2016 patch review: a year at Shalford Water Meadows

2016 was my first full year patch watching Shalford Water Meadows and, whilst it may not have proved to be the undiscovered rarity trove I had hoped for, it still turned up some goodies and surprises. I notched up 106 species in 175 visits, earning me 113 points on Patchwork Challenge. Really not too shabby for an inland site, especially in Surrey, and it just goes to prove that you can find decent birds anywhere if you're prepared to put in the time and effort to look for them.

My girlfriend and I are currently looking to buy a house which may well see us leaving the Surrey Hills area this year, if not the county altogether - possibly hopping across the border into West Sussex. Twelve months' dedicated patch working after a couple of years as a bit of a birding nomad has really reminded me how rewarding the hobby can be and, wherever we may end up in 2017, finding myself a new local patch will be high on my list of priorities!

As a final round-up of my year at Shalford I thought I'd just do a chronological list with a few photos and notes thrown in rather than ramble on for too long. Enjoy reading, and Happy New Year!

3rd January

1. Coal Tit - Reasonably common, thought to have bred.
2. Song Thrush - Reasonably common, thought to have bred.

3. Robin - Very common all year certainly bred.
4. Blue Tit - Very common all year, certainly bred.
5. Nuthatch - Reasonably common in the wooded areas. Thought to have bred.

6. Mallard - Common all year, several breeding records.
7. Woodpigeon - Very common all year and certainly bred. The highest count in autumn was 690 south/south-west on 2nd November.
8. Wren - Very common all year, certainly bred.
9. Canada Goose - Common all year but particularly in winter when reasonably large flocks were seen to leave roost in the Broadford area, often in excess of 60-70 although no definitive counts were made.
10. Common Gull - A regular flyover species in winter, sometimes in large numbers (200+ on 20th March), presumably birds going to and from roost at Walton Reservoirs. Some of these are surely the same birds Ed Stubbs sees down at Thorncombe Street, although it's interesting to note that when the gulls are flying north to roost they appear to come from both the south-west and the south-east and merge at the Wey and Arun Junction.
11. Bullfinch - Thankfully still common on the patch, especially along the Railway Line Walk. Recorded on pretty much every visit. Almost certainly bred.

12. Magpie - Common all year, highest count was 26 into roost near Dagley Lane allotments on 5th February.
13. Black-headed Gull - A very common flyover species away from the breeding season. The highest count was 1035 south over St Catherine's Hill on 8th November, clearly birds heading out from roost to feed.
14. Dunnock - Very common all year, certainly bred.
15. Goldfinch - Common all year, breeding presumed. Often forming big flocks with Siskin in Alders around St Catherine's Lock in winter.
16. Pied Wagtail - Unsurprisingly the commonest Wagtail species on the patch, presumed to have bred as juveniles were seen in the summer. The highest count was 105 south early on 24th December, these presumably birds coming out of the roost outside Frankie & Benny's in Guildford.

Pied Wagtail adult and juvenile, Horse Field, June 2016

17. Great Tit - Very common, certainly bred.
18. Jackdaw - Very common, presumably bred nearby.
19. Blackbird - Common all year, certainly bred.
20. Herring Gull - Common flyover species away from the breeding season although generally not as numerous as Black-headed or Common. The highest count was 190 over St Catherine's Hill on 24th December.
21. Redwing - A common sight and sound around the meadows in winter. The last of the first winter period were heard along the Railway Line Walk on 29th March while the first of the second winter period were 8 over St Catherine's Hill on 5th October. The highest counts were 60 on 8th October and 2nd November.

22. Great Spotted Woodpecker - Very common in the more wooded areas of the patch. A pair bred along the Railway Line Walk.
23. Siskin - Common and numerous in winter, the highest count was 300+ which flew out of roost in Alders near St Catherine's Lock on 31st January.
24. Jay - Common all year, presumably bred locally.
25. Goldcrest - Common all year and probably bred, numbers noticeably supplemented in winter. The highest count was 10 on 1st October. 
26. Firecrest - Plenty of records this year of this increasingly common species, mostly along the eastern edge of the patch between Dagley Lane Allotments and Shalford Park. Most records were of single birds but two were present on 3rd January.
27. Treecreeper - Reasonably common all year but never numerous. Probably bred.

