At Pulborough Brooks today - raptors included three different Marsh Harriers, Red Kite, Buzzards, 4+ Kestrels, Hobby and a very fleeting Merlin. Four Ruff and six Snipe were difficult to find. Duck numbers have increased in the last few weeks with now reasonable numbers of Pintail, Shoveler, Mallard, Wigeon and Teal, but I only noticed one Gadwall. A few Redwing flying about but difficult to find once they pitched in. Linnets, Bullfinch, Chiffchaff, Stonechats and three Woodlark the best of the rest. Lots of dragonflies that I assume attracted the Hobby, and a Speckled Wood was a surprise.

This afternoon, on the falling tide, were a pair of Sandwich Tern, some 15 Greenfinches and 20 Turnstone and four Meadow Pipits.

West Beach Promenade, Newhaven: 1 Grey Wagtail, 2 Pied Wagtail and 5 Rock Pipit. Lone Brent Goose seen yesterday afternoon, same spot as on Sunday morning.

After a brief attempt to watch visible migration - there just wasn't any - I turned my attention to the sea. This was already (07:30) extremely busy, and in 1 hour I logged 333 Gannets, 409 auks, 79 Kittiwakes (my first since April), 2 Arctic Skuas and 8 adult Mediterranean Gulls all going west during a moderate southwesterly. 
Just two birds went east - a Sandwich Tern and only my second clifftop Sooty Shearwater which passed reasonably close. The movement stopped; I tried another hour in mid afternoon but much quieter, just 19 Gannets, 8 Kittiwakes and another Med., these going east.

The juv Purple Heron was again at Pagham this morning. At 08:15 it flew from Pagham Rife to its favoured field near Honer Reservoir where it proceeded to devour a vole. Directions as per 15th October below.

A male Pheasant spent much of the afternoon in our small suburban garden just north of Preston Park. He eventually flew over the wall and into the nearby Nursery School garden. Only previous nearby records are from Withdean Park.

On an initially overcast day with a southerly breeze, eight joined me for an autumnal walk around Cissbury Ring; quiet, it didn't feel like a day for outgoing migrants and so it proved. The 'usual suspects' were around with numbers initially provided by corvids (Rook; Jackdaw; Crow) and whilst still at the car park Pied Wagtail, whilst there and elsewhere charms of Goldfinch. The walk up to the ramparts found some single Turdidae namely Blackbird, Mistle Thrush and Fieldfare, also Chaffinch and Robin and the first of the frequent Jay. Within the fort a single Blue Tit and some Meadow Pipit (and more Goldfinch) but 'the' Yew, which had berries, only provided a fast-disappearing Mistle Thrush and two lingering Greenfinch. We found a Red Kite, perhaps the one spotted by some before the walk. The walk around to the south of the fort provided views of hovering Kestrel and Buzzard (well, hanging on the wind perhaps). We added a male Sparrowhawk to our raptor list one that seemed to take exception to a female Kestrel although the latter subsequently successfully pounced on a small rodent consuming this on a fence post. Pheasant were also present here. Returning to the car park we spotted four Buzzard soaring together suggesting a total for the walk of five or six plus another view of the Red Kite harassed by Crows. My species list was 23 (which matched in numbers the previous year).

Still just north west of Barcombe Reservoir in field with Barnacle Geese. Nice sight.

My first outing in Sussex for a few weeks with a walk around Cissbury Ring this morning. Like many places in the south not a lot going on - 4 Raven E, a flock of Siskin that flew over calling without being seen, 5 Greenfinch, 5 Mistle Thrush and 7 Swallow S the highlights, with perhaps 6 Chiffchaff and 2 Blackcap ‘tacking’. On the Ring only 4 Stonechat whereas on 5th October 2021 a day count of 39 was recorded In the area. 

A Kingfisher on a post above a pond filled by high tide in the small oak wood opposite Dell Quay and slightly north .