Water Pipit

Dungeness - cold and cloudy, nw 2 - With the wind shifting around to a more northerly vector it certainly felt more like winter this morning. A brief seawatch from the hide produced the usual procession of Gannets, Red-throated Divers, auks and a few Kittiwakes offshore, plus a Bonxie sat on the sea.
  Most of the morning was spent around the fields at Boulderwall and Dengemarsh where large flocks of Lapwings, Wigeon, Starlings, plus 50 Curlews, 10 Dunlins, Stock Doves and Woodpigeons attracted the attention of several Marsh Harriers and Common Buzzards. Scanning Tanners pool a Water Pipit seen briefly on the deck near a flash by the Corral soon flew off calling towards Gun Club pool. The wintering drake Smew showed well from the back lake at Hookers while Bearded Tits, Cetti`s Warblers and Water Rails were active from the ramp. Also noted across the site: two Brents, 20 Egyptian Geese, 200 Greylags, Little and Great White Egrets, Kestrel, Green Woodpecker, Stonechat and Long-tailed Tits.
  Elsewhere, two Long-tailed Ducks were reported from Scotney.

                               Curlews, Smew and Great White Egret

Azorean plume

Scotney - mild and misty, sw 2 - A plume of unseasonably warm air from the mid-Atlantic sent the daytime temperature soaring into the low teens, but with it a veil of mist along the coastal plain. On the front pits at Scotney it was just about possible to view the far side this morning, where from the double bends yesterdays five Long-tailed Ducks were still present feeding amongst the Tufted Ducks and Pochards. A large mixed flock of some 1,500 Golden Plovers and Lapwings was on the front fields along with a handful of Redshank, Curlew and Ruff, plus the usual feral geese.
  Visibility was similarly limited on the flooded hayfields around Dengenmarsh where the habitat looks spot on for Water Pipit, although all I could find were several Meadow Pipits and Reed Buntings. Marsh Harrier, Little and Great White Egrets also noted flying over.

                                Dengemarsh Flood
 
  A late afternoon check of Lade south produced three Goldeneyes on the lake and a steady overhead movement of Cormorants and black crows going to roost towards the bird reserve.

Winter warmers

Dengemarsh - mild, cloudy, sw 3 - A circuit of Dengemarsh this morning produced a decent range of birds although many of the wildfowl and waders were flighty, probably due to raptor activity as several Marsh Harriers were in constant view, plus two Buzzards, Sparrowhawk and Kestrel. Large flocks of Lapwings and Golden Plovers swirling over the fields at Boulderwall contained a few Ruff and Redshank, while six Bewick`s Swans flew through. Canada, Egyptian and Greylag Geese were everywhere and a static flock of the latter at the back of Hookers held two Tundra Bean Geese, although they soon flew off towards Cockles Bridge. A pipit flushed from the pool by the Corral was a probable Water Pipit.
  From the viewing ramp I finally got to grips with the highly mobile drake Smew that`s been present for a week or more now as it flew onto the main lake at Dengemarsh - for all of five minutes!
Also from the ramp, 10 Pintail on the lake, several hundred Wigeon and Teal, two Brent Geese in the fields, Bearded Tits and Cetti`s Warbler around the reedbed.

Aliens on the beach

Saturday - Lade - warm, dry and sunny, w 2 - Spent the morning on the local patch where the usual wildfowl on south lake included a pair of Goldeneye, while a mixed flock of tits around the ponds contained at least 20 Long-tailed Tits. A Marsh Harrier disturbed a large flock of over a thousand gulls from fields by the airport, most of whom eventually settled on north lake where an adult Caspian Gull and five Mediterranean Gulls were amongst mostly Herring and Black-headed Gulls.
  The walk back along the beach from Seaview Road to Lade boardwalk was noteworthy for millions of small crustaceans (mainly cockles and winkles) washed up on the tide line, plus 15 alien-like Barrel Jellyfish scattered across the sands, which is bit early in the year as I normally encounter them in the summer months. With so much flotsam and jetsam along the foreshore it was no surprise to come across a clutch of Goose Barnacles attached to a polystyrene float; but no sign of any Barnacle Goose goslings...

