Country walk: Pagham Harbour
One good tern deserves an other so this walk carries on with what I am saying in Nature Trails opposite. The 3.7 mile (6kms) out and return wander along the southern shores of Pagham Harbour takes you as near as you can get to seeing these beautiful birds in Sussex. Park at the RSPB visitor centre just south of Sidlesham on the main road from Chichester to Selsey. The tern breeding colony is at the farther end of the walk on islands out on the mudflats near the sea as shown on my map. On the way there is much to see from wild flowers to shelducklings and dragonflies.
Across the road is the famous Ferry Pool where rare wading birds have for decades been recorded such as avocets, greenshanks and various rare sandpipers. You never know what will turn up there from day to day. Temminks stint is one I remember seeing there for the first time years ago. Then you will see several dragonflies
which breed in the fresh-water ditches landward of the seawall footpath, notably the blue damselfly. The flowers along the tidal edge zone are very pretty with such delights as Small islands opposite the church which is where now the tern colony lives were originally constructed by the Pagham Wildfowlers under the direction of Philip Hawes.
For years these were not particularly successful in attracting breeding birds but this season have done so with a reported huge increase in three tern species (Sandwich, common, and little) as well as black-headed and Mediterranean gulls.
The RSPB report that whereas other tern colonies in Sussex have suffered from predation, disturbance, and food supply, Pagham has not, making it crucial in the support of these rare and vulnerable birds. So when you arrive on the shore near the 13thcentury church, spend some time looking across the harbour to see and hear the colony in action.
Seven-hundred pairs of sea birds are on Tern and New Islands trying to raise their young and the infighting can be spectacular. The three species of terns are all white, have black caps, tail streamers and all somewhat resemble Concorde. Look closely and you will see size differences between them from the tiny little terns, to middling-size common terns, on to larger Sandwich terns. The latter were so named because they were first recorded at Sandwich in Kent.
Protecting ground-nesting birds has led to innovative methods of management in recent times. Marauding kestrels taking tern chicks have been diverted with supplies of day-old farm-yard chicks. Solar panelled electric fences have kept out foxes, dogs and badgers. User-friendly information boards have persuaded the public to keep out of areas where eggs on the shingle become virtually invisible. See it all for yourself at this jewel in the audit of national biosphere sites while it lasts.