The Savannah run-around

With spring approaching, the excitement of overshooting migrants turning up on our shores gives us re-newed hope to get out there and find some birds..including our first Wheatears of the year! Taking a shower before dropping the wife off to work, I started to get ready when I casually glanced at my phone....7 messages and a missed call! Panic set in as the realisation that a goodie had been found (locally) ! SAVANNAH SPARROW seen and photographed yesterday just north of Lancing Ring....bloody hell..less than 5miles from home! I had less than 2 hours spare before Robyn had nursery so just had to go for it...was soon on-site (cheers Harry for directions) and the search commenced. There was already a c20 birders gathered just above the car park and the initial info was that there had been no sign so far...with only a couple of birders actually looking through their bins and the rest talking we decided to look further down the track and the surrounding area looked good for the area described by the finder (Matt Sparkes),  no-one knew for sure that this was the right area. The finder had posted that he would be on-site a little later to show where he had taken the photo, but in the meantime we continued the search...all rather hopeful and optimistic. A couple of Linnets were scoped by Jake, another bird perched up proved to be a Chaffinch. In fact there did not seem to be many small birds around at all. A male Kestrel was over-looking proceedings and a Peregrine soared past in the distance. We started to disect the info on hand and agreed that we could quite possibly be searching the wrong area, so it was decided to spread out and see if the area and the bird could be tracked down. Robyn was with me so we headed off along a grassy path that took us out on the downs, the warm spring sunshine making the search pleasant. We walked quite a way to realise that we were probably on the wrong track to head back towards the car park, soon apparent that all the birders here originally had dispersed into other areas or to meet the finder. Either way we had to leave to drop R to nursery but I planned to return before work, I decided to call Harry to find out the latest and that is when the Hoax claim was being banded around and that the area we was scanning initially was the right area...just different fencing to that in the photo! Apparantley, once birders started questioning the photo Mr Sparkes swiftly disappeared! No need to return to the site but I for one cannot get my head around why another birder would do this? I did not have to travel so far this morning to get to this site, but many others did including some Hampshire birders that turned up as I was leaving...I am sure this story will develop further and the truth will be confirmed, but at least we tried and followed up this report...as for the finder..I here Butlins are looking for clowns for the summer...I suggest you apply