Tuesday 28th August 2007 Fayreness
& Foreness
The high tide roost below Fayreness was 6 Sandwich Terns, 3 Whimbrel,
59 Oystercatchers, 8 Turnstones and a mixture of Herring and
Black-headed Gulls.
At
Foreness, there were c70 Turnstones (mostly roosting quietly –
just arrived perhaps?), c30 Ringed Plovers and 2 Sanderlings.
(Steve Coates)
Tuesday 28th August 2007 Great Black Backed Gull (J90C)
Report for the C-R Great Black Backed Gull (J90C)
has been posted. (Dylan)
Sunday 26th August 2007
Shuart & Dumpton
Over to Shuart for an early morning session. Clear skies, overnight,
meant that it was unlikely to be as productive as yesterday, yet I had to return
for another look. I walked the bridle path, towards Minnis, and, sure
enough, the majority of passerines had departed. A few Common
Whitethroat, Sedge & Reed Warbler,
2 Chiffchaff, 5 Willow Warbler, 3 Blackcap
and 2 Yellow Wagtail remained. Walking to the coast
allowed me to record a nice group of Sandwich Terns
roosting, amidst the regular waders, off Plum pudding Island. A moron in a
"Red Baron" bi-plane thoughtlessly flew along the shoreline
causing major panic amongst the resting birds. Such is the pressure
on the Thanet coastline to accommodate the various leisure activities;
conflict is unavoidable, yet this show of bravado was akin to
vandalism! Back home; Bev & I were alerted to the arrival of a Common
Buzzard, at 14.45hrs, when all of the local gulls went into
frenzy - noisily circling overhead. (Dylan)
Sunday 26th August 2007 Kingsgate Thanet
25/8. A late morning hour's birding around the Golf Course at Kingsgate
produced an under-whelming two migrants, singles of Whinchat and Wryneck.
Whoopee!(F Solly)
Saturday 25th August 2007 Allotment Ramsgate
This afternoon, at 2:45 pm, a Sedge Warbler bathed in our
allotment pond, and then preened in the adjacent honeysuckle bush.
It was around for about 5 minutes. Photo attached.
Our allotment is just outside Ramsgate Cemetery.
(Marianne & Steve Harper)
Saturday 25th August 2007 Foreness
Not the best time of day but the weather was too nice
to waste so went for a walk near the pumping station and was rewarded with
nice views of a Wheatear and several what I believe were Whinchats,
there where numerous newly fledged Goldfinches in the meadow and
the largest number of Starlings I have seen for quite a while.
(Mick S)
Saturday
25th August 2007
North Foreland
At North Foreland this morning 5 Common Buzzards
heading SW at 11:20. They gained in height over the back of St Peters and
Westwood and then glided off WSW at 11:35. Many times they were all in
view at once through binoculars as they went higher and higher into the
misty cloud. They often circled towards one another and flipped over to
show their talons to each other in minor tussles. Also mobbed by a local Sparrowhawk.
(Simon Mount)
Saturday
25th August 2007 Shuart to Coldharbour Lagoon
My best morning's birding since I returned from
Mallorca! I parked at Shuart and walked the track to the railway
embankment before heading west to Chamber's Wall then north to Coldharbour
and the coast. The hedgerows were stuffed with migrant warblers. Common
Whitethroat and Reed Warbler were present in
large numbers, but Willow Warbler, Blackcap,
Sedge & Garden Warbler and Lesser
Whitethroat were also noted. Other migrants included 2 Turtle
Dove, 50+ Yellow Wagtail with Swallow
and Sand Martin passing at regular intervals. I had hoped
to locate the Red-backed Shrike that Tim Hodge had found yesterday. Alas,
it was not to be, instead I had to content myself with a flyover Tree
Pipit and a very obliging Grasshopper Warbler.
