Raptors in the Sunshine

Lade - 1000hrs - warm, dry and sunny, light airs - A bit of warm sunshine is all that`s required to entice raptors up and into the waiting thermals. Four Marsh Harriers, 2 Buzzards and a Sparrowhawk were soaring high over the airport when I arrived at the aerial mound on south pit.
Dungeness  - 1100hrs  Had a look at the Patch, more out of a sense of duty than anything else, where amongst the melee of mostly immature gulls were 2 adult Meds. A Peregrine scattered the pigeons over the power station and a couple of Kestrels posed on poles by the Light Railway Cafe.

                                          Kestrel, Dungeness

RSPB - 1200hrs - Skirted around the margins of the bird reserve as packed out with weekend birders. From the causeway road a flock of 21 Smews still on New Diggings, with 2 more over the road on ARC plus 8 Goldeneyes. At least 25 Tree Sparrows in the bushes at Boulderwall and another 2 Marsh Harriers circling over the fields. From Springfield Bridge, (where I was joined by the Biking Birders) 4 more Marsh Harriers on the wing, 2 Ravens, `pinging` Beardies and the Great White Egret.