Purple Heron

A great find by Paul Trodd of two Purple Herons at the Long Pits today. It took me a while to see one of the two well enough for some photos and then I had my camera settings totally wrong. 80th sec at 100ISO at F13!!! How does that happen?! Thank goodness for Topaz sharpening software. Anyway, I did manage to see one of the Purple Herons on the deck albeit for a moment and then some nice flight views in great afternoon light. 

Purple Heron

Purple Heron

Purple Heron

Purple Heron

The long staying female Long-tailed Duck remains on Burrowes but always distant, generally associating with Tufted Ducks.

Long-tailed Duck

Long-tailed Duck

Redwings 24th and 25th March

The 24th March was overcast and damp. Hundreds of Redwings and a few Fieldfares had descended in to the Desert and the top of the Long Pits. They were incredibly hard to see even though many were singing and they would not allow a close approach. Somehow they knew you were there and went quiet as one.

Redwings in the Desert

Wandering down to the Point from the top of the Long Pits, I was picking up new arrivals with the odd Goldcrest and a few Chiffchaffs, along with a single Firecrest. In the following photo sequence, i've tried to provide similar comparison postures of Chiffchaff and Iberian Chiffchaff from the 22nd March. 

Chiffchaff

Iberian Chiffchaff from 22nd March

Chiffchaff

Iberian Chiffchaff from the 22nd March

Chiffchaff

Iberian Chiffchaff from 22nd March

Goldcrest

Heading on to the RSPB Reserve there were a couple of Avocets on Burrowes and a female Long-tailed Duck which I couldn't find today. The Long-tailed Duck is likely to be the one from Lade and before that from New Diggings, it was last seen on New Diggings on 7th March, then Lade on 13th-14th March and Burrowes on the 17th. As of the 25th there are at least six Goldeneye still present on Burrowes.

Avocet

Female Long-tailed Duck and Drake Goldeneye

Gulls are still making use of the new islands infront of Xmas Dell and Dengemarsh hides. This very large and long billed 2CY Caspian Gull was in from of Dengemarsh hide.

2CY Caspian Gull

2CY Caspian Gull

Pairs of Common Gulls were interested in the islands, hopefully they might breed.

Common Gulls

On the 25th March, the Point was cloaked in a low hazy mist and early messages from Jacob indicated that once again Redwings were in the area along with a Hawfinch. However, the mist layer quickly burnt off and the skies were clear and blue and I could only hear the odd Siskin calling as I walked to the Point and Desert from the top of the Long Pits. My walk recorded a dearth of migrants with only the local Robins and singing Chiffchaffs. A look at the sea was equally disappointing but on walking back to the Bird Observatory there were a couple of Black Redstarts feeding including a stunning male that had been ringed, presumably by the Obs team.

Male Black Redstart

Male Black Redstart 

Male Black Redstart

I headed back home for breakfast and a message on another Kent Whatsapp group stated that a Hoopoe had been seen at Kerton Pit. So it was back out and on arriving at Kerton Road I could a few of the other locals looking for the Hoopoe. In the end we couldn't relocate it but did have a Woodcock and a 2CY Caspian Gull. 

2CY Caspian Gull Kerton Pit

Spring Starts - sort of

Signs of spring continue to emerge across the peninsula with Oystercatcher, Teal, Shoveler, Goldeneye and Tufted ducks pairing up, Ringed Plovers and Marsh Harriers displaying, Bitterns booming and our first Sand Martin recorded by Kevin Ellse on the 12th March who also found a female Long-tailed Duck on Lade south on the 13th. White wagtails have started to appear at the Point, Springfield Bridge and New Romney Sewage Works. A Spoonbill at Dengemarsh on the 13th and female White-tailed Eagle G542 from the Isle of White re-introduction appeared over the reserve again, she really likes it here. Offshore, sea watching remains tough with low numbers of migrating birds in the predominantly northerly winds. Two Goosander on the 12th along with flocks of Dark-bellied Brent goose totalling 715 east are highlights. At least two Water Pipits continue to be hard to see commuting between the Flood Field and Hayfields. 18 Black-tailed Godwits briefly visited Dengemarsh on the 11th with five in-off at the Point. A female Black Redstart continues to show well at the Power Station wall. 

Oystercatcher Pair on the reserve

Black-tailed Godwits migrating past the Point

Female Black Redstart

Female Long-tailed Duck with male Goldeneye

Female Long-tailed Duck

Male White Wagtail

Male White Wagtail

Damp Female? White Wagtail after a heavy sleet shower

Dark-bellied Brent Goose moving east at the Point

Two Black-tailed Godwits on Hayfield 1

Brown Hare on the reserve

Smew

The highlight of the month so far has been the female Smew found by Alan Parker and Peter on 12th Feb at Dengemarsh.

Female Smew

It preferred to presumably forage within the reed edge out of sight and occasionally appeared in open water but never for very long. It remained on Dengemarsh until 14th Feb.

On the 17th Feb, I was doing the WeBS count at ARC for the RSPB and found it (presumably the same bird) there and it was much closer.

Female Smew

On the 13th Feb 19 White-fronted Goose were in Boulderwall Fields or in the adjacent Lydd Fields.

White-fronted Goose

Richard picked out J16EY a Great Black-backed Gull in its 3rd calendar year. According to my records it was last recorded in the Dungeness area on 14th Sep 2024.

Great Black-backed Gull

In recent days a couple of Ringed Plovers have been on Hayfield 1 and 2, hopefully the new shingle islands that have been created across the RSPB Reserve will tempt them to nest.

Ringed Plover

Weather in recent days has been cold with a south-east wind but sunny and bright. The wind was creating havoc with the Tufted Ducks, giving them a very bad hair day as they slept in front of Dengemarsh hide.

 

Tufted Duck

After being absent from the 12th, the Long-tailed Duck re-appeared on New Diggings on the 16th Feb.

Female Long-tailed Duck

Hybrid Gull?

I saw this adult gull on Burrowes Pit at the RSPB Reserve back on the 10th January and thought it was a Caspian Gull. However, on subsequently checking my photos it doesn't look right for Caspian. The bill and wing formula look wrong for Caspian and it is likely to be a hybrid of some flavour.
Maybe Yellow-legged Gull x Herring Gull? Any thoughts welcome.

Likely Hybrid Gull 10th Jan 

Also on the 10th the Great Northern Diver on Burrowes came close enough for a photo.

Great Northern Diver

A very cold and dull, overcast and misty damp day today. Despite checking Burrowes and New Diggings I couldn't locate either of the Great Northern Divers and only the one on Burrowes was seen yesterday, so maybe they have now gone. The Long-tailed Duck was still on New Diggings. At least nine Goldeneye were spending their time between Burrowes and New Diggings and at least three Water Pipits were on Hayfield 2.

Long-tailed Duck

 Back from an incredible trip to Australia and checking out the gulls on Burrowes pit on the RSPB reserve. Three adult Caspian Gulls coming in to the pit during the late morning and early afternoon. Managed to photo two of the three.

Two of the three adult Caspian gulls jostling for position on the submerged island amongst greater black backed gulls.

They didn't hang around for too long.

After many days of grey overcast and murky weather the sun and blue skies were over the reserve in the late afternoon. The long-tailed duck and great northern diver remained faithful to the New Diggings pit.

Long-tailed duck on New Diggings, RSPB reserve.

Back on the 12th December I managed to catch-up with the Hume's warbler that had been found in the Obs garden. Initially it looked like the bird had a damaged right eye but on checking photos it had a tick just below the right eye.

Hume's warbler