January sightings

For more of Kent's Bird & Wildlife photography visit -

www.eastkentwildlifepics.co.uk

                            Sightings can be Emailed to:

Marc, Martyn & Brendan

                   Martyn Wilson - martyn@wilson5834.freeserve.co.uk                                                   Brendan Ryan -  brendan.ryan@yahoo.co.uk

                            Marc Heath    - Heathym007@aol.com   

Photo Gallery

  Number of species recorded in the valley this year so far = 103

31st January

Leaving university late afternoon I decided to pop over to Grove to see what was around. There was 1 Little Owl at Cow Corner in the usual tree and a party of 5 Red legged Partridge in fields south of Stodmarsh reserve. At Grove I noted 65 Greylag Geese, 3 Marsh Harrier, 4 Little Egret, 5 Ruff, 2 Cetti's Warbler, 2 Shelduck and 51 Pied Wagtail flew towards Hersden Industrial estate. There was 1 Great spotted Woodpecker, 1 Water Pipit over the ramp, 2 Meadow Pipit, only 28 Corn Buntings seen coming into roost, c100 Golden Plover, 33 Mute Swan, 1 Green Woodpecker and c250 Lapwing.

(Marc Heath)

30th January

Another visit was made to Grove tonight until dusk in the hope of connecting with the Whooper Swan again. I spent some time on the ramp before driving round to the boathouse to watch the Swans coming in. They didn't arrive until just before dark but no sign of the Whooper but c70 Mute Swans and 7 adult Bewick's Swans flew in. Also seen were 1 Marsh Harrier, 1 ring tail Hen Harrier, 1 Grey Heron, 2 Stonechat, there were at least 60 Corn Bunting into roost tonight which made for an impressive sight. The usual birds were at the feeders and c120 Golden Plover were on the main pool along with 2 Shelduck and a few hundred Lapwing.

(Marc Heath)

29th January

As I arrived at Grove tonight and started to walk down the main track the Swans were already flying in. I had a quick scan but they all seemed to be Mute although it was pleasing to hear that the Whooper Swan was seen again flying from Reculver towards Chislet on the 28th. Hopefully it will remain in the area for more to see as this is a rare valley bird. Other bits noted included at least 50 Corn Buntings into roost but there may have been more, 1 Marsh Harrier, c200 Golden Plover a few hundred Lapwing and Teal, 2 Water Pipit over the ramp, 13 Pied Wagtail and a few Fieldfare flying towards Stodmarsh.

(Marc Heath)

27th January

Arriving at Grove Ferry at 6.20 this morning I found Marc Heath and Alan Ashdown already there and waiting to proceed so, after a little bit of natter we made our way to the ramp in hope of re-connecting with yesterdays Whooper Swan. The first 42 Swans flew out in semi-darkness at 7.05 and two birds were very noticably smaller and were calling, these turned out to be the first two of 12 adult Bewick's Swans (a party of 6 at 7.24 out towards Chislet and a party of 4 out towards Sarre at 7.38) the first 2 in the Sarre direction as well. There was no sign of the Whooper Swan but it may have snuck out with the first 2 Bewick's and 40 Mutes. Out going Mutes totalled 67. Two Hen Harriers again were at the reserve (1 an obvious female plus another ringtail) but only 7 Marsh Harriers this morning. Also today were, 2 Shrelducks, 6 Corn Buntings, 1 Yellowhammer (west over ramp), 2 Kingfishers, 6 Ruff and 7 Little Egrets. There were, 3 Cetti's Warblers, 1 Pink-footed Goose, 1 Green & 1 Great-spotted Woodpecker, 3 Common Snipe and 1 Stonechat. At the Green Hide were a small number of Teal 6 Coots , 1 Water Rail , 1 Grey Heron, 6 Gadwall and 3 Tufted Ducks (1 drake). The highest count of Magpies of the year so far were on the ramp with 18 in all, Teal numbered 1200+ and there were 2600 Lapwings.

(Martyn Wilson, Alan Ashdown, Steve Ashton and Marc Heath)

Arrived at the ramp about 3.30 this afternoon in the hope once again of catching up with the swans that the early birds keep seeing. 131 Golden Plover were hiding amongst the masses of Lapwing along with 4 Ruff. A single ringtail Hen Harrier passed through on its way to the Stodmarsh roost as did 6 Marsh Harriers, one of which stopped off to reduce the Grove wader population by one ( possibly a ruff or Lapwing). My suspicions from yesterday that Corn Bunting numbers had gone up were confirmed by a pre-roost gathering of 62 birds. At least 3 Water Pipits passed over  on thier way to roost and a single Green Sandpiper was a welcome addition to the year list. 2 Little Egrets were seen in flight heading towards the Little Stour Valley. Alas only about 6 Mute Swans had arrived before it got too dark to see. Whooper Swan continues to elude me from my valley list although it is unfair to complain on a day when my day list included Lapland Bunting and Wallcreeper (but not at Grove)!

