This needs to be a brief update of the last few weeks. A couple of family weekend parties and work that's spilled into the weekends has rather thwarted birding efforts over the last few weeks.
I terms of trips out they've been limited to two trips to the coast and the usual torture of hope trying to see migrants at Selsey - The highlight there probably being 4 Manx Shearwaters on 19th.
Then on 25th May news of a Roller not too far away on Broxwood Common in Hampshire, had me making a plan for Sunday morning. Only announced on Saturday afternoon, it was reported to have been there for the previous 2 days and had been apparently active from mid-morning. As such, I dithered slightly on Sunday and decided to wait for confirmatory news rather than head there at first light, so I got up early, went for a quick walk and then headed off at 8.30ish having seen a confirmation of the bird being present at 7.30. I arrived at the site finding lots of cars on the road and started walking down a sandy track passing a birder you stated 'its still around although it's been fairly mobile - but you'll have no problem seeing it'. I joined the gathering of probably 100 birders and got chatting to be told, 'yes last seen about 10 minutes ago it just flew towards those trees which it's done a couple of times so I'm sure it'll be out again in a minute'. You can guess that the birding Gods weren't smiling on me - an hour and a half later - still waiting for it to appear from 'those trees' the message came through that the bird had been seen flying North over Thursley Common (about 6 miles away) - so it's last sortie to 'those trees' had obviously been more purposeful and it had just kept going. Compensation was in the form of a nice Woodlark , Tree Pipit and very vocal Garden Warbler, but the dip being compounded by receiving further instructions by phone to divert to Sainsbury's quickly by a stroppy 9 year old demanding straws for her Milk drink !.
Another local walk on the bank holiday weekend had a similar count of the common birds with the addition of a singing Firecrest and sight of 2 Turtle Doves following a series of calling from the same patch pf oaks and at least 2 more Garden Warblers, which had obviously arrived slightly later. No Nightingale this time.
From the house a Honey Buzzard was seen on the 19th and then again last weekend on both 1st and 2nd June with 2 birds on the Saturday and although rather distant, one was performing it's 'butterfly display'. A Hobby was seen on the 19th and 20th . The house is still in complete chaos but progress is being made although it's likely to be the end of July before we have more than 2 rooms habitable downstairs and we have 23 hen chicks and currently a count of 7 ducklings which is increasing daily as they hatch.