Treecreeper - Richard Waters

28. Long-tailed Tit - Common all year, probably bred.
29. Grey Wagtail - Common along the river and on the marshy areas. A pair was thought to have bred under Broadford Bridge. The highest count was 6 on 17th September.

Grey Wagtail - Richard Waters

30. Carrion Crow - Very common all year. A pair bred in the Broadford area but the outcome was unknown.

4th January

31. Green Woodpecker - Common all year round, two juveniles were seen on 16th July.
32. Teal - The commonest duck species on the patch in winter, the highest count was at least 30 on 3rd April although always hard to get an accurate count owing to the scattered location and variable water level of the various pools.

33. Mandarin Duck - A reasonably common sight away from the breeding season, though rarely in large numbers. The highest count was 6 on 23rd September.

Mandarin Duck - Richard Waters

34. Woodcock - Seen quite regularly in the first winter period, usually flying out from the more wooded areas near the railway line towards dusk. At least 3 were present on 10th January.
35. Snipe - Common in winter, again usually seen or heard flying around at dusk or else flushed from the wetter areas during the day.
36. Egyptian Goose - Regular flyover species, seemingly following the river to and from roost. The highest count was 13 over on 28th January.

Egyptian Geese

6th January

37. Kestrel - The commonest raptor on the patch, at least one pair bred. A ringed female was observed to catch and eat a Slow-worm by the railway line on 20th September. This bird was ringed as chick by Jeremy Gates in Worplesdon on 30th May 2014.

Kestrel - Richard Waters

38. Pheasant - Sadly a very common sight!
39. Barn Owl - Seen fairly regularly, particularly in the first winter period, but sporadic records right through the year suggest the species may have bred nearby. All my records were of single birds but lengthsman Rob Craig tells me he's recently seen two hunting together around the St Catherine's Lock area.
40. Moorhen - A common sight on the navigation and the marshy areas of the patch. A pair bred in the large puddle between the Railway Line Walk and Horse Field. A juvenile Moorhen was taken by a Sparrowhawk on 21st July.
41. Grey Heron - A common sight all year round, generally in small numbers. The highest count was 6 on 7th September.

42. Tawny Owl - Never seen but often heard particularly in the little copse near the entrance to the meadows by Dagley Lane Allotments. There were two males and a female calling here at dusk on 31st December.

9th January

43. Buzzard - A very commonly seen raptor. One pair bred. The highest counts were 10 on 31st March, 9th April and 12th April.

Buzzard - Richard Waters

44. Stock Dove - Common resident, thought to have bred. Often heard singing in the more wooded areas of the patch.

45. Reed Bunting - More common in the breeding season, presumably birds disperse away from the area in winter. There were at least 7 singing males around the meadows on 26th February.

Reed Bunting

46. Starling - A reasonably common sight on the patch. A pair bred in one of the Oaks in Broom Meadow.
47. Greenfinch - Still fairly common here although only in small numbers, the highest count was 6 on 20th February. A pair may have bred in Broom Meadow.

48. Stonechat - A common sight in the meadows in the winter months, particularly around St Catherine's Lock. The highest count was 5 on 21st February. A very young juvenile at St Catherine's Lock on 18th June suggested local breeding.

Stonechat

49. Cormorant - Very common, seen on pretty much all patch visits in 2016, either flying up or down the river or sometimes perched in a favourite Alder by St Catherine's Pool. The highest count was 18 south on 30th September.

Cormorants

50. Mute Swan - A reasonably common sight on the navigation or flying over. There was a family group of four upstream of Broadford Bridge towards the end of July, presumably originating from Shalford village pond where the species regularly breeds.
51. Lesser Redpoll - Sometimes found the Siskin flocks in winter or recorded as flyovers but generally only as singles or small numbers. The highest count was 12 on 5th February.
52. Feral Rock Dove - Very common in small numbers or as flyovers, bred under the railway bridge across the navigation.
53. Sparrowhawk - Perhaps the third most commonly seen raptor on the patch. Regular sightings in the Broadford Marsh area in the breeding season including adults carrying nesting material and food suggests local breeding.