The lagoon at Coldharbour held 5 juvenile Knot, 6 Dunlin
and 2 Common Sandpiper whilst the prize
for the strangest behaviour went to 3 Sandwich Terns that
flew inland over the Riding Stables at Minnis Bay. 3 Marsh Harrier,
1 Sparrowhawk, 2 Kestrel and 8 Golden
Plover kept the pencil busy as I added to my notes. Reed
Bunting and Linnet were particularly numerous
along the railway embankment and I recorded 2 Kingfishers,
1 at Shuart the other at Coldharbour. The sun shone and I was really
enjoying myself. After a brief chat with Derek Smith & Marc Heath I
retraced my steps and finished the session with nice, although distant,
views of the semi-resident Red Kite as it hunted over the
fields between Shuart and Minnis Bay. Magic! (Dylan)
Saturday 25th August 2007 Dumpton Thanet
Besides the 9 Green Finches, 4 Great Tits,
6 Blue Tits,14 House Sparrows, 4 Starlings, 8 Collard
Doves there was an influx of 5 Chiffchaff feeding on fruit flies
around the trees. (Gadget)
Friday 24th August 2007 Foreness
I popped over to North Foreland and Foreness this morning. As I expected
there wasn't too much going on but as that horrible north wind had dropped
at long last it was quite nice to be out. The only migrants I saw/heard
were: 2 Willow Warbler, 1 Whitethroat, 5 Wheatear, 1 Whinchat,
1 Hobby plus a few Sandwich and Common Terns plus the
occasional Gannet moving offshore. (Phil M)
Thursday 23rd August 2007 Pegwell Bay
A brief moment of near excitement disrupted the usual monotony of the
Pegwell evening tide when a juv White-winged Black Tern flew into
the bay along with 6 Black Terns - once decked totally boring of
course. A
reasonable arrival of shorebirds with flocks departing to the west
throughout the evening, which included all the Curlew Sandpipers and
Stints. Rather indifferent light meant that full counts were not
possible. The evening spectacle included; 650 Dunlin, 450 Ringed
Plover, 31 Knot, 27 Grey Plover, 10 Snipe, 28 Curlew
Sandpiper (adults), 4 Little Stint, 1 Temminck's Stint,
72 Sanderling, 1 juv Black-tailed Godwit, 2 Green
Sandpiper, 6 Greenshank, 5 Whimbrel. Wildfowl continue
to feature with 72 Teal, 6 Gadwall, 32 Mallard, 4 Shoveler
and 42 Shelduck. The usual Terns were rather disappointing with 225
Common, 3 Arctic and 100 Sandwich. Around 12 Little
Egrets and
3 Grey Herons and late in the evening a Peregrine spooked
much of the Bay. (F Solly)
Thursday 23rd August 2007 Walpole bay - 08.45 -
15.30
Started sea watching in the gloom at 08-45hrs Passage
between 09.30 and 10.30hrs was buy far the most active time today.
Although birds continued to move through all day at times it was very slow
and at others the visibility was terrible, so no doubt some birds got
away. Good visibility was only provide for aprox 3hrs during the days sea
watch. Birds included, 27 Common Scoter, 9 Shelduck, 28 Common
Tern, 52 Sandwich Tern, 2 Black Tern, 1 Balearic
Shearwater, 11 Arctic Skua, 2 Great Skua, 2 Razorbill,
445 Gannet. Although the wind was a problem at least all the
views were very close! The day ended with a Little Gull and Peregrine
hunting over the cliffs. (Ashley P)
Thursday
23rd August 2007 Ramsgate Harbour
The northerly gales, of yesterday, have moderated and
been replaced by a gentle breeze and accompanying drizzle. Visibility is
very poor. Another 05.30hrs start saw me scanning through the murk from
the Harbour Lights Cafe. I couldn't see much further than the first marker
buoy at the port entrance, yet in the hour after dawn I recorded 220 Sandwich
& 70 Common Tern, 1 Whimbrel, 2 Shoveler
& 2 Oystercatcher moving north out of Pegwell Bay.
