Autumn Migration begins!

At The Patch this morning c200 Common Terns, c20 Sandwich Terns, 2 Little Terns, 1 Black Tern, 1 Juvenile Mediterranean Gull and 2 Kittiwakes among the 100s of Black-headed and Herring Gulls. Behind the hide the first 3 Willow Warblers of the Autumn for me.

Willow Warbler behind The Patch hide

 In 2 visits to The ARC 5 Wood Sandpipers, 6 Little Ringed Plovers, a Common Sandpiper, a Black-tailed Godwit, 4 Little Egrets and a Garganey were the highlights.

Little Egret from the Screen Hide

In 3 sea watches today I managed 1 Balearic Shearwater, 1 Manx Shearwater, 3+ Arctic Terns, 3+ Black Terns, 3 Arctic Skuas, c200 Gannets, 6 Kittiwakes, 1 Mediterranean Gull, the usual Little Gull put in several appearances, c150 Common Scoter flew west, c30 east and 3 Dunlin east.

What a difference an hour makes!

A thoroughly miserable day started from near the fishing boats from the comfort of my car. c50 Gannets moved West, small numbers of Common and Sandwich Terns were fishing along the colour change also a single adult Black Tern and the usual 1st summer Little Gull, 4 Common Scoter flew west and 3 east, my first Sooty Shearwater of the year flew west and 2 Turnstone were on the beach. A Grey Seal and 3+ Harbour Porpoises were off shore.

               The First summer Little Gull photographed yesterday from the fishing boats.

In 3 visits to the ARC Hanson Hide a maximum of 4 Wood Sandpipers, 6 Little Ringed Plovers, a Ringed Plover, 2 Common Sandpipers, 12 Dunlin, a Black Tailed Godwit, a Black necked Grebe, a Sparrowhawk, 2 Marsh Harriers and c200 Sand Martins and House Martins over the lake.
At Burrowes another Wood Sandpiper a Common Sandpiper and a few Swifts, the Great White Egret was still on Dengemarsh.
A short early afternoon sea watch produced nothing of note. Another hour between 18.00-19.00 saw just the first summer Little Gull and a Black tern of note. Though an hour earlier 30+ Black Terns, 2 Roseate Terns and 3 Manx Shearwaters were seen by PT.
  

More Sandpipers

The lighthouse garden and surrounding bushes this morning were still a migrant free zone. I met AJG on his way back from The Patch where an adult Black Tern was the only notable bird.

At the ARC from Hanson 3 Wood Sandpipers, 3 Common Sandpipers, a Black-tailed Godwit, 4 Little Ringed Plovers, 2 Marsh Harriers  and a  summer plumaged Black Necked Grebe were of note. In The Screen hide the Swallows are ready to leave and another pair are building another nest.  A visit this evening found 5 Wood Sandpipers. 

1st summer Little Gull

An hour at the fishing boats early afternoon produced nice views of a 1st summer Little Gull but little else.

Storms and Wood Sandpipers

Lightning over an illuminated Dungeness power station

 At 01.00 this morning I was woken by the sound of distant thunder, laying in bed I saw half a dozen lightning flashes out at sea and thought I would like to experiment photographing lightning. As it was not raining I got up and crossed the road so that the street light was behind me as I looked towards the power station, the storm promptly abated, half an hour later and no lightning flashes I went back to bed. At about 02.00 another storm moved through the channel, so up I got again set the camera up. Reviewing the shots I took I was very pleased with my first ever efforts at photographing lightning.

Lightning over the fishing boats

 Approx. 08.00 at the ARC from Hanson Hide, 3 Wood Sandpipers, 4 Common Sandpipers, a Ruff, A Little Stint, 4 Little Ringed Plovers a Redshank and a few Oystercatchers were of note. Another Wood Sandpiper was at the South End of the ARC from the causeway.

Common Sandpiper from Makepiece

 On Burrowes 6 more Common Sandpipers, the 2 Egyptian Geese still, 2 Marsh Harriers, 4 Little Egrets and Sparrowhawk were the best of the bunch.

