Dungeness and Rye 19/10/26

-

Fairly mild and mostly sunny at Dungeness we started at Southview Cottage where a Yellow-browed Warbler had been reported in the garden. The bird was seen a couple of times though proved fairly elusive and didn't call. A Brambling was heard whilst waiting there.

From the Hanson Hide there were plenty of waterfowl to be seen, Gadwall being most notable. A couple of female-type Goldeneye were quite close to the hide.

Next to Rye Harbour to visit the nature reserve there. It has been many years since I last came here, and in the meantime the impressive new visitor centre has been built. The Gooders Hide is a short walk away, named after one of my birding heroes, John Gooders. He is justifiably famous for writing 'Where to Watch Birds' in 1967. The book proved a real game changer for me and no doubt thousands of others, showing where to go in Kent and further afield to see various birds.

From the hide we saw two Spoonbill, a Kingfisher and many ducks, Wigeon being most numerous. Walking back I thought I heard a Lapland Bunting, though couldn't see one so maybe a flyover bird.

The Gooders Hide at Rye Harbour 


Kingfisher 


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Elmley 16/09/25

-
Image
Less windy today and mostly sunny so I made what was belatedly my first visit to Elmley this year. The male Red-footed Falcon, initially found a couple of days ago, had been reported earlier th is morning.  To start with there was no sign of it after I arrived, however I  walked down to the brickfields and was surprised to see the bird there. It was sitting i n a grassy field though soon flew off, back up the track towards the oaks.  Good views of the falcon were then obtained, both in flight and sitting in the trees. It seemed to be a second-winter bird on account of some barring on the underwing due to a mixture of old and new flight feathers. It seems quite possible this bird is the same as that exactly one year ago when in juvenile plumage.  There were also a couple of Hobbies in the same area today. This was my first outing using the new OM1 so a bit of a learning exercise in how best to use it. First view of the falcon. Red-footed Falcon  Hobby 
Read more

Westbrook & Seasalter 8/11/25

-
Image
A lovely sunny day and I headed to East Kent following bird news from the region. Starting at Botany Bay I hoped to catch up with two Pallid Swifts that turned up yesterday and had remained in the area. I saw the birds though they were very high up in sunny skies so views were poor. A Black Redstart on the roof of a nearby house was some consolation. Then on to Westbrook where a Dusky Warbler had reportedly been showing quite well in the Sunken Garden. However, the bird had flown to the undercliff prior to my arrival and was occasionally being seen in scrub there. It was calling quite often and I eventually obtained good views, my first Dusky Warbler for several years. Whilst watching the warbler news came through that a Desert Wheatear had been found at South Swale LNR. I set off and arrived there at 3 pm, parking near the Sportsman. The bird had been present along the sea wall though had flown and my first views were not so close. I went back to the car and retrieved my 'scope th...
Read more

Point Pelee 12/05/26

-
Image
There were good numbers of waders at the tip of PP at 6:30, especially Turnstones, plus a feeding flock of gulls and terns just offshore. An adult Bald Eagle sat on the beach at the far end. Migrant passerines were generally low in numbers in the adjacent woodland. However, one of the birds that I watched caught my attention as it sported an obvious white eyering and a bluish-grey head. Add to that two white wing-bars, yellowish flanks, and a white belly, all the id features for Blue-headed Vireo. Unfortunately the bird mainly stayed high up in trees, unlike a nearby Black-throated Blue Warbler which was seen at ground level. Later I made another visit to Delaurier Homestead where the Green Heron was seen at close range, and Common Yellowthroat were more obliging than they usually are. Whilst there I learnt that an Ash-throated Flycatcher was still present near Dunes, so I left the homestead sooner than planned. The area for the flycatcher was a 15 minute walk along a permissive path n...
Read more