10th January

54. Green Sandpiper - There were six records of this species on the patch this year, likely involving only four birds; 10th/11th January, 12th July, 6th November, 29th & 31st December

Green Sandpiper

11th January

55. Shoveler - A common sight in winter on the more secluded pools on the patch. The highest count was 14 on 14th March.
56. Coot - Not massively common on the patch, only really seen in the spring when the water levels were at their highest.

13th January

57. House Sparrow - Reasonably common all year round but largely confined to the eastern edge of the patch and the gardens in the Dagley Lane area. Presumably breeds in these areas.
58. Mistle Thrush - Reasonably common all year, particularly around Shalford Park. Presumably bred locally. The highest count was 7 over on 24th December.
59. Chaffinch - Common all year, presumably bred locally. The highest counts were 23, mainly flying over, on 29th October and 8th November.
60. Rook - Common flying over or feeding in St Catherine's Meadow. The nearest rookery is probably the one on the edge of Wonersh so it's likely many of the patch records are birds from there.  
61. Linnet - Reasonably common although generally only as a flyover away from the breeding season. The species may have bred in Broom Meadow, however, as there was a regular little flock in this area in the spring, peaking at 10 on 7th April.

62. Meadow Pipit - Relatively common in small numbers in winter, the highest numbers seen though were during the autumn migration season (185 south in an hour on 30th September).
63. Fieldfare - The last seen in the first winter period were 3 in the 'Horse Field' on 6th April while the first of the second winter period were 2 over on 29th October. The highest count was 45 on 25th November.
64. Blackcap - This was the only winter record, a male in a Holly by Dagley Lane Allotments. Otherwise very common in summer with at least 19 singing males on 1st May and many juveniles seen.

14th January

65. Red Kite - This species was recorded on 19 of my patch visits in 2016, usually in ones or twos but there were 3 over on 31st March while the highest count was 6 on 14th August.

66. Lesser Black-backed Gull - Relatively common flyover species on the patch though in much smaller numbers than Common, Black-headed or Herring. The highest count was 9 south on 27th August.
67. Great Black-backed Gull - There were just a few flyover records of this species in 2016, all involving single birds.
68. Chiffchaff - The first of a few winter records of this species. Very common in the breeding season; at least 23 singing males on 12th April and many juveniles seen later in the year. A very grey individual in the Broadford area on 29th December looked very good for a 'tristis' but unfortunately didn't call (not the bird pictured below).

22nd January

69. Little Owl - Seen regularly at the start of the year in the Oaks across the navigation from the lock keeper's cottage. A pair were observed mating on 1st April and there were then fairly regular sightings until the end of June all involving just one bird, then no further records.

23rd January

70. Collared Dove - Reasonably common although somewhat seasonal, largely confined to the eastern edge of the patch and the gardens in the Dagley Lane area.

24th January

71. Little Egret - A common sight away from the breeding season. Most records were of single birds bird but two were present on 20th February and 24th December.

Little Egret - Richard Waters

30th January

72. Greylag Goose - There were occasional flyover records but this was by no means a common species on the patch. The highest count was 18 west on 22nd September.

Greylag Geese - Richard Waters

73. Raven - Given how much they are increasing, particularly in this corner of Surrey, there were just five flyover records of this species on the patch in 2016, as follows: 30th January (2), 5th February, 20th February, 7th March, 12th April.

5th February

74. Little Grebe - A reasonably common sight, generally either on the navigation or St Catherine's Pool.  A pair bred on St Catherine's Pool where one adult and four juveniles on 11th June represented the highest count of the year.

18th February

75. Water Rail - There were just four records of this species on the patch in 2016, all either seen and/or heard near St Catherine's Lock aside from one alarm calling at Broadford Marsh on 17th December. One gave lovely views as it swam across the navigation at St Catherine's on 29th December.

20th February

76. Peregrine - There were nine records of this increasingly common species on the patch in 2016, all involving single birds, aside from a presumed family group of three over together on 11th July.

Peregrine

7th March

77. Mediterranean Gull - A very welcome addition to the patch list, a winter plumage adult of this species flew low over Broadford Marsh on this date before gaining height and flying north-east.

12th March

78. Ring-necked Parakeet - Just four records of this species on the patch this year, perhaps surprisingly given how common it is in some areas of the county. The south-west corner of Surrey though remains largely screech-free for the time being it seems!

