Monday 19 March 2018

Bluethroat gully

Lade - cold, cloudy, snow flurries, NE 6 - Another nippy day with a rasping easterly wind off the sea forcing the ducks on south lake to seek shelter behind islands and around the willow swamp. The Goldeneyes were still present, as was a single Black-necked Grebe. I couldn't find the Long-tailed Ducks, but they were probably lurking in the far reed bed somewhere.

Dengemarsh Gully

                               


                                Immature male White-spotted Bluethroat

Dengemarsh Gully - A visit to the gully late morning delivered further views of the Bluethroats. The adult male was more retiring feeding along the sewer margin and pulling worms before hopping back into cover. In contrast the immature bird was more obliging performing out in the open at the end of the gully by the concrete blocks, where at one stage a male Wheatear flew in and flushed it.
  Plenty of Firecrests, and at least one Goldcrest, were active in the gorse scrub.

5 comments:

  1. Enjoy reading your blog :-)

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    1. Could you tell me where Denge Marsh Gully is? I know where the RSPB Dungeness is

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  2. Hi Liz, thanks for your comments. Dengemarsh Gully is an extension of Dengemarsh Road that runs south out of Lydd off Robin Hood Lane, past the football club and on past the water sports lakes on your right towards the chicken battery houses. Carry on until you run out of metalled road, with the bird reserve to your left, and then walk the remaining rough track beside the gully and sewer underneath the pylon lines and down to the watch tower by the sea. More often than not there is little to see, but every once in a while it delivers the goods, although I`m unsure whether the Bluethroats have been seen today. Good birding, Paul.

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  3. Hi Paul thanks for the reply. I went there and I saw the blue throat and I got a picture of it so really happy with that :-)
    Liz

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  4. That`s great, I understand that at least one of the Bluethroats showed really well yesterday (Tuesday) afternoon.

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