The best buckets to use to temporarily house small fish and crabs for inspection are light in colour. Fish will suffocate if left in a bucket for too long on a hot day. The fish should be returned under rocks so they are safe from marauding gulls.
Click on the fish for identification
 
 

Even more amazingly Ray Hamblett discovered a small Montagu's Sea Snail, Liparis montagui, (a small fish, a juvenile 40 mm* long) underneath a rock. This is a small orange fish and although I had never ever discovered one on thousands of visits to the shore. I immediately recognised it as this fish is actually known to breed off Lancing. This was discovered by the late John Barker and the species confirmed by fish expert at the Natural History Museum Alwyne Wheeler. Montagu's Sea Snail has a string sucker-disc on its underside that enables it to fasten itself to a rock with its tail turned around its head. (* excludes caudal fin.)
Original Report (Sussex Rare Fish)

The children discovered over a dozen rockpool fish of four species to much excitement, as well lots of different crabs. 

Furthermore, the beach was home to five species of sea anemones including large Dahlia Anemones and frequent Snakelocks Anemones, enough to identify this location as the most easterly regular location of this sea anemone on the northern English Channel. 
The Pimplet Anemone was also discovered, another anemone species that has never been recorded this far east before. 
Full Report
BMLSS Sea Anemones
Adur Estuary Survey by the late John Barker

Sanderlings (x 20 +) (a small wading bird) fed energetically alongside the sandy pools and a the margins of sand and sea. 
A flock of about 100 small to medium-sized black birds flew in a formation eastwards, but too far out to sea to be sure of their identity. They were probably Common Scoters. The fluctuating shape of their flock formation was particularly noticeable, strung out in long lines as they flew rapidly. 

A very clear sunny morning with just a fresh chill in the area, but no wind and the mud flats adjacent to the airfield were resting places for gulls and Cormorants. Instead of the usual black heads, one of the four Cormorants was particularly striking (full breeding livery) with a heron-like grey face and neck. Gulls included a Great Black-backed Gull and a Lesser Black-backed Gull, but were mostly Herring Gulls.

An exceptionally high 6.9 metre equinoctial spring tide occurred just after midnight at 12:06 am at Shoreham-by-Sea. Although this high tide was forecast there were no additional prevailing weather conditions that would cause floods and the water rose no higher than a normal spring tide.
BMLSS Tides Page

29 March 2002
A Peacock and Holly Blue Butterfly seen in my Lancing Garden (TQ 185046). 
The tide went out an exceptionally long way on Lancing beach (TQ 018 034) where there were Hermit Crabs, Shore Crabs, prawns and other critters in the shallow pools that were exposed. A Dahlia Sea Anemone was recognised from the photographs.

28 March 2002
The first Full Moon since the Vernal Equinox shone clear and large in the late afternoon sky. A pregnant 5-Bearded Rockling was amongst several species of rockpool fish in the shallow pools under Worthing Pier. 
Full Report

27 March 2002
With sunny days and chill nights, a large yellow-white butterfly is seen in Fishersgate, presumably a Brimstone, unless the white butterflies are very early. 
A probable Small Tortoiseshell Butterfly in flight over a bostal near Shermanbury.

25 March 2002
It feels a bit like spring, with the sun shining, no wind, but the ground is still squelchy underfoot and the soil temperature may even fall below freezing at night. 
Peacock and Brimstone Butterflies in flight at Shermanbury and Small Tortoiseshells at Botolphs.

24 March 2002
A flock of 25 Jackdaws rose from the Beech tree in The Drive (near Buckingham Park), Shoreham-by-Sea. I also spotted my first butterfly of the year, a Peacock, bathing in the sunshine amongst the garden plants (TQ  219 063).

23 March 2002
Peacock Butterflies and Great Spotted Woodpecker at Shermanbury and a Hedgehog has awakened from hibernation in a Lancing garden (TQ 185 046). A Song Thrush pays a regular visit to the bird table. 

