Rye Harbour Thursday 22nd July

Carol and I drove down to Rye today. We've planned this a few times lately and each time we did something happened to stop us, sea fog on a couple of occasions I recall. We drove through a bit of rain on the way down but by the time we reached Rye Harbour and the nature reserve the sun was back out and with a nice sea breeze it couldn't have been better.
The first thing of note was a sighting of a Wheatear on the shingle, I wasn't expecting that. This would be one of the small number of birds that arrive in the spring on migration and stay here to breed through the summer.

As we reached the end of the first part of the track and turned right to walk westwards, parallel to the beach, the air was full of the shrill calls of Little Terns flying to and fro the sea carrying small fish for their young. They are nesting in a protected area and the reserve management 'planted' plastic decoy birds to ancourage them to breed there instead of on the open beach where they would be more susceptible to predation. What a great idea.

Also along this stretch we saw Sandwich and Common Terns which nest on the islands on the lakes. The only one I managed to get a half decent picture of was the Common variety below. The little Terns were too fast and the Sandwich were mostly too high.

COMMON TERN

Of course there were plenty of other species seen during our walk of approximately six miles including Lapwings, Little Grebe, Kestrel, singles of Dunlin and Redshank and Skylarks whose superb and endless refrain filled the air and accompanied us mostly unseen for the majority of the walk. Carol commented that it seemed as if the sky was singing, couldn't have put it better myself.

But for all this the star of the show, pictured below lots of times, were the Ringed Plover family.

THIS IS MUM

She was sitting on two eggs when we arrived. But she got off the nest briefly to reveal that she had now got another chick and just one egg to go.

THE LATEST ARRIVAL

THIS IS JUNIOR

He was looking after the other two chicks.

Without his legs he was about the size of a ping pong ball. He was happily wandering around pecking at tiny morsels, independent even at this age. But he soon got tired and made his way back to Mum.

MOVE UP I'M COMING IN

While he was tucking himself up under Mum we managed to get another glimpse of the remaining egg.

EGG AND LEG

He didn't stay under for too long before curiosity got the better of him and he popped back out, maybe he just went under to say hello to his new brother or sister.

BETWEEN A ROCK AND A SOFT PLACE

It was soon change over time on the nest and Dad got his first look at chick number three.........

HELLO SON I'M YOUR DAD

..........While Mum went off for a wash and brush up.

THE PROUD PARENTS

Hirundines seen today were Sand and House Martins. A family of Shelducks, a Grey Heron and a Little Egret also made the diary as did a single Little Ringed Plover which frequented the edge of a nearly dried up scrape.

The best butterfly of the day was a single Painted Lady which I felt was worthy of inclusion as i've only seen one other this year.

PAINTED LADY

AND AGAIN

AND AGAIN

And finally..........................we saw a humble old Linnet on the way back. Humble? I don't think so what an absolute cracker!!

LINNET

Christchurch, New Hythe and a poke in the eye with a sharp stick!

After a great weekend in Dorset I got home monday evening suitably exhausted and slightly sunburnt after three long days by the River Avon and three long evenings in the Fisherman's Haunt Inn. Well somebody's got to do it!
Today Carol and I had a nice walk around New Hythe lakes in the sunshine and then in the afternoon I was up a tree in the back garden doing my lumberjack impression when I managed to poke myself in the eye with a sharp stick, not recommended! The reason i'm telling you that is to explain the lack of text in this post it's a bit of a struggle using one eye, so apologies and I hope you like some of the pics. Up to the Banded Demoiselle are from Dorset and the rest are from New Hythe.

SMALL TORTOISESHELL



COMMON TERN


AND AGAIN

AND AGAIN

SEDGE WARBLER

BANDED DEMOISELLE

MEADOW BROWN

CINNABAR MOTH

COOT AND MUM

BLACK TAILED SKIMMER

AND AGAIN

BRIMSTONE

Dungeness RSPB 4th June

I had a day at Dungeness RSPB today with a friend of mine. It's a great place to be in any weather but today was the icing on the cake. First bird to greet us was the Red Legged Partridge below, it was posing on a fence post, I haven't seen one do that before.

RED LEGGED PARTRIDGE

Marsh Harriers were active today with four or five at least seen including a couple of very smart males. Hobbys and a Kestrel completed the raptor sightings but a Red Footed Falcon was also present and we're pretty sure we saw it from a distance but ID was difficult and the presence of so many Hobbys made it harder to be 100% certain.

BROWN ARGUS

The tiny butterfly above was on the track from the visitor centre and i'm pretty sure it's a Brown Argus but correct me if i'm wrong.

Sedge Warblers, Reed Warblers, Whitethroat, Reed Bunting, Dunnock and Wren represented the LBJ contingent today with good numbers of all these species busily collecting food for hungry chicks.

