All a bit distant!

Swallows, Sand Martins House Martins by the observatory

 Arctic Skua

Another morning of Chiffchaffs, Blackcaps and Hirundines with an attendant Hobby. A good number made their way into the nets to be ringed at the observatory. Though ringing came to an abrupt end as news of a Beluga Whale in the Thames at Gravesend broke. I probably should have joined the others and gone, but when I see one I want it to be in the Arctic. (If it's still around tomorrow I might crack)

13.30-16.30 from the fishing boats with AJG who kindly collated the numbers, joined by MH & ML.
Brent Goose: 3W
Pintail: 2W
Common Scoter: 32W
Red-throated Diver: 1E
Black-necked Grebe:1 around but distant
Gannet: 47W
Oystercatcher: 1E
Grey Phalarope: 1 present all afternoon but distant, a different bird from the weekend.
Arctic Skua: 12W
Mediterranean Gull: 8W
Kittiwake: 5 around
Sandwich Tern: 31W
Common Tern: 2W
Guillemot: 1 around
Swallow: 351 out
Harbour Porpoise: 5+

 1cy Black-necked Grebe, I did say it was distant

1cy Grey Phalarope Honest! even more distant

Late afternoon at the ARC from Hanson Hide, 60+ Golden Plover,2 Ruff, 2 Dunlin all among c200 Lapwing, also seen there a Cattle Egret, 2 Great White Egrets, a Hobby, a Merlin, a Water Rail and the usual wild fowl including an albino Egyptian Goose. While there around 18.00hrs I got a call from Marcus Lawson letting me know that he was watching the Buff-breasted Sandpiper at the back of Scotney in Sussex.. I immediately headed off to Scotney, when I was about 100yds from him the rescue helicopter based at Lydd flew over flushing everything, fortunately after a few minutes for me Marcus picked it out again, also there  a Little Stint, Common Snipe, c15 Dunlin, 3+ Ruff and a Greenshank. Out by the wind turbines as sun set 100s possibly 1,000s of Hirundines were swarming over a Maize field presumably preparing to roost.   

 Carrying on the rubbish distant images, spot the Buff-breasted Sandpiper!

 Pied Flycatcher in the nets this morning

Early morning a Pied Flycatcher was caught and ringed, also there were good numbers of Chiffchaffs, Blackcaps and Meadow Pipits many of which were caught and ringed.

 Immature Spoonbill being flushed by army Helicopters

Early afternoon on the ARC from Hanson An Immature Spoonbill, 261 Golden Plover, 200+ Lapwing, 7 Dunlin, 3 Common Snipe, a Ruff, a Bar-tailed Godwit, 40 Shelduck (a good count here), a Garganey, a Hobby, a Marsh Harrier and the usual wildfowl and Egrets, all were flushed as 2 army helicopters flew low down the middle of the lake then over the airport. 4 Common Buzzards were over the car park.

At Boulderwall 6+ Cattle Egrets still.

Immature Spoonbill coming back in

 Immature Spoonbill

13.00-15.00 from the fishing boats with JTM & AJG who kindly collated the numbers:
Brent Goose: 5W
Wigeon: 6 in
Gannet 78 down
Great-crested Grebe: 2 around
Dunlin: 2E
Grey Phalarope: 1 around c100yds off shore
Great Skua: 1W
Arctic Skua: 7W
Mediterranean Gull: 1W
Kittiwake: 1W
Guillemot: 1 on
At Scotney this afternoon many feral Geese including 156 Barnacle Geese and 46 Egyptian Geese as well as the usual Greylag and Canada Geese, a Common Sandpiper was feeding along the shore and 3 Common Buzzards there.

Chiffchaff from Makepiece

Late afternoon on the reserve 8 Great White Egrets from Dennis's Hide, another 24 Golden Plover, a Dunlin and a couple of Norwegian ringed Great Black Backed Gulls. From Firth Hide a single Avocet and the Egyptian Goose family still insitu.

An Excellent Day Despite The Weather!

