Seasalter Again

I met the new RSPB warden this morning along SS Lane and discussed the future and work on the levels, she also informed me that they had found a big number of Norfolk Hawkers on the site as well. Moved onto Mt Pleasant corner finding a stonechat, whitethroat, c.25 swallows and 6 house martins

A rather distant stonechat 

Down on the seafront the tide was high and a roost count was impossible with people on the island and on the beach although c.20 ringed plovers hid in one corner. On the sea, 1 Sandwich tern,2 common terns and 1 grebe. Looking over the plots 4 buzzards together again and a sparrowhawk joining the party. Another couple were further west  behind S.Swale later possibly some of the four. The walk into the plots was quiet again only producing a whitethroat and a couple of reed buntings plus 3 emperors and 1 ruddy and common darters.

Common Darter

Coffee break was taken on the beach front seat in front of the pumping station  where a clouded yellow, 3 common blues and meadow brown were feeding in the grassy area.  Lastly, I walked around the Sportsman beach huts finding c.30 linnets, 2 mipits and a wheatear plus my first yellow wagtail this year feeding on the beach!

Buzzards at Seasalter

After a trip to Southern Ireland for a family reunion, followed by a visit to the Birdfair I have finally a been out birding a couple times. The first morning back a call from Geoff Burton about a Terek sandpiper at Swalecliffe got me down there pretty quick but it was always very distant and difficult to see and finally flew off at 12.30..  

On Monday morning a visit to Seasalter produced; 133 golden plovers in front of the YC., 24 barwits, 3 knot, 4 egrets, 1 lesser blk back, 1 dunlin, a large flock of 102 grey plover, 35 linnets, 1 marsh harrier etc..

Today, Wed., another trip to Seasalter, the tide was high and on the beach roost were 131 ringed plover plus four turnstones and another c65 turnstones on the 'oyster barge', 14 dunlin, and one wheatear. Out on the sea a sandwich tern was on one of the yellow buoys, 4 grt c grebes but nothing else. On the beach 'village green' section lots of flowers including a large patch of toadflax that I never seen here before plus yellow horned poppy, sticky groundsell, blk knapweed, sandwort, valerian to name a few. A couple of tortoiseshells and whites were attracted to the flowers.

Toadflax

A quick look into the plots was so so quiet, just a family of swans with 7 full size cygnets on the dyke.

Further on by the YC. the tide had just left the beach attracting 110 curlew to drop in and feed and out over the fields several buzzards, first a pair going west followed by a single one. Then in the sky further east another 3 or 4 buzzards, tried to make one into a honey but couldn't, these kept company with 2 hobbys. Another surprise were 3 snipe that rose up from the fields and flew west, the new telescope proving its worth!

Willow Emeralds and Wheatears

On the 1st of August I went to find the willow emeralds and take a few photos with the little camera. A rather windy day but the bushes provided some shelter and I soon latched onto two emeralds which hardly moved all morning, only the traffic lifting them momentarily.

Later on it was a lovely evening so I did a trek out along the S.Swale finding c.325 blkwits, 1 peregrine and a count of over 324 crows over the C.Coote part of the reserve. It seems unlikely that any breeding terns, redshank, oystercatchers etc will have any chance of success when all these raiders are on the loose, I think there needs to be a cull! 

I didn't go out over the weekend accept to Sevenoaks but this morning a visit to Seasalter beach produced; 10 r.plover, c.30 turnstones, the 3 now resident lesser black backs and young, 2 kestrels, 52 golden plover, 16 egrets, 25 goldfinches, c.30 linnets, 23 sparrows on the seawall, 9 swallows, 1 mipit, 5 barwits plus blkwits in ever increasing numbers and last of all 3 wheatears who more or less stayed together near the start of the seawall etc. etc.

A few butterflies including 1 clouded yellow, 2 blues, 8 tortoiseshells, 1 red admiral, small whites, meadow browns and gatekeepers. Most of these seen off the reserve as it has hardly any flowers, what the cows missed the EA finished them off by mowing all the banks!

The bushes beside the track leading back to the road held blue tits, a common whitethroat, sparrows and starlings plus a green woodpecker dropped into the grass behind the huts.

Seasalter and Oare

I haven't been far this week just down to Seasalter and over to Oare where waders numbers are on the up. At SS a walk on the plots only produced a few whitethroats etc and a few butterflies. On the incoming tide the shingle bank was full of herring,  grt b bk. gulls plus three lessers, one of the herring gulls covered in some yellow marking of unknown origin.

 Yellow marked Herring gull

 Essex Skipper

Gatekeeper

An Evening Visit to Seasalter

I visited Oare this afternoon as the weather was good plus the tide was high  which put the light in the right position.  A thousand blackwits maybe, c.50 dunlin, 2 ruff, 4 curlew sandpipers, 1 wood sandpiper at least, c.200 redshank plus a handful of golden plovers etc. etc.. One clouded yellow flew past the layby Also a bevy of birdographers in the form of Mark Chidwick, Mike Hook, Tim Gutsell and later Steve Ashton plus a couple of unknown's.

