Tag Archives: Stonechat

Birds at Seven Sisters Country Park

20 Tuesday Oct 2026

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Many of the wonderful birds I was lucky enough to see during my two days at Seven Sister Country Park in East Sussex were quite distant, certainly too far away for anything more than record photographs. These are a few that I managed to get a little closer to, and there will be one more blog about a stunning pair of birds I saw on the last day of my trip that deserve a post of their own.

I only saw two Bar-tailed godwits, and the other was probing its way along a distant mud bank. Luckily, this one was nearer, and I was able to sneak up behind the cover of scrub and bramble bushes.

I heard the Curlews before I saw them, at least a dozen of them during my first visit but none at all on the second day.

Either I saw three Kestrels this day, or one Kestrel three times. I suspect it was the latter, and I was delighted to get wonderfully close views.

The park was teeming with both Meadow pipits and Skylarks, the sounds of their calls a constant accompaniment as I walked the paths.

The Skylarks were even song-flighting, something they usually do in the springtime to establish a territory and attract a mate. They were easily spooked though, so I only managed to grab one quick shot of this bird on the ground in the open.

The fields on the edge of Cuckmere Valley were alive with Rooks, poking about in the grass for whatever small invertebrates they could find.

Stonechats were also abundant. Whether these birds were resident or on passage, I’m not sure, but, as they’re one of my favourite birds, I was very glad to see them.

The also-rans

12 Monday Oct 2026

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From a birding perspective, my recent trip to Weymouth and Portland was my most successful so far, with 85 species logged, and the unforgettable thrill of seeing, albeit fleetingly from the train, my first ever White-tailed eagles perched like statues on the edge of Poole Harbour. In this last blog from that trip, I want to feature some of the also-rans, the birds I loved seeing and managed to photograph that didn’t get their own blog but still deserve to be admired.

One of the many Blackcaps that were passing through on migration.

On a blustery day when birds were mostly sheltering, this delightful Dunnock appeared and posed nicely.

Though there are quite a lot of trees around RSPB Lodmoor, and a small woodland to the north in Lorton Valley Country Park, I was still a little surprised to hear this Great spotted woodpecker pounding at a tree trunk right by the water.

A Great white egret looking statuesque in the soft morning light.

Lodmoor was looking quite autumnal, and this female Marsh harrier sitting on her lookout post seemed to blend right in.

RSPB Radipole was mostly a disappointment this time around, a site that’s suffering from the neglect of the RSPB, who steadfastly fail to see the potential of one of their most accessible reserves to help the general public become more aware of and appreciate the wonders of Nature. It seemed appropriate that, on my final afternoon in Weymouth, the last bird I saw there was this Pheasant.

This was the day of the Stonechats! During a walk of the path along Portland’s east cliffs and the fields around the Bill and the Obs, I counted more than 20; the next day almost all were gone, braving the English Channel to migrate south for the winter.

I didn’t see many Wheatears this time around but this beauty popped up on top of a bush right in front of me one morning at Ferrybridge.

I think you can tell there was an autumn chill in the air this early morning just from looking at this Woodpigeon.

Skylarks and Stonechats

19 Tuesday May 2026

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The area around the Wild Chesil Centre at Ferrybridge in Weymouth is alive with small birds in the spring and summer months. As soon as you arrive, your ears will be filled with the joyous sound of displaying Skylarks, the trills and warbles of their lengthy song flights audible even above the almost constant sound of cars passing on the busy road to the Isle of Portland. And, as this area is also busy with human traffic, the birds are more tolerant than usual of approaching people walking the tracks behind the Centre’s car park and on the opposite side of the road, along the well-vegetated edge of Hamm Beach. In fact, the colours of the Skylark pictured below blended so well with the stony path that I was almost upon the bird before it scuttled a few yards ahead of me, its close proximity providing a nice photo opportunity.

The Stonechats in this area were also a delight to watch.

Mum and Dad Stonechat (that’s the male above) were perched up on the tops of low shrubs, making their usual contact calls (like two stones being knocked together, hence their name), and, when I spotted them, I also noticed these two youngsters, sitting watching the goings on. These, presumably, were the first brood of the year, now fledged and able to fend for themselves, which means the parents will be able to move on to raising another one, possibly two more broods before the summer ends. Busy little chats!

Target acquired

14 Wednesday Jan 2026

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I do love it when a plan comes together. I’ve now found most of the common bird species that inhabit my local area so I’m being more focused when planning my daily walks, trying to look specifically for particular species. This is when it helps that, after 10 years in the area and many hundreds (thousands?) of miles of walking its trails, I know my patch very well.

Though I try to avoid going to Cosmeston Lakes Country Park at the weekend (too many people and dogs), last Saturday was a glorious sunny day, the forecast for the following week looked quite grim, and I knew that the outer fields were usually relatively empty of visitors.

That was also where I figured I had the best chance of finding my target species, the Stonechat, as the habitat of the tree plantation that was planted about five years ago is perfect for chat species; they can perch up on the shrubs, tall grasses and smaller saplings while looking for insect prey to flit down and snap up. As soon as I went through the kissing gate into the plantation up she popped, this gorgeous female Stonechat; it was the perfect birding moment. And my pleasure continued as she moved around the field, with me following discretely behind, admiring her hunting skills and looking for photo opportunities. I particularly like my second photo, with the blurred pink hips of a Field rose as her backdrop. .

Avian juveniles

02 Tuesday Sep 2025

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I feel like we haven’t had enough birds on here lately so let’s take a look at some of this year’s juveniles …

There are quite a lot of young Chiffchaffs flitting around the trees and bushes now, in the throes of making their first migration flights south for the winter, though, with the warming climate, many Chiffchiffs also now over-winter in southern parts of Britain.

This was the first juvenile Collared dove I’d ever seen and it was probably the fact that it was a juvenile that made it much less wary of this photographer’s lens than its parents would’ve been.

Though it hardly seems possible to be more adorable than an adult Long-tailed tit, I think the offspring outdo their parents in the cuteness department.

Likewise young Robins, which are even more endearing and much less feisty than the adult versions. And I do think their juvenile plumage is very attractive too.

This little one was my first juvenile Stonechat of the year, spotted last week at the local country park with an adult male. These birds will also be in the process of moving from their more northerly breeding grounds to warmer winter climes.

A Stonechat surprise

05 Saturday Jul 2025

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I’m just home from another mini break away, this time based in Cheltenham, but branching out from there to other places in Gloucestershire and Worcestershire, so expect a few blogs in the coming week about my finds. My trip was inspired by a desire to see one particular butterfly species but, of course, I appreciate all the wildlife I see around me, and this young Stonechat that I spotted sitting on a tree in Stroud on Thursday was a wonderful surprise and was definitely the birding highlight of this little adventure.

Two little chats

02 Wednesday Aug 2023

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We humans may be hoping for a bit more warm weather now that August is here but the birds seem to have decided that summer is over. First up last Wednesday, 26 July, our local expert birder found the first migrating bird of the season, a juvenile Redstart, at Cosmeston Lakes Country Park. And when I went for a look (found it but my photo was poor), I also found a juvenile Stonechat in the same area.

230802 stonechat

And then on Friday, 28 July, I made my own first discovery of the migration season, also at Cosmeston, of a juvenile Whinchat that had begun its journey south. (Later in the day, the same local expert birder who found the Redstart found a second Whinchat, an adult this time.) Enjoy the last of the summer while you can because autumn is definitely in the wind.

230802 whinchat