20th March

79. Lapwing - Just a handful of flyover records of this species, the highest count being 26 on 8th October.

28th March

80. Swallow - A very common sight over the river and meadows in the summer months. The first one of the year was one on 28th March, while the last were 130+ over St Catherine's Hill on 2nd October. No doubt there were later records but I was away on Shetland from 9th-16th October.

31st March

81. Sand Martin - The first of the year was one north on 31st March and the last was on 26th August. I was pleasantly surprised to see this species present in small numbers on the patch right through the breeding season. The highest count was 13 on 14th July.

82. Brambling - The first of just three records of this species on the patch in 2016. This was a heard only record over St Catherine's Pool, followed by another heard only record from St Catherine's Hill on 8th November then at least 12 west on 10th November.
83. Tufted Duck - Remarkably scarce on the patch, present only ever in small numbers on some of the more secluded pools. The highest count was 8 on 11th May.
84. Wigeon - Surprisingly the only record of this species at Shalford in 2016 with at least four flighty individuals in the Broadford area on this date.

1st April

85. Gadwall - There were just a handful of records of this species in 2016 but it was a very welcome addition to the year list. A drake was present on St Catherine's Pool for ten days at the start of the month and a pair were then seen flying over St Catherine's Lock on the 29th. On 24th December a drake and two females were with Mallards on the navigation near Ferry Lane.

86. Skylark - There were ten records of this charismatic species at Shalford in 2016, largely involving single birds and mostly flying over, although two flew from St Catherine's Meadow on 1st May. One was often heard singing well to the west of the patch early on summer mornings, perhaps coming from the arable fields on the west side of the Old Portsmouth Road.

3rd April

87. Willow Warbler - A singing male near St Catherine's Lock early on this date heralded this species' welcome arrival to the patch in 2016, albeit only as a passage migrant these days. By the 12th there were at least 7 singing males around the meadows, numbers then tailing off until return passage started again on 2nd August. The last one of the year was on 17th September.

88. House Martin - The first one of the year was a single bird which was seen to fly up under the eaves of a house on the corner of Kings Road on the evening of this date. There were at least five active nests on the row of shops and restaurants here in the breeding season. The highest count was 860 over St Catherine's Hill on 24th September and the last of the year were 50+ west on 2nd October, although as with Swallows I suspect I missed some later departures owing to being away on Shetland mid-month.

House Martin nest above 'The Snooty Fox'

7th April

89. Redstart - The first of two spring records of this species, this one involving a male which dropped down during heavy rain on this date, followed by a female which was on the fence on the west side of the 'Horse Field' early on 28th April. My first ever 'self-found' Redstarts on passage in my patch birding life, always a lovely bird to stumble across.

10th April

90. Whitethroat - After the first record of a single singing male near the railway line on the western side of the patch on this date numbers increased to at least 14 by 23rd April, this representing the highest count of the year. The species certainly bred in Bog Meadow and Broom Meadow with many juveniles and family groups seen. The last record of the year was 6 on 3rd September.

15th April

91. Great Crested Grebe - Just a couple of records of this species on the patch this year. This particular individual was present on one of the pools for a couple of days, while on 9th May two flew over heading south-west.

21st April

92. Swift - Quite an early arrival for this species with one over on this date, followed by larger numbers in early May. The highest count was 80+ on 11th July and the last record of the year was one over Broadford Marsh with hirundines on 31st August.

93. Yellow Wagtail - A well-recorded species on the patch in 2016, present on three days in spring and three days in autumn. Most were just flyovers but a couple of singles came down in the 'Horse Field' on 21st and 23rd April. The highest count was a remarkable 22 south in small groups early on 8th September, some of these surely flushed from the meadows having been attracted down by the cattle.

26th April

94. Common Sandpiper - Just the one record of this species on the patch, with one present on the towpath of the navigation early morning on this date before being flushed by a cyclist.

95. Sedge Warbler - A common sight and sound around the meadows in summer, this species was thought to have bred in 2016. The highest count was at least 6 on 12th May while the last record of the year was one in Broom Meadow on 3rd September.

4th May

96. Garden Warbler - After this first arrival there were 3 singing males present around the meadows for much of May but breeding was not confirmed. A pair were seen together on 25th June while one in Broom Meadow on 3rd July was surprisingly the last one seen on the patch in 2016.

