The speaker was Kerry Jackson, a volunteer with the local branch of the RSPB which has a nature reserve at Medmerry near Selsey.
She said that spring would arrive soon and about 100,000 birds which had overwintered in the harbour were about to go, migrating day and night.
The harbour was an important feeding station. However traditional routes were being changed by development in places such at Pagham. It had also been noted that migrant birds from the North East were finding new routes to avoid war ravaged Ukraine.
Our winter visitors included the dark bellied Brent goose, ten per cent of the world’s population came from Siberia to our shores. Widgeon, teal and pintail ducks came in vast numbers.
Kerry listed many other species which spent the winter here and flew on to their breeding grounds. However, with gradual global warming, some were now deciding to stay for the summer, including the egret.
More unusual birds which might be spotted included osprey or a stork. Now starting to arrive here were the starlings, swifts, sand martins and swallows, great crested grebe, ringed plovers, common tern and skuas.
A huge area at Pagham had been ring-fenced to protect the big and little tern whose numbers had been dwindling.
Kerry went on to say that nature desperately needed a helping hand. Our gardens were our biggest nature reserve. Ways we could help were to choose plants to help our struggling butterflies, leaving out water and providing somewhere to make a home or nest.
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