Plenty of Turnstones scattered around the harbour, many
still in summer plumage, and I was kept company, for a while, by a
rather bedraggled Rock Pipit. The central pontoon had a
few Great Black-backed, Lesser Black-backed
and Herring Gulls roosting and there were a couple of Cormorants
fishing amongst the boats in the outer harbour. An adult and juvenile Sandwich
Tern were on/around the net storage ramp and gave great views,
but the conditions thwarted my attempts at anything other than poor record
images. Back home by 07.30hrs - soaked to the skin! (Dylan)
Wednesday 22nd August 2007 North
Foreland to Walpole
Bay Margate
"A
6am start at North Foreland had myself and Dylan scanning out to sea but
birds were few and far between with just a couple of Arctic Skuas,
a few duck and some assorted waders for us to look at before Dylan had to
head off to work. I tried the bus shelter adjacent to the 'Fayreness' and
found that I could only get rear end views of the first 5 Skuas
that zoomed by and I had the same problem at Foreness. I eventually
settled in the shelter atop Palm Bay where I could look east without being
blasted by the wind. Now I could see the birds before they had
passed me. Skua action ensued! Sea bird totals for the day were as
follows: Long Tailed Skua 1 ad + 1 sub-ad or juvenile, Pomarine
Skua 7 including a superb pale phase avec spoons, 23 Great Skua
(Bonxies) 71 Arctic Skuas, 3 Balearic Shearwaters, 1460 Northern
Gannets, Razorbill 1, 52 Kittiwake, 32 Sandwich Tern, 12
Common Tern, 97 Teal, 1 Shoveler, 1 Tufted Duck,
1 Mallard, 5 Wigeon, Common Scoter 23, Grey Plover
8, Golden Plover 9, Turnstone 8, Ringed plover 41, Dunlin
8, Curlew 4, Bared tailed Godwit 1 and a Kestrel
in-off. I was joined later on by Gadget and it was nice to be able to
catch up with some of the Thanet regulars whilst also enjoying, at times,
some very good, close views of Skuas and Balearic Shearwaters.
Hopefully see you chaps again soon. I left at 4pm just after an adult Long-tailed
Skua had flown passed. A fitting end to a good seawatch"
(Andy Lawson)
Wednesday 22nd August 2007 Newington
Thanet
Late News
One
evening about a week or so ago I was aware that all the local Gulls were
calling their heads off outside and as I dashed outside I spotted a
smallish brown Heron being mobbed by a group of Gulls across the road over
the top of the pub. The birds jizz was somewhat ruined by the fact it was
in defence mode due to the Gulls but I couldn't see what else it was other
than a juvenile Night Heron?? Thinking the bird was just too
unusual to be seen flying around a busy housing estate and therefore that
I was seeing things I decided not to report my sighting but after seeing
Francis report about the Night Heron in Margate leaves me assuming that I
actually did see a Night Heron all along. In my defence I had already
mentioned this to a few people in between times. It was dusk when I saw
the bird, which didn’t help, and it headed off south over the Cherry
Orchard pub as I say a week ago perhaps? I can't remember the exact date.
(Phil M)
Wednesday 22nd August 2007 Walpole
Bay Margate
Today
between 12-30 to 14-30hrs sea watching from the shelter above Walpole Bay
Margate with Andy Lawson from North Kent, Andy had been in the field from
early hours this morning and had spent 2 hours with Dylan at North
Foreland (read Dylan’s report) Birds of note seen within the 2 hours at
Walpole Bay, Northern Gannets, Great Skua, Arctic Skua, Balearic
Shearwater, Sandwich Tern, Fulmar, Oystercatcher, Teal
etc: a most enjoyable 2 hours spent in good company. (Gadget)
Wednesday 22nd August 2007
North Foreland
Some high-octane attitude present on the cliff-top this morning as I was
joined, for a sea-watch, by North Kent birder and newly converted
gull nut, Andy Lawson! I started at 05.30hrs finishing just 2 hours later,
leaving Andy to continue the surveillance. The birding wasn't particularly
good, but a bit of like-minded company made for a pleasurable session. We
recorded Gannet 9S, Common Teal 20N 3S, Curlew
6N, Ringed Plover 14N, Dunlin 9N, Fulmar
8+, Oystercatcher 2N, Common Scoter 8S, Common
Tern 6N, imm Kestrel in/off @ 06.24hrs, Wigeon
3N, Arctic Skua 2S, Mallard 2N, Grey
Plover 5N, Sandwich Tern 14N, Turnstone
5N, Redshank 2N and (bird of the day?) Tufted
Duck 1N. A flurry of hirundines overhead were probably House
Martins, but they had passed before we could raise our bins.
