Boat Tour Around Chichester Harbour

I spent a thoroughly enjoyable two hours as the birdwatching guide on the Chichester Harbour solar boat on Saturday afternoon. There was an excellent turnout, and fortunately there were enough blankets on board to insulate all of the guests from the chilly sea air!

There was an interesting mix of birds seen on the outing. One sighting involved a peregrine falcon and a carrion crow engaging in an aerial battle, whilst on the water a definite highlight was a great northern diver fishing in the Chichester Channel. In the water were a single common seal and a pair of grey seals, always a delightful sight.

Waders were seen throughout the tour and a mixed feeding flock allowed us to compare the differences between dunlin, knot and grey plover. In the winter I would describe these as the three ‘grey waders’ but each will look quite different come summertime. Knot and grey plover in particular have extraordinarily beautiful breeding plumages. Both are pictured below, knot left and grey plover right, taken off wikipedia © Hans Hillewaert.

You can find out information about the boat tours on the Chichester Harbour Conservancy website. Or for events on terra firma check out the events page on this website.

- Hugh Baggaley