06/08/2026

Just after dawn this morning the Bar-headed Goose arrived with Greylags and Canada Geese to feed on the stubble field in front my house, making it the latest addition to my garden list.😜

It took a while but the wind suddenly blew the reeds open giving me a split second to photograph this Garganey in front of Hanson Hide. The reeds are now making viewing at Hanson a problematical at times.

Other birds there were 3 Common Sandpipers, a Dunlin, a Redshank, Great White and Little Egrets(the Cattle Egrets seem to have moved on) and masses of eclipse wildfowl, Yellow Wagtails are can usually be found feeding on the islands. Boulderwall appears to drying out rapidly, I'm not sure if that was planned or not.

Dengemarsh is looking good with lots of islands but little of note using them, the reeds still hold plenty of Bearded Tits and Bitterns can occasionally be seen with time and luck.

As for Christmas Dell, plenty of islands have been created, there are muddy margins for waders it should really be a magnet for birds, Marsh Harriers regularly hunt and overfly the area which is the only reason I can see why other don't appear to like it, the Harriers also overfly the other areas so I don't know.😒

Greenshank from Firth

Also around Burrowes today 2 Wood Sandpipers, 4+ Common Sandpipers, 2 Redshank, 3 Black-tailed Godwits, Turnstone, Dunlin, Ringed Plover, 3 Black Terns, the usual Common Terns, a Sandwich Tern and plenty of Sand Martins.

Greenshank at Firth

Juvenile Little Ringed Plover at Firth

Yellow Wagtail at Firth

2 Yellow-legged Gulls coming to bread at the fishing boats this afternoon

Juvenile Yellow-legged Gulls

The Yellow-legged Gulls are ver vocal and quite aggressive to the Herring Gulls when food is being offered. If you are thinking of coming to the boats to see Yellow-legged Gulls, afternoon is best as the light is superb then, they are much easier to see if you have offerings of bread no matter how stale and green it is, they will greedily devour it.

Juvenile Yellow-legged Gull

Juvenile Yellow-legged Gull

Juvenile Yellow-legged Gull

A Grey Seal came up to see what all the noise was about

03/08/2026

A 90 minute sea watch with Richard and Owen was again rather poor, the conversation however was very enjoyable. 3 Gadwall East with 2 returning West a little while later was unexpected, a few Porpoises off shore and 6 Hummingbird Hawkmoths and 2 Black Redstarts behind the hide were noted.

Young Great Black-backed Gull trying to eat a very dried out and stiff Dogfish in front the sea watch hide

One of at least 3 Garganey present from Hanson this morning

From Hanson the usual throng of feral geese and many eclipse ducks along with the usual Egrets. Along the track to Hanson a large Warbler and Tit flock formed mainly of Willow, Reed and Sedge Warblers with a few Tits, both Green and Great Spotted Woodpeckers.

A late morning visit to Scotney saw very little in the very hot and hazy conditions.

 Wood Sandpipers from Makepiece late this afternoonJuvenile Black Tern from Makepiece

01/08/2026

One of 4 Ravens at Galloways this morning

With news that there appeared to be an arrival of migrant birds in the bushes around The Point this morning and guessing that a few birders would be looking, I decided to go to Galloways Road, on arrival Common Whitethroats seemed to be popping up all over the Gorse and Bramble, Sedge Warblers were also much in evidence along with Willow Warblers, Stonechats was the only member of its family present, flycatchers were absent, also surprisingly Lesser Whitethroats were absent. It was still a very pleasant there.

Sedge Warbler glowing in the early morning sunshine

A bedraggled Sedge Warbler after bathing in the dew

Another Sedge Warbler

 

Willow Warblers at Galloways

Juvenile Common Whitethroat flycatching from the roof of the guardhouse

Common Whitethroat

Spoonbills with the water tower in the background as they came into Dengemarsh

Leaving Galloways there were several Yellow Wagtails feeding along the verge to Dengemarsh, as i got out of the car more or less the first birds I saw were 2 Spoonbills in the distance heading for Dengemarsh where they settled for the day apparently. Also there 2 Barnacle Geese among the throng of Canada and Greylag Geese.

Spoonbills among the Canada Geese on Dengemarsh

I checked on the Lydd Little Owl on my way home to Breakfast

Dutch ringed Black-headed Gull JK viewed from Firth

There were 3 Greenshanks viewed from the Dennis picnic area along 2 Common Sandpipers and 2 LRPs.

From Firth 6 Avocets, 3 LRPs and 2 more Common Sandpipers. A Wood Sandpiper was viewable from Makepiece.

Adult Common Gull with its newly fledged youngster on Burrowes Pit

30/07/2-26

A juvenile Pied Wagtail bathing at Scotney this morning

A visit to Scotney today found that most of the waders had cleared out overnight, also access to the back was limited due to farm work going on.

Pair of Garganey from Hanson Hide

Also at the ARC 3+ Little Ringed Plovers, a Dunlin, 3 Common Sandpipers, a Green Sandpiper and a 4 Black-tailed Godwits per JY.

Spoonbills viewed from the Screen at the ARC

Juvenile Black Tern viewed from Firth

The waders had also cleared out from Burrowes today, hopefully a new group to drop in tonight.

Purple Marbled Moth the star of last nights catch

29/07/2026

The sea is still unproductive to those who have bothered to look.

Tree Sparrows Walland Marsh

Several cycle rides out around the back of Scotney Farm, found plenty of Tree Sparrows, though they have now split up into smaller feeding groups around Walland. Yellow Wagtails still in good numbers and Corn Buntings. Around the lakes up to 10 Common Sandpipers, a Green Sandpiper, 24 Dunlin, 11 Avocets, the Curlew Sandpiper appears to have departed. At least 2 juvenile Marsh Harriers were quartering the fields.

Yellow Wagtails are still feeding young in the Bean fields at Scotney

Reed Bunting in the Bean Field

 

Some of the 14 Cattle Egrets on Boulderwall yesterday

There is still at least 1 juvenile Black Tern on Burrowes with plenty of Common Terns, along with up to 7 Common Sandpipers, a Turnstone,  2 Black-tailed Godwits, a Greenshank and Redshank. The ARC has been fairly quiet the last couple of days.

Cattle Egret

      Dialectica Scalariella, a first for my trap. The only known breeding is on the shingle at Dungeness

27/07/2026

A 45 minute sea watch early this morning showed n improvement on the last few mornings.

Next was the ARC where my first Common Snipe of the Autumn was feeding at the back, 3 Great White Egrets and a single Dunli with 3 Common Sandpipers.

After breakfast I cycled out to Scotney complex and around the farm, where yesterdays Curlew Sandpiper was still present though somewhat distant, likewise 10 Avocet, 12 Dunlin, 2 Black-tailed Godwits and 12 Dunlin, a Green Sandpiper and at lest 6 Common Sandpipers, around the fields the usual Yellow wagtails and Tree Sparrows.

It was a pleasant surprise to go to the reserve late afternoon and find a Little Stint at Firth my first of the autumn associating with 2 Dunlin and a Turnstone, also 2  Black-tailed Godwits there. A few minutes later a juvenile Black Tern appeared also my first of the Autumn.

Little Stint (right) with 2 Dunlin at Firth

Little Stint at Firth

                                                    Little Stint (right) with 2 Dunlin over Burrowes

 

Juvenile Black Tern over Burrowes

Juvenile Black Tern with Common Terns at Firth

Black-tailed Godwit at Firth

Polish Ringed Black-headed Gull at Firth, I also recorded this bird in August 2023 and August 2024

When I got back from my cycle ride around Scotney early afternoon I found this lovely Striped Hawkmoth on my hedge