21 March 2002
In the green open space between Brooklands Boating Lake and the railway line, a female Sparrowhawk was seen struggling with a large item of prey or carrion from the ground to the height of several feet when it appeared to be mobbed by a Starling. The view was from the train window and was too fleeting to identify the prey which looked pinkish in colour and probably weighed about 300 grams (pigeon-sized), possibly more, up to 500 grams

20 March 2002
Vernal Equinox at 19:03 GMT (UT).

18 March 2002
After three days of almost continual rain, 1.3 cm of rain fell in the morning. At nearby Findon there were mudslides and floods. 

16 March 2002
One of the Robins is constructing a nest behind the garden shed in my south Lancing garden (TQ 185 046). We have seen it fetching dried leaves from a neighbours garden and returning to a shady area, close to ground level at the fence side of the shed. Robins are often ground nesting birds but this is on a direct route used by cats, so it is very unlikely the birds will breed successfully. 
A Wren was seen with a big green caterpillar in it's beak, when it had bashed it on a log a few times, it carried the grub up to the Hawthorn Tree and disappeared from view.

15 March 2002
The Lapwings now all seem to have dispersed to search out their breeding territories, as there were none on the Adur at low tide. Three wheeling flocks of Dunlins each numbered over 30 birds and there were dozens of these small plump birds feeding on the mud and waterline, and the handful of Redshanks were too busy feeding to sound their alarm call. 
A solitary Rock Pipit was seen amongst the Sea Purslane. The bird was identified as a brown bird with greyish-bordered tail feathers visible as it flew away. This was the first one I have identified locally, although they may have been spotted as Meadow Pipits before. This bird may be a Scandinavian Rock Pipit (a sub-species).
Kent Ornithological Society Rock Pipits Discussion

A couple of Wheatears have arrived by Widewater for the first report of these migrants this year. 150 Brent Geese were also seen flying east a long way out to sea, and a flock of 15 Turnstones inshore.

c. 13 March 2002
Frog tadpoles appeared in a Shoreham garden pond (TQ  219 063) around this date. The larger tadpoles, pea-sized probably came from the spawn laid c. 7 February 2002 but many of the tadpoles were just thin slivers and they are probably from the batch laid a couple of weeks after the first permeable clump.
Freshwater Life of North-western Europe Smart Group

11 March 2002
Eight Turnstones fed on the waterline on the low tide mussel beds underneath the Railway Viaduct on the River Adur. They were well camouflaged but their red legs could be discerned. This time when one of them preened its belly it was clearly white. Two further Turnstones flew over the viaduct and back again and then all eight of these wading birds flew off a short distance in formation, showing off their piebald patterns, and making their distinctive call.
Lapwings were absent, but the Little Egret was stalking the shallows on the opposite west side of the river by Adur Recreation Ground for a change. 

8 March 2002
A restless and very "loud" almost greeny yellow butterfly was seen near Shermanbury as we enjoyed the first fine sunny weather of the year. It was probably a Brimstone Butterfly.

On Widewater Lagoon, a pair of Red-breasted Mergansers shook themselves and dived under the water. The Little Egret was still there fishing in the shallows. A chirm of 20 Goldfinches adorned the shrub on the south side of the lagoon. 

5 March 2002
The spawn of the nudibranch (sea slug) Onchidoris bilamellata was recorded under Worthing pier. 
Redshanks (x 8+) were noticeable amongst the energetic Dunlins (x 50+) and Grey Plovers with all of the common species of gulls on the mud north of the railway viaduct on the Adur estuary. 

4 March 2002
The 0.6 metre low tide revealed a single specimen of the sea anemone Sagartiogeton undatus, but as the area below the Tide Level Marker was still under water, there could be other sea anemones, as this is the best known location for this sea anemone that I know. A single specimen of the nudibranch (sea slug) Onchidoris bilamellata was also discovered under a barnacle encrusted rock. This species is common in spring when it comes into breed on the exposed shores at Ovingdean and Worthing but on this sheltered shore it is rare. Some Oysters were large enough for eating and one Whelk was buried at cockle-depth in the sand. 
On the mud flats the most noticeable birds were three Oystercatchers which have not been so often this winter. Some other birds were making a tremendous amount of noise, including one unseen Redshank that sent all the birds bar the gulls into flight. Their warning call was supplemented by a chippy call, more persistent and harsher, but it could be mistaken for the call of a Turnstone. 

