DUNGENESS RSPB & RED-BACKED SHRIKE

Alan Roman and I went to one of my favourite places today, Dungeness. We decided to have a quick sea watch first and parked in the car park between the old lighthouse and the Romney. Hythe and Dymchurch railway cafe. It was here that Alan discovered that he had left his binoculars on the kitchen table. Never mind he said, i'll use my scope today, except that he then found that he'd left the fixing plate for his tripod at home. Memory span of a, um, .......what do you call it?

Anyway, the sea watch was a bit quiet, just a couple of GC Grebes, some Common Terns, a small flock of about ten Common Scoters and the usual gull species, so quick march to the RSPB reserve, where we found news of a Red-Backed Shrike over on the ARC site. We gambled that this would stay a while and headed off to see what was on offer.

It was a good day for lizards, with quite a few found basking in the sunny verges, i've chosen this one to show because I like it's slightly green markings. There was little to see from the first couple of hides, just the Shelducks at the top of the post and the usual residents.


But we were accompanied by the constant chatter of Reed Warblers along the lakeside margins, as ever, difficult to see,with just fleeting glimpses like the one above. On the other side of the track we were barracked by a couple of Oystercatchers, below, who had claimed the top of the raised shingle as their own and were intent on repelling trespassers.

There were Common Whitethroats singing and parachuting from just about every bush around the site, so the discovery of a lesser Whitethroat near Christmas Dell hide made a nice change. From the hide we managed to spot a Peregrine, which headed towards the power station, a couple of Pochards and some Common Terns.

Also in this area we found the Four Spotted Chaser below, one of only a couple of dragons seen all day surprisingly.

I was hoping for a Sedge Warbler fest, but I think we were a couple of weeks late for that. Last year, in April, the place was full of them, all singing from the top of the brambles and I got some very nice pictures. Today, all I could manage was the one below, but at least there were some to look at, unlike New Hythe this year.

Considering the weather, butterflies were also hard to come by. We did find a couple on a small patch of Thrift though and i'm going to stick my neck out and say that based on the clear white wing margins, the specimen below is a male Common Blue.........

And of course the next couple are Small Coppers.

There was a female Stonechat on the fence post as we approached the Denge Marsh hide, the only one seen today. It was again quiet inside the hide, apart from the rustle of mine and Alan's crisp packets and sandwich wrappers. In fact it was so loud we nearly didn't hear the Bittern Boom a couple of times. We finally got to see a Marsh Harrier here, a spectacular male, and also the first of three or four Hobby's. No sign of the Purple Heron, which hasn't been seen since friday I believe.

We called in at the lodge on our return to check out the status of the Red-Backed Shrike, but the person we spoke to didn't even know one had been seen, don't they read their own sightings board? While we made some purchases, Alan some seed and me a very nice book entitled British Birds of Prey, a man came in and said he'd just seen a Killdeer, yes, a Killdeer! The lady in the lodge was very upset because she thought he meant road kill, 'and they're such lovely creatures' . We of course went zooming off but feeling understandably pessimistic as all we found was a Little Ringed Plover and a very nice Sandwich Tern, but who knows.

We had more luck though with the Shrike and were lucky enough to see a couple of short sightings of it, albeit through shared binoculars. I think a court martial is in order Mr Roman!

Elmley RSPB The Birds

I haven't been to Elmley for some time, it's a really nice reserve and I love the feeling of isolation and the big sky that comes from such a big flat landscape. I also like the long approach track from the road to the start of the reserve. I think it's almost three miles and this is best driven slowly with binoculars and camera to hand, just in case.

On this occasion the slow drive produced very little apart from the Carrion Crows endlessly foraging in every nook and cranny, Starlings pecking around amongst the cow pats searching for grubs and nearer the farm buildings a few Sand Martins hawking for flies over the fields. Just before the car park I saw a small flock of Yellow Wagtails and over the car park Swallows flew low and fast, one in particular was flying in and out of the ladies loos where there was a nest still in use. I thought about going in with the camera but decided against it after seeing in my mind's eye the possible headlines in the local newspaper if things went wrong.