(Dylan & Andy Lawson
Wednesday 22nd August 2007 Pegwell Bay
21/8/07 Yet another thrilling visit to Pegwell for the falling tide. An
increase in Wildfowl and Dunlin but otherwise pretty much unchanged. The
evening's magnificent sightings included: 4 Gadwall, 14 Teal,
2 Wigeon, 1 Shoveler, 38 Mallard, 150 Dunlin,
11 Golden Plover, 8 Grey Plover, 45 Ringed Plover, 1 Avocet,
1 Black-tailed Godwit, 160 Common Tern, 130 Sandwich Tern,
1 Arctic Tern and 2 Black Terns - Pegwell just gets better
and better. (F Solly)
Wednesday 22nd August 2007 Margate
Late news
I Dropped the car off for it's MOT on 14/8/07, as I was walking past
B&Q Margate, the Gulls leapt up and started to chase an immature Night
Heron as it flew steadily West at about 12.05 - almost as exciting as
doing the moth traps with a handful of Yellow Underwings in. (F Solly)
Tuesday 21st August 2007 North Foreland
At North Foreland a Sea-watch this morning for 1 hour
from 07:30 saw the following (all heading East unless stated): - Red-throated
Diver 1 (W) Fulmar 6, Manx Shearwater 1, Gannet 354,
Teal 14, Gadwall 2, Common Scoter 39, Arctic Skua
1, Common Tern 46, Sandwich Tern 20, Black Tern
1 and Kittiwake 18. The Gannet count was particularly
good and it is a pity I had to go before getting a decent total.
(Simon Mount)
Sunday 19th August 2007 Newington Thanet
I saw a Hobby fly over my back garden this afternoon - the first
one I've seen from here all year. I normally get half a dozen plus even on
a bad year and even more surprising due to how I've been scanning all the
Swifts this summer for a rogue Alpine or even a Chimney. (Don't laugh -
I'm nothing if not optimistic about these sorts of things.) I've had a
record large
raptor year on the estate too but as I say this is the only Hobby I've
seen here. So what?? Yeah ... I don't know why I even mentioned it. I feel
such a fool but it's done now. (Phil M) (Probably sober??)
Sunday 18th August 2007
Grove Ferry
Another short session today, dodging the showers.
Quite a few bits to be found around the reserve, most of my time
spent in the company of Martyn Wilson, whom I met at Harrison's
Drove. A nice selection of waders included 1 ad Curlew Sandpiper,
2 juv Little Ringed Plover, 2 Black-tailed Godwit,
2 Spotted Redshank, 25+ Green Sandpiper,
1 Common Sandpiper, 4 Ruff, 4 Greenshank plus
large numbers of Lapwing and Common Snipe.
Raptors were represented by Sparrowhawk, Hobby
and Marsh Harrier whilst the three common hirundines
(Swallow, House & Sand
Martin) were present in small numbers. A few Yellow
Wagtails were seen in flight over the reedbeds and a scan across
the meadows from Harrison's Drove revealed good numbers of Meadow
Pipit and Sedge Warbler in, and around, the
scattered Hawthorn bushes. Plenty of other species to be seen, Water
Rails were particularly showy - I took advantage of a photo
opportunity when a male Goldfinch settled in a small
Elder bush besides the ramp. Most enjoyable (Dylan)
Saturday 18th August 2007 R/gate Harbour &
North Foreland Late News
On 15th I saw a Kingfisher in Ramsgate
Harbour. They usually do not turn up until September. On that morning at
North Foreland I also saw 2 adult Great Black-backed Gulls with 2
juvs in tow. I reckon they must be the successful breeding pair.