GREAT DIVING BEETLE

There's a small water filled ditch near the Denge Marsh hide which has only been there a relatively short time, I think it was dug last year to contain sheep or goats in the small piece of meadow as an alternative to a horrible electric fence. I was amazed to see that it was already alive with Newts, more than I can ever recall seeing anywhere else. Also in the ditch were what I believe to be Great Diving Beetles which were coming up for air periodically. The one above appears to be doing just that, I think they store the oxygen under their wing casings and they are very big, this one was probably an inch and a half long and I think it's a female. They are very aggressive and will attack almost anything that moves including fish and small frogs.

GREAT DIVING BEETLE

The only Hirundines seen today were a couple of Swallows, probably due to the weather conditions but given the numbers of Hobbys around I think they were better off staying away.

The raft that has been anchored opposite the Denge Marsh hide was home to a pair of Oystercatchers with two chicks and a pair of Common Terns. There was a noisy fight everytime one or other parent returned to the raft with food, I think detached homes would have been more suitable than a pair of semi's. Other birds here were Pochard, Shelduck, GC Grebe, the inevitable Geese and a few Tufties.

COMMON TERN

Lunch was on a small bench below the small viewing mound during which we were entertained by a couple of Bearded Tits flying to and fro the reed beds and a super Bittern flying sedately in front of us towards Denge Marsh hide area.

On the way back to the car park we had flyovers of Redshank and Ringed Plover and also spotted this excellent baby Pike about 3 or 4 inches long lying motionless in the shallows where the water would be warmest. Note the dorsal fin way down it's back nearer the tail, this is what helps give the adults their explosive burst of speed which makes them so deadly in the pursuit of their prey. These are top predators in the freshwater fish world and I really like them!

PIKE

A quick visit to the ARC hide over the road didn't produce much in the way of birds, we only added Shoveler to make 40 species for the day, but I did spot this nice Emerald coloured chap which is a Green Tiger Beetle. They, like so many of us like the sun and the sand and they are ambush experts but can also run fast as I found when trying to get a picture. The larvae dig burrows in the sand and pounce on their unsuspecting prey of ants and other creepy crawlies.

COMMON BLUE BUTTERFLIES

Last but not least were these two blues on the side of the track back to the car park. I'm not too good with these chaps but i'm thinking Common Blues?

GREEN TIGER BEETLE

Monday 10th & Tuesday 11th May

Yesterday morning I did the first count on my Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) square in Hodsoll St Meopham, ably assisted by Alan Roman. We started at 06.15 in the morning although to my mind that's still classified as night time, it was breezy and very chilly with occasional light drizzle. To be honest there wasn't a great deal to record in some transect sections but I think the weather may have played a part in that, so nothing particularly exciting found but at least the information gathered will contribute to the overall picture of breeding bird populations in the UK so it's all in a good cause.. I just hope that the second visit in June will be a bit warmer.

ADELA REAUMURELLA (GREEN LONGHORN)

From Meopham we went straight down to New Hythe to try to find the Greenshank seen earlier by myself and Alan Woodcock and also the Grey Plover found further upstream the evening before by Steve Nunn. I'm afraid to say that neither bird graced our vision yesterday. We amused ourselves for a while looking for Red Rumped Swallows among the abundance of Hirundines over Brooklands lake.These were brought down by the overcast conditions that keep the fly hatches and wind blown insects which are their food source, low over the water. Unfortunately we didn't find one but we did find a couple of Reed Warblers and a Linnet in the Sunken Marsh and a brief glimpse of a Cuckoo as it flew over the river.

At the southern end of Abbey Mead I noticed a lot of the flies pictured above on and around the undergrowth but have been unable to ID them. I wouldn't mind betting 'longhorn' comes into the name somewhere, if anyone can help i'd appreciate it. At the railway line Alan headed back to the car park but I continued on over the East Scrub accompanied by the now familiar musical serenade from the assorted Warblers who wouldn't be beaten by the grinding wind and slate grey skies which continue to outstay their welcome.

SWALLOW

I found this small butterfly in a more sheltered spot and I believe it may be a Grizzled Skipper. I've never seen one previously so I hope i'm right, it also appeared to have a damaged wing unless it was holding it up as a wind brace!

Further along I met Den and Doreen and between us we found a couple of Sparrowhawks over the country park a Kingfisher flying straight and true just above the surface of Millstream lake and a Garden Warbler at the Brook House entrance. The refugia on the scrub provided warmth and shelter to a couple of Slow Worms and a nice fat Common Lizard. Annoyingly I managed to lose the lens cap for my camera somewhere along the path back near the paper mill and despite retracing our footsteps I was unable to find it.

Today Carol and I headed off to Dungeness despite the forecast of cold winds, cloudy and possible drizzle. I don't think it will be too bad were my famous last words. I'm not going to bang on about it again. Suffice to say it was bloody freezing and blowing a gale!