Late afternoon at The Midrips another 5 Common Sandpipers, 2 Wood Sandpipers, 7 Redshank, 2 Whimbrel, 17 Avocet, 9 Dunlin, 4 Ringed Plovers and 2 Wheatears. Once again the sea was beautifully warm and refreshing. 

Sandpipers

First thing at the The Patch the usual 3 Little Gulls, 3 Mediterranean Gulls, c100 Common Terns and a few Sandwich Terns and Gannets off shore. 5 Harbour Porpoises were also seen thanks to the flat calm sea. Behind the hide a juv/female Black Redstart. In the scrub by the car park a Common Whitethroat posed. Still no migrant passerines in the bushes.

 Next stop Burrowes Pit where 4 Common Sandpipers and Green Sandpiper could be seen also the 2 Egyptian Geese still present.

Appears to have a Tick in front of its eye.

 At Dengemarsh the Great White Egret still, a Bittern flew over the reed bed, a Bearded Tit sat on the fence, 3+ Marsh Harriers could be seen and the Common Terns as noisy as ever on the rafts.

The electric fence has its uses!

 At the ARC 3 Wood Sandpipers, 4 Common Sandpipers, 4 Little Ringed Plovers, c100 Lapwing could be seen. Also c100 Sand martins flew through. In the Screen Hide the young Swallows look just about ready to fledge.

            By the Water Tower the Spitfire and Hurricane put on their now daily display.

This afternoon at Jurys Gap I met Tony and Brenda who had just seen a Curlew Sandpiper with some Dunlin on The Midrips on the second pools. When I arrived it was still there along with 2 Whimbrel, 23 Avocet and 2 Marsh Harriers, but no sign of the Wood Sandpiper and 8 Common Sandpipers seen in the morning by OL.  As it was high tide I had a lovely swim in the beautifully warm sea, I was surrounded by White Bait driven inshore by a Mackerel Shoal and had superb views of the Sandwich Terns diving after the them just a few feet from me. The Terns took absolutely no notice of me wallowing amongst them.
Stopping at Scotney on the way home there was still 6 Egyptian Geese present and a single Whimbrel.  

Unsatisfactory Emperors

At The Patch this morning still 3 Little Gulls, but only 1 juvenile Mediterranean Gull. A definite increase in the number of Common Terns present including the first juveniles.

Little Gull. 1 of 3 at The Patch

 A trip to Denes Wood with DW and GH for Purple Emperors was successful in that we saw a minimum of 3 individuals, but all spent their time flying high in the canopy so was not brilliant for photography. Maybe next year!

Redshank at The Midrips

 This evening a visit to The Midrips found 2 Wood Sandpipers, 2 Common Sandpipers, 27 Avocets,(including a colour ringed individual that insisted on staying at the back of the pools) 1 Greenshank, 2 Black-tailed Godwits, 5 Redshank, 2 Little Ringed Plovers, 5 Ringed Plovers, an adult male Marsh Harrier and 6 Wheatears. Offshore many Sandwich and Common Terns and a few Gannets.

Colour ringed Avocet

At Scotney the 7 Egyptian Geese still present.

Brent Geese in July!

No sign of the Roseate Terns at The Patch this morning but still 3 Little Gulls, at least 7 Mediterranean Gulls, (2 Juvs, 1 1st Summer, 2 2nd Summer and 2 Ads), 500+ Black-headed Gulls, c10 Sandwich Terns, c10 Common Terns. Off shore just a few Gannets and c50 Common Scoter flew West. By the car car park a male Black Redstart a different individual from the one at the back of The Patch.

At the ARC from Hanson hide in the company of MH and joined by PT, 4 Dunlin, 2 Common Sandpipers, 4 Little Egrets and a Marsh Harrier were the highlights.

Late morning an hour drinking tea and staring at Burrowes from the Visitor Centre with MH and King Squacco was fairly productive after recent days with 1 Greenshank, 3 Common Sandpipers, a Ringed Plover, 2 Egyptian Geese and newly fledged Common Gull.

Early afternoon at Springfield Bridge found the Great white Egret still in situ and 2 Mediterranean Gulls over.