2 March 2002
McIntyres Field (north of Lancing Manor) has been forage harvested during the winter by a contractor appointed by the South Downs Conservation Board. There was a delay for this job to be completed due to problems with sourcing a contractor with the necessary equipment and at a price within the board's budget for maintenance work. 
If  this work was not done, the field would soon revert to scrub with Dogwood, Brambles and tree seedlings crowding out the grass meadow plants.

28 February 2002
There may be at least two Little Egrets regularly on the River Adur this year as one was seen in a field to the rear of the cottage near Cuckoo's Corner (first carpark from the south on the Coombes road) and another wading in the shallow pools surrounded by mussel beds underneath the Railway Viaduct. Of course, the bird may have flown from Cuckoo's Corner quicker than I could cycle. 

26 February 2002
Greenfinches are currently the second most predominant bird in my south Lancing garden (TQ 185 046) with the House Sparrow at number one.
Sparrows normally number 6 to 10 birds but often exceed that. There have been up to 12 Greenfinches about 3:1 females to males. A typical count would be around 6 birds.
The Wren is visiting regularly, flitting and hopping rather mouse-like through the shrubbery, picking out small grubs.
The Robin appears daily mostly feeding from the ground on small insects.
A female Chaffinch was seen once at the weekend on the ground in the garden.
A pair of Collared Doves are settling in to the Hawthorn tree. A pair appear every spring and begin nest building, I have not yet seen a successful brood produced.

22 February 2002
Coots (x30) and Moorhens (x15) shared Brooklands Boating Lake with Mallards and Mute Swans, which is usual in most months of the year, but the Pochards (x15) were less usual and they can be seen up much closer than at Widewater Lagoon a mile to the east. On the green, the squint eye and yellow legs identified the Common Gull up close. 
Wading the Widewater submerged margins, the brilliant orange of the large Ruddy Shelduck was the last bird to be seen after the Little Egret in the shallow lagoon to the east of the bridge and the Red-breasted Merganser on the surface over the deeper water. 
Over Lancing Beach Green where the Sailing Club building was being rebuilt, a solitary bird flew just like the Turnstones of a week ago. Only this time the fleeting rear view was different with far more white, and the call was "kee-oo kee-oo" which makes this bird to almost certainly be a Redshank, although the call was not the shrill alarm of this wader when it is suddenly disturbed on the estuary. 
About a hundred small birds were observed flying west over the sea, just above the waves in flocks of 30 and 60+, only a 100 metres from the cycle path, just 50 metres, from where the sea lapped on the shore, but the birds were too small and quick for me to identify. I would go for Dunlins as the most probable birds. 
The chirm of Goldfinches in the shrubbery between the lagoon and the sea numbered about 30 but they were outnumbered by about 100 noisy House Sparrows in the neighbouring bushes.
Friends of Widewater Lagoon

18 February 2002
Adur World Oceans Day 2002
The first meeting to discuss arrangements for this Adur Festival event.
Please express any interest to:
Andy Horton (British Marine Life Study Society)
Tel:  01273 465433
Glaucus@hotmail.com
or
Neil Mitchell (West Sussex County Council)
Tel:  01243 756856
Adur World Oceans Day 2001 web page
World Oceans Day

17 February 2002
Jackdaws (x 3), Chaffinches (x 2) and a Wren  amongst the shrubs are three less common visitors, (but not particularly special),  to a north Shoreham garden (TQ  219 063) where further frog spawn was deposited in the small pond during the week. This as the last spawn deposited this year.

