Dungeness - warm, dry and sunny, NE 3 - Our morning circuit of Dengemarsh produced all the classics this species-rich walk has to offer including Cuckoo, Hobby, Bittern, Marsh Harrier, Bearded Tit and Yellow Wagtail. The warbler tribe were also in fine voice despite the brisk wind off the sea, while the hayfields held just four Black-tailed Godwits amongst the usual Lapwings and Redshanks, plus four Little Egrets, six Shovelers, four Shelducks and a Pochard. The highlight of the walk was a steady passage of Swifts coming in high off the bay and moving up the coast into the breeze; as always fabulous birds to watch and surely in every birder`s top ten. It was also good to bump into a few old faces from afar and have a catch-up this morning, amongst a forlorn straggle of twitchers searching for yesterdays Woodchat Shrike without success. Elsewhere, Boulderwall fields were quiet as was the ARC where a new tern raft was in position in front of Screen hide. We finished off at Kerton quarry where a cracking Greenshank briefly dropped in joining the massed ranks of roosting Oystercatchers and immature gulls from Lade bay.
Over the weekend our Ted walk`s have taken in the farmland around New Romney, which as ever drives a hard bargain bird wise. A few more Sedge Warblers were on territory and a singing Corn Bunting by the New Cut was noteworthy, as was a Yellow Wagtail over and a Cuckoo calling by the paddock, while Lesser Whitethroats continue to outnumber their commoner congeners. A superb male Marsh Harrier flew over the turf field yesterday and once the sun got going a kettle of up to six Common Buzzards soared over the town, winding up the Herring Gulls! Unfortunately moth numbers in the garden trap continue to be low.
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