(Simon Mount)
Saturday
18th August 2007 North Foreland to Botany Bay
I managed a couple of hours this morning. Parking in
Elmwood Avenue, I first checked the area around Joss Bay. 2 Wheatear,
2 Common Whitethroat, 25+ Pied Wagtail
and large numbers of Swallows & House Martins
provided the bulk of my birding, but there was a noticeable rise in the
numbers of Linnet and Meadow Pipit along
the clifftop. I walked across to The Captain Digby then the Fayreness
beyond. I located the immature drake Eider that Phil had
reported yesterday, along with a sizeable flock of House Martins
feeding in the lea of the cliffs. Closer inspection resulted in a Common
Swift being added to my day list. I walked down onto the beach
and started to make my way back, and also get closer to the Eider
in order to get a few pics. 2 Common Scoter flew south
and a lone Sandwich Tern was fishing just offshore. Pics
secured, I continued back along the shoreline locating several small
flocks of Ringed Plover, 5 Turnstone,
20+ Oystercatcher, 1 Curlew and 1 Whimbrel.
My habitual scanning of the various gull flocks allowed me to locate a
Norwegian C-R Great Black-back (an adult - Blue ring
White J90C) the first I have found this summer and a new bird for Thanet.
(Dylan)
Friday
17th August 2007 Restharrow Scrape SBBOT
We dropped over to the Restharrow Scrape this
afternoon 2 Little Ringed Plovers, 2 Little Grebes, 4
Lapwings, 2 Moorhens, 1 Snipe 7 Starlings and
2 Whimbrel were observed. (Gadget & Don Wilks)
Friday
17th August 2007 Pegwell Bay Country Park
A spectacular session, watching the falling tides. I arrived just after
15.00hrs and remained until 17.30hrs and was kept entertained for the
entire period. A very obvious passage of Swallows noted
for my entire stay, whilst House Martins and 7 Common
Swifts were also associated with the movement and I recorded
3 Yellow Wagtails flying south as another sign of
migration. In the bay was a mass of birds. A flock of 1700 Black-headed
Gulls, on the sea, attracted several adult Common Gulls
whilst the roosting birds on Shellness Point were made up of 160+
Sandwich, 40+ Common, 2 Arctic
& 1 adult Roseate Tern, 280 Oystercatcher,
95 Curlew, 2 Whimbrel, 4 Greenshank,
30+ Dunlin, 6 Sanderling & 5 Knot
(1 ad & 4 juvs) I saw 3 Sparrowhawks arrive in/off,
although they could have just been cutting the corner from Ramsgate? 18 Little
Egret, 7 Shelduck, 2 ad Grey Plover
plus a smattering of Ringed Plover & numerous
Redshank made for a very welcome change in the local
birding! (Dylan)
Friday
17th August 2007 Foreness & North Foreland
I went over to Foreness today to check the area out just in case I get the
urge to go back there this autumn? Some of the area has changed quite a
bit since I've been away but I still got the feeling I used to have about
birding over there as I really enjoyed it back in the 1990's even if it's
nowhere near as good as it used to be for birds. I started off in
Northdown Park as I wanted to see what the habitat was like in the
northeast corner (the rest of the park is much as it was) and couldn't
believe just how all the small trees and bushes had grown. A sign of the
times was a flyover Little Egret - a mega rarity for the area when
I used to watch it regularly. I had a look at the area all along the
clifftop at Foreness down to North Foreland with a quick walk along the
public footpath through the Farm before leaving. I did see a few migrants
even though it was the middle part of the day - quite a few Swallows,
a handful of Swifts, 16+ Wheatear (12+ on the putting greens
