Short-eared Owl at Bo Peep

A Short-eared Owl reported today by Barrie Norman at Bo Peep, Alciston (from Firle Birds).
Yesterday, a Woodcock at Frog Firle (Alfriston) seen by Bob Eade, who also had two Firecrests in his garden in Seaford (via SOS).

Snipe + buntings at Alciston

A late-afternoon visit to my old patch at Alciston made me happy – in the tiny reedbed I used to keep an eye on, a single Common Snipe, at least a dozen Reed Buntings going to roost, and half a dozen Yellowhammers in the nearby hedgerows (with perhaps twice that number in surrounding fields). Good [...]

Migrants at Alciston

A brief wander up to my favourite piece of the escarpment at Alciston revealed:
Swallow 2
Yellowhammer 4+
Lesser Redpoll 1
Chiffchaff 2+
Blackbird c. 12
Song Thrush c. 8
Great Spotted Woodpecker 1
Common + BH Gull c.200
The concentration of thrushes, many of which were flighty and vocal, seemed to indicate migrants rather than local birds.
Several moths and butterflies active, including [...]

Alciston 12.10.08

A warm misty morning, with the prospect of the sun burning through at any moment. In the end, it didn’t do so until the very end of our hour-long walk in Alciston.

The village street was quiet, with House Sparrows and Goldfinches most obvious, plus a ragged male Blackbird bathing noisily in a trough at the [...]