NORTH DOWNS & BEYOND

"Prrrp...prrrp..." There aren't many bird calls that can illicit such a strong response from the birder than that of a European Bee-eater. They are uncommon enough to be valued, colourful of plumage to the extreme, graceful in flight and are rainbows with wings. Redolent of the Mediterranean and the Middle East they bring glamour and excitement to our ordinary world. So when I heard one call whilst eating an ice-cream and sitting chatting to Dave Bunney I knew that the day had just got a whole lot better - and more were to come! That afternoon (May 24th) we were to be treated to at least four of them flying around the point, giving their position away with calls to then reward us with low fly passes. Two of them decided to hang around Kerton Road Pit for long enough to enable all-comers to feast their eyes upon these apparitions calved from the sun, perching up on wires or sweeping above in the blue skies, feeding and calling, feeding and calling, feeding and calling. Bli...

Part 14 September – October 1976 The settling beds at Beddington Sewage Farm were in good condition to entice passage waders down to feed, the effluent being not too wet and not too dry, and when seen from above they mimicked small inland estuaries. The star birds were a Spotted Redshank, a Little Stint and a flock of Ruff that, over the course of a week, built up to 17 birds. House Martin numbers were also increasing, and it was not just passage migrants that were swelling the numbers, as those that had been locally fledged were also taking to the skies. Up to 600 were feeding above Beddington in mid-September and a faithful group of 100-200 birds remained above Sutton town centre well into October. There were still young in some of the nests, these muddy cups being a common enough sight under the eaves of houses in many suburban streets. Another species gathering in numbers was the House Sparrow, with gangs of 30+ being found with regularity in the neighbourhood front gardens, th...