. Four adult Mediterranean Gulls slowly headed E at great height.
Later a Dunlin dropped in on the dam, other bits included the usual Ravens, Red Kites, Sparrowhawk, Kingfisher and a few Swallows.

I see that Alan had an eagle at Amberley Wildbrooks at around 11.00am. I was on the main path at 11.10am and so I must have missed that one but I chatted to someone who had seen one come in at around 10.30am. Anyway, it was in its favourite tree (see yesterday's post) at 11.10am and didn't leave until 3.10pm. It left its tree on three occasions but I couldn't see what it caught and within a few minutes was back on its perch. At 3.10pm it left and surprised me by heading NE and not towards the downs. It took 50 wing flaps to get properly airborne. No wonder they perch up for long periods. The IOW website says they can perch for 90% of the day. Otherwise, the highlight was a spiral of 13 Ravens and five Buzzards, to the south of Rackham Plantation.

About 2:15pm a Juv White-tailed Eagle was pointed out to us when we arrived at the Rackham Wood viewpoint. Apparently It had flown down from the solitary oak tree, out in the northern half of the Wildbrooks. The eagle had dropped down onto the bank of the main ditch close to the tree but not visible for most of the time apart from the occasional wing flap; we guessed it was mantling over some prey item, but our view was obscured. After about 15 minutes it flew back up into the oak where it was mobbed by Kites and a Carrion Crow, which struck it quite hard on the back. It stayed until about 3:15pm, when it flew up, circling and gaining height, to eventually disappear behind trees and heading NW. 

Hobby swooped low over the bracken near the golf course.

Walked from Peppering Barn down to River Adur and in the shrub on T junction with footpath along river heard a Nightingale. Stopped to listen and got a fleeting glance of the small reddish brown bird.

About 11 o’clock this morning, at Amberley, a juv White-tailed Sea Eagle put in an appearance ........on the Wildbrooks too up in the air displaying Lapwings was good and a Kestrel was pretending to be a Hobby, i.e. catching and eating aerial insects. Along the main path still no further migrants, just the singing Willow Warbler and Chiffchaffs and Blackcap.