The bushes on the right hand side where the Long Eared Owls sometimes roost held some Goldfinches and a Robin and also about 10 young Swallows (below) in a small tree being fed by adults, they stayed while I took a couple of pics and then all took to the air in unison.









It's quite a trek down to the first two hides, something like one and a half miles I think but the sun was out, it was a beautiful morning and I was accompanied by hundreds of butterflies and I mean hundreds. The whole site was alive with their brightly coloured wings flashing in the sunlight with sometimes up to a dozen individuals on a single plant. Needless to say I spent some time taking pictures of them which I will put on a separate post tomorrow.
In the meantime the birds weren't quite so plentiful but that wasn't unexpected. Coot, Moorhen, Pied Wagtail, Swan, Little Egret, Mallard, Sedge Warbler and a distant Marsh Harrier were all seen.

I reached the first hide and, with the reserve to myself and one other individual, was pleased to watch a small flock of Avocet feeding and preening in the now slightly overcast skies. I don't very often see these charismatic birds so i've included one or two shots plus a picture of a very cute little juvenile who was already displaying the same 'attitude' which the adults are renowned for.

Other waders making a welcome appearance here and at the adjacent hide (sorry, I cant remember what they're called) included Common Sandpiper, Redshank, Spotted Redshank, Oystercatcher, Black-tailed Godwit, a single Ruff, Common Snipe and Lapwing. I tried to find the recently spotted Pectoral Sandpiper but to no avail.

LAPWING

As I left the second hide I was treated to good views of a Reed Warbler again, I seem to be doing well with this species lately and have found them quite accommodating on occasions. It seemed the longer I stood still the more accepting it was of my presence. Usually when you raise the lens you can hear the birds shouting 'look out he's got a camera!' whereupon the target bird disappears in a flash. But this one just carried on catching flies, although it never did the full monty for me and always made me work for a shot or two. A couple of which are seen below.

The walk back was pretty uneventful, apart from butterflies and a smart looking Grey Heron fishing by the reeds. But when I reached the car I was just putting the camera away when a couple of House Sparrows arrived on the scene. It's easy to overlook the humble 'sparrer' so I broke out the camera again and took the shots below of a very hungry and persistent Junior and a very unimpressed Dad.

And finally...............................as I said earlier, when driving along the Elmley track always keep bins and camera handy, just in case. I did and I soon spotted this tasty blonde who answered to the name of Marsha Harrier, what a cracker!

MARSH HARRIER

New Hythe Lakes Friday 30th July ( Part 1)

I only had a short time this morning due to picking friends up from Gatwick early this afternoon, so I decided to just spend some time around the Sunken Marsh and Brooklands lake. With birding being so quiet I decided to concentrate on what was lurking in the undergrowth instead of what was hiding in the trees.
Unfortunately the first picture is a UFO, not a good start I know. I also know it looks like a bumblebee but, it didn't fly like one and I didn't think it's eyes looked like one either. So could it be a hoverfly species? Any help would bee appreciated!

As I was hovering around and scratching my head over this I suddenly saw a movement out of the corner of my eye and was surprised to see this young Reed Warbler sitting on a reed stem completely unconcerned by my presence. I watched it for ages, hardly daring to move and then Mum turned up and junior got a nice juicy fly for lunch. I saw him being fed about half a dozen times while I stood there but the parent bird never gave me the opportunity to make it a star unfortunately. I did manage to get a few shots of junior though, I can't believe how obliging he was.

So much for a non birding post then.

There were a few butterflies around but nothing that I haven't featured often enough recently. But I did like the look of this Speckled Wood, especially against the lovely green background so I decided to make an exception and include it in the line up.