and 4 on the Farm) 1 Whinchat, 2 Yellow Wagtail, 1 Whimbrel,
c60 Sandwich and c20 Commic Terns. There was an Eider
offshore at Whiteness and I saw a large female Sparrowhawk hunting
in Northdown Park. (Phil M)
Thursday 16th August 2007
Restharrow Scrape Sbbot
A couple of
slow hours in the hide trying to photograph something, two Little
Ringed Plovers, two Greenshanks, one
Snipe, plenty of Lapwings and Woodpigeons, three juvenile
Yellow Wagtails, four Little Grebes but nothing would come close to my lens
ended up taking long distance shots
(Don Wilks)
Tuesday 14th August 2007
Newland's Farm
I carried my digi-scoping gear, on a quick stroll around the fields
beyond my garden, because there was a Northern Wheatear along
the footpath as I made my way to Sericol yesterday afternoon. Can't
say I was too surprised that it wasn't there today! This morning, two
broods of Grey Partridges seen out amongst the newly
planted cabbages and a large (170+) post-breeding flock of House
Sparrows was feeding in the small wheat field that has yet to be
harvested. A loose flock of 31 Common Swifts didn't
linger, as they flew south, over the Pyson's Industrial Estate just after
08.40hrs. (Dylan)
Monday
13th August 2007 Dumpton Gap, Winterstoke & KG VI Park
Absolutely drained, after the events of the weekend,
I left Bev to slumber, while I took an early morning stroll. On my way by
05.30hrs, I bumped into a couple of lads on their way to Sericol for
the early shift (I'm on lates for the next 3 weeks). Can't understand why
they think I'm not quite the "full shilling"? I walked to
Dumpton Gap, finding 3 Willow Warblers in the cliff-top
scrub and noting several small parties of House Martins
moving south along the coastal fringe. My walk along the beach to
Winterstoke Steps allowed me to add Fulmar, Oystercatcher,
Herring, Lesser Black-backed & Black-headed
Gull to my meagre list. Ascending the steps; King George VI Park
was very disappointing. No migrant passerines and just a small flurry of House
Martins overhead. Heading back, towards home, I noted a lone Common
Swift over Warten Avenue and a 4th Willow Warbler
in a garden along West Dumpton Lane. A male Great Spotted
Woodpecker was enjoying the early morning sunshine, perched atop
a "Leylandii" in a garden and I managed to record 2 Sparrowhawk
and an early migrant Reed Bunting, from the garden,
before it was my turn to make my way across the fields to Sericol! (Dylan)
Saturday/Sunday
11th & 12th August 2007 Dumpton garden
A hectic weekend following my daughter's wedding, on
Friday, has seen opportunities for birding restricted to my garden. On
Saturday I observed some very rare behaviour by a juvenile Blackbird
when I watched it beating a Pigmy Shrew, in a similar manner to a Song
Thrush breaking a snail's shell. I am unable to say whether the Blackbird
had caught the shrew alive, thus had killed it, or just found the corpse
in the garden and was aiming to take advantage of the potential food
source. My disturbing the bird meant that it flew off, leaving the shrew
behind (see pic on non-avian page) I have checked through the pages of BWP
and came across one similar record of a Blackbird eating a mouse sp.
(apparently). Sunday morning saw my brother Simon and myself count c130 Common
Swifts moving steadily SW between 07.00 and 11.00. A few Swallows passed in
a similar direction as did 4 Sparrowhawks - all
juveniles. Later in the afternoon a 1st yr Cormorant
flew over heading towards Broadstairs breaking the monotony of scanning the
soaring Herring Gulls in the hope of something more interesting.
