Spoonbills, Sandpipers and a Shieldbug.

A short break from Africa posts!! Yesterday evening I had a call from Matt informing me there were 4 Spoonbills in the Cuckmere. All the Spoonbills I've seen in the past have always been singles, so I called down quickly before the light went totally. As it was around 5pm the light was not ideal. The birds were not hard to find and they were quite close together so a few group shots were possible.

Four Spoonbill and 2 Little Egret.

The Four Spoonbill.

Today I called in at Tide Mills in the hope of seeing my first Wheatear of the year. A walk along the East Pier produced a Redshank sitting on the top of the Pier and below a minimum of 10 Purple Sandpipers were seen as well as 3 Turnstone. The Sandpipers will soon be moving back to their breeding grounds soon and with the uncertainty of the future of the Pier this may be the last time I see them here. On leaving the Pier a Wheatear was seen in the so called Reptile survey area.

Two Turnstone on the East Pier.

Purple Sandpiper foraging on the Pier.

On Tuesday, the weather was perfect for seeing overwintering butterflies. A stroll around Abbotts Wood produced the goods with at least 7 Brimstone, 2 Comma and 1 Peacock seen. The Comma was my first of this species this year bringing my year species total to 5. Whilst looking for Purple Hairstreak eggs I came across a Hawthorn Shieldbug on the Oak .

Hawthorn Shieldbug.

Back to Africa in the next post!!