Friday 10th April 2026: Pulborough Brooks

We were supporting another Shoreham District Ornithological society outing today, and hoping for an influx of summer arrivals. The day did not disappoint, and we added several new species to our annual lists and enjoyed reacquainting ourselves with familiar songs not heard since last summer.

We got off to a fine start with a few snatches of distant Nightingale song as we gathered in the car park. Near the visitor centre a lovely Song Thrush fed on the lawn, before flying up to a nearby tree where it serenaded us beautifully with its melodic notes.

Song Thrush

As we descended through the zigzags we found several Blackcaps, burbling tunefully, with several males and a female, with warm brown head,  seen well. Noisy Chiffchaffs were everywhere, constantly chiffing and chaffing away as they flitted actively through the canopy.

There had clearly been an arrival of Whitethroats, our first of the year, and snatches of their scritchy scratchy song accompanied our walk, although some birds were rather elusive. But eventually we had some excellent views, including one bird performing its characteristic leaping display flight.

It was a joyous experience to hear such a delightful medley of summer birdsong, but of course nothing compares with the versatile Nightingale, and at Fattengates we enjoyed scope views of a singing bird showing a splendid rufous tail.

Nightingale

The younger members of the family enjoyed good views of a Cetti's warbler. Sadly I did not! But its explosive song was frequently heard as we progressed around the reserve,  a once uncommon bird that is now well established in any local wetland area.

We continued on to the Little Hangar overlooking the brooks, where a single Black-tailed Godwit moulting into breeding plumage foraged in the water. Nearby several graceful Avocets were feeding, and a number of potentially breeding Lapwings wheeled across the sky or perched on small islands. A few Wigeon, Teal, Gadwall and Shoveler lingered on the brooks, and a Grey Heron and Little Egret were here too.

Moving on to the Hangar viewpoint, a Reed Bunting sang quietly form a small bush, and a rather subdued sounding Willow Warbler was highly mobile as it flitted overhead.

From Winpenny Hide we added a pair of Shelduck and a single Goosander. Red Kites and Buzzards soared overhead, but we had hoped for a better variety of raptors.

Returning to the cafe for lunch, a Mistle Thrush hopped on the lawn in front of us, then another Nightingale burst into song nearby, and at the next table they had helpfully lined the bird up in the scope. We had incredible views of this often elusive bird as it perched on an open branch, its throat vibrating as it it poured out its rich and complex song. A definite upgrade form our previous views, and Emile was thrilled, having previously dismissed it as rather an uninteresting bird!

Our final bird for the day was a female Stonechat that flew in to pose on a fencepost. We had a final tally of 55 species, making an excellent morning's walk.