PURPLE HERON (Ardea purpurea)

Uncommon Passage Migrant

1838	Romney Marsh, immature, obtained, September.
1847	Lydd, 29th March.
1862	Romney Marsh, 1st May.
1876	Romney Marsh, 1st May.
1894	Kemsley, 1st May.
1925	Romney Marsh, two birds, 6th April.
1936	Stour Valley/Sandwich, 17th and 18th May.
1941	Deal, 2nd May.
	Romney Marsh, male, obtained, 12th May, now at Maidstone Museum.
1948	Gravesend, 27th March.
1958	Stoke, 2nd-10th August.
1961	Sandwich Bay, 7th July.
	Snargate, Romney Marsh, 9th August.
1963	Dungeness area, 5th May.
	Egypt Bay, 9th May.
	Tenterden, 19th July.
1964	Sandwich Bay, 8th April.
	Dungeness area, 20th May.
1966	Chetney, 3rd-4th August.
1967	Capel Fleet, Sheppey, 12th-25th June.
	Stodmarsh, 24th to 31st July.
1968	Stodmarsh, 27th April.
	Reculver, 11th August.
1969	Grove Ferry, 4th May.
	Sandwich Bay, 31st August to 30th September.
1970	Stodmarsh, adult, 24th-31st May.
	Stodmarsh, 24th July to 13th August.
1971	Chetney, 31st March.
	Kennington, Ashford, 23rd-24th April, with possibly same bird Stodmarsh, Apr 25th-May 19th.
	Sandwich Bay, 7th May.
	Sandwich Bay, 15th-16th May.
	Medway Estuary, 6th August.
1972	Stodmarsh, 1st June.
	Sandwich Bay, 21st-22nd June.
	Sevenoaks, 17th August.
	Marden, 9th-19th September.
1973	Stodmarsh, 29th April.
	Murston Pits, 20th May.
	Dungeness area, 29th July.
1974	Dungeness area, 21st April.
	Stodmarsh, two birds, 19th May.
	Sandwich Bay, 10th September.
1975	Dungeness area, 19th April.
1976	Sevenoaks, 2nd May.
	Stodmarsh, 30th May.
	Stodmarsh, 6th June.
	Sandwich Bay, 19th-22nd June.
1977	Sandwich Bay, 20th May.
	Fordwich, 1st June.
1978	Sandwich Bay, 20th April, with probably same bird on 29th April.
	Fordwich, 25th May.
	Stodmarsh, 29th-30th June.
	Dungeness area, 8th August
	St. Margaret's, 17th October.
	Elmley Reserve, 13th November.
1979	Westbere, 19th-22nd May.
	Stodmarsh, 17th June.
1980	Stodmarsh, 18th May.
	Stodmarsh, 25th June.
	Stodmarsh, 10th July.
1981	Fordwich, 18th-28th April.
	Reculver, 24th May.
	Yantlet Creek, 11th July.
1982	Dungeness RSPB, 27th May.
	Stodmarsh, 30th October.
1983	Stour Valley, 22nd-26th April.
	Foreness, flying east, 8th May.
	Sandwich Bay, flying west, 14th May.
1984	Minnis Bay, 22nd August to 6th October.
1985	Capel Fleet, Sheppey, 27th April, and again 4th May.
	Hayesden, 25th July to 5th September.
	Dartford Marshes, 13th-14th September.
1986	Sandwich Bay, 1st May.
	Westbere/Stodmarsh, 31st May to 1st June.
1987	Dungeness area, 20th-21st April.
	Sandwich Bay, 20th April.
	Stodmarsh, 20th April.
	Folkestone, 28th July.
	Dungeness, flying south-west, 6th August.
	Worth Marshes, 20th-21st August.
	Minnis Bay, 19th-22nd October.
1988	Dungeness area, 20th May.
	Dungeness area, 12th September.
1989	Dungeness RSPB, 1st April.
	Dungeness RSPB, 20th May.
1990	Reculver, 6th May.
	Westbere, 7th-12th May.
	Grove Ferry, 21st July.
	Reculver, one east, 24th October.
1991	Dungeness RSPB, 31st May.
	Stodmarsh, 4th June, possibly same bird as Dungeness.
1992	Copt Point, Folkestone, sub-adult, in off sea, 15th May.
	ARC pits, Dungeness, 23rd May.
	Oare Marshes, 1st August.
1994	Foreness, one south-west, 18th August.
	Sandwich Bay, juvenile, 14th September.
1996	Stodmarsh, one south, 22nd April.
	Binney Farm/Reservoir, Allhallows, first summer, 6th May.
	Dungeness RSPB, 12th May. Also seen at Lydd and Lade, same date.
1997	Brooksend, Minnis Bay, adult, 27th-29th April.
	Pegwell Bay, adult, 1st-4th May. Considered to be same bird as Brooksend.
	Denge Marsh, juvenile, 6th September.
1998	Walland M arsh, adult, 28th May to 21st June.
1999	Sandwich Bay, 29th March.
	Sandwich Bay, 8th-9th May.
	Stodmarsh, immature, 15th May.
	Dungeness, one north, 21st-22nd May.
	Grove Ferry, juvenile, 30th July to 11th August.
	Minnis Bay/Reculver, juvenile, 26th July-3rd October. Seen widely around Chambers Wall/Wantsum area.
	Stoke Fleet, immature, 29th August to 3rd October.
	Grove Ferry, juvenile, 1st September.
2000	Bough Beech, 6th April.
	Swale NNR, adult, 1st May.
	Dungeness, two adults, in off sea, 6th May.
	Lydd Golf Course, adult flying east, 7th May.
	Reculver, 13th August.
	Minnis Bay/Reculver, juvenile, 13th August to 10th September. Seen around Chambers Wall, Reculver and Marshside.
2001	Dungeness RSPB, 20th May.
	Long Pits, Dungeness, first summer, 20th June.
2003	Capel-le-Ferne, one flew East, 13th April.
2004	Pegwell Bay, adult flew north,22nd April.
	Elmley, sub-adult, 14th-15th May.
	North Foreland, immature flew west, 15th May.
	Brooksend, Minnis Bay, 4th June.
	Dungeness RSPB, 30th September.
2006	Bough Beech, single bird flew north, 21st April.
	Dungeness, immature flew out to sea, 30th August.
2007	St. Nicholas-at-Wade, single bird few in to land, 10th June.
2008	Sandwich Bay BO, adult first seen on beach and later near observatory, 20th April.
	Dungeness RSPB, adult, 6th May.
2009	Reculver, single bird, arrived from south, 23rd May.
2010	Dungeness RSPB, single bird, 27th-28th April, with second bird joining it on 29th-30th April. These birds were soon seen carrying nesting material, and quickly became Britain's first successful breeding pair. The first bird to fledge did so on 4th August, and the last sighting of any bird was the adult female on 30th August.
	Sandwich Bay BO, single bird, 20th May.
	Stodmarsh, single bird, 23rd May.