Colin Holter

The soundscape of the oakwoods alongside the Pied Flycatchers includes Redstarts, Tree Pipits, Willow Warblers, Wood Warblers, the odd Cuckoo, & the occasional Garden Warbler in the scrubbier areas + multitudes of singing Song Thrushes...not sure it gets much better than this...

...while the female Pied Flycatchers are busy recycling last years oak leaves to use in their nest-building - just lovely to sit & watch all this going on...

Welsh oakwoods in spring are very special places...when the male Pied Flycatchers are singing & trying to entice females to their chosen nest site whilst chasing off other intruding males. Very entertaining & highly charismatic little birds...

@LeeEvansBirding Yep, couldn't see any on field nearest the car park...though it was mid morning.

@ColinHolter From the Lapwing Hide presumably

Never being one to miss an opportunity, on our way to mid-Wales last week we stopped off at RSPB Winterbourne Downs - mid morning found this distant Stone Curlew...such strange birds, mesmerising to watch it stalking & running amongst the cowslips as it fed. #birds #birdwatching

This lovely male Wheatear pitched up on the beach next to me when I was seawatching yesterday morning. It spent a few minutes looking around assessing it's surroundings after it's channel crossing, then flew off N over Worthing to who knows where...Iceland maybe? @SussexBirding

Saw this lovely male Whinchat on my first visit to my South Downs Farmland Birds Initiative survey square in the week. Don't often get to see full breeding plumaged males like this in Spring, so quite a treat. (Out of focus Dunnock photobombing at the back). #sussexbirding

@_MattEade Congratulations to both of you!

From this… to this, in just over a year! The most perfect and happiest day with my life partner. Rather apt that a Small Tortoiseshell was present throughout the ceremony! #Married

Such a gorgeous spring morning at @RSPBPulborough yesterday, but it wasn't just about the birds...we watched a Weasel for a few minutes + our first Orange Tip butterflies of the year, & this rather beautiful male Adder warming up in the sun. It's a very special place.

I'm seeing Great White Egrets more & more frequently around the Adur & Arun valleys recently, not sure if they're breeding in Sussex yet, if not it surely won't be long. Such elegant birds, especially when accompanied by a reflection such as this, at Pulborough Brooks yesterday.

Always pleased to see some Garganey dropping in on their spring migration. The drake of this pair at Pulborough Brooks this morning appeared to take exception to a pair of Teal, sadly a bit too distant to be able to hear it. Also at least 7 Nightingales & 5+ Whitethroats singing.

The splendidly named & rather marvellous Hairy-footed Flower Bee; this one a female currently making many feeding visits to Pulmonaria in our garden - a terrific plant for early season pollinating insects, if you don't have any in your garden, get some! #bees #wildlife #gardens

Near Cissbury, this Kestrel hovering intently at eye level over a grassy bank for nearly 3 minutes before giving up to try it's luck elsewhere...to a backdrop of larks ascending into a cloudless sky... @sdnpa

Red Kite sauntering around on thermals above Lychpole Hill on the South Downs got too close to this Carrion Crow's nest site, & was remorselessly rebuked for it's misdemeanour yesterday morning.

Solitary Purple Sandpiper happily feeding in the sunshine yesterday on the inside of the west arm at Shoreham harbour an hour or so before high tide. This is a regular spot & there's been at least 1 all winter - but you have to get the tide right to see it! @SussexBirding

I usually manage to see my 1st Wheatears in March - so a bit slow off the mark this year, but always a special day nonetheless with 13+ newly arrived along Shoreham beach this morning. Humbling to see them battling inland against a stiff N breeze, all gone by 10:30h on my return.

Up at Henfield Levels this afternoon; c15 Sand Martins, 2 Swallows, & 3 Little Ringed Plovers (all new for the year for me) - briefly strafed by an imm. White-Tailed Eagle causing panic among the remaining winter wildfowl but it didn't hang around & carried on flying NE.

Some parts of the Downs in West Sussex still have very good populations of Brown Hares, it's always a treat to watch them, but I seldom get to see one as well as this one yesterday - such beautiful, fascinating creatures. @sdnpa #sussex

Yesterday up on the downs between the Adur & Arun I was lucky to watch this beautiful male Hen Harrier for a while, followed a little later by distant glimpses of a ringtail - I don't often get to see 2 Hen Harriers in Sussex on the same walk...such elegant, effortless flight.

For me Corn Buntings are the quintessential bird of the downs near us. Winter flocks have split up into pairs, with much jangly song now (a sound that always reminds me of our trips to Extremadura). Superficially just chunky brown birds, but just look at that intricate plumage.