Last Knockings

Cold, misty, light airs - Final circuits of the year at Lade and the local farmland, respectively, produced three Goldeneyes on south lake and a pair of `cronking ` Ravens over Hope Lane in the fog. I finished what was my 20th year on the Marsh with 217 species, which is about average for me now; my best year being 236 species in 2015. The Eastern Bonelli`s Warbler in the Trapping Area was a new bird; albeit poor value as views were fleeting but thankfully it was fairly vocal. However, far more more satisfying were a pair of very obliging Purple Herons on Long Pits, a Fan-tailed Warbler at Galloways, a Red-breasted Flycatcher at Dungeness and a Red-footed Falcon, a Red-backed Shrike and a Black-winged Stilt on the reserve. The Scotney area on the return passage delivered Dotterel, American Golden Plover and a confiding Buff-breasted Sandpiper which was my candidate for Bird of the Year. I didn`t do much seawatching this year but did have a habit of jamming in on several good watches that afforded terrific close views of Sooty, Balearic and Manx Shearwaters from the fishing boats. Influxes of Cattle Egret and Glossy Ibis were also enjoyable, as were this months White-fronted and Tundra Bean Geese. On the debit side I failed to see Grey Partridge and Goosander for the first time whilst many of the sub-Saharan migrants were in poor numbers, particularly Tree Pipit and Redstart. On the plus side autumn Chiffchaffs streamed through in extraordinary numbers. Below are some of my favourite pics of 2025. 

                                 Bar-tailed Godwits - Kerton quarry

                                  Blue-headed Wagtail - Dengemarsh

                                  Buff-breasted Sandpiper - Scotney

                                  Common Sandpiper - Dengemarsh

                                  Curlew Sandpiper - Kerton quarry

    Fan-tailed Warbler - Galloways  (by John Young)

    Hobby - Dungeness

    Meadow Pipit - Lade

    Purple Heron - Long Pits

    Sooty Shearwater - Dungeness

    Tree Sparrow - Scotney

    Starlings - ARC

Happy New Year to one and all and here`s to a bird-rich 2026

Bean Geese

Cold, dry and cloudy, light airs - This past week has seen an influx of wild geese and swans (mostly Bean and White-fronted Geese and Bewick`s Swans) arriving across our region on the back of, at times, a rasping north-easterly airflow. Yesterday a flock of 30 White-fronts flew in off the sea (cackling merrily away) making for a fine spectacle as they headed inland over Littlestone golf links towards St Marys-in-the-Marsh. From Hook Wall on Walland today 32 Tundra Bean Geese were amongst a large mixed flock of Greylag and Egyptian Geese, four White-fronts, two Brents and a Barnacle Goose plus six Bewick`s Swans; whilst we were present part of the flock dispersed over towards the wind farm. Also noted along the road several Fieldfares, Buzzards and Marsh Harriers, plus five Tree Sparrows by the flying club. The devastation to the hedgerows and old willows that have been grubbed out and stacked ready to burn around Hawthorn Corner has to be seen to be believed; little wonder then that there are hardly any small farmland birds across Walland Marsh. Elsewhere over the holiday period visits to Pirate Springs have revealed the usual shorebirds at low tide, including a few Ringed Plovers at last; two Black-necked Grebes and a Scaup at Scotney while a Great Northern Diver was reported from Burrowes on the RSPB reserve. The farmland around New Romney is largely a bird-free zone, but on the bright side a Firecrest has been a regular visitor to our garden.

                                  Bewick`s Swans - Walland Marsh

                                  Tundra Bean Geese - Walland Marsh

Great Northern Diver

Mild, cloudy, SW2 - A check of Lade this morning produced all the expected wildfowl including three Goldeneyes and a drake Pintail still on south lake. Cetti`s Warbler, Chiffchaff, Green Woodpecker and Kingfisher were all noted around the willow swamp. Moving onto the reserve where five more Goldeneyes were on Burrowes along with several Caspian Gulls and Great White Egrets, plus a recently arrived Great Northern Diver that proved to be very elusive as it fished amongst a flock of Cormorants on the far side of the lake. 

                                   Pintail and Shovelers - Lade 

Elsewhere over the weekend there was no increase in numbers to the small flock of wild swans on Walland, while the Sussex end of Scotney briefly held four Black-necked Grebes and a Scaup; up to seven White-fronts were also seen on the fields between Lydd and Dengeamrsh. At home a Firecrest has been seen and heard in our New Romney garden on several occasions recently.