 Grey Phalarope

This mornings sea watch 06.15 to 09.15 then 10.40-11.40 with AJG who kindly collated all the numbers also SO & OM.
Common Scoter: 11E    6 on
Red-throated Diver: 1W
Great-crested Grebe: 2 around
Gannet: 108W
Kestrel: 1 out
Turnstone: 4 around
Grey Phalarope: 1 around
Arctic Skua: 38W
Mediterranean Gull: 13+ around
Kittiwake: 1W
Sandwich Tern: 657W
Common Tern 49W
Arctic Tern 4W
Auk: 1E
Meadow Pipit: 436W
Swallow:11 out

 Grey Phalarope

Common Terns

1cy Mediterranean Gull

 Tree Pipit 

While we were at the observatory having a cup of tea Dave Bunney called to say that an Osprey was currently heading round The Point, we all ran to the top of The Moat where we could see all the Gulls alarming and then Osprey appeared from behind the lighthouse and headed off West, many Meadow Pipits were flying around the observatory and many were caught in the Crow trap and processed, also a Tree Pipit dropped onto the wires by the observatory.

 5 Spoonbills on Burrowes, 1 is tagged but to distant to read

A very poor image of the Pectoral Sandpiper that made a brief visit to Firth at lunchtime

Egyptian Geese with a late brood of 5 young on Burrowes

1 of at least 8 Cattle Egrets at Boulderwall today

 Cattle Egrets

On the ARC from Hanson early afternoon, 3 Great White Egrets, a Knot, 4 Dunlin, 4 Black Terns, 2+ Arctic Terns, 3+ Garganey, a Bittern (just), also good numbers of Hirundines over the lake.

Great White Egret not enjoying the rain

Spot the Bittern

 I went back to the reserve early this evening mainly to see if the Pectoral Sandpiper had returned, it hadn't but the Little Stint was still present and the Spoonbills had moved closer and enabled me to discern the colour ring and flag combination. Checking on the web this evening it looks like it is a German bird denoted by the black flag, I look froward to receiving the full data from the ringing team.

 The Spoonbills weren't impressed by the Greylag Geese coming in to roost.

Flag and colour ring combination just about discernible

Very Quiet!

An early morning sea watch from the sea watch hide was very disappointing with no Shearwaters and the only Petrel being a single Fulmar.

07.00-09.00 from the sea watch hide:

Great-crested Grebe: 1 around

Fulmar: 1W

Gannet: c30 around

Arctic Skua: c5W  &  5 around

Sandwich Tern: c100W

Common Tern: c40W

From Hanson of note 100s, of Swallows and Sand Martins over the lake, 2+ Black Terns, 2+ Arctic Terns, a Great White Egret and a Garganey among the usual wildfowl.

This afternoon 7 Cattle Egrets with the cattle in the Boulderwall fields. 

Juvenile Common Tern at the fishing boats

Another very disappointing sea watch
12.45-15.30 from the fishing boats:
Red-breasted Merganser: 2W
Great-crested Grebe: 6 around
Gannet: c30 around
Turnstone: 1 around
Arctic Skua: 5+ around
Yellow-legged Gull: 1 adult came to bread
Sandwich Tern: c100W
Common Tern: c10 around
Grey Seal: 1
Harbour Porpoise: 4+

Red-breasted Mergansers past the fishing boats

 Yellow-legged Gull at the fishing boats

Turnstone at the fishing boats

Fairly quiet on the sea this morning with Balearic Shearwaters before I arrived, c15 Arctic Skuas, c200 Sandwich Terns, a Common Terns, a juvenile Little Gull, a Peregrine came in and stream of Hirundines going south.

 Lovely Kestrel caught by Jacques in the Crow Trap

A walk around The Desert was very quiet avian wise not even the Wryneck popping up, a couple of Wheatears, more Hirundines, 3 Skylarks. At the observatory a Spotted Flycatcher was caught in The Moat, a Kestrel and several Meadow Pipits were caught in the Crow trap. 

From Hanson still 3 Black Terns, a Great White Egret and 3+ Garganey among the usual wildfowl. 