(Dylan)
Friday 10th August 2997 Pegwell Bay &
Sandwich Bay
Yesterday,
there were 2 Wheatear in front of the old Golf clubhouse in the
morning & again when I returned mid-afternoon. I caught the rising
tide this morning at Pegwell & managed to 'bag' my first Little
Tern of the year from in front of the garage - otherwise a handful of Sandwich
Terns & plenty of Curlew & Oystercatchers. Little
Egret was also present, as expected & I could also make out a
summer-plumaged Bar-Tail Godwit & a Grey Plover in front
of the Country Park proper. Also mixed plumaged Dunlin. I returned
again a couple of hours later as the tide receded & additionally noted
10+ Ringed Plover, 20+ Redshank & many more Sandwich
Tern from near the site of the old hide. A (very) mini-raptor watch
(read: dosing in the garden drinking a can of Stella!) from my house in
Ash produced another Hobby (3rd seen passing over this week) at
around 3:45pm, & a Sparrowhawk. Also 2 Swift -
concerned they had all gone, as I hadn't seen any for over a week! (Ben
Ring)
Wednesday 8th August 2007 Pegwell Bay
A walk around the country park produced two Peregrines in a
dogfight over Stonelees and a singing Turtle Dove. Later on, a
large band of Long-tailed Tits passed through, a sure sign that
we're nearing autumn. Best bird for me, however, was a Kentish plover
kindly scoped by Francis Solly, who I see compiled a formidable species
list as the evening progressed. (Jason
Mitchell)
Wednesday 8th August 2007 Pegwell Bay
Evening rising tide. Pegwell just doesn't get any better - which is a
real tragedy! A better variety of birds with today's N-NE breeze -
although no numbers. A good selection of waders with 2 Kentish Plover, 1 Little-ringed
Plover, 33 Ringed Plover, 1 Grey Plover, 1 Golden
Plover, 36 Dunlin, 1 Curlew Sandpiper, 1 Little Stint,
4 Greenshank, 5 Whimbrel, 2 Bar-tailed Godwits, 3 Black-tailed
Godwits and 1 Green Sandpiper along with the usual residents. 2
Roseate Terns drifted in with the tide but just 53 Common Terns
and 140 Sandwich Terns. 4 Med Gulls amongst good numbers of Black-headed
Gulls and 23 Little Egrets. A little flurry of local raptors
with singles of Peregrine, Sparrowhawk and Marsh Harrier.
(F Solly)
Wednesday 6th August 2007 Sandwich Bay
I called over to SBBOT after lunch and then decided
to go over to Princes with Ian Hodgson Birds of note: 1 Whimbrel, 1
Greenshank, 3 Wheatear and a 40 strong flock of Long-tailed
Tits which was the biggest number i have seen for a long time,
(Gadget)
Wednesday 6th August 2007 North Foreland &
Ramsgate
This morning a brief sea-watch produced 22 Common
Scoter heading East and around 20 Gannets moving to and fro
offshore. The 3 Whimbrel present yesterday had disappeared but
there are fair numbers of Turnstone, Ringed Plover and Sanderling
present already.
At Ramsgate today at 13:05, an Osprey heading slowly West at
great height over the town-centre. All the gulls alerted but by the time
it reached Nethercourt it was so high that the gulls were not
bothered in that vicinity. (Simon Mount)
Wednesday 6th August 2007 Grove Ferry
A
walk around the Grove end of the reserve this morning between 7:30 &
12:30 produced a couple more year-ticks in the form of Whinchat &
Wood Sandpiper (at last!). Sadly, I missed a Spotted Redshank
from the Ramp & no sign of the Curlew Sandpiper seen recently.
At least the weather was
very comfortable with warmish sunshine & a breeze. Plenty of Green
Sandpipers to be seen, mainly at Harrisons, along with 2 Wood
Sandpipers. Four or 5 Garganey was also present, looking less
than dapper now. The appearance of a superbly conditioned fox at the back
of the pool did not seem to worry the assembled ducks & waders unduly
- indeed several swam towards it! The chief cause of 'panic' today was Grey
Herons, with Lapwing & Greylag/Canada Geese getting in a
right flap (excuse pun) whenever they made an appearance. Whinchat
also seen from Harrisons, & again from the track leading to the Marsh
Hide, but only in twos. (Ben Ring)
Monday 6th August 2007 North Foreland &
Ramsgate
At North Foreland this morning a juvenile Marsh
Harrier heading S at 06:50.