Kestrel, Marsh Harrier, Swift and Pied Wagtail were some of the species who turned out in the adverse conditions to welcome us along the track. Oystercatcher, Lapwing, Reed Buntings and Sedge Warblers still doing their little display flights above the tangled undergrowth featured as we made our way down to Christmas Dell hide. And opposite here was a Little Egret and a Wood Sandpiper, a first for me but I wish it had been closer for a better look. Further on and a lone female Wheatear flitted around low amongst the scrub showing off her white rump unashamedly. Amid much loud calling two Whimbrel chased each other over the flooded meadow and behind us two Red-Legged Partridge ran around nervously among the gorse. And so to Denge Marsh hide where we had lunch and eagerly awaited the non arrival of a Spoonbill which had been seen in the area earlier.

SWALLOW

Again the entertainment featured Hirundines over the pit. The two snaps above were the best I could manage in the poor light. These were joined later by a couple of Common Terns, who provided the calm elegance among the feeding frenzy of the Swallows, Swifts and House Martins, daintily dipping into the water to catch a small fish with supreme agility.

COMMON TERN

On the way back to the visitor centre I had a call from Dennis to say that he and Doreen had found my lens cap down at New Hythe. Excellent news, hope they're not expecting a reward though........................

Stodmarsh NNR 28th April

CUCKOOFLOWER OR LADIES SMOCK

I was torn between a visit to Dungeness or a visit to Stodmarsh today. I chose Stodmarsh in the end for two reasons, the first was to try and see my first Hobby of the year and the second was to try and see my first Grasshopper Warbler ever, there have been two there recently.

The walk from the car park down to the river was alive with birdsong, Common Whitethroat, Chaffinch, Chiffchaffs, Great Tit, Dunnocks, Reed Bunting, Wren and Cetti's Warbler, who were again quite showy today, all laid claim to their own piece of air space in the warm sunshine. I also heard at least three Garden Warblers along here, one of which I managed to see deep in the tangled undergrowth. my first of the year. The big lake was home to about a dozen Common Terns, their rasping calls filling the air as they circled daintily overhead. Gt Crested Grebes and a few Shelduck shared the rest of the lake with a few Mallard and Coots.

CHAFFINCH

Just before the path turns away from the river at the Grove Ferry end I was pleased to hear a sound not heard since last summer, the screeching calls of about half a dozen Swifts flying past overhead. For me this is one of the most evocative sounds of the year which along with the Skylark song, which I heard a few minutes later, conjures up instant pictures in my mind of warm, halcyon summer days. Their visit unfortunately is all too short and they will depart as 'swiftly' as they arrived by the end of August or very early September, and who can blame them. Here also I noticed the plant below growing beneath the hedgerow. I think it's Lesser Periwinkle, please let me know if i'm wrong.

LESSER PERIWINKLE

Butterflies were few and far between today surprisingly, a few Peacocks on the wing as ever, still looking a bit ragged as below and I did see a few Green Veined Whites but they weren't inclined to let me take their picture, always dashing past as if late for some very important meeting somewhere.

PEACOCK

From the viewing mound I could see that the adjacent paddocks were host to Crows, Jackdaws a few Rooks and a Green Woodpecker but not much else. The pools also were virtually uninhabited, only the reedbeds showed signs of avian presence, from where the incessant chatter of Reed Warblers and Sedge Warblers emanated but only one solitary Sedge was brazen enough to show himself on the top of a small Hawthorn bush.

The David Feast hide aka the Green hide was equally disappointing with just two Common Terns (below) a sleeping Greylag Goose and a Moorhen to entertain me. Although I was pleased to see the first of many Hobbys fly over the hide and also one of about five Marsh Harriers also float by.

COMMON TERNS

As I made my way to the Marsh hide I noticed lots of small shiny beetles along the side of the ditches (below). Since getting home I think I have identified them as Mint Leaf Beetles but again i'm happy to be corrected if necessary!

MINT LEAF BEETLES

I was also very pleased to see five more Hobbys all in the air together close to the Marsh hide. I managed to get a couple of action shots, not brilliant but they'll do. The second one I believe shows the bird feeding on the wing having caught an insect in flight.

HOBBY

HOBBY

It was standing room only in the Marsh hide. I had a quick scan from the back to locate a single Greenshank and a couple of Lapwings and an elderly lady asked me if I could see the bulge in a Heron's neck caused by it just swallowing a Marsh Frog? I replied that I could and suggested that maybe it just had a Frog in it's throat. I then left while the going was good. I was glad that I did actually because once back outside I heard a Bittern booming close by, another first for me. Also this Marsh Harrier soared quite high overhead while I listened.

MARSH HARRIER

Have you noticed what a spectacular year it is for Dandelions? They are everywhere, presumably something has caused this but I don't know what. All I know is they look much better in the wild than they do in my back lawn.

The sound that greets you at Stodmarsh above almost everything else is the 'singing' of the Marsh Frogs, it's spectacular, it's incessant, it's loud, it's raucous and it eventually gets on your nerves. This is one of the thousands of culprits!

MARSH FROG

Final bird of the day was this magnificent male Marsh Harrier below, one of about five seen, all males. Presumably the females are now sitting on nests somewhere.

So, no Grasshopper Warbler seen or heard today but the Hobbys were spectacular. A pretty interesting day all round with over 40 species seen.

MALE MARSH HARRIER