Monday 13/01/2020

AJG kindly sent me his sea watch sightings today as was I doing the WEBs count on the reserve.

07.30-09.00

Eider:1W (drake)

Red-breasted Merganser: 3W

Red-throated Diver: 8W    12E

Fulmar:4W

Gannet: 339W

Cormorant: 700W into Rye bay

Kittiwake: 259W

Guillemot: 87W   c150 o/s

Auk sp: 57E    37W

The WEBs count on Burrowes and New Excavations were a disappointment, I recorded no Moorhens, no Mallard, no Grebes of any description, no Water R and very low numbers of all the other wildfowl. After the count I joined CT in wander around the back of Hookers where we located the drake Smew. 

Drake Smew at Hookers late morning

Only 3 Bewick Swans at Midley this afternoon

As the weather closed in this afternoon a quick check at Scotney found 3 Long-tailed Ducks at the Kent end (4 were reported earlier) and the usual feral Geese. On a very barren Walland I only found 3 Bewick Swans at Midley and saw precious little elsewhere on the marsh.

Sunday 12/01/2020

A drizzly morning with wind gusting SW 8
08.10-09.10 from the sea watch hide:
Brent Goose: 10E    2W
Common Scoter: 2W
Red-throated Diver: 2W
Great-crested Grebe: 2 o/s
Fulmar: 6W
Gannet; 80W  12E
Cormorant: c250 into Rye Bay
Kittiwake: 38W
Black-headed Gull: 2,000+ at The Patch
Guillemot: 73W    14E
Razorbill: 7W  2E
Auk sp: 116W    58E
At Scotney at least 2 Long-tailed Ducks still present this morning, they were very difficult to spot in the among the waves at the Sussex end that were being whipped up by the gale. 1,000s each of Lapwing and Golden Plover were seen wheeling around over the lake and out to the wind turbines.

Smew at Hookers this afternoon

Around Hookers this afternoon a couple of Bearded Tits calling remained unseen, the elusive drake Smew was moving between the pits via the linking channels, but eventually showed well.

A Grey Heron uncharacteristically posed for the camera at Hookers

Late afternoon from Dennis's the usual hordes of Cormorants, 8 Black-tailed Godwits flew through and a Firecrest was in the brambles. Only a few Gulls had come in by the time I left, I saw nothing unusual among them.

9-10/01/2020

Thursday

On Thursday a thoroughly miserable day with constant drizzle and some heavy rain blown in on a strong SW wind.
08.20-10.20 from the sea watch hide joined by OL:
Common Scoter: 2W
Red-throated Diver: 34W   4E
Fulmar: 3W   2E
Gannet: 452W
Cormorant: present n/c
Great Skua: 2W
Kittiwake: 57W
Mediterranean Gull: 2W
Guillemot: 559W
Razorbill: 43W
There were a pair Peregrines over the power station and a female Sparrowhawk over the car park.
No sign of the Smew on Tanners Pool, but it"s probably still around the back of Hookers, but I wasn't going to venture out around there in the poor weather.
As I drove to Scotney a Merlin whizzed across the road right in front of me, at Scotney the usual many Lapwing, Golden Plover and Wigeon but I couldn't find any of the Long-tailed Ducks. With the weather getting worse the lure of a cup of tea was enough for me to give up for the day.

Friday

With builders work going on at home to today my time out was limited. An early morning walk down the Lydd to Dungeness footpath to view the Geese sadly found no Tundra Bean Geese, just several 100s of Greylag, Egyptian, Canada, 2 Brent and a Barnacle Goose. Marsh Harriers and a Merlin were spooking the Lapwing and Golden Plover.

At Scotney I did find 2 of the Long-tailed Ducks, though 3 were seen by SM, the usual Wigeon flock, Golden Plover, Lapwing and feral Geese were also there.

Late afternoon 9 Great White Egrets went to roost at the ARC along with 14 Little Egrets.

The drake Smew was at Hookers per PB.