9th May

97. Reed Warbler - A rather late arrival for this species, there then followed one or two singing males present in the Broom Meadow/St Catherine's area on and off through May and June, then nothing until 25th August when I observed a family group together by St Catherine's Pool.

11th May

98. Spotted Flycatcher - There were just two spring records and one autumn record of this increasingly scarce summer visitor at Shalford in 2016, all in the Broadford Marsh area.

14th May

99. Kingfisher - A surprisingly tricky species to find at Shalford, it took 19 weeks to add it to the patch list (Although Richard Waters had one at the end of February when he took the excellent photo below). The species was then recorded again fairly regularly through until September, suggesting local breeding, although all records were of single birds only.

Kingfisher - Richard Waters

18th May

100. Common Tern - Surprisingly the first of only two records of this species on the patch this year, this one involving two birds flying south early morning, and the other record being a single bird on 11th June. This was a big surprise as with birds breeding at other sites along the Wey I really expected to see more of this species as they commuted to and from their feeding sites.

29th May

101. Brent Goose - Certainly the biggest patch surprise of the year for me, finding this bird asleep on Broadford Marsh before it flew off south.

Brent Goose

17th June

102. Cuckoo - The only record of this species on the patch this year. A singing male which was heard first near the railway bridge towards Broadford Marsh and then again a little later on further north towards Shalford Park.

18th June

103. Curlew - There were two flyover records of this species on patch this year, not one I particularly expected so a nice addition to the list. One flew north on this date followed by one south-west on the morning of 21st August.

3rd July

104. Hobby - Remarkably few records of my favourite raptor, especially given the amount of feeding opportunities over the marshy parts of the patch. One north-west on 12th September was the last record of the year.

7th July

105. Grasshopper Warbler - One I missed unfortunately but a great patch record, heard by lengthsman Rob Craig reeling in Bog Meadow.

22nd  August

106. Lesser Whitethroat - It took until autumn to add this elusive warbler to the patch list, with two records at the end of August involving three birds.

29th October

107. Crossbill - The first of two records of this species on the patch in 2016, both being flyovers. The bird(s) on 29th were heard only from Shalford Park while three flew west over St Catherine's Hill on 10th November.

A view south along the navigation at Broadford, early morning in April

Shalford patch diary and local round-up, late November

Just the three patch visits since my previous blog post, these likely to be my last of this month as the shorter daylight hours and other commitments impinge on birding time.

 13th November

A mid-morning visit with my girlfriend, primarily to carry out this month's WeBS count. I have now taken over the WeBS counting at Shalford and Broadford from Charlotte Gray in addition to the count I've been doing at Winkworth Arboretum for a couple of years.

Winkworth was exceptionally quiet this morning with just three Mandarin Ducks and a calling Water Rail of note. After a failed attempt to twitch Ed Stubbs' Red-crested Pochard at nearby Bramley Park Lake we headed for the patch. The continued lack of water meant wildfowl numbers were still disappointing with fifteen Teal at Broadford Pond the best I could muster, in addition to two at St Catherine's Pool. Away from the water birds, the highlights were a single male Stonechat. two Meadow Pipits, two Kestrels, two Grey Wagtails and one each of Kestrel and Chiffchaff.

Treecreeper

18th November

A rare week day off saw me spend a very enjoyable five hours on patch notching up a respectable 49 species in the late autumn sunshine. I started the day with a couple of hours sky watching from St Catherine's Hill which produced a scattering of Redwings, 41 Common Gulls south, 110 Herring Gulls (mostly south) and 860 Black-headed Gulls south. Small parties of Siskins passed by but most impressive was the roost flock of at least 70 which exploded from the Alders beneath the hill early morning. Another smaller flock near St Catherine's Lock contained at least two Redpoll but these were unfortunately flushed by a jogger before I could get a proper look at them.

Nuthatch

 Other highlights from the morning included at least four Chiffchaffs, a pair of Stonechats at St Catherine's Lock and two Snipe which flew up from Broadford Marsh. 

Raptors were represented by three Kestrels, at least one Buzzard and a Sparrowhawk which chased a Song Thrush very close past me near Ferry Lane.

