Bird watchers from all over the country are making tracks to Church Norton to set eyes upon an of-course elegant tern who is creating a real stir at Pagham Harbour.
Twitchers from as far afield as Scotland and Wales continue to head to the coast to observe the rare bird, said to be making its first visit to these shores. It can currently be see on tern island with a colony of sandwich terns, at the RSPB Nature Reserve.
Visitors numbered in the thousands over last weekend to see the species, said to be found in America or Mexico during the summer months ordinarily; and there was a still a steady flow of visitors this morning (Monday).
Social media and mainstream media have covered the arrival of the bird. One bird watcher, Phil Ryan, from London, told the Chichester News, he used a telephone hotline to become aware of its arrival. He said: “What it is doing here I have no idea, but I am glad this ‘vagrant’ has turned up.
“I am a bit of a dinosaur where modern media is concerned and heard about the tern on the hotline I ring, which gives information about sightings and the like.
“I haven’t been to this area for more than 20 years but it has been well worth another visit. I’ve heard that he bird is tagged and that it shows it has come from a colony of sandwich terns from France.”
