At some nests in southern England there is very little wasp comb this year, though one had lots, suggesting that some, but not all adult Honey-buzzards may be relying more on frogs than is usual for this stage in the breeding season. Nevertheless, it seems to be a good year with 15-16 pairs found so far in the county and c.12 breeding, a high proportion. Over 50 different adults have been seen – thanks for all the photos that you are sending me and please keep them coming.

There’s been an excellent response to the SOS request not to publish photos of adults carrying food. Thank you. Please follow the same guidance with regard to juveniles at breeding sites, though photos in confidence to me will help determine breeding success. If you wish to see juveniles, they could be flying soon and certainly by mid-month. It’s well worth reminding yourself what juveniles look like: they soar on level wings like adults but the overall structure is like a strange mix between an adult Honey-buzzard and a Common Buzzard, so they can be very confusing when you first see one. The juveniles may remain in the Sussex breeding areas until early September.

Mark Mallalieu  mallalieum@gmail.com

5 August 2024

I hope that many of you have enjoyed watching Honey-buzzards in Sussex this year, perhaps for the first time, following the publication of a few watchpoints. I’ve been coordinating population monitoring work for several years and the effort in the field is considerable. Following the publication of sites, I wondered whether I could rely on the birdwatching community to cover at least some areas this year and this has indeed happened, with excellent coverage of two sites. As a result we have a good understanding of activity and numbers, without additional dedicated effort being needed.

We know of 13 territories so far, most with pairs, so it’s shaping up to be a good season. The adults are finding plenty of wasp comb and are taking frogs as well.

The published viewpoints were chosen to avoid overlooking nest sites and the Bird News Services have been exemplary in following  the guidance from the Sussex Ornithological Society about not revealing evidence of breeding, beyond birds being present in an area. Posting photos on social media of birds carrying food should be avoided as a precautionary measure. Hitherto, such photos would have been fine if the location was not given (I have done this on several occasions), but there is still some risk in cases where the location can be deduced, and it is best that we all now err on the side of caution. However, do send such photos to me or the County Recorder recorder@sos.org.uk to help us monitor breeding activity. If you take a photo that shows a readable ring number (two black letters on a white background) that would be brilliant.

For the more adventurous, there are still several sites that were published in the recent “Where to Watch Birds in Surrey and Sussex” that have not been searched as far as I know, so why not try to find out something new about these splendid birds at one of those.

No illegal activity, e.g. nest disturbance, has been reported in Sussex but it could happen. Please let me know if you see any suspicious behaviour or illegal disturbance. Thank you.

Mark Mallalieu

mallalieum@gmail.com

23 July 2024

Volunteers with Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) squares have the option to survey their squares for butterflies during June, July and August, as part of the Wider Countryside Butterfly Survey (WCBS) which is a collaboration between the BTO and Butterfly Conservation. Volunteers taking on new squares now can take part in the WCBS and then have the option to survey their squares over the winter for the Sussex Winter Bird Survey before breeding bird surveys begin next April.

The BBS is a national monitoring scheme administered by the BTO and jointly funded by the BTO, JNCC and RSPB. It has been running since 1994 and its primary aim is to provide population trends for common and widespread bird species in the UK.

Survey plots are randomly-selected 1-km squares of the National Grid, and the same squares are surveyed each year. Volunteers visit their squares three times each year during the breeding season, once to record simple habitat data, and twice to walk a fixed route, recording birds seen and heard. There are more than 200 BBS squares across Sussex, covering every type of habitat, and new volunteers are always needed.

Volunteers must be able to recognise common and widespread birds by sight and sound, but previous experience of survey work is not necessary. Help and support from experienced volunteers can be arranged if required.

For the WCBS, volunteers walk their usual BBS routes and record butterflies. Volunteers must be able to recognise common butterfly species but no special expertise is required.

The BBS squares (asterisks indicate priority squares that have been surveyed before) in Sussex which currently need volunteers are (updated 21/8/2024):

SU7907 near Funtington*
SU8527 near Milland*
SU8615 Westdean Woods*
SU8718 near Cocking*
SU9113 near East Dean*
SU9729 near Northchapel*
SU9814 Bignor*
SU9923 near Petworth*
SZ7996 East Wittering*
SZ8199 near Birdham
TQ0124 near Kirdford*
TQ0322 near Codmore Hill*
TQ0601 East Preston*
TQ0826 Billingshurst
TQ1004 Durrington*
TQ1323 Dragon’s Green*
TQ2536 Gossops Green
TQ2638 Langley Green*
TQ3618 near Wivlesfield Green*
TQ4821 Uckfield*
TQ4938 near Blackham*
TQ5023 Buxted*
TQ5026 High Hurstwood
TQ5128 near Crowborough*
TQ5211 near Golden Cross*
TQ5220 Blackboys*
TQ5228 near Crowborough*
TQ5435 near Eridge Station*
TQ5639 Tunbridge Wells*
TQ6817 near Penhurst
TQ7624 near Bodiam
TQ7811 Hollington*
TQ8518 near Udimore*

For further information, please contact Helen Crabtree at hcrabtree@gmail.com.

