Swifts and a Lunar-spotted Pinion

Monday - Lade - warm, dry and sunny, w 3 - Yesterday afternoon I received a phone call from CP out at St Mary-in-the-Marsh concerning a large movement of Swifts high up in the cloud base moving westwards. Chris said that it was the largest number of Swifts he`d ever seen in this country; 2,000 being a conservative estimate. I`d noticed a few earlier in the day at Dungeness, and then around midday more birds coasting over the beach here at Lade so wasn`t too surprised. Yesterday evening I settled down in the garden and scanned the heavens for a while and over a half hour period (around 1900hrs) at least 500 Swifts flew through my gaze, mostly tiny specks high up in the ether. More west bound Swifts were also reported through DBO airspace throughout the day with 600 logged during the evening. This movement probably involved many thousands of individuals, either feeding or on migration, but the real reason will remain a mystery, such is the wonder of Swifts that most aerial of birds.

                                      Lunar-spotted Pinion - new for the Plovers trap site.

Tuesday - warm, dry and sunny, ne 2 - I rose early this morning and had the garden moth trap sorted and recorded by 0530hrs! Under the last egg tray lurked a small reddish-brown, and unfamiliar noctuid, but with distinctive markings on the leading edge. I tentatively identified it as a Lunar-spotted Pinion, a local scarce species and had it confirmed as such at the Kerton Road Café; needless to say it was new for the trap site.
  There was no change over the local patch although at least one Cuckoo was still calling from the willow swamp. Stopped off at the bird reserve this afternoon where the only wader of note on Burrowes was a Black-tailed Godwit.

Moths and butterflies

Lade - warm, cloudy, sw 2 - A mixed weekend of weather with a hot, sunny Saturday tempered somewhat by an easterly breeze off the bay and despite all the warnings about covering up from the sun`s rays there was still plenty of grockles stripped semi-naked on the beach the colour of poached lobsters. The temperature and humidity peaked in the evening as the wind relented, while the garden moth trap was abuzz with insects as small bats flickered over the fir trees.

                                Beautiful China-mark

  I was expecting a bumper catch this morning, but I awoke at 5am to cover the trap only to find the local House Sparrows had already been busy... However, 36 species of macros were logged including Common Carpet and Lesser Common Rustic, plus the smart pyrale, Beautiful China-mark.

                                Marbled White along the old railway track

  Across the weekend several visits to the local patch delivered good numbers of grassland butterflies on the wing; a wander along a 400yd section of the old railway track logged 48 Marbled Whites and 21 Painted Ladies, while skippers and browns were in the hundreds.
  The wind had swung around overnight bringing with it fresh Atlantic air to clear the southern plume from Africa. With the water level falling rapidly on south lake the usual summer island has begun to appear at the southern end attracting a few gulls and Coots. I didn`t hear the Cuckoos, so maybe they`ve already done the off having hopefully raided the numerous Reed Warbler nests.
  This afternoon was spent with family in Folkestone attending the Armed Forces Day festival on the Leas where the highlight was the ever popular RAF Red Arrows displaying over the Channel.
  Elsewhere this weekend the Serin was still at Littlestone and two Black Terns were noted on Burrowes yesterday.

                                Red Arrows over Folkestone

Rye Harbour NR

Rye Harbour NR - cool, sunny, NE 5 - A guiding day for Mark and Maria at Rye on another windy morning that suppressed the temperatures down here on the coast. As reported the tern situation was grim with just one pair of Little Tern on the beach and not a single Sandwich Tern anywhere, the colony having failed due to a shortage of fish and predation from Med Gulls, although around 20 pairs of Common Terns were nesting and some had juveniles. Fledged Black-headed Gulls were everywhere and at least two Med Gulls were still on site.
  As for waders we didn't see any young Avocets or Redshanks, but did see a few broods of Oystercatchers and Ringed Plovers; also noted, a smart red Knot, three Grey Plovers, three Curlews and 10 Lapwings. Elsewhere around the Beach Reserve: Little Egret, Shelduck, Grey Heron, Wheatear, Skylark, Linnet, Whitethroat, Swift, Meadow Pipit, Little and Great Crested Grebes.
  At Castle Water, three Marsh Harriers were busy hunting over the main reed bed.

                                Wheatear

                                Med Gull

                                Dabchick

                                Juvenile, Black-headed Gull

ARC/Burrowes - Back at Dungeness we checked out ARC where the eclipse Garganey was still present, while on Burrowes yesterdays Curlew Sandpiper and Ruff showed well in bright sunshine alongside three Blackwits and a host of wildfowl and Common Terns.
  During the three days guiding across the region we rattled up a respectable 110 species of birds for our guests.