Bewick`s Swans

Mild, cloudy, SW2 - A sunny start to the day but cloud cover quickly developed with the wind picking up from the south. I spent the morning on the reserve where the circular trail produced the usual common wildfowl, egrets and harriers, two Stonechats, a Chiffchaff, two Kestrels, Cetti`s Warbler and several Goldfinches, plus a Water Pipit on hayfield 3 and at least four Caspian Gulls on Burrowes. There was far more to see from Hanson hide on the duck front including four distant Goldeneyes. On the way home a pause at Swamp Crossing on Walland delivered the wild swan flock that has increased to 10 Bewick`s and two Whoopers; although, still very low numbers of the former for this time of year.

                                  Kestrel - Dengemarsh

                                  Bewick`s Swans - Walland

                                  Whooper Swans - Walland

Wild swans

Mild, cloudy, SW3 - A check of Lade pits this morning turned up low numbers of wintering wildfowl including a single Goldeneye. Likewise it was the same birds from the past week around the reserve with at least 10 Caspian Gulls on Burrowes from Dennis`s hide and a pair of Pintail on ARC. It looks as though the Boulderwall fields project is near completion with most of the heavy plant now removed. Nine Cattle Egrets were in the sheep fold at Cockles Bridge while four Bewick`s and a Whooper Swan were viewable from Swamp Crossing.

                                  Whooper and Bewick`s Swans - Swamp Crossing

                                 Cormorants - Dungeness

                                  Oil rig on the move 

The only birds of note last week have been a Pintail at Lade and a Water Pipit over Tanners Pool while thousands of Cormorants continue to feed offshore at Dungeness. The Scotney complex delivered five White-fronts, a Scaup and a Black-necked Grebe at the Sussex end. 

Caspian Gulls

Cloudy, mild, drizzle, SW 3 - After a weekend taken up with family business it was good to get out and about today with Ted. We started at Lade for the WeBS count where four Goldeneyes were the highlights amongst low numbers of common ducks, grebes and Coots. A brief seawatch from the boats delivered a trickle of passing/feeding Kittiwakes, Gannets and auks but little else. Moving onto the bird reserve where from the water tower I watched a pair of Peregrines stooping in tandem at a Black-headed Gull out over the Desert. The larger bird (presumably a female) seemed to be doing most of the damage as clouds of feathers exploded from the gull; eventually it flopped onto the shingle and became breakfast for the falcons. From Hanson hide the usual wildfowl noted, plus several each of Great White Egret and Marsh Harrier, a perched Kingfisher, calling Water Rail and Cetti`s Warbler and a Goldeneye and Sparrowhawk from Screen hide. Over the road at Dennis`s hide I joined Martin and Richard who were busily counting double figures of Caspian and Yellow-legged Gulls amongst the more numerous Greater and Lesser-black Backed Gulls. We finished up at Littlestone Green for waders on the bay which included several Grey Plovers, Barwits and Redshanks, although still no Ringed Plovers.

                                  Adult Caspian Gull - Burrowes

                                 3rd winter Yellow-legged Gull - Burrowes

                                  Both together

                                  View from Hanson hide

    Kingfisher - ARC (through glass)

Swans and Geese

Cold, cloudy, wet, SE4 - This past week has been dominated by the weather and trying to avoid the bands of rain and brisk winds sweeping in off the Atlantic. The farmland around New Romney, Lade, Pirate Springs, Littlestone, Scotney and the reserve have all been visited a couple of times each. The highlights have been several each of Bewick`s Swans (five today) and White-fronted Geese on the fields between Lydd and Horsebones Farm and at the back of the old sand pit amongst hundreds of feral Greylags, Canada and Egyptian Geese and Mute Swans, plus two Black-necked Grebes and an immature Scaup on the main Scotney roadside lake. The expected raptors, gulls (inc Yellow-legged and Caspian Gulls) egrets and wildfowl have been noted on the reserve with ARC being the best spot for Great White Egrets and Bittern sightings, plus up to five Goldeneyes on Lade pits. At low tide eight species of waders and a laggard Sandwich Tern were logged from Littlestone Green last weekend. The Boulderwall Fields re-wetting project is coming on apace with the anti-predator fencing now being installed; next spring should not only benefit breeding Lapwings and Redshanks but also, hopefully, lure in a few passage waders...