16 February 2002
A Small Tortoiseshell Butterfly is active in my south facing front garden in Lancing. Greenfinches are visiting regularly.

15 February 2002
A small formation of four wading birds flew rapidly over the shingle shore and imported Larvikite (a type of syenite) sea defence rocks (TQ 213 044) opposite Beach Green, (by the beach huts) in mid-afternoon. These birds could be clearly seen with a white wing bar when flying away (not like the white rear edge of the Redshank) and there call was a clear  "tik-tik-tik" of Turnstones. A flock of three Turnstones have also been reported from Southwick Beach.
Shoreham Beach

13 February 2002
Lancing Ring
A party of about 20 volunteers with the South Downs Conservation Board, led by Countryside Ranger Richard James, gathered for a scrub clearing session on the South-west slope of Lancing Ring. The task was to remove some of the Hawthorn which is seen to be invading the chalk grassland which itself has been colonised by Tor Grass, Brachypodium pinnatum. The SDCB hope to introduce grazing by Exmoor Ponies which have proved successful on downland at Firle near Lewes, East Sussex. 

Tor Grass Information Files:
Firle near Lewes
Sussex University Bulletin
Action Plan Link

Adur Estuary
I thought I would take a short detour to the Adur near Old Shoreham Toll Bridge to try and clear up the identity of the waders seen yesterday. Alas amongst the 1000+ Lapwings and assorted gulls, the various waders seem to pose more problems than they solved. A flock of 75 or so Dunlins were easy to separate by size, but again the medium-sized waders still posed problems. A handful of stocky ones with black beaks and dark legs were Grey Plovers. 
At least a couple of wading birds with pale yellowish legs and much darker (less thrush-like) breast, embarked on a very steady and fast trot  along the edge of the waterline. These actually turned out to be Redshanks. 
"The identification of these waders is simply fraught with too many difficulties to be sure. The Redshank, usually long and spindly, can actually look quite squat at a long distance and at an angle the medium-long beak can actually look shorter. In the poor light, even the leg and beak colours can be difficult to discern."
Through the binoculars the unringed Little Egret stilting on its long black legs, looked really large in comparison to every bird bar the Great Black-backed Gulls.
Sussex Ornithological Society Waders Files
Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB)

12 February 2002
After the gales the strandline of Shoreham Beach was peppered with thousands of Whelk egg-cases, amongst the flotsam of shells, seaweed and man-made rubbish. 
A flock of 25 Turnstones wheeled in by the Adur Railway Viaduct just like a flock of Dunlins. These birds were much stockier than the solitary Redshank, which was elegantly feeding within a few metres of one of these waders.
- "A wader slightly smaller than a Lapwing, squatter and fatter than a Redshank, speckled a bit like a Thrush, bright red legs like an adult Redshank, shortish dark beak, jerky feeding, quite inclined to submerge its legs, in a small flock of 25 wheeling like a Dunlin flock, much larger than a Ringed Plover, but smaller than an Oystercatcher. When the bird ruffled its feathers a small area of white was revealed on its flank and belly." -
These waders in their dull winter plumage were about the same size as a couple of Grey Plovers foraging along the water line at mid-tide. Some of them waded in the pools near the mussel beds with their legs submerged, but they were not adverse to feeding on the mud flats.
A few Wrens arrowed between the scrub bushes by the disused railway route to the south-east of Old Shoreham Toll Bridge. 
Adur Estuary Page

10 February 2002
The wader feeding jerkily over the edge of mud and water near the railway viaduct with bright red legs (and smaller than a Lapwing) must surely be a Redshank, (but originally misidentified as a Turnstone). It was originally disturbed by the helicopter from a mud and rocks area, when it called twice as it flew about 30 metres to the water's edge. The other wader was probably a Grey Plover. On this murky day colours were a bit subdued. 

