Glossy Ibis

Dungeness - humid, cloudy,  sw 5 - A breezy day but muggy, particularly when out of the stiff breeze. Spent today guiding for John and Lorna from Orpington on a whistle-stop tour of the peninsula. We commenced opposite Jarman`s where Skylark, Pied Wagtail, Linnet, Mipit and Stock Dove were soon located, plus several hundred Swifts streaming west along the coastline. At the Patch all the usual gulls, plus an adult Mediterranean Gull and Sandwich Terns and Gannet offshore.

                                Glossy Ibis, Hayfield 2

                                Common Terns and chick, Dengemarsh

RSPB - A circuit of the bird reserve revealed Dunlin and Ringed Plover on Burrowes amongst the eclipse ducks. Peregrine, Hobby, Kestrel, Marsh Harrier were all noted, although warblers proved difficult to locate due to the wind. The bonus bird for the guests was a Glossy Ibis on Hayfield 2 that eventually showed quite well along with Redshanks, Lapwings, Little Egrets and Grey Heron. It was good to see at least nine Common Tern chicks on the raft in front of the hide. Also noted, Tree Sparrow at Boulderwall and a steady passage of Sand Martins overhead. Plenty of common dragonflies and grassland butterflies were on the wing and a Fox cub was seen near the dipping pond.

                                Little Owls showed well on the barn

Scotney - The farm delivered the usual Yellow Wagtails, Corn Buntings and Little Owls, plus Egyptian Geese and Avocets out back. Several Black-headed Gull chicks were on the island, while a couple of Common Terns lingered.
  In summary a pretty decent days birding, despite the wind, in great company during which time we rattled up 74 species, the highlight being the Glossy Ibis.

Moth magic

Lade - humid and overcast - Ideal moth weather and a cracking catch last night in the garden trap with six new for the year including an exquisite Miller, a Swallowtail and our first Sussex Emerald, plus the scarce coastal micro moth, Cynaeda dentalis ,all of which were much enjoyed by two of our regular guests from Dorset, Jill and John.

                                Miller - a scarce moth in these parts

                                Sussex Emerald - a tattyish male

A circuit of the pits revealed a noticeable increase in Black-headed Gulls, including several juveniles, plus around 100 feeding Sand Martins over south lake. Otherwise not much change from the regular breeding birds.

Sussex Emerald

Lade - warm, dry, sunny, nw 2 - 0630hrs -  A pretty decent night in the garden moth trap with 23 species of macros, five of which were new for the year including Pale Grass Eggar the `pale` form of Grass Eggar found only at Dungeness. It didn't look very `pale` to me, but apparently its a range distribution thing according to the local moth lords.

                                The two elephants

                                Pale Grass Eggar - a Dungeness speciality

                                Scarce (left) and Common Footmen

Over the lakes it was the third morning without any Cuckoo action, so I guess the adults are en-route to Africa after barely two months with us. Daft as it may sound I always wish them a fond farewell and trust they avoid the perils ahead, both natural and man-made - I just hope they return next spring, as it wouldn't be same without them, while we wait to see if any juvs emerge from the Reed Warbler nests around the willow swamp to keep the bloodline alive.
Dungeness - A stroll along the beach opposite Jarman`s confirmed that the breeding Wheatears have failed and dispersed, although on the positive side Skylark, Mipit, Linnet and Pied Wagtail were all feeding fledged young.

                                Skylark - an adult with juvs close by

  Another moth session at the Kerton Road Café yielded our first Sussex Emerald of the summer, a pristine male. The SSSI was in superb nick too with loads of grassland butterflies on the wing and plenty of Stinking Hawksbeard within the sward.

                                Sussex Emerald - a fine male specimen

                                A blizzard of Stinking Hawksbeard, Kerton Road Café

                                Aircraft pollution over the Dungeness NNR

Silent Assassin

Dungeness - 0730hrs - Humid, cloudy, w 2 - A change of scene this morning commenced with a half hour seawatch from the hide that yielded 30 Gannets, 10 Sandwich Terns and a westbound dark phase Arctic Skua, our first of the return passage, plus 20 Swifts out, with single Grey Seal and Porpoise in the oggin.
  At the Patch the post-breeding build up of gulls continues with several recently fledged Black-headed and Herring Gulls already on the wing, plus a smart adult Med Gull amongst the massed ranks; at least three immature Herring Gulls sported red colour rings, but were too distant to read the numbers. Won`t be long now before (joy upon joy) the dreaded juvenile Yellow-legged Gulls start to appear on the beach...

                                Black-headed Gull, juv and adults

  July is probably the peak month of the year for numbers of fledgling songbirds making their first tentative steps in the world, many of whom, of course, will not see their first autumn. During the past week I`ve witnessed Sparrowhawks taking House Sparrows, Starlings and Collared Doves around the garden and a Mipit over the Desert at Lade.
  This morning I watched a male hawk zip low over the shingle, nip up and over the power station wall and miss a Pied Wagtail by a whisker. He then sat on the wall for 15 seconds, before spotting a family party of Linnets feeding out on the shingle ridges. It was then a case of flap-flap, glide and grab. Bingo! - breakfast. The Silent Assassin strikes again.

