Terns!

 Cetti's Warbler trapped in The Moat this morning

 Pied Flycatcher from the trapping area this morning

Another relatively quiet morning at The Point, small numbers of Willow Warblers, Chiffchaffs, Common Whitethroats, Lesser Whitethroats, Blackcaps and Garden Warblers seen and trapped, 2 Whinchats, up to 4 Black Redstarts and 3 Wheatears around the Polish War Memorial, also a Brown Hare. On the reserve the Wryneck and Red-backed Shrike were still present but very elusive and not seen by me.

Last Thursday I and AJG met Renaud Flammant at Copt Point, Folkestone to read some Mediterranean Gull rings, it was a successful trip reading 50+ rings from c2,250 Mediterranean Gulls present, today I went back to read some more rings, unbelievably not a single Gull present on the rocks and just a few loafing on the sea, a complete waste of time, though there were a few Sylvia warblers in the scrub.

 1 of up to 4 Black Redstarts around the Polish war memorial this morning

Good numbers of Small Coppers this morning on the shingle

Black Tern at the fishing boats this afternoon

13:30-16:00 from the fishing boats with JH, JTM, CT, Linda and AJG for collating the numbers:
Gannet: 34W
Cormorant: Present n/c
Bar-tailed Godwit: 16W
Arctic Skua: 2W
Little Gull: 2W both juveniles
Little Tern: 2W
Black Tern: 26W
Sandwich Tern: 364W
Common Tern: 103W
Arctic Tern: 1W
Swallow: 2 out
Grey Seal: 1
Common Seal: 1
Harbour Porpoise: 3+

 Black Tern at the fishing boats this afternoon

 Black Tern at the fishing boats this afternoon

 Black Tern at the fishing boats this afternoon

 Black Tern at the fishing boats this afternoon

 Black Tern at the fishing boats this afternoon

 Black Tern at the fishing boats this afternoon

 Black Tern at the fishing boats this afternoon

                                       Black Tern at the fishing boats this afternoon

 Common Tern at the fishing boats this afternoon

  Common Tern at the fishing boats this afternoon

  Common Tern at the fishing boats this afternoon

  Common Tern at the fishing boats this afternoon

06:00-08:00  from the sea watch hide per AJG.

Mallard: 1W

Great-crested Grebe: 1W

Manx Shearwater: 3E

Gannet: 188W

Cormorant: present: n/c

Pomarine Skua: 1E @06:55(Interestingly a Pomarine Skua flew South past Cap Gris Nez 3hrs later)

Arctic Skua: 1E  3W

Kittiwake: 4W

Mediterranean Gull: 8W all 1st cal year

Yellow legged Gull: 1W 1st cal year

Sandwich Tern: 486W

Common Tern: 11W

 Stonechat

Around the station West Beach, Lloyds and the lighthouse several each of Stonechats, Chiffchaff, Willow Warbler and Common Whitethroat, a Blackcap, 2 Black Redstarts, a Whinchat, 2 Wheatears and a large flock of a 100+ Linnets. An Osprey went high out to sea around 07.00 which I almost everyone else missed.

 Chiffchaff

 Willow Warbler

 The trapping area area was similar to The Point with the addition of 3+ Spotted Flycatchers and more of each species.

Lesser Whitethroat

13.30-15.15 from the fishing boats with AJG, JTM, RW & OL.

Common Scoter: 2E

Gannet: 5E   20W

Cormorant: 5 around

Turnstone: 17 around

Knot: 4W

Arctic Skua: 2 around

Kittiwake: 4W

Sandwich Tern: 223W

Common Tern: 26W

Black Tern: 1E

Grey Seal: 1

Harbour porpoise: 6+

Poor image of a juvenile Curlew Sandpiper from Hanson this evening

This evening on the ARC of note were a juvenile Curlew Sandpiper, 4 Ruff, a Greenshank, 6 Dunlin, 2 Common Sandpipers, 148 Golden Plovers, 3 Black Terns, 6+ Garganey, 2 Great White Egrets, Water Rail and the usual wildfowl. As the sun dipped below the horizon a mixed flock of c200 Swallows, House and Sand Martin appeared over the lake, they hawked over the lake for a few minutes then spiralled high up into the dusk sky and disappeared.

