07/01/2025

 

One of this mornings Mediterranean gulls

A bitterly cold morning in the hide, at least we were dry and out of the wind , 1.5 hrs was enough.

08.00-9.30  with OL, RW

Kittiwake:127W   

Black-headed Gull:  100s W

Mediterranean Gull: 2W

Common Gull:  100s W

Herring Gull: 1,000s W

Caspian Gull: 2W (2 x 1w)

Great Black-backed Gull: Present n/c

Lesser Black-backed Gull: Present n/c

Guillemot: 8W    9E  

Razorbill: 3W 

Auk: 104W      17E

Red-throated Diver: 72W   16E  

Gannet: 35W       

Cormorant: 1,000s+ around

Common Seal: 2

On the reserve the 2 Great Norther Divers ,Long-tailed Duck and 4 Greater White-fronted Geese were still present. Bewick and Whooper Swans were reported as still present on Walland Marsh today.

I had a bit of fun using my Thermal Imager this afternoon finding 2 Jack Snipe without flushing them and a Bittern.

Without the Thermal Imager I would not have found these 2 Jack Snipe

Terrible images of the bittern found with the aid of the Thermal Imager in near darkness at the ARC from Hanson Hide

06/01/2025

Young male Sparrowhawk hunting from my garden fence late this morning

A very windy and at times damp in the sea watch hide this morning. Wind 8-10 with frequent showers  8º

08.00-10.00  with OL, RW

Grey Plover: 1W

Kittiwake:109W   

Little Gull: 2E  

Black-headed Gull:  Present n/c

Common Gull:  Present n/c

Herring Gull: Present n/c

Caspian Gull: 2W (1w + 2w)

Great Black-backed Gull: Present n/c

Lesser Black-backed Gull: Present n/c

Guillemot:16W    7E   

Auk: 6W      2E

Red-throated Diver: 4W   3E  

Fulmar: 10W

Gannet: 302W       

Cormorant: 1,000s+ around 

4 Greater White-fronted Geese still present on Boulderwall Fields this afternoon

It was a very quiet day with no other news from the local area. I think the cold wind kept everyone away.

Tufted Duck splashdown on the ARC this afternoon

04/01/2025

While cleaning the frost from Sallys car this morning, I noticed a small flock of Chaffinches sitting on top of football club hedge, I grabbed my binoculars and was very pleasantly surprised to see 3 Yellowhammers amongst them, they are difficult species to catch up with on the peninsular, mostly they are Autumn flyovers calling, these were the first I have seen from the garden since lock down.

Rather than sit in cold sea watch hide I opted for a cycle ride around Scotney, notables were a Greenshank, 2 Green Sandpipers, Tree Sparrows and Kingfisher, there was no sign of any wild Grey Geese which was not surprising the way the shepherds were riding all over on the Quad Bikes, the Lapwing and Golden plover were constantly disturbed, I must assume there is much good feeding to be had in the back fields for the birds to tolerate this level of disturbance.

A short visit to the reserve this afternoon saw the Great Northern Divers and the long-tailed Duck but not a great deal else.

Other news was that there were up to 17 Bewick Swans on Walland and 2 Whooper Swans, there was also still 4 Greater White-fronted Geese on Boulderwall Fields.

Tree Sparrows on the Sussex side of the border at Scotney/Jurys Gap

There are now a minimum of 140 Tree Sparrows in the flock 

Kingfisher by the Jury's Gut Sewer

 

03/01/2025

With domestic stuff to do first thing it was a late start today, which allowed the weather to warm up a little in the bright sunshine which allowed me to get the bicycle out.

My first stop was to say hi to the local Little Owls

On to Scotney where a Geeenshank was soaking up the sunshine out of the breeze, 

Nearby an old friend, Herring Gull X2DT which I last saw nearly 6 years ago on 15/08/2019,  I recorded it 15 times between then 14/12/2017.

1 of 8 Curlew on the Scotney sward.

1 of 70+ Tree Sparrows at the back of Scotney today

Bewick Swans on Walland Marsh

A brief trip to the reserve where 8 White-fronted Geese, Great Northern Diver and Long-tailed Duck were the highlights.

Whooper Swans on Walland Marsh

Late afternoon I finished the day out on the ranges with Owen and Dave, where we saw 2 Short-eared Owls and a Barn Owl, also Marsh harriers and Common Buzzards.

 

2024

My personal favourite of 2024

I came across these 2 stunning Bee-eaters on the morning of 31/05/2024 in the Willow Trail at the ARC, it was a horrible very wet and windy day, they hawked Bees and Damsels until mid afternoon allowing many birders to see them, then the weather cleared and they went on there way.

Not the best year for numbers at Dungeness, but there were certainly there were many quality days birding had, My pesonal tally for the year at Dungeness was 223 species.