                                Barrel Jellyfish

                                            Countless crustaceans

                               Goose Barnacles

Sunday - East Sussex - cloudy, mild, sw 2 - Pat joined us for a change of scene today over the border into the Sussex badlands. The sheep folds opposite Northpoint pits were alive with waders, mostly Lapwings and Golden Plovers, plus 30 Curlews, 10 Redshanks, 10 Dunlins and five Ruffs.
At Rye Harbour the car park was almost full and people everywhere. However, the Beach Reserve wetlands were smothered in thousands of birds, mainly Wigeon, Teal, Shelduck and Shoveler, Tufted Duck, and Pochard, plus 30 Brent Geese and a single redhead Smew. Waders included plenty of Lapwings, Golden Plovers, Redshanks and Curlews alongside a few Ringed and Grey Plovers, Turnstones and Dunlins, while it was good to see that the new Discovery Centre was near completion.
  Next stop the café at Winchelsea Beach (highly recommended) followed by a check of Pett Levels where more Lapwings, Curlews, Redshanks, Dunlins and 10 Ruffs were present on the fields, plus Wigeons, Shelducks and Dabchicks on the pools; a Glossy Ibis had been seen earlier. A scan across the fields revealed five White-fronted Geese within a mixed flock of Greylag, Canada, Egyptian and Brent Geese, also: three Marsh Harriers, two Buzzards, Kestrel, Reed Bunting, Fieldfare and Stonechat.
  A stop off at Scotney on the way home revealed more feral geese and waders on the front fields, thousands more Golden Plovers and Lapwings over by the wind farm and a single Long-tailed Duck and two Goldeneyes on the lake.
  Also reported today around Dengemarsh and Boulderwall fields, a mobile drake Smew, and two Tundra Bean Geese. 

                                New Discovery Centre, Rye Harbour

                               Lapwing, Rye Harbour

                               Brent Geese, Rye Harbour

An elusive Smew

Dungeness - mild, cloudy, drizzle, sw 3 - We spent the morning around the peninsula commencing at the Patch where a couple of Mediterranean Gulls were the only gulls of note amongst a small throng over the boil. Offshore the regulation auks, divers and Gannets moved between the bays.
  The drake Smew on the bird reserve proved elusive once again, but was reported on the pools across Boulderwall fields earlier in the day where several Marsh Harriers and Great White Egrets noted. Burrowes held a flock of 12 Black-tailed Godwits and two Goldeneyes on the lake, while a large mixed passerine flock by Firth hide contained two Firecrests and a Chiffchaff amongst the many tits and finches.
  There was no change to the birds on Lade pits this afternoon.

Short-eared Owl

Lade  - mild and overcast, drizzle, sw 2 - Another dull day with occasional drizzle in the morning and the wind picking up through the afternoon. The local patch was quiet with just a pair of Goldeneyes of note on south lake.
 This afternoon I called in at Boulderwall fields and managed to miss the Smew on Tanner`s Pool by a couple of minutes. It was then onto the Ranges for a walk out to the mound from Galloways where a Short-eared Owl quartered the rough grass by the tanks. Also present two Great White and five Little Egrets around the pools, plus 10 Ringed Plovers, Redshanks, Dunlins and Grey Plovers on the seaward side. On the walk back a Little Owl was noted on one of the old buildings; MH also had a Short-eared Owl from Galloways Road, while the male Hen Harrier was seen from Springfield Bridge earlier.

NYDay Bird Count

Dull and dank all day, light airs - Kicked off the decade in company with CP and PL for our regular, light hearted birding tour of the Marsh and near environs. At Park Wood, Appledore a Woodcock on the deck in a car park puddle was virtually the first bird of the year, followed by a second over the woodland canopy. Nuthatch, Treecreeper, Coal Tit, Goldcrest, Green and Great Spotted Woodpeckers, at least five calling Tawny Owls and a pair of flyover Ravens were the pick of the woodland birds.
  Moving down to the canal zone and a wide range of  additions to the day list included Great White and Little Egrets, Buzzard, Jay, Stonechat, Bullfinch, Meadow Pipit, Yellowhammer and Tree Sparrow with the latter four species only seen here in single figures. Traversing the Marsh we picked up a few winter thrushes in the hedgerows and 32 Bewick`s Swans at Midley, but by and large passerines were few and far between. 

    Bewick`s Swans, Midley

  With noon approaching we headed for the coast and Lade bay where nine out ten shorebirds were eventually located including 250 Knots, 30 Barwits and 120 Turnstones, although we couldn't find a single Ringed Plover. Common Scoter, Red-breasted Merganser and large flocks of Great Crested Grebes were on the sea, plus 10 Mediterranean Gulls on the sands. At Dungeness, Gannet, Razorbill, Red-throated Diver and Kittiwake were logged along with a distant Peregrine on a pylon.
  At Scotney pits the Long-tailed Duck tally rose to four where Merlin, Golden Plovers and range of wildfowl were noted. On the bird reserve at Burrowes, Firecrest, Chiffchaff, Goldeneye, Black-tailed Godwit and Caspian Gull were all added to the list. We finished off in fine style on ARC with  protracted views of a Bittern in front of Screen hide (that sadly appeared to have a damaged left wing), calling Water Rails and Bearded Tits, 11 Little and two Great White Egrets to roost and eight Bewick`s Swans flying in to roost.
  Considering the weather conditions (a Mordor-like gloom all day) we ended up with a respectable 105 species of birds. As always NYD is a bit of a social occasion and it was good to see so many familiar faces in the field. A great days birding in fine company, and many thanks to Chris for driving and Phil for listing.