The Pevensey Levels breeding bird monitoring scheme is an SOS project which aims to increase the regular recording of birds across the Pevensey Levels during the breeding season and to enable the reporting of results to farmers and land managers. This increase in regular recording will be achieved through the allocation of 1×1-km squares to volunteers so that the recording is targeted in well-defined areas and to maximize coverage and reduce duplication of effort. The project will also incorporate data already being collected from three BTO Breeding Bird Survey squares on the Pevensey Levels.

The squares selected to be surveyed are those that have a reasonable level of access using public rights of way or those that have been requested by farmers or landowners to be included in the project with access permission granted to specific volunteers. There is no attempt to survey a random sample of sites because of the relatively small area of the Pevensey Levels and the simple aim of increasing regular recording rather than calculating population trends.

Volunteers should aim to visit each allocated square twice during each breeding season. The early visit should be made between early April and mid-May, and the late visit between mid-May and the end of June. On each visit volunteers should walk a transect route in the square which covers as much of the square as possible and which takes around 1 -1.5 hours at a slow methodical pace.

The squares selected to be surveyed are as follows (updated 5/4/2024):

TQ6108 White Dyke Farm ALLOCATED
TQ6109 Whelpley Sewer
TQ6110 Gildridge Farm ALLOCATED
TQ6206 Bridge Farm ALLOCATED
TQ6207 Rickney Farm
TQ6208 Horse Eye
TQ6209 New Bridge (BBS square) ALLOCATED
TQ6210 Sackville Farm ALLOCATED
TQ6306 Chilley Farm ALLOCATED
TQ6308 Hurst Haven
TQ6309 Hurst Haven North ALLOCATED
TQ6310 Cherry Croft Farm ALLOCATED
TQ6407 Pylons Farm
TQ6608 Horse Bridge (BBS square) ALLOCATED
TQ6609 Waterhouse Farm
TQ6710 Hogtrough Bridge
TQ6806 Hooe Level ALLOCATED
TQ6807 Old Road Farm (BBS square) ALLOCATED
TQ6808 Court Lodge ALLOCATED
TQ6906 Crooked Ditch
TQ6908 near Hooe village ALLOCATED

If you are interested in taking on one of the unallocated squares listed above please contact Helen Crabtree at hcrabtree@gmail.com for further information and instructions. If you live nearby and know landowners such that you are able to access a square on the Pevensey Levels that is not listed above then please also contact Helen and this square can be added to the scheme. Please contact Helen with any questions or comments about this project.

There is still time to sign up to take part in the BTO Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) for this coming breeding season. Some squares have recently become available and there are plenty of squares available right across the county; some of these squares are accessible if you have limited mobility or if you are reliant on or choose to use public transport.

This national monitoring scheme is administered by the BTO and jointly funded by the BTO, JNCC and RSPB. It has been running since 1994 and its primary aim is to provide population trends for common and widespread bird species in the UK. Population trends for Sussex are also produced and published in the Sussex Bird Report. Survey plots are randomly-selected 1-km squares of the National Grid, and the same squares are surveyed each year. Volunteers visit their squares three times each year during the breeding season, once to record simple habitat data, and twice to walk a fixed route, recording birds seen and heard. There are more than 200 BBS squares across Sussex, covering every type of habitat, and new volunteers are always needed.

Volunteers must be able to recognise common and widespread birds by sight and sound, and must be able to physically get around a survey route reasonably early in the morning, but beyond those requirements absolutely anybody is welcomed into this survey scheme. Previous experience of survey work is not necessary and help and support from experienced volunteers can be arranged if required. Finally there is no requirement to conduct surveys alone – take a friend with you!