Summer on the grasslands

Lade - warm, dry and sunny - 0600-1100hrs - A simply stunning summer morning with bright blue skies and a light zephyr. After quickly clearing the moth trap (15 species, White-point new for the year) we headed out for a wander, ostensibly to carry out our breeding bird survey, but I was soon distracted. I know I keep yarning on about the fabulous grassland spectacle down here, but due to  the light airs and warm sunshine it was even better than usual with large numbers of the butterflies  basking, feeding, mating and on the wing. Skippers were particularly abundant, as were Small Coppers and Marbled Whites, plus plenty of damselflies and day-flying Cinnabars and Silver Y moths.    
  One of these summers when I get a bit more time I really must survey the plants hereabouts, along the old railway line track, but for now I`ll just enjoy them. I remember my old granddad telling me about the wild flowers in the English countryside during the first half of the last century, before the chemical-soaked wastelands we have today. He would have revelled in this display of nature for sure.

                                Great Luttuce 6` in height and in full flower

                               Marbled White on bugloss, the prince of the grassland butterflies

                                            A fine spray of White Melilot

                                Small Coppers were everywhere

  However, back to the birds and it was perfect surveying weather with many species confirmed breeding and feeding young including Linnet, Mipit, Skylark, Common and Lesser Whitethroats, Reed Bunting, Sedge and Reed Warblers, Great Crested and Little Grebes, Kestrel and Green Woodpecker.
  There were hundreds of young Jackdaws, Starlings and House Sparrows feeding on the shingle ridges. Despite spending almost five hours on site there was no sign or sound of the local Cuckoos, so maybe they cleared out last night in a clear, starlit sky, perfect for nocturnal migration.
  Around south lake the Little Egret count topped out at eight, a few Swifts screamed high up in the ether, a Hobby zipped over scattering the Starlings, distant Marsh Harriers and Buzzards thermaled skywards, the plaintive call of a Grey Plover drifted over from the bay and as we headed home for breakfast a straggle of Curlews flew to roost on the stones.

                                Cock Linnet watching over juvs in bramble thicket

                                Juv Kestrel being teased by Starlings

                               Grebes aplenty around the reed beds

RSPB - A scan of Burrowes this afternoon from the VC yielded all the usual eclipse wildfowl, gulls and terns, plus only my second Little Ringed Plover of the year along with two Ringed Plovers and a Redshank. Two Hobbies were noted along the access road.
  Earlier, a Glossy Ibis was seen flying over Cook`s Pool, Boulderwall by MH.

Post-breeding dispersal

Lade - warm, dry, sunny, sw 3 - 0800hrs - A much more summery day than yesterday and ideal for a circuit of the local patch. The warm sunshine had brought forth good numbers of grassland butterflies along the old railway track, including scores of Marbled Whites and a fresh hatch of Small Coppers. It was promising to see many more Great Crested and Little Grebe chicks on the water while at least one Cuckoo was still calling around the willow swamp. As the tide pushed in across the bay 128 Curlews were counted going to roost on the storm ridges.
  Evidence of post-breeding dispersal has already been witnessed this past week with Green Sandpiper, Whimbrel, Lapwings and Blackwits in the vanguard, plus a steady movement of Sand Martins over the gravel pit lakes. The end of the breeding season continues to gather momentum with Pochard numbers on the rise from the east and the local Mallards and Gadwalls now going into eclipse plumage. Little Egret and Grey Heron juveniles are also more apparent as they disperse from the heronries at Lydd and West Hythe, while this seasons crop of Jackdaws, House Sparrows and Starlings are everywhere. For certain late nesting species though, such as Hobby and Tufted Duck, the breeding season is barely underway.

                                2nd broods of Starlings are now commonplace

   Sand Martins are few and far between in spring down here, which is in complete contrast to the return passage when hundreds of thousands assemble and pass through the Dungeness peninsula on their southward journey. In my humble opinion this spectacle, that peaks in August and tails off into October, is one of the great visible migration treats in these migrant depleted times and I for one look forward to it each summer.
 

Seawatching

Dungeness - 0715hrs - cool, cloudy, drizzle, sw 4 - With one front after another moving in off the Atlantic seawatching has been the only viable birding option of late, and even that has delivered slim pickings due to the time of year. However, hope springs eternal and this morning there was a flurry of Manx Shearwaters down-channel, of which I saw four from the hide, along with a trickle of Gannets, Sandwich Terns and a Fulmar. At the Patch there was the usual Black-headed and Herrings Gulls on the beach, but not a single Common Tern.
  Had a look at ARC from Hanson hide where about 200 Swifts and a mix of 50 Sand and House Martins hawked over the swollen lake, where the only dry land was atop the Cormorant/Herring Gull island; so nowhere for waders to drop in here. Moving onto Scotney, where the Spoonbill was still present, and Greatstone beach that attracted 12 Ringed Plovers and four Dunlins. More Swifts and martins were also over Lade and a Cuckoo was noted in the willow swamp.

                                Gannets moving west off Dungeness

Dungeness - 1445 - 1545hrs  - An hour from the fishing boats in the company of MH produced three more Manxies and up to 100 Gannets passing west, plus a few Sandwich Terns, a Whimbrel and a single auk. Throughout the day the shearwater count topped 30 plus. For full details check the DBO website: www.dungenessbirdobs.org.uk
  Whilst having a beer in The Pilot this evening we had cracking views of a Hummingbird Hawk-moth hovering around the window and pot plants.