Tuesday 07/01/2020

Due to domestic stuff I didn't make it to the sea watch this morning but AJG kindly sent me his and DW sightings:

07.30-09.00 from the sea watch hide:

Red-throated Diver: 42W

Fulmar: 6W

Gannet: 18 around

Kittiwake: 52W

Mediterranean Gull: 1W

Guillemot: 41W

Razorbill: 5W

Auk sp: 136W    14E

Poor image of the 5 Long-tailed Ducks at Scotney this morning

I did get to Scotney mid morning where I was pleasantly surprised to find the Long-tailed Ducks had increased to 5, which easily the biggest party I have ever encountered on the south coast. The usual feral Geese, Golden Plover, Lapwing and Marsh Harriers were also present.

The drake Smew was seen on Tanners Pool per DS but I have heard of no reports of the Tundra Bean Geese today. The miserable weather late afternoon precluded looking for yesterdays hooded Herring Gull in the roost today.  

Sunday 05/12/2020

This mornings sea watch is basically a repeat of the few days.
07.45-09.30 from the sea watch hide with AJG & RW:
Brent Goose: 25E
Wigeon: 2W
Common Scoter: 6E
Red-throated Diver: 79E    3W
Great-crested Grebe: 2E    1W    3 o/s
Fulmar: 1W
Gannet: 174E
Cormorant: 251 o/s
Oystercatcher: 2E
Great Skua: 2W
Kittiwake: 14E     451W
Guillemot: 446E     242W
Razorbill: 18E    11W   
Auk sp: 378E      211W
Harbour Porpoise: 2
We managed to find the 2 mobile Tundra Bean Geese at Dengemarsh with a party of c100 Greylags trying to hide behind some reeds, then a quick visit to Scotney where we located 1 of the 3 Long-tailed Ducks, 3 Goldeneye and 5 Pintail of note.
I spent late morning/early afternoon wandering around the back of the water tower, which was long slog for very little return, 3 Common Snipe being the highlight.
2 Bewick Swans were showing nicely on the ARC viewed from the causeway.

Bewick Swans on the ARC from the causeway

Late afternoon on the Burrowes an adult Yellow-legged Gull was the only notable Gull I saw come into roost.

The drake Smew was again very elusive today, unlike the herd of Bewick Swans at Midley.

The male Hen Harrier came into the roost on the ranges and 2 Short-eared Owls were present per JY.

Saturday 04/01/2020

07.30-09.30 from the sea watch hide with John, RW & SO
The first hour very busy I must have missed a lot, probably more Razorbills than I recorded as so much going on I clicked the Guillemots in 10s.
John had a Great Northern Diver go east high which I missed.
Shelduck: 1W
Common Scoter: 4W
Red-throated Diver: 379E     3W
Great-crested Grebe: 23E    2W
Gannet: 47E    26W
Cormorant: c2,500E (the flock stretched back to RYE, so presumably roosted there)
Oystercatcher: 3E
Curlew: 1W
Great Skua: 1W
Kittiwake: 7E   119W
Guillemot: 2,690E     140W
Razorbill: 21E       15W
Auk sp:  estimated 150E      40W
Late morning on a very busy reserve 2 Red-crested Pochards from Dennis's picnic area courtesy of PB. 100s of Lapwing, Golden Plover and Wigeon on the Boulderwall Fields.

Mistle Thrush an early afternoon surprise in Lydd, now a scarce bird here.

The regular Little Owl at Lydd camp early afternoon

At Scotney I could only find 1 Long-tailed Duck, also despite searching through all the feral Geese there I could find no wild Geese, 3 Marsh Harriers were hunting along the far bank.

