Early autumn (because that's surely where we are now) is proving more than adequate compensation for the gloom of summer. Beautiful, warm weather which looks set to last for at least a few days. Ideal for a trek out to Pulborough Brooks, an RSPB reserve in Sussex.
I'll start with a tiny surprise. As we arrived the visitor centre (where you pay) was all but deserted. The reason, we were told, was that they'd had a bit of excitement. A baby adder had been found inside the centre and had just been released back into the open. Everyone was outside watching. Sure enough the baby adder was still there, settled behind a large flower pot against the side of the building. It was absolutely tiny 🙂 
After a quick sandwich in the cafe (dodging the inevitable wasps), we headed outside. 
A small herd of fallow deer
As we wandered further into the reserve (eyes half on the ground looking for adders, and half looking upward for birds), a large butterfly caught my eye. I rarely see brimstones, but they are spectacular and this one was posing elegantly in the sunshine.
Brimstone
This is the season for fungi, and of several varieties this parasol was the pick (though of course we didn't pick it). 
Parasol mushroom
And then it was out to the wetlands, the real reason for visiting Pulborough.
Canada geese and other water fowl and waders
There were more fallow deer, their tails flicking and ears twitching to keep off the flies… 
Fallow deer
Among the geese and widgeons, and lone heron, there were numerous lapwings. The distances at Pulborough make it difficult to identify species without a spotting scope until, that is, they take to the air.
Lapwings
Finally a shot of a much more common bird. A blue tit, busy eating a berry. 
Camera note: all shots taken with the Canon 40D and EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L USM IS lens, except for the adder and the mushroom which were taken with the EF 100mm f/2.8L macro IS USM lens.
gdare
2 Sep 2010Presence of adder is a reason for being more cautious, even though they say its bite can be rarly fatal for humans. For me, it is surprise to see it in flatlands, here it mostly live in mountain areas :left:
Parasol mushroom :chef:
Words
2 Sep 2010Darko, the biggest risk with approaching adders is scaring them away, but it's sensible to be careful. The bite can be bad. We have lots of them on grasslands, and we are quite hilly in the Downs… not quite mountains though.
Words
2 Sep 2010Erwin thanks! I didn't see any black-tailed godwits, though there may have been some there. I'm not very good at identifying waders, especially from a distance. Good luck with your watching.
SittingFox
2 Sep 2010You did well with the deer. Sometimes I see them, sometimes I don't, and they're not always that cooperative with the camera!
But the adder is very special. How on earth did it get inside the visitor centre? :eyes:
Words
2 Sep 2010Adele, the deer are fairly easy at Pulborough… not really wild. As for the adder getting inside, that was the big question of the day!
Flying Red Fox Blog
11 Sep 2010Very cool especisally that snake :yikes: I think our local Adders cannot kill us by their i heard apparently but i wouldnt want to test that out lol!
Words
11 Sep 2010Mark, the adder was great to see. Their bite can be quite nasty but generally they will avoid humans if they can. We're scarier!
Ukwildlife
3 Oct 2010Great photos – you did well to photograph a brimstone! And an adder is always nice
Words
3 Oct 2010Neil, I think I was actually more pleased with the Brimstone than the adder, though the snake was about as cute as snakes can be.
Wulpen
19 Oct 2012A Great set Of Pict, I mean to see a Black tailed Godwit???