7 February 2002
On a wet and blustery day a small flock of 30 Dunlin wheeled over Widewater .The resident albino Mallards tucked their heads into their breasts.

c. 7 February 2002
A Common Frog laid a small clump of spawn in a Shoreham garden (TQ  219 063) between the dates of 4 and 10 February. 
This spawn was earlier than usual. At the beginning of this Millennium, spawn was not recorded in Shoreham until 27 February 2000. 
Freshwater Life of North-western Europe Smart Group

6 February 2002
"Kwaa! kwaa!" yelled the gull with the big yellow beak, whilst simultaneously pattering its feet to encourage the worms to rise. Not on the beach but on the Hamm outside Adur Civic Centre. The is was almost certainly a Herring Gull, a  common sight in Shoreham town. The idea to check is to look at the colour of its legs, which are red in this species, but this gull was crouching down and being aggressive so I could not see their colour. All the playing fields and parks were covered in mostly Black-headed Gulls after the gales (which also have red legs, but they are much smaller).

4 February 2002
Gale Force 8 winds and steady rain throughout the whole of the day that died down by the evening. 

3 February 2002
Professor Richard Ivell visited Widewater Lagoon, Lancing, West Sussex, to show a group of naturalists and local residents where he discovered the very rare sea anemone Edwardsii ivelli. He also explained how they were discovered which should enable us to try and and discover them again this summer when the water recedes. After the recent rain the the lagoon was in flood, covering the Glasswort, Salicornia sp, completely. The miniature sea anemones were originally discovered on a study of the Lagoon Cockle, Cerastoderma glaucum, which buries deeply (to 10 cm) in the soft sediment. They revealed themselves in the bucket of mud and cockles.
(NB: The 1997 survey took core samples.)
Friends of Widewater Lagoon

A flock of about 35 Pochards cheered us up in the rain. These ducks appear like a dark blob at first, their grey backs camouflaged quite well against the rippled water, repeatedly diving under the surface. In the shallows a Little Egret was repeatedly feeding right on the edge, probably not on the abundant Three Spined Sticklebacks, Gasterosteus aculeatus, although I am not quite sure what the Egret was stabbing at. 
JNCC Proposal to remove Edwardsia ivelli from Schedule 5 protection (Link)
Saline Lagoons Action Plan

1 February 2002

Although the tides were forecasted at 6.8 metres, as high as any in the last 25 years, the sea did not rise exceptionally or even particularly high at the Surry Yard on the River Adur estuary.
Beaufort Scale (sea)
Beaufort Scale (land)

29 January 2002
A group of five Long-tailed Tits arrive in a Shermanbury garden and feed on bread underneath the feeder. This bird feeds on insects so it is a rare visitor to bird tables. This lightweight bird is not a true titmouse of the genus Parus but classified in the family Aegithalidae.

28 January 2002
The Redshanks sound the alarm call and 1000+ Lapwings and 500+ gulls took to the air near Old Shoreham Toll Bridge.

26-27 January 2002
RSPB Annual Garden Bird Count
Survey Form (link)

Top Five Garden Birds in West Sussex 2001:
1. House Sparrow
2. Starling
3. Blue Tit
4. Blackbird
5. Great Tit

Garden Birds of Adur

24 January 2002
A Public Meeting at Lancing Parish Hall to discuss with the Environment Agency the effect shingle movement is having on water levels in Widewater Lagoon. There are presentations by Rupert Chubb (Flood defence Manager, Environment Agency), Derek Neate (Friends of Widewater Lagoon) and Councillor Tony Nicklen.
Glasswort Page

22 January 2002
Gliding less than a metre above the road surface, south of Cuckoo's Corner (TQ 201 064), a male Sparrowhawk flew at least 20 metres along the road before veering suddenly in the hedgerow on the right. It was identified as a male by its slate-bluish colour, and as a Sparrowhawk by its behaviour including the fanning of its tail as it swerved adeptly between the bare hedgerow branches in a way that would not be common for the Kestrel. A Kestrel, a regular sight on waste land, had spent some time gliding and hovering near Old Shoreham on the east side of the Adur, so I was able to contrast the two falcons. 
Huddleston & Jackson Ringing Partnership Web Site

18 January 2002
A Great Tit was many of bird visitors in my Lancing garden.

14 January 2002
On the estuarine Adur mudflats, thousands (about 2500) of Lapwings exceeded any numbers I had noted before and they were on all the exposed mud on both sides of the river, with the greatest numbers near the Toll Bridge. When disturbed by the helicopter their "peewit" calls were most noticeable. At least two, Grey Plovers searched for invertebrates on the mud. 

