Dungeness - warm, dry and sunny, W2 - A cracking morning of autumnal weather for a tour of the peninsula with Ted. We commenced at the lifeboat station and took a long, sweeping route along the foreshore to the lighthouses, around the Moat and across the Desert via the Trapping Area. In the migrating vanguard was a steady stream of Swallows and Sand Martins skimming south and west, plus Yellow Wagtails with at least 50 grounded along the beach, 20 on the Desert with many more calling overhead. At least 20 Wheatears, 10 Stonechats and five Whinchats were logged along the way and there was a noticeable presence from `ticcing` Robins in the bushes; the only warblers heard were a few Willows and Blackcaps. A Wryneck was reported from the same clump of gorse as last Friday but I had no luck again, apart from what may have been a brief flight view... Talking of flight views, around 0930hrs a flock of 15 Glossy Ibises flew out to sea, having been picked up at Jury`s Gap by Martin, whilst watching the American Golden Plover, and tracked along the coast, with more birds reported from the bird reserve during the course of the day.
Our next stop was Lade pits where at least four Black-necked Grebes were still in residence on south lake along with plenty of common wildfowl, gulls, grebes and Coots, plus Sand Martins and Swallows over the water; a few more Wheatears and Yellow Wagtails were also noted on the Desert. With high tide at noon we finished off at the Kerton Road pit for roosting waders where 24 Knots was the highlight alongside c500 Oystercatchers, 200 Sandwich Terns and 100 Black-headed Gulls.
Lovely knots. Ted looks happy.
ReplyDeleteThanks John; he`s in dog heaven!
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