Early afternoon the drake Smew reappeared at Tanners Pool and 2 Tundra Bean Geese were found at Dengemarsh. Being to lazy to walk out to Dengemarsh hide I tried to locate them from Dengemarsh Road, but they were playing hide and seek and winning, while we were looking for them we were distracted by the male Hen Harrier which suddenly appeared fairly close to us, as tried to get my camera up I knocked the focus points out, by the time I had reset them the Harrier had flown down to couple of hundred yards from house then disappearing towards the airport and out of camera range, while I was still cursing myself we spotted the Tundra Bean Geese also heading towards my house, we saw them land a few hundred yards away from the house with some Lapwing and Golden Plover, so we made our way back to the cars and headed towards them, before we got there they were all spooked by something, probably a Common Buzzard and lost. with the light fading I went home. Hopefully I will get the Hen Harrier on garden year list in the next couple of weeks along with the Tundra Bean Geese.

Thursday 02/01/2020

Some of the 100s of Guillemots past Dungeness today

08.15-10.00 from the sea watch hide with DW
Brent Goose: 6E
Red-throated Diver: 89E       296W
Great-crested Grebe: 5 o/s
Fulmar: 5W
Gannet: 120E      17W
Cormorant: c200 around
Oystercatcher: 1E
Great Skua: 1W
Kittiwake: 6W    1E
Mediterranean Gull: 1E   1W
Guillemot: 543E       291W
Razorbill: 2E      5W
Auk sp: 98E  42W
Common Seal: 1

Bewick Swans at Midley today

A drive around Walland Marsh today found that the herd of 30 at Midley had reduced to 18, but found a new party of 5 at Newlands Farm with another juvenile. Only a few winter thrushes were found. I will have to get out of the car and venture into the marsh on foot to try and locate some winter Geese  and hopefully some more Swans.

The 4 Long-tailed Ducks were still present today at Scotney but little else of note.

I finally caught up with the drake Smew, getting very distant views on Tanners Pool, also the usual Great White Egrets there.

1 of the few Razorbills seen among the 100s of Guillemots today

Half an hour at the fishing boats this afternoon saw 100s more Guillemots, a black slick of Cormorants more Red-throated Givers and Gannets, also 26 Brent Geese moved east and 40 Kittiwake were lingering off shore.

  Gannets at the fishing boats this afternoon

This image does not convey the numbers of Cormorants at the fishing boats this afternoon

The late afternoon Gull roost on Burrowes was disappointing, despite many Gulls coming to roost I and even DW was unable to find any Caspians or Yellow-legged Gulls. 12 roosting Black-tailed Godwits were the highlight.

Wednesday 01/01/2020

On the way to the beach this morning a Great White Egret was in its usual spot at the South Eastern end of the ARC, another 4 were seen around the area today.

From the sea watch hide with OL, SO & BB a Great Skua was the highlight, also seen 100s of Guillemots, with smaller numbers of Red-throated Divers, Great-crested Grebes and Gannets, a single Mediterranean Gull, several Kittiwake and a single Common Scoter, plus the usual Gulls and the black slick of Cormorants.

 Bittern with a Jack Pike this morning

From the sea we went to the ARC where a Bittern showed well catching a Jack Pike in front the screen hide was the highlight. We saw the rear end of Woodcock that flushed in front of us at the pines, a Chiffchaff nearby and the usual dabbling ducks as well as some Goldeneye.

 We saw the Long-tailed Ducks at Scotney, a singleton at the Kent end the 3 at the Sussex end, but it wasn't till this afternoon that we realised that there are 4 birds present, the usual feral Geese and wild fowl were seen there along with clouds of Lapwing and Golden Plover.

 Bewick Swans at Midley

A brief drive onto Walland saw 30 Bewick Swans with 1 juvenile at Midley, several each of Corn bunting and Yellowhammer in Clubbs lane but no Tree Sparrows.

 Short-eared Owl at Galloways in the gloom

A very gloomy afternoon at Galloways was surprisingly productive, with 2 Short-eared Owls. While I was watching a S.E.O. another bird flew past me very close, it took me a while to realise that it lacked a white trailing edge to the wing making it a Long-eared Owl by which time it had disappeared along the bank and behind the reeds. A male Hen Harrier has been seen in the area the last 2 days, first by CP then yesterday by CT, so we were very happy to see it the this afternoon albeit distantly over Galloways and again later at South Brooks roost. Unfortunately for us as there was no firing today, the rescue helicopter took the opportunity for some low level practise, where it spent 10 minutes hovering just a few feet over the Harrier roost site, pretty much ensuring no other Harriers would roost there today. We also saw a Merlin, Peregrine, Common Buzzard and Raven on the ranges.  