                               Ruff and Curlew Sandpiper

Passage waders

Burrowes - cool, sunny, ne 5 - An evening visit with the guests to the bird reserve in a blasting north-easterly from Firth hide delivered three adult passage waders in full breeding plumage. Best of the trio was a brick-red Curlew Sandpiper, plus a black Ruff and a Black-tailed Godwit. From the access road two Hobbies were grounded on the shingle ridges.
  Elsewhere today the strong wind made for difficult birding conditions, although the Serin was still present at Littlestone.

                                Adult Curlew Sandpiper and Ruff, Burrowes

First Whimbrel of `autumn`

Lade - cool, cloudy, ne 5 - A muggy night delivered a decent showing of moths in the garden trap this morning including a spectacular Privet Hawk-moth and an irregularly occurring Small Blood-vein amongst 32 species of macros.

                                Privet Hawk-moth and Small Blood-vein

  As the day wore on the wind picked up off the sea and the humidity dropped away making a circuit of the local patch a quiet affair. However, a few Swifts paused to feed in the drizzle over south lake and a Cuckoo continued to belt it out from the willow swamp. Walking back along the beach the first Whimbrel of autumn flew south towards Dungeness, uttering its distinctive seven-note whistle. 

Farmland birds

Orlestone Forest - humid, cloudy, light airs - Day two of guiding for our guests commenced in the woods. It was always going to be a challenge this late in the season what with suppressed bird song, but we did eventually get brief snatches of song from both Nightingale and Turtle Dove along with Willow and Garden Warblers, Chiffchaff and Blackcap. Family parties of Nuthatch and Treecreeper were more obliging, while Coal Tit, Bullfinch, Buzzard and Great Spotted Woodpecker also noted. There were plenty of flowers on show around the woodland margins including Common Spotted Orchids and a single Bee Orchid and, in dappled shade, up to 20 White Admiral butterflies.

                                Common Spotted Orchid

  Moving down onto the Marsh between Kennardington and Warehorne a few wayside birds were noted such as Yellowhammer, Linnet, Lesser Whitethroat and Kestrel. At Scotney we had good views of our target birds of Tree Sparrow, Yellow Wagtail, Corn Bunting and Little Owl, plus Little Ringed Plover on the pits outback where there was no Avocet or Common Tern activity on the islands but plenty of juvenile Herring Gulls. The feral Barnacle Goose flock had returned to the front fields amongst hundreds of their kindred Greylags and Canada Geese.

                                Yellowhammer, Kennardington

                                Little Owl, Scotney

  We finished the day at ARC where the two long-staying 1st summer Little Gulls, Black-tailed Godwit, Cuckoo and Garganey were the highlights among masses of common wildfowl. Once again Painted Lady butterflies were common place wherever we went today.

Serin

Lade - humid, light airs, occasional drizzle - Spent the day guiding across the peninsula for our guests Mark and Maria. First off we checked the garden moth trap where 32 species of macros included Swallowtail, Poplar Hawk-moth and Marbled Coronet new for the season. Next stop Littlestone where the long-staying Serin showed like a good `un in the fir trees opposite the entrance to the golf course. Also noted a Coal Tit and a number of House Martins from the colony along the seafront. On the bay a few Curlews and Oystercatchers were all we could muster on the wader front.

                                Swallowtail

                                Marbled Coronet

                                Serin, Littlestone

  Moving down to Dungeness where we mopped up on 10 each of Wheatear and Black Redstart with a supporting cast of Linnet, Mipit, Skylark, Stonechat and Whitethroat. The male Peregrine also showed well on the power station, unlike a Raven flying over the back of B station. A late afternoon visit back at the point for two Bee-eaters drew a blank, so we opted for half an hour at the fishing boats which was also quiet apart from a few terns, two Mediterranean Gulls and several Porpoises. Two Brown Hares were noted in the Kerton Road triangle.
  A circuit of the bird reserve delivered all the usual stuff, including cracking flight views of a Bittern at Hooker`s, plus Marsh Harriers, Bearded Tits, two Hobbies, Cuckoo, Lesser Whitethroat and a Great White Egret. On Burrowes plenty of Common Tern action, two Black-tailed Godwits, 50 Lapwings, four Ringed Plovers, Shoveler, Teal and Wigeon amongst the ducks. Painted Lady butterflies were everywhere today.