October 2006 Sightings

View from Greenhithe - Andrew Lawson ©

Please email your sightings to Andy Lawson

If you live, or for that matter visit, any site west of the A249 between the Sheppey bridge and Maidstone and then west to Dartford and Tunbridge Wells (roughly...) then I would be delighted to hear from you.

Tuesday 31st October Cliffe RSPB

1F goldeneye, 8 pintail, 12 little egret, 2 greenshank, 50+ blackwit, 170 redshank, 16 avocet. This was about mid- to low tide.
(Gordon Allison)

Monday 30th October Hadlow

I couldn't contain my excitement this afternoon. At 14:30 I had the absolute pleasure of finding a Firecrest.........in my garden!  what a stunning little bird! This caps a great couple of days for me on my patch. This is what keeps me going on those wet, uneventful, normal visits.
This species is the 35th visitor to use my garden this year, the highest year total along with 2002, and is the 48th species, in total, to use the garden over the 5 years. It also brings my seen from/in garden list, to 80.
My garden is on my patch so thats totally blasted through the old patch record of 93 species, to go on to 95.
(Warren Baker)

Monday 30th October Bridge Country Park near Maidstone

The first sightings of Fieldfare were seen over Teston Bridge Country Park near Maidstone today
Numbers were around 20-30 all heading up the river medway towards Tonbridge.
(Jon Lee)

Sunday 29th October Allhallows to Yantlet estuary

Another late WEBS, too many other distractions these days. What a nice day for it!
10.30 to 15.00 hrs. 0/8 to 2/8 cloud, nw 1 - 2, n 1 from 13.00 hrs, ne calm later.
Unbelievably good visibility. today. 14 oC. at 09.45 hrs. LT. 10.30 hrs. HT. 16.50 hrs.
Red Throated Diver - 1 w. into Thames, only as far as Southend Pier.
Gannet - flock of 7 ads. into estuary, but soon returned east.
Cormorant - 6 Y. est. mostly fishing offshore.
Little Egret - 12, inc. 1 w. to CB. 2 offshore Headland, 7 on rocks at London Stone,
2 from fleet along n. wall of Gm.
Brent Goose - 170 feeding on Enteromorpha at Allhallows. inc. 4 imms. (2 + 2).
So a poor Lemming year. They were soon flushed by a red light aircraft high overhead. Later 70 at Yb. on rising tide. Also 70 south from Foulness to Swale.
Also 4 w. & flock of 15 swimming midriver.
Shelduck - 24 Y. est. No other duck.
Merlin - 1 f. on Yantlet creek sea walls.
Peregrine - 1 over Gm. dispersed waders at Y. est. then returned south.
Oystercatcher - initially 193 , inc. 140 AH. & 53 off Headland , both LTC.
On rising tide, 535 collecting at Yb. roost from e. ( 35 ) & w. ( 500 ).
Grey Plover - 95 at Yb. roost, all from w.
Golden Plover - 11 on shingle at AH. at LT.
Ringed Plover - 216 at Yb. roost, all from w.
Lapwing - 120 from Gm.to Y. est. rocks at LT.
Dunlin - 250 at LT. off Headland.
Knot - 2 Yb.
Black Tailed Godwit - 314, inc. 46 at AH. 78 at Headland, 190 at Y. est. all LT.
All collected at Yb. to roost. On rising tide, 130 at Yb. & 180 at nw. corner of Gm.
None flew w. or to Essex.
Bar Tailed Godwit - 1 arrived from n. to Yb. roost.
Curlew - 391, inc. 190 at Y. est. at LT, & 201 from w. to roost at Yb. Later 360 roosting on Yb. Others at roost on Gm.
Redshank - 269, inc. 87 feeding on mussel beds to w. of Y. est. & 182 from w. to
Yb. roost.
Turnstone - initially 106, inc. 34 feeding on mussel beds to w. of Y. est. & 72 from
w. to Yb. roost. Later 120 + feeding along Yb. tideline.
Med. Gull - 1 WP. ad. on shingle at AH.
Short Eared Owl - 2 Gm. inc. 1 along Yb. sea wall disturbing BTG. & Curlew, & 1 over Grain sand pits, within minutes of each other.
Stonechat - 1 pair with 2 juvs. on Ym. near pilot CP.
(Trevor Bowley)

Tuesday 24th October Cliffe RSPB

25 little egret, 425 shelduck, 140 golden plover, 2500 blackwit, 1 kingfisher.

(Michael Ellison)

Monday 19th October New Hythe

Fudge Duck Abbeymead, fem Goldeneye Brookland, 1-Brent Goose over, 1 Swallow and a passage of small flocks of Chaffinch heading south today.

