a few days of autumn

on Saturday (9th October) I was around Seaford all day, mostly in the house (one of those lazy teenage days, ya know!) Over the garden I recorded good numbers of Meadow Pipit, Swallow, Golfinch and House Martin. A few Chiffchaff and Goldcrest were around, as I am now accustomed too. Robins, Dunnocks, Great Tits and Wrens are all starting to sing, marking out their winter territories...

On the night of the 9th, three Redwings and A Song Thrush were heard flying over.



The 10th began with a sussex year tick (no. 165), literally five minutes after I had woken up, when I heard the distinctive call of a Redpoll, flying over the house at about 10:30. During the morning I had plenty of Swallow and House Martin passing over, with small numbers of Meadow Pipit, Skylark and Goldfinch. Chiffchaff and Goldcrest were both in good numbers around Seaford, with larger than usual totals of Song Thrush, Blackbird and Robin. Interestingly, I have seen far more Goldcrest this autumn than I did last time round. It seems that this cold winter didn't affect them as badly as that of 2008/09, I hardly saw any the following autumn, and neither did anyone else on the South Coast to my knowledge...

At about 1.00, I headed off for Seaford Head, wondering what i might see. The answer was;
-a minimum of 70 each of Swallow and House Martin
-20+ Skylark, in the clifftop grazing fields
-30+ Meadow Pipits
-1 Siskin flew south, sussex year tick no. 166
-a small eastward movement of Woodpigeons, numbering about 50 birds
-20+ Chiffchaffs, 20+ Goldcrest, 2 Firecrest, 2-3 RING OUZEL and a single Blackcap in Hope Gap.

That night, three more Redwings and a single Song Thrush flew over the house calling.

these unidentified red dragonflies were everywhere

edit: ID'd as a Ruddy Darter



view out to ea from the top of Seaford Head



view out to sea from the top of Hope Gap

I'm fairly sure this dragonfly is a Broad-bodied Chaser

edit: Ruddy Darter again!

view of the Seven Sisters from Seaford Head Holf Course

 today (Oct 11th) was quiet around Seaford, with a few Goldcrest, Chiffchaff, Meadow Pipit and Swallow, but nothing like the numbers of the last week or so. However, a bird 'chacking' away in a bush near school sounded suspiciously like another RING OUZEL, sadly I never saw it, as I was in a bit of a rush to get to school. One that got away I guess!