                                  View over Tanners Pool

                                  View over Cooks Pool

                                  Anti-predator fencing

    Ted - Pirate Springs

Bewick`s Swan

Scotney - mild, dry and cloudy, light airs - Having been off the Marsh for most of this week it was good to spend the morning with Ted birding the fields behind the old sand pit before checking the front sward and lakes back towards Lydd. The spectacle was provided by several thousand each of Lapwings and Golden Plovers swirling overhead and nervously feeding amongst the winter cereal trying to avoid the attention of a hunting Peregrine. A single Bewick`s Swan was noted on a distant rape-seed field along with several Mute Swans, hundreds of feral Greylag, Canada, Barnacle and Egyptian Geese, two Buzzards and a Kestrel. Weedy field margins attracted a few passerines including 100 Skylarks, 20 Linnets, 20 Tree Sparrows, 15 Stonechats and a several Meadow Pipits, Goldfinches, Chaffinches, Reed Buntings and a Snipe. The lakes held a variety of wintering Pochard, Teal, Tufted Duck and Wigeon, plus Green Sandpiper, Redshank and Curlew, while the roadside lakes were quieter but did include the long-staying Black-necked Grebe.

                                  Buzzard and Lapwings

                                 Wigeon

                                  Lapwings

                                  Black-necked Grebe 

Dartford Warbler

Lade - cold, cloudy, N 3 showers - Since my last post on Tuesday an Arctic airflow has made its presence felt bringing a proper taste of winter to the Marsh landscape with overnight frosts and sleety rain this morning. A circuit of the local patch today produced a Dartford Warbler in the gorse by the badger sett, otherwise it was typical winter fare with small numbers of diving ducks (including Goldeneye), grebes and Coots on the water, vocalising Water Rails in the willow swamp, a couple of Kingfishers zipping over the lakes, plus hunting Marsh Harrier and Buzzard. On Wednesday a guided walk around the circular trail on the reserve for seven guests went ahead despite the appalling weather (driving wind and rain) conditions. However, somehow they enjoyed several close encounters with Marsh Harriers and Great White Egrets, plus a Dunlin from Firth and all the usual wildfowl, grebes and gulls scattered across the wetlands.

                             

                                 Lade desert looking south to Dungeness

                                  South lake raft

                                  Ted seems impervious to the cold!

                                 Rainbow over north lake

Goldeneyes

Lade - cold, cloudy, light airs - This morning saw the first grass frost of the season thick on the ground, but it didn`t last for long once the cloud cover rolled in; still, nice and cold though, as it should be at this time of year. We carried out a full circuit of the local patch including the rough grassland out back where a few grounded Blackbirds and Skylarks were present along with two ever-watchful Buzzards. South lake had a scattering of ducks, mostly Pochard and Tufted Duck, plus four Goldeneyes but Shovelers were down to just 20. Whilst scanning from the bridge a Crossbill hurtled over calling unseen heading north. There was little of note around the ponds while north lake held a few common wildfowl and gulls. The walk back along the foreshore on a falling tide revealed the usual hundreds of Oystercatchers, Curlews and Dunlins (c300) plus 50 Knots, 10 Grey Plovers and five Bar-tailed Godwits.

                                  Goldeneyes - south lake

                                  Lade Bay waders

                                  Oystercatcher and Grey Plovers - Lade Bay

                                  Dunlins - Lade Bay

Grey Ghost

Dengemarsh Gully - mild, cloudy, drizzle, NE2 - The last of the mild days, apparently, before a cold, northerly airflow sweeps down from the Arctic tomorrow. However, we walked the gully first thing where the majority of birds were in the section between Springfield bridge and the start of the track comprising a handful each of Robin, Blackbird, Dunnock, Goldfinch, Chaffinch and a Cetti`s Warbler. The middle section was barren and the only other grounded passerines were two Meadow Pipits and a Stonechat at the seaward end, plus a Raven over. The reserve was equally quiet (only four cars in the main car park with the VC closed) with just the usual wetland birds from the bridge and Dennis`s lookout, plus a Firecrest and Chiffchaff in the scrub by the hide and at least two Caspian Gulls on Burrowes. Nothing much else to report at Lade apart from two Goldeneyes on south lake.

                                  Blackbird - Dengemarsh Gully

                                  Revamped Hanson hide - ARC

                                  Yellowhammer - Hope Lane, NR

This afternoon I joined Chris for the monthly harrier count out on Walland Marsh where 15 Marsh Harriers came to roost in the main reed-bed, plus stunning views of a male Hen Harrier that passed over our viewpoint heading to roost elsewhere. Also noted: 26 Cattle Egrets (the highest number I`ve ever seen in the UK), three Great White and a Little Egret, two Buzzards, two Kestrels, a Snipe, several thousand Starlings and a large, distant mixed flock of Lapwings and Golden Plovers.  

    Ted - he does love a puddle!