Former SDOS chair, Tony Benton, gives the lowdown on another smashing SDOS walk…

The second of two September walks beside the Adur Estuary SSSI took place today, with 20 of us setting off from Ropetackle at 8.30am.  At the start of the walk, it was chilly and several of us were in winter plumage, but by the end we were moulting back into summer garb.

Just outside the Ropetackle building we began our search for waders: a flock of Turnstones were quickly found (perhaps 30) together with a few Oystercatchers and a Redshank. However, we were almost immediately distracted by a showy Kingfisher that performed superbly for us, fishing in a pool around one of the moored boats. The first of many Little Egrets was also seen, and a winter plumaged Black-headed Gull allowed comparison with a larger Herring Gull close by.  

Suddenly a flock of Feral Pigeons scattered – clearly alarmed – and a superb Sparrowhawk flew gracefully over our heads. Note to self, pay more attention to pigeons when they next fly in all directions: there may be a raptor about! 

The walk then headed upstream on the east bank of the River Adur, where we searched in vain for Ringed Plovers and Dunlin.  Unfortunately two bait diggers had been seen prior to the start of the walk and they had flushed every single small wader.  No doubt the birds had relocated downstream, but this incident graphically illustrated how recreational disturbance can disrupt foraging birds.

The tide was racing in, reducing the mudflats available to the gulls, but well over 20 Great-black Back Gulls didn’t seem to mind getting their feet wet. Cormorants were also busy fishing, as lunch was probably being pushed upstream towards them. 

The downslink side of the river has a lot of wonderful scrub habitat and this was attracting House Sparrows, a couple of Robins, and mostly hidden Starlings. Inevitably Woodpigeons were also noted and a few Carrion Crows.

At the Toll Bridge (our half way point) we found more Redshank on an exposed sandbank and a Kingfisher was seen once again, albeit briefly. More Little Egrets were seen, but not the Lapwings that I hoped for. Steve L spotted a few Swallows high up, but I think that most of us failed to connect with them. 

The second half of the walk headed back down stream (west bank), with the incoming tide rapidly covering the intertidal mud and some of the saltmarsh. A flock of Mute Swans were unperturbed by rising tide and were accompanied by a single Black Swan. The latter has become a regular sight on the Adur recently and seems at home with its cousins.  Some of us also saw a skulking Moorhen in the freshwater stream close to the pumping station. 

With the sun now warming us all up nicely, the action turned hot when we found the first of several Wheatears (3, or even 4?), and then about ten Meadow Pipits. At one point we had scope views of both species side by side, seemingly sunning themselves!  The Wheatears were fuelling up before their long migration to sub-saharan Africa, underlining the importance of the Adur SSSI and surrounding habitat for migrant birds. It’s not all about waders. 

The next 30 seconds of excitement were provided by a flock of six Wigeon that Richard A picked up in flight. Initially they touched down very briefly on river, but it was not to their liking and they quickly became airborne again and headed towards the coast. A very special and unexpected sighting. 

Over the airfield a hovering Kestrel was seen and at one point perched on a mound of sand or mud, affording excellent scope views. A Magpie was also seen briefly.A few birds were heard only (ie not seen) and included

Pied Wagtail. All in all, we probably saw most of the birds expected at this time of the year, with the exception of the Ringed Plovers and Dunlin.  The SSSI is a fragile ecosystem, relatively narrow, open on all sides, and very vulnerable to recreational disturbance. But at the same time it’s a precious resource for both birds and us humans.  Alongside us birders, many people who were out for a run or walk stopped to ask questions about what we were all looking at and that’s a good thing, even if we were blocking the footpath!

My thanks are extended to everyone who joined the walk, and also to co-guides  Richard A , and Tim and Jenny H for helping with bird finding and Steve L for e-bird listing. It’s always a pleasure to share the Adur SSSI with SDOS members and it was great that several people were joining an SDOS walk for the first time.  

Tony 

Photos: Gordon Monument