Wood Sandpiper

 Little Grebe Family

 Curlew Sandpiper

 Juv. Med Gull spotted by MC

On the way home I called into West Beach at Whitstable and got a couple of shots of the clouded yellows that seem to be all along the coast, even a report of one in Thornden Wood.

Too Hot This Week

I don't like this hot humid weather so I only managed a few short outings around the local area. Its still quiet on the patch but on the 20th there were 12 common terns along the shore half a dozen egrets, lots of blkwits, a marsh harrier around the pumping station area. I caught up with another family of  stonechats, that's three pairs with fledged young, the best season so far, mind you they are well of the 'reserves'. A couple of short walks up to the seawall at S.Swale was as usual, a couple of reed buntings and reed warblers, still can't find a bearded tit!

 No swallowtail but several tortoiseshells

On the 24th a text from Andy Malone informing that he had seen a swallowtail along west beach whilst walking his dog that evening but a quick search with others revealed it was long gone!

 Egrets at Seasalter

Another trip out on the 25th revealed a healthy vista of wild flowers on Wraik Hill but no birds to speak of, the only highlight was a hare on the brow of the hill, the first I've ever seen!

 Heron at ISO 640

An evening visit to Oare produced the usual avocets, blackwits, herons etc but just a beautiful time to be out. A ruff flew in and landed nearly close to the road giving a few opportunities for the little camera.

On Saturday 26th I went to Swalecliffe after an uneventful hour at SS and spent time socialising with GJWB and Ted Lee. However, two clouded yellow butterflies were flying about over the beach and I finished off helping GB with his flat tyre and the messy kit of fluid and pump given these days to get you out of trouble. It did work to an extent even with a split in the side wall. I then followed him some of the way home where after he disappeared into the distance still inflated!!

Is Autumn On Its Way

I've not been out since my last post due to 'work' but managed a couple of hours on the plots Saturday. I first had a stop along Seasalter Lane where, in the gloomy weather I saw a female marsh harrier perched on a post out on the marsh, then later two juvenile harriers flew up close by. It would appear the pair had success in raising a brood somewhere. I noticed another nest on one of the pylons, maybe a crow perhaps... 

Fairly quiet otherwise, a couple of reed warblers, goldfinch etc.. but birding along a road with no path isn't wise for too long.  Moving down to the seafront I was surprised to see eight egrets in one of the tidal pools as the tide was rapidly coming in.  On the  plots, near the concrete bridge, my earliest autumn kingfisher unless a breeder somewhere. Several young linnets, 2 great tits, 1 blue tit, 4 swallows and whitethroats etc. were flitting about and over the sheep field c.200 curlews plus one blackwit and 18 lapwing took flight. Along the dyke 2 common terns were flying up and down fishing.  I had a walk along the seawall, not finding much but took a photo of a small white but nothing much else appeared.

Small White

On the beach I noticed loads of seaweed, Enteromorpha recently washed up in thick masses on the water's edge.

Enteromorpha

Today, (Sun) I went over to Oare where I bumped into Mark Chidwick. On the flood there were at least 3 wood sandpipers, plus a distant spotted redshank.  Plenty of blackwits as usual, a little grebe with young was swimming up and down the ditch next to the road. A marsh harrier flew over and later caught a frog but nothing much else to get excited about. 

The Last Few Days

I had a change of scenery and went for a couple of walks in the Clowes Wood complex, nothing to see very special except the white admiral butterflies. My first was at the winding pond along with large red and common blue damselflies plus the odd emperor. Plenty of goldfish in the old large pond and a couple of chiffs and chaffinches in the area. On another day, Thornden wood proved much the same with a few more white admirals close to the road plus a few insect shots for the camera.

 Unfortunately, a tatty specimen!

Long-horned Beetle - Strangalia maculata

 Large Red Damselflies

Azure Damselfly

Today, (the 8th) I made a visit to Seasalter having a walk around the plots and along the nearby beach. The beach only revealing 1 turnstone, the tide was just beginning to leave the beach. The 'island' is not so much of an island now, it will be interesting to see how this effects the roosting birds. More shingle build up from the tidal drift in the years to come may develop into something quite attractive to birds but also to humans!

The 'island' that once was and still is at high tides, just about! Photo taken with phone.

The walk around the plots was quiet but 3 whitethroats, 2 reed warblers, 3 linnets, 1 marsh harrier, 1 pr of swans with six full size cygnets, two other adults plus blackbirds and starlings etc.. Lots of Essex skippers and meadow browns plus 4 peacocks. Odonata was thin on the ground with only one blue-tailed damsel, 1-2 emperors, 2 black-tailed skimmers, and a couple of c. darters, very poor.

Essex Skipper- I think

 Common Darter

Blue-tailed Damselfly - rufescens . Only one shot before it flew