SPECKLED WOOD

In the SW corner of Brooklands Lake there's a large pile of chipped bark and I always check it out to see if anything is basking on it as it's always in full sun. While I was doing this I noticed something moving below it's surface, it looked as if it had a beating heart. I thought, that's odd, and took a few steps back, not because I was frightened you understand, but because I thought watever it was I wanted to be able to take it's picture when it broke through into the sunlight. Thank goodness for zoom lenses. Anyway it didn't show itself and it moved a couple of feet along the side of the pile but stayed just below the surface. I don't know what it was but it must have been really hot in there. I'll return to this soon and try to find out what it was.

Close by I found this Black-tailed Skimmer also basking in the heat of the sun and another one on the lakeside clinging to a reed stem. There were also some Emperor dragonflies and a couple of Brown Hawkers in the vicinity but as usual they wouldn't settle.

BLACK-TAILED SKIMMER

BLACK-TAILED SKIMMER

And finally......................

The only other dragonfly that I saw and managed to record was this Ruddy Darter and the ruddy thing had me darting around in the heat for about ten minutes before I was able bag it. I always wondered why they call them darters!

RUDDY DARTER

Dungeness RSPB Tuesday 6th July

I've confessed before about having a weakness for Dungeness. Not just the RSPB reserve but for all things Dungeness. The fishing boats drawn up on the shingle, the old huts and chalets, some of which are converted old railway carriages. The mix of dilapidated outbuildings and newer wooden bungalows, some selling fishing tackle and bait wrapped in newspaper, and others displaying paintings and selling home made arts and crafts from ramshackle outbuildings. The gardens full of weird and wonderful creations made from flotsam and jetson and shells that forever wash up on the pebbles following the Channel storms. I like the old lighthouse whose light would cut through the mist and whose fog horn used to boom eerily like a giant Bittern when I used to fish there through the night on occasions in my youth. And I even like the nuclear power station whose outfall of warm water just off the shoreline which we called 'the boil' attracts the fish who in turn attract the sea birds who in turn attract the birdwatchers.

Dungeness RSPB is where I headed today, once again drawn like a magnet. I soon stopped to watch a couple of Reed Warblers in the reed bed who seemed to be in nest building or repairing mode I think. Or maybe they're building an extension ready for a second brood.

REED WARBLER

While I stood and watched I noticed the Little Egret below working it's way towards me. Stopping occasionally for a lightning stab into the water catching the small fish that were basking in the shallows. I do love their yellow feet, it's like they've stood in the paint pot.

LITTLE EGRET

The early sunshine bought out a few butterflies. I saw my first Painted Lady of the year and also my first two Small Coppers pictured below.

SMALL COPPER

SMALL COPPER

Further along the track I found this fledgling Reed Bunting. It's the first i've seen as young as this but there's no mistaking it. He looks just like his Mum!

JUVENILE REED BUNTING

The Dungeness freshwater fish species this week is a Rudd. A very nice fish which has a flattish head and slightly protruding lower lip which enables it to feed off the surface, sometimes being caught by fly fishermen using dry flies. They don't usually grow much above a couple of pounds., especially given that these shoal fish are preyed upon by Grebes, Egrets and Herons and Terns. Pike and Perch are also very partial.

RUDD

GREY HERON

At the moment every Heron that moves comes under close scrutiny to make sure it isn't one of a certain Purple pair that are currently hogging the limelight. Even the reception of a long flight by a Bittern across the front of Denge Marsh hide hardly caused a ripple while I was in there this afternoon. Most people were much more interested in a fleeting, long distance glimpse of the Purple Heron which lasted two seconds and started the usual was it or wasn't it debate.

No prizes for guessing what's on the menu for the Reed Bunting below's youngsters. I can just hear them now saying 'not green caterpillars again'!

REED BUNTING

WHITETHROAT

As I walked back towards the visitor centre I stopped and listened to quite a loud high pitched buzzing. At first I couldn't tell where it was coming from but then I glanced down and noticed lots of little bees buzzing around my feet. I think they are miner bees because they were going in and out of and digging small burrows in the soil. The picture below shows one doing just that. It seems to have blue eyes but I can find no reference to that characteristic. I will try to ID them and add it to the post later.
Mamy thanks to Rob at Wight Rambles for IDing this Bee for me. Click on the link to visit his blog.