At Scotney a surprise in the form of a flock of 7 Egyptian Geese and the usual 100s of Greylags and Canada Geese  but little else.

 An hour or so at the fishing boats this afternoon found a 1st summer Little Gull hawking and roosting with Black-headed Gulls, 3 Mediterranean Gulls with them and several Sandwich Terns. 5 Common Scoter flew east but the biggest surprise was 6 Brent Geese that flew east.

The biggest surprise of the day 6 Brent Geese moving East

Yesterday evening 2 Green Sandpipers and a Wood Sandpiper at The Midrips per CT. I was going to go there this evening but the rain stopped that. 

Roseate's

At The Patch this morning 2 Roseate Terns were the highlight, with a supporting cast of 3 Little Gulls, 7+ Mediterranean Gulls among the Black-headed Gulls. A few Gannets were fishing off shore and 40+ Common Scoter flew east, the Black Redstart is still behind the hide but not so vocal. The mystery seal was still present swimming around the back edge of the boil.

The 2 Roseates being moved by the rising tide

 A visit to the fishing boats over the high tide found just a few Sandwich Terns and 2 Mediterranean Gulls. The highlight for me being a swim in the warm sea.

The screen hide Swallows

   The highlights at the ARC in 3 visits today were 2 Whimbrel, 6 Dunlin, 2 Ringed Plovers, 4 Little Egrets and a Marsh Harrier. In the screen hide the young Swallows growing fast.
The juvenile House Martin that Patrick and DW nurtured was accidentally chased out of the observatory last week by a visitor who thought it was trapped! It has not been seen since!  

This afternoon the Great White Egret could be seen on Dengemarsh from Springfield bridge but little else of note.

A Fat Common Seal?

On arrival at The Patch this morning DW was on site with another birder watching the mystery Seal just off shore. The Seal soon hauled out and small gathering of locals began to study and photograph it. All seem to come to an ambiguous conclusion on its identity. 

I received a call from Tony and Brenda who have seen and photographed many Bearded Seals. They checked there slides of Bearded Seals against my photograph and ruled out it being a Bearded Seal. They also contacted one of there friends in the Orca Society who was 100% certain that the mystery seal is a a very fat Common Seal. Unless you know different!    

Rolling down the beach!

Head and shoulders dry back and tail wet

Completely different in the water

 Whilst watching the Seal 7+ Mediterranean Gulls could be seen on The Patch and beach along with at least 2 Little Gulls, good numbers of Gannets moving east an c200 Common Scoter west, also an Arctic Skua was seen per MS.

At the ARC 4 Black-tailed Godwits, 4 Dunlin, 2 Ringed Plovers and 2 Marsh Harriers were the highlights. The Swallow still feeding there young in the Screen Hide.
This afternoon at Springfield Bridge the Great White Egret, a Hobby and a Marsh Harrier were the highlights.

Possible Bearded Seal? and 200 up!

Seal sp.

 07.45 at The Patch this morning, DW was already there grilling the Gulls. We carried on scanning the Gulls on the beach and over The Patch finding a minimum of 6 Mediterranean Gulls including a Juvenile and a colour ringed adult (Green Ring, white 5S3) also a 1st summer Little Gull. I pointed out a seal swimming close inshore to DW assuming that it was a Common Seal that has been seen regularly there, then carried on looking out to sea for a few minutes where a flock of c200 Common Scoter were flying around off Rye Bay. In that time DW had been studying the Seal and eventually said that that he thought it was unusual and that it might be a Bearded Seal. As my knowledge of Seals is very limited I was not much help to him. Others arrived and even with the help of mobile internet ID of the Seal was not confirmed. If anyone can help with the ID of this Seal I would be most grateful.  While looking at the Seal 2 Crossbills flew over my 200th bird species for the marsh this year. 4 more Crossbills were seen at Galloways by OL this afternoon.
CT covered the reserve this morning and apart from 2 Common Sandpipers had little to report and no sign of the Great White Egret on Dengemarsh this morning.

Mediterranean Gull colour ring 5S3

Juvenile Mediterranean Gull