At Ramsgate at 08:10 a juvenile Peregrine trying to
catch Turnstones on the main sands and then along the outer breakwater. No
success and then headed to Pegwell. Then at 08:20 all the gulls went mad
over the town and in the distance I could see what looked like a Marsh
Harrier heading high W away from the back of Ramsgate. The 2 Great
Black-backed Gull young have flown from the nest-site so I presume
safe and sound along the coast somewhere. (Simon Mount)
Sunday 5th August 2007
Grove Ferry
I managed to get a couple of hours in this morning. Grove Ferry being as
good a place, as any, to enjoy the sunshine! Luckily there are still
plenty of birds to look at from the ramp and various hides. Lapwing
numbers are building steadily and c350 Greylag Geese flew
into the reserve from the west, just after 07.20hrs. 13 Little
Egret, 9 Green Sandpiper, 5 Marsh
Harrier, 1 Wood Sandpiper and 3 Whinchat
provided the bulk of my notes. A Hobby was hunting over
the gardens beyond the river and I had the good fortune to locate a Treecreeper
in the hawthorn hedge between Harrison's Drove and the Marsh Hide. (Dylan)
Saturday 4th August 2007 Northdown Park
I am delighted to say I too saw the Black Kite
over Northdown Park at 10:55 as it suddenly appeared from the NE
heading SW. I chased it all over Thanet to make absolutely sure as my
first views were into the sun. Finally, I had it very low over the Haine
Industrial Estate at 11:20 with the sun behind me. It headed off towards
Pegwell and the Stour Valley.
(Simon Mount)
Saturday
4th August 2007 Grove Ferry
A rather pleasant session in the company of the Stour
Valley regulars. A few birds around the area kept my interest as I walked
the circuit. 5 Ruff, 1 Black-tailed Godwit,
8 Little Egret and 3 Common Snipe
mingled with the usual mix of Mallard, Gadwall,
Black-headed Gull and Lapwing on the
pools by the viewing ramp. Several Green Sandpiper were
noted and a smart summer plumage Dunlin was feeding on
the Harrison's Drove pool. Tony Swandale had located 3 Whinchat
along the track to the Marsh Hide; I managed to add to the total when
I found 2 more along the hedge by the White House. 2 Willow
Warbler and a large flock of House Martins were
feeding in the area of the tennis court at the southern end of Harrison's
Drove. A male Kingfisher provided superb views, and photo
opportunity, as it perched in front of the Turf Fields (Green) Hide.
I watched a spectacular food pass between an adult male and juvenile Marsh
Harrier, whilst Turtle Dove, Sedge,
Reed & Cetti's Warbler, Bearded
Tit, Reed Bunting and Meadow Pipit
meant that there was always something to look at. Alas, it seems all is
not well amongst the locals. Discontent about the state of the reserve
being openly voiced by one and all. A vertically challenged
lorry driver, complete with camera and binoculars, had to resort to
"industrial language" when requested to stick to the footpaths -
whatever next? Birders with attitude - could it be catching? (Dylan)
Saturday 4th August 2007 Newington Thanet
Around 11.15 this morning every Gull in the vicinity went berserk but
after grabbing the binoculars and standing out the front of my house I
couldn’t see what was causing it for what seemed like ages. After a few
minutes a Kite sp appeared from the west and flew over the estate and it
was a Black Kite - my first ever from the house. It hung around for
ages sweeping back and forth over the estate sometimes at a very low
altitude, especially so at one point when it flew over the back garden
then right over the roof of my house with a few Gulls in tow. I watched it
for about ten minutes before I thought about trying to get a photo of it.
Unfortunately I forgot to zoom in on the bird so the images are poor in
the extreme (I just took about 20 photos of the sky and hoped!!) but the
jizz is easily apparent even from these rather naff photos. After over
twenty minutes it gathered height and flew south towards Pegwell. (Phil M)
Saturday 4th August 2007 Dumpton Thanet
With a disturbance over the estate at 11-05 with all
the Gulls up and making lots of racket, I looked out of the back window
over the fields, I couldn’t believe what sore a Black Kite
drifting over the field and heading away from me towards Manston. (Gadget)
Thursday 2nd August 2007 Sandwich Bay
Noted
4 Wheatear in front of the old golf clubhouse at Sandwich Bay this
morning at around 9:30. Some 50 Sandwich Tern flew noisily south at
around 1pm. (Ben Ring)
Wednesday 1st August 2007 Oare Marshes
I went over to Oare Marshes today, It was nice to see
some waders 300 to 400 Black-tailed Godwits, 30+ Dunlin, 9 Ruff,
some Lapwing and good number of Redshanks, with a few Yellow
Wagtails. (Gadget)
