The Cattle Egrets were still in their chosen field first thing this morning. A sea watch from the fishing boats 08.15-09.15 just about kept the interest going:
Wigeon: 60 up
Velvet Scoter: 2 down
Red-throated Diver: 12 down 1 up
Gannet: 24 down
Oystercatcher: 2 down
Mediterranean Gull: 3 down
Kittiwake: 52 down
Auk: 24 down
A nice Bass and happy angler!
A jaunt to the bottom of Dengemarsh Gully with MH found no Scoter flock there, just 1,000s of Gulls on the beach.
At the reserve in the pouring rain a quick look from Dennis's found 2 Smew and 2 Great White Egrets. With 2 more from the entrance track. At Scotney 2 Black-necked Grebes and the drake Scaup along with all the usual wildfowl, though the Barnacle Goose flock was missing.
Whooper Swan with Bewicks
I spent the afternoon wandering around Walland Marsh, where the wild swan flock was at last reasonably close to the road, allowing me to read the neck collar on the Bewick Swan(053E). The flock contained 84 Bewick Swans including 13 juveniles, 1 Whooper Swan and 1 Greylag Goose.
The neck collared Bewick Swan 053E
At various points around the marsh 30+ Reed Buntings, 9 Corn Buntings, 8 Yellowhammers with 50+ Chaffinches, 20+ Tree Sparrows, 100+ Fieldfare, numerous Blackbirds and Song Thrushes, c3,000 Lapwing, c2,000 Golden Plover all dodging a Peregrine, 2 Sparrowhawks, 2 Kestrel and 4 Common Buzzards, 8+ Marsh Harriers and a superb male Hen Harrier.
On the down side everything on the marsh was flushed by 2 very low flying Chinooks.
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