06:00-07:30 from the sea watch hide per AJG
Mallard: 1W
Tufted Duck: 2W
Gannet: 81W
Arctic Skua: 1W
Mediterranean Gull: 5W
Kittiwake: 2W
Sandwich Tern: 108W
Common Tern: 1W
Sand Martin: 3 out
After a poor sea watch the land was no better, a final net round at 08:00 produced just a single re-trap Robin, a Pied Flycatcher was seen in the trapping area at first light.
At the ARC of note were 3 Black Terns, a Wood Sandpiper, a Common Sandpiper, a Greenshank, 4 Ruff and 4+ Garganey.
The first Wryneck of the autumn was found on the reserve early afternoon which I managed to get a distant view of, certainly not photographic range. It was well found by a regular lady visitor whom I must apologise too for forgetting her name.

 Arctic Skua at the fishing boats

 13.34-15.45 from the fishing boats with RW, JTM, SO and AJG who collated the numbers:
Common Scoter: 3W
Gannet: 83W
Cormorant: present n/c
Knot: 30W
Arctic Skua: 1W
Mediterranean Gull: 1W
Kittiwake: 8W
Sandwich Tern 214 down
Common Tern: 22W
Black Tern: 2W
Guillemot: 1W
Swallow:13 out
House Martin: 1 out
Sand Martin: 46 out
Grey Seal: 1
Harbour Porpoise: 3+

 Black Tern at the fishing boats

 A Mackerel snack

Small Mottled Willow the highlight of this mornings catch

06.00-08.00 from the sea watch hide per AJG:

Common Scoter: 1W

Fulmar: 2W

Gannet: 189W

Arctic Skua: 1W  

Mediterranean Gull: 11W

Kittiwake: 11W

Sandwich Tern: 188W

Common Tern: 2W

Swallow: 5 out 

The Point was once again very quiet avian wise this morning, with very little apparent migration.

At the ARC of note 2 Black Terns, a Little Gull, a Wood Sandpiper, 2 Common Sandpipers, 3 Greenshank, 4 Ruff, a Knot, a Turnstone, 3 Common Snipe, 8 Garganey and a Great White Egret.

 Arctic Skua at the fishing boats

13.15-15.00 from the fishing boats with JTM, AJG & OL.
Gannet: 32W
Cormorant: 17 around
Turnstone: 1 around
Arctic Skua: 4W
Kittiwake: 7W
Sandwich Tern; 59W
Common Tern: 2W
Sand Martin: 8 out
Harbour Porpoise: 10+
Grey Seal: 1

 Arctic Skua chasing a Sandwich Tern

Juvenile Sandwich Tern

Pied Flycatchers in the Rain!

 Whinchat

This morning I did a net round with Jacques and trapped just a single Blackcap, with so few birds around and rain in the forecast we furled the nets. On the way back a Tree Pipit was posing nicely on some Gorse, but I didn't have my camera with me. Once we got back to the observatory I collected my camera and went back for the Tree Pipit needless to say there was no sign of it, so I took some pictures of a couple of Whinchats that were in the High Gorse, while doing this 100s of Swallows and Martins appeared though mainly stratospheric as the rain front approached. The rain was not heavy but as soon as it started Pied Flycatchers started to appear, I saw at least 9 possibly 12 as they seemed to pop out all around, also a Spotted Flycatcher appeared, OL saw 3 Spotted flycatchers, once the rain stopped the Flycatchers seemed to melt away. Around the are there were also 4 Black Redstarts, 2 Wheatears, the usual Willow Warblers, Common and Lesser Whitethroats and a few Yellow Wagtails over, also a hunting male Marsh Harrier. There 2 more Pied Flycatchers in The Moat that I didn't see per DW also a Common Redstart per PB. I've still not seen one this autumn.     