(Terry Laws)

Saturday 17th October New Hythe

A juv Red Necked Grebe on Abbeymead today for year list no 119, and later a few Bearded Tits in reeds on the sunken marsh for year list no 120 and patch list no 143. Fudge Duck, Ruddy Duck, and a flock of Redwing over. A fine day indeed.
(Terry Laws)

Thursday 15th October New Hythe

30 Brent Geese flew over at midday heading up river. Femail Fudge Duck and fem Ruddy Duck on Abbeymead today.
(Terry Laws)

Friday 12th October Hayesden

One Stonechat still this morning and a couple of Skylarks plus the large flock of Greenfinches - all from the car today.
(Andrew Appleton)

Thursday 11th October New Hythe

On Thursday I re-found the Ferruginous Duck at Brookland Lake at New Hythe which I presume is the same bird as last winter and it is looking very smart indeed. Also many Red Admirals about as others have said on Kosnet. Late posting due to email problems.
(Terry Laws)

Wednesday 10th October Cliffe RSPB

585 avocet, 240 grey plover, 1900 blackwit 230 ringed plover, 870 lapwing, 625 shelduck, 165 redshank

(Michael Ellison)

Wednesday 10th October Cliffe RSPB

Evenings like this should be savoured, especially in October. The day had been warm and towards dusk the sky cleared to produce some golden evening sunshine. It was a perfect evening for a walk near the river and as the wind turned from S to SSE there was the added incentive of the possibility of some migrant movement up the Thames.
As I reached the foreshore waders were just leaving the roost with large numbers of Black-tailed Godwits silhouetted against the golden sky as they flew over to the Essex shore. The river was calm and, disappointingly, only contained flocks of gulls feeding on flying insects and not the hoped for seabirds. I was just about to take my leave when I saw nine black shapes heading purposefully up the Thames. Brent Geese. They continued on their way and I followed them into the sunset with the 'scope as far as Gravesend where they turned and headed back down into Higham Bight and were lost from sight. I used to think that birds such as these were destined to go overland to their wintering grounds on the south coast but over the years it became quite apparent that there was no correlation between movements up the Thames and arrivals in places such as the Solent. Observations showed they mostly return, as these birds did, and cross over the Hoo Peninsula to the Medway. As I watched for the next ¾ of an hour or so 90 birds came up, the largest flock being 60, and all took the return ticket into Higham Bight.
The light was almost gone by now and all was still. As I returned to the car I saw 10 latecomers sitting on the water in Higham Bight. Presumably they will join the other Brents in the Medway tomorrow morning. I saw the first Brents moving up the river on 16th September but this is the first good movement and heralds the start of winter. As I contemplated this fact a call brought me back to the present. It was a Chiffchaff as it went to roost in a blackthorn with two others. The beginning of winter and the end of summer together.
(CBG)

Sunday 7th October Haysden

Two Stonechat were at Haysden this morning and a Meadow Pipit flew over also c.150 hirundines trundling over most of which appeared to be House Martins but a few Swallows too. Also 5+ Chiffchaff and just one Stock Dove in the area and a Green Sandpiper was at Hawden and a Grey Wagtail at Barden this morning.
(Andrew Appleton)

Wednesday 3rd October Gravesend

Rock Pipit seen this lunchtime Gravesend Esplanade , by canal basin entrance.
(Charlie Vint)

Monday 2nd October East Barming, Maidstone

Male hobby scattered the large numbers of house martins (+150) feeding over the River Medway at Barming Bridge, East Barming, Maidstone late yesterday afternoon. Continuous passage of swallows over East Malling Research station today.
(Adam Whitehouse)

Sunday 1st October Cliffe RSPB

Went down to flamingo at high tide where a big wader roost flew in species included- 100 Lapwing, 400 Avocet, 50 Redshank, 1 Knot, 35 Dunlin, 2 Little Stint, 2 Ruff, 5 Curlew sands, 4 Bar Tailed Godwits and a Greenshank.
(Tom Cackett)

Sunday 1st October Dartford Marshes & Greenhithe

Flooded field held 56 Lapwing, 1 Green Sandpiper, 200 Black Headed Gull, 2 Common Gull, 3 Teal and 3 Pied Wagtail. 

The New Diggings off of University/Bob Dunn Way had 5 Yellow Legged Gull which are unusual on here.  Three were adults, two were 2nd winter birds and the other was a 1st winter.  2 Wigeon were new in and the female/imm Rudy Duck was still present along with 5 Tufted Duck. But no sign of any wintering Shoveler or Gadwall as yet.

8 Ringed Plover, 9 Yellow Legged Gull, 1 Curlew and the first 6 Redshank of the autumn were present at Greenhithe.  I watched one 2nd winter Yellow Leg rob a Cormorant of a fair-sized eel.  In turn it was chased by 10+ large Gulls for 2-3 minutes before it dropped the still wriggling beast from some height into the woods on the Thurrock side of the Thames.

(Andrew Lawson)