Out And About In The Latter Half January

20th Feb

Just catching up with all the PC stuff on these two drizzly days, unfortunately the blog comes last in the queue. More up to date photos here;

https://www.flickr.com/photos/whitstablewildlife/


Wed 10th Jan.

A lovely sunny day so I took a trip to Dover harbour meeting Steve Reynaert and Nick Smith where we spent time photographing the 14 guillemots and 3 shags.

Where's the bread?

 pm

At Seasalter, 2 marsh harriers plus several fieldfares in the Graveney cherry orchard

Fri 12th Jan.

A quiet morning at Hampton finding 2 redshank, 4 turnstones and one purple sandpiper.

13th Jan.
A quiet morning at SS but c.400 barwits and c.500 knot and a similar number of brents.

14th Jan
A trip to Godmersham seeing 5 hawfinches, 1 grey wagtail, several greenfinches and chaffinches plus a mistle thrush, 2 goldgrests, long-tailed tits, sparrowhawk and a buzzard. Also met Rob and Marie from Twiddle.

16th Jan.
Another cloudy day but I took a short walk to SS finding a few turnstones and dunlin on the shoreline and took a few photos. Also, 105 curlew on the back pasture with c.300 brents and c.600 golden plovers.....lots of lapwings dotted about, maybe c.400 birds.

17th Jan.

Heavy seas at Hampton

18th Jan

4 hawfinches at Godmersham.

19th

More dunlin photos at SS. plus whilst testing my old SX50 on gulls by the outfall I think a yellow-legged gull revealed itself when looking at the pictures back home?

Yellow-legged Gull?

20th Jan

Turnstone survey for the SBBOT, Whitstable harbour to the Sportsman, c.3 miles to be done in an hour and in the rain!  However, I managed to find 78 during hightide.  Also at SS were 21 grey plovers, c.300 dunlin, c.50 ringed plovers, 1 sanderling and a dozen redshank.

28th Jan

Another visit to Hampton.

29th Jan.

A trip to Margate and North foreland seeing c.200 sanderling in Margate harbour, right outside The Turner plus a few turnstones.  I moved ontoPalm Bay finding a few fulmars and 1 rock pipit and a stonechat.

30th Jan

Another trip to Margate again  seeing the sanderlings again plus 2-3 rock pipits.