Other Highlights from the Dungeness Peninsula in 2024

Great Northern Diver with a Black-throated Diver from Dennis's Hide. Burrowes Pit, January 2024

A confiding Hoopoe at Greatstone on 12/04/2024

Iberian Chiffchaff trapped at the Dungeness Bird Observatory 12/05/2024

Melodious Warbler in The Moat on 15/05/2024

Woodchat Shrike on the reserve on the afternoon of the 19/05/2024

Also in May several Long-eared Owl territories were located

On the morning of 09/07/2024 I walked into Hanson Hide at the ARC and could scuffling in the hide, I kept around expecting to find maybe a Stoat, then 4 black shapes whited past me to the other end of the hide, I then realised they were Water Rail chicks, I managed to shepherd 3 of the out of the door to freedom, but 1 kept running back and forth across the length of the hide, eventually I removed my fleece jacket and as it scuttled past me I trapped in the jacket allowing me to safely release it to join its siblings.

On 26/07/2024 I had a magical encounter with a Leveret

On 17/08/2024 a Temminck's Stint and a Pectoral Sandpiper were in the Sand Pit

One of several Ospreys that visited Dungeness, this one on 23/08/2024 was ringed as a chick in the nest in  central  Scotland just a few weeks earlier.

White-winged Tern on the 01/09/2024

01/09/2024 a very memorable day was made even better when this female Honey Buzzard flew along the Long Pits and directly over my head.

Again on 01/09/2024 one of my favourite images of the year was this Spotted Redshank that was flying around Burrowes Pit early evening.

Red-necked Phalarope and Wood Sandpiper on 13/09/2024 in the Sand Pit

on 14/09/2024 Neil and Janet Burt found an American Golden Plover on Burrowes, which was enjoyed by many birders.

On 22/09/2024 Dave Bunney found this Western Bonnelli's Warbler in his garden, it showed beautifully to all visiting birders, our thanks are again extended to to Dave and Sheila Bunney for there hospitality to all.

The only Leach's Petrel I saw this year on the 20/10/2024

2 lovely Yellow-browed Warblers caught by the assistant warden Tom Wright on 012/11/2024, 

The amazing sight of a Humpback Whale off The Point at Dungeness on 30/11/2024

The Hume's Warbler found by David Walker by the observatory in mid December

31/12/2024

With a force 6 SW blowing I went to the sea watch hide this morning, there was lots of birds but very little variety, but still easily the most productive sea with for a couple of weeks. By 10.30 frequent showers of drizzle were making the hide uncomfortable. 

08.15-10.30  with Chris Gillard, Rob Lee.

Brent Goose: 24E        1W

Shelduck: 3W

Wigeon: 7W

Red-breasted Merganser: 1W (female)

Great-crested Grebe: 1E      2 present

Oystercatcher: 5W

Kittiwake: 192W     5E

Black-headed Gull:  Present n/c

Common Gull:  Present n/c

Herring Gull: Present n/c

Yellow-legged Gull: 2W (both near adults)

Great Black-backed Gull: Present n/c

Lesser Black-backed Gull: Present n/c

Guillemot: 227W     

Razorbill: 3W

Auk: present n/c

Red-throated Diver: 193W   89E  

Great Northern Diver: 2W

Fulmar: 2W

Gannet: 591W    82E      

Cormorant: 1,000+ around

Grey Seal: 1

After the sea watch I went to the reserve and spent a short while in Dennis's as the weather worsened, the Great Northern Diver was still present also at least 3 Caspian Gulls. I think the weather curtailed any other news from the area.

An excellent party of Goldeneye on Burrowes this morning

2w Caspian Gulls

29/12/2024

In the continuing still and foggy conditions sea watching is not something I want to do, so my time is being spent around the reserve, where the Long-tailed Duck and Great Northern Diver on the New Diggings are continuing to attract admirers, though the views are usually distant and not great for photography. We located a second Great Northern Diver on Burrowes today along with a minimum of 10 Caspian Gulls, 2 drake Pintail were a bonus. 

Early afternoon 5 Bewick Swans appeared out of the fog over the ARC, then circled the reserve before coming back to the ARC to rest for a short time before moving off towards Lydd.

At Cockles Bridge there were 2 Cattle Egrets that were photogenic, apparently another 6 were in the horse paddocks per DB.

Out on Walland another 26 Bewick Swans and 2 Whooper Swans but no reports of any wild Geese.

Great Northern Diver on New Diggings, another has arrived on Burrowes Pit

There 8 Goldeneye on the New Diggings, this one saying hi to the GND

Long-tailed Duck still present on the New Diggings, always distant.

The first Pintail I've seen for a couple of weeks on Burrowes

 

2w Caspian Gull

1w Caspian Gull

1w Caspian Gull

1w Caspian Gull

1w Caspian Gull

Cattle Egrets at Cockles Bridge on my way home for lunch

Bewick Swan coming out of the fog directly over my head 

Bewick swans circling the ARC in the fog

Bewick Swans

The Bewick Swans getting fidgety, constantly calling and neck bobbing

The Bewick Swans leaving the ARC after a short rest