Firecrest

Dungeness - cold sunny morning, cloudy afternoon, sw 4 - We started the day with a brief seawatch at the hide where very little was moving offshore apart from a few Gannets and a couple of Red-throated Divers and auks, plus the usual gulls foraging along the foreshore. A scout around on the land produced a few Meadow Pipits, Dunnocks, Kestrel and Stonechat.

                                Firecrest from Firth hide

  Moving onto the bird reserve where a circuit produced the drake Smew on Tanner`s pool, two Water Pipits on the hayfields, a flyover Bittern at Dengemarsh and, bird of the day, stunning views of a Firecrest in front of Firth hide. There was a good supporting cast of Goldeneyes, Marsh Harriers Great White and Little Egrets, Black-tailed Godwits, nine Ruff, Golden Plovers, Cetti`s Warbler, Reed Bunting, Chiffchaff, Long-tailed Tit and all the expected wintering wildfowl, gulls, grebes and Cormorants. Over on ARC several hundred Shoveler and three Goldeneyes on the lake, plus Sparrowhawk and calling Water Rail and Chiffchaff around the hide.
  We finished off the afternoon at the fishing boats where a flock of 58 Brents moved up-Channel and managed to miss the Glaucous Gull by five minutes - for the second time today!