11/05/2026

Singing male Wheatear

 A very cold with a touch of frost start to the day at the ARC found no sign of the Temminck's Stints, a few Common Terns and Avocets, a Whimbrel, Redshank, a Common Sandpiper and a 3 Ringed Plover on the islands, all the usual Reed bed Warblers were singing and a Hobby flew over, there was no sign of yesterdays birds on the Boulderwall Flood.

At The Point a singing Wheatear was pretty much the highlight there.

A slightly dejected Hobby at Dengemarsh in the rain

The reserve was unsurprisingly quiet in the wet and cold, but lots of Hirundines were feeding low over the lakes, a couple of Grey Plover and Redshanks were feeding on the islands among the nesting Herring Gulls. A Cuckoo was calling at Hookers and a Garganey was flushed from hayfield 2 and disappeared into Dengemarsh, where the several pairs of Common Terns are showing interest in the newly deployed Tern rafts, a Bittern was calling from the usual spot there where hopefully he has a mate nearby, there only appears to be one Bittern calling this year.

Swallow

Sand Martin

House martin

Common Swift

09-10/05/2026

Today felt like an end of season sea watch, I doubt many more Skuas will be seen this spring here.

Dark phase Pomarine Skua passing the Dungeness Bouy

                                    A flock of 4 Pomarine Skua passing the Dungeness Bouy

                                                           Dark phase Pomarine Skua 

Some of a flock of 8 Pomarine Skuas passing East in the awful haze

Whimbrel and a Bar-tailed Godwit

A very cold Sunday with a stiff North wind produced a very poor early morning sea watch, the Temminck's Stints were still at Boulderwll though relocated to the ARC late afternoon, wher 3 Sanderling and a Dunlin were on the islands, the drake Garganey was still present.

One of 3 Temminck's Stints on the Boulderwall Flood

Temminck's Stints flying off to the ARC

A drake Garganey with a presumed Yellow-billed Pintail

                                    A drake Garganey with a presumed Yellow-billed Pintail

Sanderling at the ARC

Grey Plover on Burrowes

Lapwing Chick(2 taken by a Grey Heron this afternoon)

Great-crested Grebes with young on their backs on the Boulderwall Flood

Reed Bunting singing in a cloud of midges

A Puss Moth, the 3rd this year to grace my trap 

6-7/05/2026

I finally heard a Cuckoo at the ARC yesterday, there are a small number of Hobbys around  though in general spring migrants are thin on the ground. A singing Willow Warbler at the southern end of the ARC was the only sign of new passerines today. A flock of 7 Glossy Ibis flew over the ARC towards Late morning. At Dengemarsh several Bearded Tits, booming Bittern more Hobbys and few Common Terns of note.

A sea watch this afternoon produced Pomarine, Great and Arctic Skuas and 3 Eider which are increasingly scarce now, also a few Whimbrel, Sanderling and Bar-tailed Godwits. A full report will be on Trektellen.

                              Good to see the Lapwing chicks still doing well at Boulderwall

One of several Bearded Tits seen around the reserve

Ruff at Boulderwall this morning

Common Blue at the ARC

3 Eider passing the sea watch hide this afternoon

Sanderling passing the sea watch hide this afternoon

The first Lime Hawkmoth of the year in the trap today

4-5/05/2026

This Iberian Chiffchaff found by Jacob early yesterday morning was the standout bird of the day, there were virtually no other new migrants on the peninsula.

Iberian Chiffchaff

 Iberian Chiffchaff

As with yesterday there was no new migrants on the peninsula, also the same was lack of sea passage.

This afternoon I visited The Midrips where I found 36 Avocets(some attempting to nest) 26 Dunlin, 17, Whimbrel, 9 Bar-tailed Godwits, 6 Ringed Plovers, 4 Redshanks, 2 Greenshank, 2 Turnstone, 26 Shelduck, 4 each of Wheatear and Yellow Wagtail.

 

Turnstones posing on a groyne  at The Midrips

Dunlin on the Midrips

Yellow Wagtail at The Midrips

Wheatear nesting around a shot up old tank on The Midrips

03/05/2026

A flock of 50 Black-tailed Godwits toured the peninsula in the fog before settling down on the ARC, it is unusual for a flock of this size to be seen at Dungeness.

On the new Boulderwall Flood the Temmincks Stint, Wood Sandpiper and Glossy Ibis were all still present today but very elusive and distant, hiding behind the islands at the back of Boulderwall.

Burrowes was very disappointing, usually in foggy conditions Hirundines and Terns will turn up but not today.

Dengemarsh held all 3 Egret species, a Bittern was booming by hayfield 3, Bearded Tits were busy nest building at several spots around Dengemarsh and 5+ Hobbys were hawking there.

A presumed migrant Short-eared Owl was found at Galloways late morning.

The undoubted highlight for me was a Turtle Dove that was found this afternoon near Springfield Bridge, a once common species that is now barely annual on the peninsula.

Black-tailed Godwits

                                                             Black-tailed Godwits

 

Turtle this afternoon near Springfield Bridge

Numerous Painted Ladies were around the reserve today

02/05/2026

A partially Leucistic Brent Goose passing the sea watch hide

I've not posted for a few days due to me sea watching from dawn to dusk and falling asleep as soon i got back home each day. So far the sea watching has not been exceptional apart from a day of 1,500 Little gulls movng East. There have been reasonable numbers of Pomarine Skuas passing, whereas Great Skua and Arctic Skua numbers have been low, Common Scoters have also been low as have all the Terns, Black-throated Diver numbers have been good and there is still time for other species to pick up.

Whimbrel and Bar-tailed Godwit passing the sea watch hide

On Friday afternoon we bade goodbye to Tony (Panzerman) Greenland who passed away on 1st April after a long illness. He still had the last laugh on us, as while we were at his wake a superb adult Long-tailed Skua flew past the sea watch hide.😂😂

Members of the Dungeness Bird Observatry at Tony's wake

One of the many Sedge Warblers on the reserve today

First Glossy Ibis of the year on the peninsula today

Lapwing Chicks on the new Boulderwall Flood

The first Wood Sandpiper of the year on the peninsula

One of several Little Ringed Plovers around the reserve today