16/07/2025

Newly fledged Chiffchaff at the ARC

Avocet with one of the fast growing chicks at the ARC

Eclipse drake Garganey at the ARC

A trickle of returning migrant waders with a Wood Sandpiper, 2 Greenshanks, 10+ Common Sandpipers, 6+ Little Ringed Plovers and a Ruff around the reserve. The bushes and sea remain very quiet, but I'm sure migration will pick up in the next couple of weeks.

An overload of juvenile Yellow-legged Gulls at the fishing boats. to be fair there is not much else there to look at yet.

Clavigesta pudeyi (Pine Leaf Mining Moth) not a particularly scarce species but quite atractive.

14/07/2025

Not sure what this angler was thinking, perhaps he could cast a couple of extra feet.

Just as well the angler was in front the sea watch hide this morning as he provided me with some source of entertainment to pass away a fruitless hour. A handful each of Gannet, Kittiwake, Mediterranean Gull, Sandwich and Common Tern loitering off shore with a Grey Seal and at least 2 Harbour Porpoises.

One of several Common Lizards on the Willow Trail Boardwalk this morning

2 Garganey from Hanson this morning, also the 2 Avocet chicks still surviving, 5 Common Sandpipers, a Ruff and 4 Little Ringed Plovers among the many loafing eclipse duck present.

A Greenshank from Firth Lookout

1 of 4 young Little Ringed Plovers at the Firth Lookout this morning

Sandwich Terns from the fishing boats this afternoon, apart from 3 Mediterranean Gulls and a Common Tern there was little else of note, until the juvenile Yellow-legged Gulls showed up. 

Juvenile Yellow-legged Gull with a Bass

Juvenile Yellow-legged Gull about to devour its prize

                      Juvenile Yellow-legged Gull with a Great Black-backed thief behind it

In the battle for the Bass there was only ever going to be one winner, the Juvenile Yellow-legged Gull was very quickly beaten by the Great Black-backed Gull.

A second Juvenile Yellow-legged Gull arrives

Juvenile Yellow-legged Gull 

13/07/2025

A scruffy Chiffchaff

It is still very quiet around the peninsula, the numbers of young birds in the bushes seems to be very low, also young birds around the lakes are few. There are 2 Avocet chicks left alive on the ARC, where it appears all the Ringed Plover nests failed/predated along with the Black-headed Gulls, the Red-crested Pochard is holding on to her 1 remaining duckling, the Tufted Duck family has been decimated from 7 down to 2 ducklings. Earlier in the spring the Lapwings produced double figure numbers of chicks but I dont believe any managed to fledge due to weather/predation, Mink are being seen almost daily and the peninsula is overrun with Foxes. The only success breeding wise seems to have been with Egyptian, Greylag and Canada Geese, hopefully the breeding season was a success elsewhere as we look forward to returning waders, seabirds and migrant passerines.

Hummingbird Hawkmoth nectaring on Sweet Peas in my garden this morning

 A Plain Pug infrequent in my trap

My 20th Sussex Emerald this year, an amazingly good year for them 

09/07/2025

Very quiet around the peninsula at the moment, though there are still Reed, Sedge and Cetti's Warblers singing along with the odd Blackcap and the usual July Sand Martins. The first returning waders Common Sandpipers and Greenshanks. The Avocets are now down to just 2 chicks with all the Ringed Plovers predated and most of the Common Terns around the reserve deserting probably due to predators. At the beach the first juvenile Yellow-legged Gulls are turning up, with a few Sandwich and Common Terns off shore, a westward trickle of Gannets and Kittiwakes. 

Sedge Warbler with a Ladybird

Singing Sedge Warbler

Common Tern with a small Pike

Common Sandpiper at Dengemarsh

The escaped Lesser White-fronted Goose with Canada Geese at Dengemarsh

My first juvenile Yellow-legged Gull of the year at the fishing boats

Oak Nyctoline

Cynaeda dentalis  probably my favourite micro

07/07/2025

A superb video of the Caspian Tern by Dave Scott published here with his kind permission.

There is no doubt about the birding highlight of the past few days, the superb Caspian Tern found Friday evening by Owen. When he found it I was in the shower and didn't pick up the message till late, at least I did get to the Romney Tavern in time to see it albeit distantly. the image below was my best effort
 

Apart from the Caspian Tern birding has been very slow for the last week, the escaped Lesser White-fronted Goose was still on Hayfield 2 this morning per Richard Watkins.

Herring Gull killing one of the Avocet chicks at the ARC, then dropped in the lake without eating it.😠

One of the Avocet parents at the ARC

Curlew at the ARC was about the only new arrival there this morning

Green 4A4 a Normandy rung Great Black-backed Gull was agin at the fishing boats this afternoon

My first juvenile Lesser Black-backed Gull was at the fishing boats this afternoon

A very successful and enjoyable moth event was held at the observatory this weekend, despite the cooler weather in excess of 220 species were seen.

Richard hit the jackpot yesterday morning when he found this superb Eastern Bordered Straw in his trap, a very rare migrant and the first at Dungeness since 2006.

An increasingly common moth, this individual was in my trap this morning

Cynaeda Dentalis a micro moth that feeds on Vipers Bugloss, quite common in my trap but I never get tired of seeing this tiny beauty.