 Pied Flycatcher

  Pied Flycatcher

  Pied Flycatcher

 Spotted Flycatcher

An hour this afternoon sea watching with RW at the fishing boats was abysmal, c40 Sandwich Terns and c40 Gannets tooing & froing offshore, 6 Common Terns flew West, 2 Mediterranean gulls went East, a single Kittiwake loitered offshore, and a single each of Grey Seal and Harbour Porpoise.

 Great White Egret & Little Egret from Hanson 

Late afternoon from Hanson there were 100s of mainly Sand Martins hawking over the lake in the drizzle, 4 Ruff, 5 Common Snipe, 7 Garganey, 2 Great White Egrets and a flock of 9 Greenshank flew through.

This evening a Cattle Egret was in the cow field at Boulderwall Farm, while on Burrowes a single Common Sandpiper, 6 Great White Egrets and 5 Danish and Norwegian rung Great Black-backed Gulls.

Honey Buzzard!

Pied Flycatcher at the observatory

Fairly quiet early morning around the trapping area, though another Pied Flycatcher was caught and ringed. 2 more Pied Flycatchers were in The Moat and another at West Beach, at least 5 Whinchats and 2 Wheatears were present along with a few Willow Warblers, Common and Lesser Whitethroats and Blackcaps.

Poor images due to severe heat haze of the Honey Buzzard over The Desert

The Honey Buzzard was obviously looking to land and rest, which it did a few seconds after I photographed it when it land on some Sallows, only to be flushed after a couple of minutes by a dog walker, it then flew a few hundred metres up the Long Pits and settled in another Sallow clump only to be flushed again by the same dog walker, it then flew NW over the reserve towards the ranges and was quickly lost in the haze.

Whinchat at Galloways this evening

At Galloways this evening at least 9 Whinchats and 3 Pied Flycatchers with a few Stonechats, a Sedge Warbler, several Common Whitethroats and Reed Warblers.

 Water Rail from Hanson this evening

2 Visits to Hanson today saw 4 Greenshank, 4 Ruff, 3 Golden Plover, 2 Knot, Marsh Harrier, Peregrine, Sparrowhawk and10 Garganey among the usual wildfowl and Lapwings.

7 of the 10 Garganey at the ARC this evening 

This Polish Black-headed Gull was again present on the ARC today

Weekend!

Pied Flycatcher in a private garden 2 birds present

 Pied Flycatchers have been the star attractions this weekend, apart from the Honey Buzzards for those lucky enough to have had them right overhead, I managed a distant bird in the heat haze. I'm not sure what the holiday weekend count of Pied Flycatchers was but I'm sure it must have been at least 40, with a few Spotted Flycatchers, Whinchats, Wheatears and as far as I know not a single Common Redstart, where are they? Willow Warblers, Whitethroats, Lesser Whitethroats and Blackcaps still form the majority of birds trapped and ringed. Most the waders seem to have cleared out along with the Black Terns, but the little Gulls and Garganey seem to be hanging on.

 Sea watching has been dire even with light South Easterlies, the warm settled weather may be pleasant but it does very little for the birding.

 As it has been so hot for I have spent a lot of time sky watching seeing a distant Honey buzzard, 20+ Common Buzzards, several each of Marsh Harrier, Hobby, Sparrowhawk, a single Peregrine and a few stratospheric Swifts.

1 of at least 3 Pied Flycatcher at the Sanctuary

 Iphone image of Pied Flycatcher 

Common Buzzard over my garden

1st cycle Mediterranean Gull at Firth this evening

At Burrowes this evening c300 Oystercatchers roosting, 4 Redshanks, 2 Ruff, a 1st cycle Mediterranean Gull and little else. Now that the Terns have fledged and left it was eerily quiet. 

Redshanks at Firth this evening  including a colour ringed juvenile

Water Rail at Hanson this evening

Hanson was very quiet this evening just 2 Greenshanks, 3 Ruff, 3 Garganey and Common Sandpiper among the usual wildfowl. A Water Rail showed well albeit briefly in the failing light.