 Hook billed Herring Gull still present at the fishing boats today

Another 2 hour sea watch this afternoon was a pretty slow affair.

13.30-15.30 from the fishing boats with LH, PH, RW, AJG, JTM
Great-crested Grebe: 3 around
Balearic Shearwater: 2W   @ 14.16
Gannet: 17W      7E
Arctic Skua: 5 around
Yellow-legged Gull: 1 1w
Sandwich Tern: 260W
Common Tern: 17W
Black Tern: 2 around
Swallow: 270 out
House Martin: 17 out
Sand Martin: 8 out
Harbour Porpoise: 6+ around

 Couldn't resist a couple more pics of the stunning Oleander Hawk-moth

Oleander Hawkmoth!

 Oleander Hawkmoth

As I looked through the perspex top of the MV this morning this beauty was clinging to the rim, even though I knew exactly what it was I still had to look in the book to check, even when I had extracted the moth I had to go on the internet double checking images making sure I had not made a mistake. It is without doubt the highlight of my short time mothing,  

 Cattle Egret having a bath in the ARC

In a short walk around The Desert I failed to see the long staying Wryneck though it was still present today, Stonechats seemed to be on every bush, with a Few Common Whitethroats and Chiffchaffs.

An hour at the fishing boats lunchtime saw 5 Arctic Skuas marauding through a feeding frenzy of Gannets, Sandwich Terns, Gulls and 10+ Harbour Porpoises, all the while a stream of c200 Swallows and c40 Sand Martins headed off to France.

From Hanson at the ARC this afternoon all 3 Egrets species, c50 Golden Plover, a Greenshank, 3 Dunlin, a Ruff, a Black-necked Grebe, 3 Black Terns and 7 Garganey. 

 Lapwing giving a Great white Egret a hard time

 Great White Egret from Hanson

 Clancy's Rustic over shadowed today, as was the Delicate below.

This Weekend!

Great White Egret in front of Hanson last evening

5 of 7 Garganey in front of Hanson last evening

Juvenile Grey Heron in front of Hanson last evening

The 5 Cattle Egrets flying into roost last evening in near darkness(very high iso used)

06.15-08.15 from the sea watch hide with AJG,

Common Scoter:37W   3E

Manx Shearwater: 1W

Sooty Shearwater: 1W @ 06.57

Gannet: 76W

Cormorant: present n/c

Arctic Skua: 3W    1E

Skua sp: 1W

Mediterranean Gull: 2E

Sandwich Tern: 29W

Common Tern: 4W

Auk sp: 1W

Swallow: 705 out

Sand Martin: 14 out

Harbour Porpoise: 14+ 

Today the Wryneck posed for me as above image, more usually it's like yesterdays view below.
A rather quiet walk around The Desert this morning though the Wryneck did pose nicely for me, also seen 5 Common Whitethroat, 2 Lesser Whitethroat, 6 Blackcaps, 5 Chiffchaffs, a single Wheatear and 6 Stonechats of note.

 Arctic Skuas from the fishing boats this afternoon

13.30-16.30 from the fishing boats with AJG & RW:
Common Scoter: 22E
Manx Shearwater: 1W
Gannet: 29W   7E
Cormorant: present n/c
Ringed Plover: 16W
Turnstone: 1W
Dunlin: 24W
Sanderling: 9W
Whimbrel: 1W
Arctic Skua: 9W    4 around
Mediterranean Gull: 5W
Kittiwake: 2E   1W
Sandwich Tern: 1,293W   76E
Guillemot: 3 around
Swallow: 103 out
Sand Martin: 27 out
Harbour Porpoise: 20+
Grey Seal: 1

Common Tern at the Fishing boats this afternoon

It seems that the reserve was fairly quiet avian wise apart from the 5 Cattle Egrets at still reported as being at Boulderwall Farm, on the ARC 2 Black Terns, 3 Garganey and a Black-necked Grebe all being seen by others today.

Presumed faded or aberrant Meadow Brown in The Moat yesterday.

The Plodland MV continues to be disappointing.