12 January 2002
A Jay could be clearly seen in the denuded broadleaf branches in Church Lane, Southwick, near the vicarage of St. Michael's Church; a common enough sight in this side road, but will it remain so if ever the wood in this road is developed?

11 January 2002
The low spring tide at Kingston Beach only receded to 1.2 metres above Chart Datum so the lowest most interesting part of this beach was still under water. However, despite this and January is usually the least interesting of all the months of the year, there were still small Blennies under rocks, a tiny 6 mm Butterfish and a few prawns, Palaemon elegans, in the pools underneath the groynes.
The most notable discovery were large Dogwhelks averaging 50 mm in length (all a dirty white colour) and one group were laying their egg capsules. Unusually, small Common Starfish were present under rocks and at least one Common Whelk was discovered amongst the oysters. 
Full Report
Dogwhelk page
Trouble with Dogwhelks 

A Fox brazenly trotted from one twitten to another across Gordon Road, Shoreham, right in the middle of a residential area and very near where I was brought up in Rosslyn Road. This is an area of terraced houses and narrow smallish gardens, although there is some waste land next to the railway line. The Fox looked healthy and very grey, although at 10:00 pm and it was only lit up by the street lamps and colours were not bright. Foxes have been seen frequently in town. 

10 January 2002
The River Adur estuary between the Norfolk bridge and the A27 Flyover sported a particular large number of sea birds as the low spring tide receded exposing the mud flats north of the Railway Viaduct and the mussel beds and gravel to the south. Nothing special although the large stumpy wader known as the Grey Plover (x2) made sudden darts to capture its food. In order of prevalence the bird selection with over a hundred birds included Lapwings, Black-headed Gulls, Dunlins and Great Black-backed Gulls. There were significant numbers of Redshanks, Oystercatchers, Herring Gulls, Common Gulls, and a few Mute Swans. A large Little Egret fished in a pool by the viaduct, and a Ringed Plover could be picked out from the gravel. On the vegetated mudflats by the houseboats, seven Grey Herons stood statuesquely. Crows foraged around the smaller boats by the Norfolk bridge and on the towpath adjacent to the airport. The absence of Cormorants was not an omission. There were none to be seen. 
Sussex Ornithological Society Gulls & Terns Files

7 January 2002
A small chirm of four or more adult Goldfinches made an attractive addition on the fence of the playing fields to the west of the Church Green estate, Middle Road, Shoreham. 

6 January 2002
52 Pochards were recorded by Colin Upton (Brighton RSPB) leading a group of birdwatchers at Widewater Lagoon. These ducks were also reported before Christmas at Widewater. 

4 January 2002
With the broadleafed shrubbery and woods bereft of greenery, the Robin Redbreast can be seen at this time of year, a flash of red amongst the Sycamore on the Waterworks Road. The Robin in the photograph was taken by Allen Pollard at Shermanbury. 

A solitary diving bird on the River Adur, just north of the railway viaduct, on a flood spring tide on a murky afternoon was not familiar to me. 

2 January 2002
ABullfinch made a visit to a Shermanbury garden. This very distinctive bird is unlikely to be missed, but I have never seen one around Shoreham. Over a thousand have been ringed over the years at the Shoreham sanctuary near the Waterworks on the Adur levels. 

1 January 2002
On Steep Down Hill (TQ 168 075), north of Lancing, patches of snow lingered on the ground among the corn stubble on a sunny but chilly day. Near the summit the sound of Skylark was unmistakable, at least two birds could be spotted soaring overhead.

Images on Smart Groups