25th November

Another Friday off and I was able to squeeze in a couple of hours on the patch before heading to Gloucestershire for the weekend. Again the sun shone and produced some wonderful viewing conditions for certain birds, but in other instances the strong light proved a hindrance. At around 9:30 I looked up to see an adult Lesser Black-backed Gull drifting north over Broom Meadow - my only one of the day. As I watched it another bird caught my eye much higher up, flying south. Getting bins on it I could see it was an Egret but it was still very distant and fast disappearing into the glare of the sun. The general impression was of a compact bird with short legs and rather short rounded wings. When it did re-emerge from the sun's glare it was much more distant and flying directly away from me on flicky, rather fast wingbeats. Little Egrets are of course a common sight locally in winter but I couldn't honestly say I got enough on this particular individual to entirely rule out Cattle Egret. That said, there were two Little Egrets at the Lammas Lands in Godalming later in the morning. One that got away.

One noticeable change since my previous visit was the big increase in standing water thanks to some fairly substantial rainfall in the past week. It's good to see some of the long dried-up pools rise from the ashes, as it were. Unfortunately there hasn't as yet been the hoped for increase in water birds, with just six Teal and single drakes of Shoveler and Mandarin of note. The marshy area near Dagley Lane Allotments harboured at least three Grey Wagtails. While I was checking this area a female Ring-necked Parakeet screeched north overhead - such a common sound at my workplace in West Clandon that it took me a moment to realise this was only my second record of this species at Shalford in 2016. 

St Catherine's Pool - topped up but bird-less!

Other highlights from the morning included three Stonechats in St Catherine's Meadow, a Red Kite which drifted west, six Egyptian Geese north, 120 Starling west, 45+ Fieldfares north/north-east and at least 30 Redwings around. 

Away from the patch I notched up my 87th garden tick in the form of a heard-only Brambling over my Chilworth garden in the fog early on the 23rd, following on shortly from a flyover Little Egret and seven Mandarins. 

On the 19th I paid another visit to Albury Sandpit with fellow surveyor Dave, where we had a reasonably productive morning in beautiful crisp sunshine. Five Skylarks and at least eighteen Meadow Pipits were feeding on the ridge, favouring the sunny south side, along with a Yellowhammer and at least two Bullfinches. Plenty of gulls passed overhead including an adult Lesser Black-backed which flew north and a 3rd year Great Black-backed which flew south-east.

Albury Sandpit

St Catherine's Hill, 10th November

Another of my now regular pre-work watches from St Catherine's this morning (0645-0745) proved very productive with loads of birds moving. The cloud cover perhaps slowed down the gulls a bit which didn't get going until well after 7, with Herrings and Commons leading the charge followed by Black-headeds later. Most notable were the Bramblings and Crossbills, all moving west at some altitude, the former often mixed in with flocks of Redpoll and Chaffinch.

Pied/alba Wagtail - 15 south

Mallard - 15 north

Redwing - 6 north/21 south/15 west-northwest 

Chaffinch - 5 south/2 east/9+ west

Common Gull - 30+ south

Black-headed Gull - 520 south

Fieldfare - 44 north/11 west/6 south

Siskin - 5 east only ones seen but heard almost constantly throughout 

Brambling- 12+ west

Redpoll - 2+ west

Rook - 11 west

Egyptian Goose - 4 north

Herring Gull - 23 south

Meadow Pipit - 1 west

Bullfinch - 1 northwest/1 east/2 north

Crossbill - 3 west 

Goldfinch - 4 south

Cormorant - 1 north

Canada Goose - 6 south with 1 Canada x Greylag

Shalford patch diary and local round-up, October & early November

What with the dwindling daylight hours and a week away chasing rarities on Shetland the patch has been somewhat neglected recently although I've still managed a dozen or so visits since the last one of these diary/round-up posts, including several migration watches from St Catherine's Hill, but more on that later. 

The most notable thing about Shalford Water Meadows at the moment is the distinct lack of water. It's hard to believe we're over a week into November when this muddy puddle represents one of the largest areas of standing water on the patch.

St Catherine's Pool, in need of a top-up!