 A Raven in the gloom

A very distant male Hen harrier over the ranges

Monday 30/12/2019

First thing this morning there were 100s of Gulls at The Patch, despite careful scrutiny all I could find were 3 Mediterranean Gulls among the many Herring and Black-headed Gulls. 2 of the Herring Gulls had colour rings, North Thames F3XT a Dungeness regular, Yellow ringed Y:701 a Yorkshire ringed bird that I last saw in November 2018. Off shore the sea was littered with 100s of Guillemots, Red-throated Divers and Great-crested Grebes, also a slick of c300 Cormorants feeding with a few Gannets diving in among them.

Adult and juvenile Bewick Swan

On Walland Marsh between Midley and Coldharbour there are now 24 Bewick Swans but only 1 Juvenile. I was unable to find the 2 Whooper Swans today in the Swamp Crossing/Caldecott Lane area, winter Thrushes were noticeable by there absence today.

Long-tailed Duck at the Kent end of Scotney

At Scotney the 2 Long-tailed Ducks remain very mobile flying up and down the lake, flitting from County to County, a female Goldeneye was also present.

Stonechat at back of Scotney

 A very disappointing long walk out the back of Scotney found no Skylarks, no Corn Buntings and no Tree Sparrows, the only small birds I found were 3 Stonechats, a Wren, a Robin and Starlings. The was just a single Mute Swan and just 8 Greylag Geese, though there were spectacular numbers of Golden Plover, Lapwing and Wigeon mainly being flushed by Marsh Harriers and Common Buzzards 

One of several Marsh Harriers at Scotney

Common Buzzard on the roof of Scotney Farm House

Late afternoon CP saw a Grey Male Hen Harrier at the wind farm which flew over Scotney to the ranges.

Sunday 29/12/2019

Yet another Gull suffering due because of fisherman

As I drove on to the estate this morning a Brown Hare ran across the road in front of me.
07.45-10.00 from the sea watch hide with CP:
Brent Goose: 49E
Wigeon: 8E
Common Scoter: 6E
Red-breasted Merganser: 3W
Red-throated Diver: 196E   18W        2o/s
Great-crested Grebe: 6E     3 o/s
Gannet: 67E
Cormorant: c450 o/s
Peregrine: 2 around
Oystercatcher: 3E
Kittiwake: 4E       2W
Mediterranean Gull: 3E       2W
Guillemot: 2,633E       178 o/s
Razorbill: 4E
Auk sp: 226E          43W

One of the many Guillemots seen today

Mid morning the Great White Egret was still at the South Eastern end of the ARC not taking any notice of the 2 Marsh Harriers hunting a few feet over its head.
At Scotney the 2 Long-tailed Ducks still present but still no sign of the Slavonian or Black-necked Grebe.
On Walland yesterdays 12 Bewick Swans have been joined by another 12 this morning including a juvenile. The 2 Whoopers are still viewable from the chicken sheds at Swamp crossing.

Flock of 58 Turnstones, probably the largest flock I have seen at the fishing boats

14.00-15.00 from the fishing boats:
No off shore movement this afternoon but the sea was littered with  many birds.
Red-throated diver: 14 o/s
Great-crested Grebe: 37 o/s
Gannet: c30 o/s
Cormorant: c300 o/s
Turnstone: 58 on the beach
Kittiwake: 156 minimum o/s
Mediterranean Gull: 2 o/s
Guillemot: minimum of 65 o/s
Common Seal: 1
Grey Seal: 1

A couple of the Red-throated Divers

Late afternoon at Burrowes 13 Black-tailed Godwits with 6 Ruff, 2+ Firecrests in a large Tit flock were the highlights.