ANTHOPHORA BIMACULATA

And finally.............I saw four Common Lizards on site today. The first three I couldn't photograph because they were too quick and the fourth one I couldn't photograph because it was being carried off by one of the resident Kestrels near the entrance to the reserve. I'm pretty sure it was immediately fed to one of the fledged Kestrels which were sitting on the farmhouse chimney top. Now, what were their names again????

Monday 3rd May

REED WARBLER

Turtle Dove, Hobby, Common Tern, Lesser Whitethroat, Garden Warbler. Unfortunately this is not a list of birds seen today. This is a wish list of some of the birds I would like to see today at New Hythe Lakes.
So I left home and went straight to the Alders lakes just down the road from me to get a quick tick in the shape of Common Tern which have been seen there fairly regularly in the past few days, but not today. Next stop the windsurfing lake aka Tesco's lake, another Tern hotspot in the last few days, but not today. Not a good start to my mission but it was nice to see the spectacle of many dozens of Hirundines and Swifts weaving masterfully a few feet above the surface of both of these lakes, a silver lining to the grey cloud.
I drove round to Brooklands car park and made my way round the lake bumping into Martin Warburton who invited me to join him and Terry Laws for a trip to see the famous Iberian Chiffchaff of Walderslade Woods. I declined his kind offer as I was expecting to meet Alan Roman later and also of course I had my mission to think of. I left Martin and started to make my way round the Sunken Marsh under heavy cloud and a cold NE wind. Two Cuckoos flying across the river in quick succession was a good sighting as were a couple of very garrulous Jays and a handsome Cock Pheasant which as ever exploded from the undergrowth fifteen feet from me almost stopping my heart. I had very good views of a Nightingale along the southern edge, it's rufous tail showing very nicely in a brief moment of sunshine. It was here that I heard and saw a Lesser Whitethroat, about time too, one down four to go.
I met Alan at about 9.30 and we made our way up river noting a nice little flock of five Shelduck flying low over the marsh, not too much else seen at this point as the wind got up quite strong and made life a bit difficult and uncomfortable for a while. We made our way to the East Scrub where the Nightingales continue to serenade along with Whitethroat and Blackcap but no Willow Warblers heard today, then on to Brook House to try and locate our first Garden Warbler of the year but again to no avail.

As we walked along the millstream I spotted the Glow Worm larva pictured above, I think i've only seen one before so that was a good sighting for today. A little further on, while sheltering from a hail shower I noticed this large fungus (below) growing on a sawn off tree stump, i've tried to ID it but with no success, can anybody help please?

Back to the car park now but having received a call from Dennis Capeling to say that he and Doreen had seen a Turtle Dove in the Sunken Marsh we decided to revisit the area in the hope of being able to locate it.

SWALLOW PREENING

Passing the lake on the way back to the marsh I saw a few Swallows sitting on the overhead wires so I fired off a few hasty shots, one of which I quite liked because of the unusual angle it caught, the bird is actually twisting it's head round and preening under it's wing I think. Looks a bit bizarre really.

I also managed to get a half decent shot of a Sand Martin which I haven't been able to do before, then a small movement in the reeds just past the fishermens hut caught my eye which turned out to be a Reed Warbler and unusually I managed a few quick shots of it before it moved with it's mate back to their usual state of anonymity in the reedbed.

REED WARBLER (RINGED)

Unfortunately the Turtle Dove couldn't be located in the marsh so all my efforts had resulted with just one New Hythe year tick in the shape of the Lesser Whitethroat. However, a mid afternoon return visit to the Alders lakes rewarded me with a nice view of a Common Tern at last. I like a happy ending!

REED WARBLER

REED WARBLER
SAND MARTIN

DRYAD'S SADDLE OR SCALY POLYPORE (POLYPORUS SQUAMOSUS)GLOW WORM LARVA