Staying Local

Lade - 1045hrs - Warm, dry and sunny, e 4 - After the guests had departed we had a good look around the local patch, but in the brisk wind coming straight off the sea it was slim pickings. A few Mipits and hirundines drifted over, plus 2 Skylarks, while 5 Stonechats were scattered about the desert scrub. In the shelter of the ponds and the buddleia thicket beside north lake things looked up a touch with 10 Chiffchaffs, 5 Blackcaps, 5 Goldcrests, Kingfisher and Firecrest. A large tit flock attracted a hunting Kestrel which managed to drop onto one unsuspecting juvenile Great Tit.
The huge numbers of Coots, dabbling ducks and grebes remain on south lake and a couple of Marsh Harriers were testing the waterfowl out for any weaklings.

                                Kestrel, Lade ponds

As it was high tide a few shorebirds drifted over: 25 Curlews, 3 Ringed Plovers, 2 Dunlins and a Redshank. Cutting back along the beach we had superb views of a Clouded Yellow basking in the lee of the sand dunes.

                                Clouded Yellow, Greatstone beach