Williamson's Weekly Nature Notes December 17 2008

This is an arm of the harbour near the Roman Palace, and twice a day or night the tide lifts these giant birds up into a herd where you can see them in all their magnificence.

At low tide they are usually preening in the centre stream where you can't see them quite so well as in my picture. The best way to view them is to park at either Dell Quay down channel, or at Apuldram church car park, and then walk up channel, that is to say, northwards.

The swans feed at high tide, often along the edges of the channel and many will be on the look-out for the occaisonal person throwing bread on the water for them, when they will quickly swim to you. Yet these are wild birds that have nested all over Sussex during the summer, on lakes, ponds, canals and gravel pits.

Often the high tide suddenly makes the birds restless when they will thrash along the surface attempting to take off, but usually only exercising their wings when there is plenty of runway. You will notice all the other waterfowl which gather here at high tide to rest while the mudflats are covered.

Apart from the swans I counted last week, there were 20 other species on the flood. The most obvious were the 222 wigeon scattered over the water. These wild ducks that nest in Siberia sometimes fly around, rising high up and making wonderful Peter Scott paintings as they go.

At dusk they may leave the harbour for fresh grazing meadows elsewhere.

Among them I usually see four or five teal, and six shelduck. If you get as far as the millpond you can feed 70 mallard which are so tame you almost tread on them. Here you may well see one or even two gadwall ducks, but I suggest you have a good look at the picture in your birdbook before trying to pick them out of the crowd.

Back on the flood tide be warned that the footpath which runs through the reedbeds at the top of the creek, is liable to flood very quickly for an hour.

There are bridges over the fresh-water streams but either side the water could be over your knees. These big tides are near the full and new moons only of course, or during a south-west gale when the water backs up.