Monday 31st March 2008 Foreness

Hi, I don't know if these will be of any use for the Planet Thanet website, but I've attached a couple of pictures I took this afternoon (Monday) on the cliff-tops at Foreness. One of a Wheatear (my first) and what I assume is a Meadow Pipit. (Mark Kilner)

Monday 31st March 2008 at 11.59 Ramsgate's Western Under-cliff

I found 2 Purple Sandpipers found amongst a group of 19 Turnstones on Ramsgate's Western Under-cliff. (P M Charlton)

Monday 31st March 2008 St Peters to Joss and Botany Bay

A late morning walk from St Peters to Joss and Botany Bay produced two Sand Martins heading inland, west. A Black Redstart in the playground of the Captain Digby and a Great Spotted Woodpecker in trees opposite the farm. (John C)

Sunday 30th March 2008 Dumpton garden

A small bird, fly catching from the garden hedge, caught my eye as I stood in the kitchen. A quick scan through the binoculars showed it to be a very pale individual and I thought I got a glimpse of a wing bar. Grabbing my camera, I went out into the garden and managed to get a couple of pics before it continued north along the garden hedgerows. It was a Willow Warbler, showing typically pale legs and long primary projection although it appeared very grey in the evening light. (Dylan)

Sunday 30th March 2008 Kingsgate Area

29/3. Decided to endure the misery and try and do some birding at Kingsgate in the morning. The last remaining prime passerine habitat has now been destroyed - which was nice to see and very 'Thanet'. A steady trickle of Chaffinches with the odd Brambling moving through with a few Meadow Pipits and White Wagtails. A Harris's Hawk was poncing around from about 8.30, three pairs of Sparrowhawks displaying and single Merlin and Peregrine at Elmwood. Nearly missed a brief Buzzard movement thanks to the Hawk as I got bored of looking up when the Gulls were disturbed just to see the escaped freak. Anyway a flock of 3 flew west at 9.10 with a single at 9.12. (F Solly)

Sunday 30th March 2008 Minster Marshes

An early start paid off. I was on the marsh just before 07.00hrs and enjoyed a very productive walk along the river towards Pluck's Gutter. 8 Lesser Redpoll, 3 Redwing, 12 Fieldfare and 2 Green Sandpiper were seen as I wandered around. The area around the fishermen's carpark yielded 12+ Chiffchaff plus my first Willow Warbler and Ring Ouzel of the year. At least 3 singing Cetti's Warbler in the area and it was nice to watch a couple of pairs of Lapwings displaying over on the Ash Levels. Two each of Marsh Harrier and Kestrel were joined by a female Sparrowhawk in my raptor notes. Other bits included single Little Egret and a distant Barn Owl, still hunting the reeded ditches of the Ash Levels at 10.00hrs. (Dylan)

Sunday 30th March 2008 Foreness Point

An arrival of 6 Wheatears during early morning with a further 2 a North Foreland and a Swallow going west (Rae-Boulden)

Saturday 29th March 2008 Reculver area

An early morning session in the vain hope of finding a Wheatear, I parked at Chamber's Wall and walked the circuit to the Oyster Farm, via Coldharbour Lagoon, and then back along the railway embankment. Four Marsh Harriers put on a fabulous display as they soared above the surrounding marshland. Male Reed Bunting were advertising their territorial claims from the tops of bushes and reeds around my route. Only 5 Brent Geese by the Wantsum outflow and I watched 2 White Wagtails in the company of 7 Pied Wagtails foraging along the tideline. Meadow Pipit were very numerous with odd Skylark singing high overhead. At least 4 Little Egret were around the pools of the oyster farm and a Chiffchaff sang from an isolated patch of brambles besides the seawall. My walk back showed that there was quite a large passage of Chaffinches taking place with 300+ counted in less than 15 minutes and I flushed a pair of Gadwall, from the Wantsum, as I reached the sluice.  Back at the car, a pair of Red-legged Partridge were scratching about in the farm yard and 3 Mistle Thrush were in a field besides the entrance gateway. (Dylan)

Saturday 29th March 2008 North Foreland

A Harris Hawk few over the North Foreland golf course at 09-00hrs this morning (Brian Short)

Friday 28th March 2008 Newland's Farm

Up early, to ensure the bins were collected (how hum-drum is that?), I had a walk around the fields to check for migrants. Two pairs of Grey Partridge were flushed from a small patch of cabbages whilst a steady trickle of Meadow Pipits passed overhead. A Chiffchaff and a singing male Firecrest were along the footpath that separates the gardens of Prestedge and Park Avenues. (Dylan)

Thursday 27th March 2008 Minster Marshes

Went out this afternoon the first time since the operation on my neck, and what a brilliant afternoon weather wise that is the birds wasn’t that bad ether high lights were great views of a Green Sandpiper, 2 Little Egrets, 2 Chiffchaff, a flock of 17 Meadow pipits in a bush, 2 Barn Owls and 1 Peregrine floating over the marsh, but most of all it was great to get out. (Gadget)

Thursday 27th March 2008 Pegwell Bay

From the Country Park seawall, 2 Avocet & 12 Brent Geese could be seen amongst the 'usual customers' at high tide this afternoon. (Ben Ring)

Thursday 27th March 2008 Dumpton Thanet

Two Stonechats arrived in my garden this morning this being the first for in the garden, they have been seen over the fields behind my house on more than one occasion, other birds noted in the garden were 9 Greenfinches, 3 Goldfinches with 2 Great Tits & 2 Blue Tits 2 Dunnocks, 1 Wren, 1 Robin and 3 Blackbirds and there's a Chiffchaff in the bit of wasteland beside my house its been around for a few days. (Gadget)

