Rye Harbour

Lade - cold, dry, misty, warm later - 0700hrs - A stunning morning to be out in the field before breakfast with a grass frost and an atmospheric low mist covering the desert looking back towards Dungeness. Bird wise very quiet though with a lone Chiffchaff singing from the willow swamp the only migrant of note.

Rye Harbour - A family visit to the shingle part of the nature reserve in glorious spring sunshine was memorable for a wide variety of waders, both breeding birds and migrants. Avocets, Redshanks, Lapwings, Oystercatchers and Ringed Plovers were plentiful and on one of the smaller pits we had our first Little Ringed Plover of the year and a flyover Yellow Wagtail. Passage waders included Curlew, Barwit, Dunlin, Knot and Turnstone while a pair of Wheatears were on Flat Beach. Shelducks were the commonest wildfowl followed by Teal, Shoveler and Gadwall. On Ternery Pool around 100 Sandwich Terns and 30 Med Gulls loafed on the islands amongst hundreds of Black-headed Gulls already on nests. Also noted on the circular walk, singing Skylarks and Mipits, Mistle Thrush, 2 Little Egrets, Kestrel and Peregrine.

                                Avocets

                                Black-headed Gulls

                                Mediterranean Gulls

                                Sandwich Terns, Rye Harbour NR