Seasonal switchover begins with water rail heard in reedbed
This entry is the text from Paul Steven’s Wildlife Sightings column for Sept 24 edition of the Chichester Observer, Littlehampton Gazette and the Worthing Herald.
AS THE END of September approaches the seasonal switchover really begins. We
now have more birds arriving for the winter than are leaving to migrate south.
We are now seeing the last stragglers of swallows and sand martins groups moving south. There are still chiff chaffs flocking around the black poplar grove near the Lapwing hide but most will soon move on while only a handful winter here.
The goldfinches I see on the teasel will stay for the winter and we already have the feeders full of Niger seed to supplement what they find in the seed heads.
Marking this change in season for me this morning was the sound of a water rail from the reedbed. The number of water rail onsite will start increasing now, fed by wintering birds from Europe.
They are supposed to be a shy bird and easily startled but they have become more brazen at WWT Arundel in past years. We had reports of a water rail regularly strutting down the reedbed boardwalk last winter. Colder weather will force them out into the open if they are struggling to find food. We think this boardwalk resident got used to the sound of our visitor’s footsteps and learned there was no threat.
Another one of our winter visitors is already here in strong numbers. I counted 76 gadwall ducks on the waters between the Ramsar and Sand Martin hides this morning. According to the Sussex Ornithological Society the Arun Valley and specifically WWT Arundel Wetland Centre is a key site for wintering gadwall in Sussex.
Male gadwalls are an elegant grey with a black bottom. Up close the gadwall’s grey reveals itself to be beautiful pattern of dark zigzags, scallops and speckles. The female are a soft brown.
Early Monday morning there was a flock of 68 Canada geese on the wet grassland. These large geese roost here overnight in the autumn and winter, dispersing up
the Arun Valley during the day.
I spotted our first lapwing of the autumn last Friday. These waders join together in flocks in the autumn. We get groups of them here on coldest days in the winter.