Still, there's enough water left for a few wildfowl, with Teal numbers peaking so far at 16 on the 18th. I've seen the odd Snipe recently but clearly the habitat is not nearly wet enough at present for good numbers. Lapwing have proved to be just a flyover species for me so far at Shalford, usually in small numbers, so I was glad when Sean Foote picked up 26 flying over distantly on 8th October during a little pre-Shetland walk; by far my highest count of this species locally. On 6th November a Green Sandpiper flew high over Broadford Marsh mid-morning heading south-west and seemingly dropped down somewhere on the patch, although I lost the bird in the glare of the sun and couldn't relocate it. It was also good to see the first returning Little Egret of this winter on the same morning, when one flew up from the marsh and disappeared over the trees to the north.  

The first patch year tick since August came on 29th October when I heard the unmistakable call of Crossbill from/over Shalford Park, but the combination of wind and road noise from the A281 made it impossible to locate the bird(s). Stonechats are again a regular feature with three present on 30th October and 5th November, while Siskin numbers are building, with at least 50 around on the 29th.

Stonechat (male)

Stonechat (male)

Stonechat (female)

Redpoll numbers still seem low, with just single figures seen so far this autumn, the first being one west over St Catherine's Hill on 5th October.  The same migration watch session also produced the first Redwings of the season with at least 8 over while bigger numbers arrived a few days later, with at least 60 over on the 8th. The first Fieldfares, meanwhile, were two flying north on 29th October, again with larger numbers arriving a week or so later when at least 35 flew over on 8th November. Decent numbers of Chaffinches have been moving recently too, with a couple of dozen over on the 8th bringing with them at least one Brambling which was heard only so I couldn't confirm numbers.

Despite a bumper autumn for Yellow-browed Warblers in Surrey and the UK as a whole, many a hopeful trawl through the tit flocks on the patch has yet to deliver the goods, but there have been plenty of Chiffchaffs, with at least 5 present on 5th November, seemingly all just regular collybitas although presumably of more northern origin this late in the year. 

Chiffchaff

Going back to the St Catherine's Hill migration watches, and I'd hoped that my newly-found patch vantage point would provide some Woodpigeon magic in the past week or so. 690 south-west in an hour on the 2nd was a decent count but it seems like maybe they just haven't got going in massive numbers yet this autumn, at least not in Surrey anyway. Black-headed Gulls on the other hand have been streaming over in recent days, with 1035 south (and 1 north!) in 50 minutes early on the 8th interspersed with smaller numbers of Herrings, Commons and Lesser Black-backeds. These are presumably birds coming out of roost from the reservoirs nearer London and following the Wey down to feeding grounds on the fields around here. Still, quite a spectacle and I'm hoping there may be a rarer gull in tow with them at some point.

St Catherine's Hill, early morning

Away from the patch and there's been a few local bits of note recently. My Chilworth garden list got an unexpected addition on the 30th when a Great White Egret flew east at dusk, followed closely by a Little Egret for comparison. I had just earlier the same day been pondering the lack of local Little Egrets so far this winter! Unfortunately a last light scan of the ponds in Albury - a favourite roosting spot for Little Egrets - produced nothing although I did note Mandarin Duck numbers are again increasing on Postford Pond with 45 present. I also heard a Firecrest calling by Waterloo Pond on the 29th. The garden excitement didn't stop with the GWE as the following morning there was a Ring Ouzel in with the Redwings in the big holly and hawthorn hedge behind our house. My garden list now stands on 86 after 26 months. 

Popular beauty spot Newlands Corner is on my route to work so I've been popping in occasionally of late, particularly towards the end of October when I was hoping to find a Ring Ouzel or two lurking in the Whitebeams and Rowans. Sadly no joy but I did have a decent morning on the 20th with 2 Redpoll, 2 Brambling and a Crossbill over and at least 70 Redwings around.

On 5th November I visited the old sandpit and now filled-in landfill site in Albury to carry out the first of many bird surveys at the request of the management company Suez. Fellow surveyors John, Dave and I had a decent couple of hours on site, with two Ravens the most notable species, although it was also good to see at least 4 Skylarks, 20 Meadow Pipits and a modest flock of Linnets using the site, currently best described as a scrubby, grassy hill. Over time we hope to build up a better picture of what birds are using the site and offer advice as to how best proceed with the habitat restoration. 

Looking west along the hill in Albury Sandpit

The view north from the sandpit towards the North Downs