Destination Sussex - bird migration

Emma Chaplin
, 20 October 2020
Destination Sussex - bird migration
Brent Geese © Barry Yates

By Dr Barry Yates

Reserve Manager, Rye Harbour

The heaviest book on my bookshelf is The Migration Atlas and its 884 pages describe the information we have on the travels of our British birds. Bird migration is an amazing phenomenon of fuelling, endurance, navigation and timing. And nearly all birds seen in Sussex undertake these dangerous journeys. It’s much easier to list the ones that don’t often move far: Nuthatch, Wren and Dunnock.

Dunlin wp BJY

Dunlin

Next time you think November is cold, wet and miserable, remember that many birds fly thousands of miles to spend their winter in Sussex because of our predictably mild climate. If you go outside tonight and listen carefully, you could hear the clear, fluty notes of Redwing overhead that are arriving from Scandinavia. This small thrush comes here to feast on the berries in our hedgerows and is often accompanied by its larger relative the Fieldfare that calls a distinctive chack-chack. All thrushes feed on worms and insects in grassland, so need the ground to be wet and frost free, saving those bright red berries for the freezing days. This is when the thrushes will be tempted into the gardens that have a supply of berries. 

Have you got some? If you are really lucky your berries might also attract a visiting flock of Waxwing.

Our coastal wetlands are warmed by the sea and attract large flocks of Brent Geese that nest in Arctic Russia. Alongside them will be other Arctic visitors in the form of long legged wading birds such as Bar-tailed Godwit, Knot, Dunlin, Sanderling and Golden Plover. 

The Sussex coast has three ‘harbours’ – Chichester, Pagham and Rye - with protected areas for these global travellers where their habitat is maintained and disturbance minimised. Visiting one of these sites you have a good chance of seeing large spectacular flocks of Arctic birds.

So our Sussex birds are not ours. We share them with places thousands of miles away. Sussex is part of an international network of places that need wildlife sites to be maintained and not developed.  

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Comments

  • Martin Turner:

    Thank you Barrie for all that you do so successfully

    02 Nov 2020 14:55:00

  • Genevieve Greenwood:

    Such an interesting BLOG. Thank you. Cann’t wait to come down again, although I think I am going to have to wait a while!!

    02 Nov 2020 19:25:00

  • David Phillips:

    Once again a brilliant piece on Countryfile.Let us all as Members (SWT) keep up the pressure on MPs to get the appropriate provisions in the Environment Bill ASAP!

    02 Nov 2020 20:45:00

  • Raphilena Bernard:

    Brent geese have been flying right over our house in West Wittering every evening around 7 pm and 7 am in the morning for the past few days , so lovely to know they are back ,,

    21 Sep 2021 17:46:00

  • Kate Ranger:

    Annual goose fly over this AM 6.45. About 80-100 birds in four groups with a few stragglers. They seemed a bit uncertain as to their leader and I wondered if they had had a stop over in Cuckmere Haven before heading off in a north westerly direction flying over the north eastern part of Seaford. These are I thInk Brent geese which I have seen for the past 20 years or so.

    13 Sep 2022 09:09:00

  • Depal Patel:

    Thank you for your lovely and informative post. I saw wild geese in flight in Cuckmere Haven on 15th September 2023 just before the dark set in. It was such an extraordinary experience.

    16 Sep 2023 08:08:00

  • Depal Patel:

    Thank you for your lovely and informative post. I saw wild geese in flight in Cuckmere Haven on 15th September 2023 just before the dark set in. It was such an extraordinary experience.

    16 Sep 2023 13:16:00

  • Lally Freeborn:

    I’ve noticed huge flocks of geese flying south west east over lewes and I wondered where they are heading and what type of geese too. If anyone knows I’d really like to know.

    01 Oct 2024 17:40:00

  • Sussex Wildlife Trust:

    They are Canada geese. Canada geese mostly don’t migrate and are here all year round, however 100,000 additional do migrate to the UK from elsewhere for the winter months.

  • Jeff Wilkinson:

    Lots of Canada geese in the skies above Lewes at the moment flying in beautiful V formations (it’s October). But they appear to be heading north (following the river?). Are they arriving in Sussex or departing please?

    05 Oct 2024 05:34:00

  • Sussex Wildlife Trust:

    Canada geese don't migrate, so these might be another goose species, possibly Brent Geese arriving from the east. But there definitely have been Canada Geese over Lewes recently and 100,000 additional Canada Geese do migrate TO the UK from elsewhere for the winter months.

  • Ann Foster:

    Hundreds of what look and sound like Canada geese have been flying back and forth over Lewes for the last couple of weeks – south in the mornings around 9am and north in the late afternoon around 5pm. Presumably it’s the same geese (?) flying between day and nightime settling grounds. Does anyone have any more information – such as why now and where are they going to and from? Thank you

    07 Oct 2024 08:27:00

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