Wednesday 26th March 2008 Late News

I also saw the Hen Harrier and Red Kite flying over Margate Hospital mobbed by gulls. Then, twenty minutes later, a Male Peregrine over Broadstairs railway station followed by four Sparrowhawks, while I waited for my wife to come out of the doctors! (John Carnell)

Wednesday 26th March 2008 Reculver & Minnis Bay

Barry and I walked from the Towers along the sea wall to Minnis Bay and back along the railway embankment to Chamber's Wall, with Derek joining us at Coldharbour. We were expecting a few migrants, but didn't see a huge amount apart from an unexpected and early Quail that we flushed twice near the Oyster Farm. A small number of passerine migrants included 15 Chiffchaffs, 1 Black Redstart, 1 Wheatear, 1 Scandinavian Rock Pipit, 4 White Wagtails and 2 Goldcrests, whilst a few other bits included 3 Common Buzzards soaring over Shuart, 3 Sparrowhawks, 4 Marsh Harriers, 5 Wigeon E offshore, 4 Golden Plovers, 6 Snipe, 2 Bar-tailed Godwits, 26 Corn Buntings, 8 Canada Geese, 6 Greylags, 1 Bar-headed Goose, 4 Little Egrets, 26 Teal, 4 Shoveler, 2 Gadwall, 1 Kingfisher and 1 Little Owl. (Tim H)

Tuesday 25th March 2008 The garden and Newland's Farm

The bitterly cold NW wind continues to blow and a dusting of snow was on the lawn at daybreak. A Chiffchaff was feeding in the garden buddleias, calling regularly. A walk around the fields revealed little. Dunnock, Robin, Wren and Great Tit all in fine voice. The surprise of the day was a single Rook that flew in to feed with the resident Carrion Crows. My 2nd Chiffchaff of the day was in a garden by West Dumpton Lane. Not much, I know! (Dylan)

Monday 24th March 2007 Newington Thanet

There was quite a bit of activity amongst the local Gulls this morning which resulted in sightings of a Red Kite which flew west at about 11.30 then a male Hen Harrier high n/west over my garden twenty minutes later. Kites are annual these days but it was my first ever estate Hen Harrier. I know - so what!  (Phil M)

Monday 24th March 2008 North Foreland, Foreness and Minster Marshes

An early morning session along the clifftop, between North Foreland and Foreness, proved to be rather disappointing. Yet again no Wheatear or Black Redstart to be found and I had to content myself with a bit of camera practice, the local Fulmars proving to be very cooperative subjects. After a splendid lunch in the Dog & Duck, Bev went home and I headed off for another look at the Barn Owls on Minster Marshes. I saw five birds, between 15.30 & 17.30hrs, managing to get pics of three of them allowing me to identify a new individual - ringed on the left leg with an old BTO ring. Other bits recorded included single Water Pipit, Marsh Harrier, Merlin - a large, dark, female showing characteristics of the Icelandic race "subaesalon", 2 Stonechat, 3 Curlew, Shelduck plus large numbers of Fieldfare and Starling. At least five other birders out on the marsh this afternoon, I hope that they enjoyed themselves. (Dylan)

Sunday 23rd March 2008 Ramsgate Harbour

Very quiet down at the harbour, the hoped for gulls being limited to 25 Herring Gull, 4 Lesser Black-backed gull, 2 Great Black-backed gull and a single Black-headed gull. Other birds included 3 Cormorant and a Carrion Crow (trying to eat a starfish).  The highlight was an obliging Rock Pipit singing from the quay (see photo).  (Jerry Lanfear).

Saturday 22nd March 2008 North Foreland

Went down to North Foreland in the strong North gale...didn’t expect much and wasn’t surprised, Just 3 Gannets heading South and 1 Red-throated Diver. Also saw 3 Stonechats and 25 Stock Doves. At Foreness it was one of the roughest seas I had ever seen, with tidal- edge foam blowing over the clifftop and up the Palm Bay roads. (Simon Mount)

Friday 21st March 2008 North Foreland & Foreness

A howling NW gale greeted me as I parked the car in Elmwood Avenue. A cock Stonechat perched gamefully in the top of a small shrub and a glance at the sea in Joss Bay (06.55hrs) coincided with the passing of a group of 7 Canada Geese accompanied by an un-id'd grey goose sp. tagging along at the end of the bunch. I wasted the next two hours battling the elements in a vain search for a Wheatear or Black Redstart, along the clifftop footpath. Meadow Pipit, Skylark and a lone Pied Wagtail were about my only reward until I reached the Fayreness Hotel on my return walk. A pair of Serin flew overhead, their calls barely audible over the roar of wind, yet the flashing yellow rumps allowed instant identification and a splash of welcome colour on this dreadful morning! (Dylan)

Tuesday 18th March 2008 Pluck's Gutter and The Abbott's Wall

 

A slight change of scenery saw me checking the marsh over by the Dog & Duck at Pluck's Gutter. A female Sparrowhawk was the first bird seen as I got out of the car. It was encouraging to note several Yellowhammers as I made my way along the Abbott's Wall. Reed Bunting, Meadow Pipit and Skylark were all recorded and a check of an area of flooded grassland resulted in me flushing a bunch of 15+ Wigeon, quite a good number for this time of the year. All the swans that I saw turned out to be Mute Swans and a check of an overgrown ditch resulted in me disturbing two drake and a duck Gadwall. Three more Barn Owls were seen, none of which were in areas that I had checked yesterday. One bird, that was hunting a reeded ditch, allowed some nice pics and revealed a nice shiny ring on its' right leg. (Dylan)