The full list of BBS squares (asterisks indicate priority squares that have been surveyed before) in Sussex which currently need volunteers for the 2024 breeding season (updated 8/8/2024) is as follows:

SU7907 near Funtington*
SU8527 near Milland*
SU8615 Westdean Woods*
SU8718 near Cocking*
SU9113 near East Dean*
SU9729 near Northchapel*
SU9814 Bignor*
SU9923 near Petworth*
SZ7996 East Wittering*
SZ8199 near Birdham
TQ0124 near Kirdford*
TQ0322 near Codmore Hill*
TQ0601 East Preston*
TQ0826 Billingshurst
TQ1004 Durrington*
TQ1323 Dragon’s Green*
TQ2536 Gossops Green
TQ2638 Langley Green*
TQ2836 central Crawley
TQ3319 Ditchling Common*
TQ3618 near Wivelsfield Green*
TQ4821 Uckfield*
TQ4938 near Blackham*
TQ5023 Buxted*
TQ5026 High Hurstwood
TQ5128 near Crowborough*
TQ5211 near Golden Cross*
TQ5220 Blackboys*
TQ5228 near Crowborough*
TQ5435 near Eridge Station*
TQ5639 Tunbridge Wells*
TQ6817 near Penhurst
TQ7624 near Bodiam
TQ7811 Hollington*
TQ8518 near Udimore*

The following BBS squares may be accessible to you if you have limited mobility (including using a wheelchair) as the survey routes are entirely on pavements and minor roads:

SZ7996 East Wittering
TQ0601 East Preston
TQ2638 Langley Green
TQ2836 central Crawley
TQ5639 Tunbridge Wells

The following BBS squares may be accessible by train as they are close to rail stations (other squares may be easily accessible by bus):

TQ0601 East Preston
TQ2836 central Crawley
TQ3319 Ditchling Common
TQ3618 near Wivelsfield Green
TQ4821 Uckfield
TQ5023 Buxted
TQ5435 near Eridge Station

For further information, please contact Helen Crabtree at hcrabtree@gmail.com. Please do not hesitate to ask if you have any questions about the survey or about any of the available squares.

In recent years, the Sussex Ornithological Society has worked hard to protect good places for birds from being damaged or built on, and to make district plans more sensitive to wildlife. Often acting in partnership with the Sussex Wildlife Trust (SWT), RSPB and other conservation charities, we’ve had some successes in preventing harm to wildlife habitats. The flip side of this coin would be to partner with some of the many exciting local projects underway to enhance the wildlife habitats in the Sussex countryside. And that is exactly what we now want to do – through you, our members.

You might be surprised by how many of these projects there are, ranging from those covering just a few acres to several thousand. There are many underway through the Wilder Horsham District initiative alone through a partnership between the District Council and SWT. Some members have been helping landowners with bird and other wildlife surveys across the county for a long time and you may have read about bird survey work with farmers between the Arun and Adur and on Pevensey Levels.

Would you like to participate in an expansion of this effort? If so, please let us know. Here are some immediate options:

1. The SWT is looking for volunteers who can help with bird surveys and training others to do bird surveys, in the Horsham District and on some SWT reserves including Rye Harbour.
2. Natural England is looking for help with bird surveys at Kingley Vale.
3. The Arun to Adur Farmers Group would welcome help with bird surveys.
4. We have a request to help survey the birds on a farm near Hartfield.

Wherever you live, do let us know if you are interested in getting involved and we’ll try to connect you with a local project. We’ve called this the Neighbourhood Survey Initiative to encourage a low carbon footprint, though you may of course have low carbon options for travelling longer distances.

We hope that you will prioritise national surveys through the BTO and others, and the SOS species surveys (Corn Bunting in 2024) as well as our winter survey, but if you have space for this additional local effort that would be much appreciated and hopefully very rewarding. Importantly, it may also give SOS access to some private sites that would otherwise have few bird records.

If you are interested, including in the requests mentioned above, or would like to know more, please contact me at in the first instance at Adam@red-inc.com. This year, 2024, is very much a trial year, and we want to learn as much as we can about how to make the initiative a success.

If you’ve already been active in this kind of work using your personal contacts with landowners and land managers, do please let us know, so that the Society can build up a picture of the number and range of activities that members have been engaged in.

Thank you.

Adam Huttly

SOS Neighbourhood Survey Initiative

20 March 2024

SOS member and Member of the Society of Wildlife Artists, Robert Greenhalf, has produced many fine illustrations over the years for the Sussex Bird Report. You will see from your spring newsletter that he has very kindly donated three lovely original watercolour paintings as featured in the 2022 Report, and now is your chance to own one. They are:

Curlews & Lapwing (p5, 15 x 21cm)

Avocets & Wigeon (p18, 15 x 21 cm)

Redshanks (p292, 12 x 18cm).

They are on artist’s paper/card (unmounted), and we invite bids (suggested minimum £40 each) for these.

Email Val Bentley on chetsford@talk21.com or ring 01273 494723 before 6th April with your offers!