(Brendan Ryan)

26th January

Marc had 2 Little and 1 Tawny Owl prior to 6.30 around the valley while a morning at Grove Ferry produced 70 Mute Swans out before 7.30 plus 3 Bewick's and 1 Whooper Swan out towards Chislet at 7.30 followed by 4 Bewick's Swans towards Sarre at 7.35 all being adults. There were 2 Hen Harriers, 11 Marsh Harriers plus Alan had 6 more at Stodmarsh, 9 Ruff, 1 Merlin, 1 Kingfisher, 60+ Fieldfare, 3 Redwings, 2 Cettis' Warblers, 4 Water Pipits and a Peregrine Falcon. Also today were 1 Pied Wagtail, 1 Stonechat, 1 Common Snipe, 3 Little Egrets, 83 Golden Plover, 1+ Bearded Tit, 2 Grey Herons, 1 Sparrowhawk, 1 Water Rail and a Kestrel. The feeders were much as usual with Blue & Great Tits, Chaffinch, Greenfinch, Reed Bunting, Magpie, Starling, Robin & Dunnock and a large amount of Gulls passed overhead whilst several thousand could be seen distantly in the air over Stodmarsh/Collard's plus at least 3000 Lapwings with another 2300 Lapwings at Grove and c700 Teal. Merlin and Whooper Swan are new to the year list.

(Martyn, Marc,Pete, Alan, Steve, Chris Gibbard & Rick Smith)

A later afternoon visit to the ramp in the hope of connecting with Whooper Swan which would be new for my valley list. Sadly and rather predictably no wild swans arrived by dark. A single Hen Harrier and 2 Marsh Harriers passed through and there were 175 Golden Plover, 4 Ruff, one Little Egret. There were at least 30 Corn Buntings, although there may have been many more as there were several groups of differeing sizes flying around prior to pitching down into the reeds to roost.

(Brendan Ryan)

25th January

A brief hour was spent at the ramp at Grove Ferry tonight in pleasant sunshine. The following were noted: 6 Marsh Harrier, 1 Sparrowhawk, 6 Ruff, 4 Green Sandpiper were flushed from the back pools by a Harrier, 1 ring tail Hen Harrier, c70 Golden Plover, c200 Lapwing and Teal, 1 Green Woodpecker, 1 Kingfisher, 2 Snipe, 2 Shelduck, c40 Fieldfare, 6 Mute Swan and the usual birds around the feeders.

(Marc Heath)

24th January

A brief visit to the ramp tonight after work was not that productive although for once the weather was quite nice. I met Sue Morton at the ramp and all she had seen was a Stonechat near Harrisons although in the past few days she had seen 2 Common Buzzards over Westbere Lakes. Birds noted included 2 Shelduck, c32 Corn Bunting, 3 Marsh Harrier, 3 Blue Tit, a handful of Fieldfare and a few hundred Teal and Lapwing. Before going home I drove to the layby by the boathouse where yesterday I thought I had a Grey Partridge calling in the dark but the constant traffic made listening very hard. I only gave it 10 minutes with no luck but I did see 3 Little Egrets in the flooded field at Nethergong.

(Marc Heath)

20th January

Pete Solly and I arrived at a very windy Ramp at 7.00am. We saw 58 Mute Swans, 6 Marsh Harriers, 2 Ruff, 1 Kingfisher, 2 ringtail Hen Harriers and 5 Little Egrets A small skien of 9 Pink-footed Geese flew south east over the Boathouse and appeared to drop in the vicinity of the the feilds above Seaton, no luck there later though. We spent an hour in the Green Hide but that was a dead loss with just 1 female Tufted Duck and 6 Coots, why the hell they intend extend this hide beats me and... every oyther birder that visits here??? A few extra additions from the Ramp after were, 2 Peregrines (1 smart male and a tatty female), 1 Geen Woodpecker, 2 Golden Plover, 2 Shelduck and 2 Stonechats with the usual in residence at the feeders. Pete left at 10.00 so I moved up to Cow Corner where, I met Brendan Ryan, although not much was added but at least there was a large flock of Gulls to look through with at least 50% bieng young birds. Nothing out of the ordinary, mainly Herring Gulls with Great Black-backed, Common and Black-headed for company. Brendan and I parted company and I went on to Stodmarsh and bumped into Steve Ashton, Mike Gould and Alan Ashdown. With the strong wind making viewing difficult we went to the Tower Hide, the main Lake held Pochard, Shoveler, Mallard and Teal plus 30 odd Greylag Geese and 12 Pintail (7 drakes). There was a large gathering of Black-headed Gulls on the lake and amongst them was a single adult winter Mediterranean Gull. From the Reedbed Hide, a little later, using my ancient Digiscoping equipment (Coolpix 4500) and a fair amount of digital zoom I managed a record shot that shows all the main features, see todays gallery on the link below. A dozen Siskins, 8+ Long-tailed Tits and 2 very showy Common Snipe were the only other additions to the note book before I set of for home via Sandwich to see the 4 Lapland Buntings (I live in Deal so en-route).

(Martyn Wilson)

I spent a few hours in the valley from 5am noting 4 Tawny and 1 Little Owl. To make a change from Grove I started at Cow Corner in the hope of a Barn Owl but this was unsuccessful. I did see 11 Yellowhammer flying South East over in small groups, 2 Green Woodpecker, 2 Redwing, hundreds of noisy Rooks and Jackdaws out of roost, 18 Mute Swan and c30 Fieldfare. Onwards to Hersden Industrial estate which was always good for Grey Partridge but will buildings popping up everywhere there was no sign of any. I did manage to see c20 Linnets which seemed to be hanging around and 5 Meadow Pipit, 1 Marsh Harrier, 1 Grey Heron and a few Pied Wagtail on the buildings. On the non avian front, 2 Foxes and 1 Hare were seen.

(Marc Heath)

Started the day at Cow Corner (several hours after Marc!) where I saw nothing so moved on to Collard's where I tried a number of viewing points to get reasonable views of the lake and shelter from the wind. The variety of duck remains disappointing with nothing vaguely unusual or interesting. There were 159 Tufted Duck, 55 Pochard, 4 Goldeneye inc 2 drakes, 2 Pintail, 6 Gt-cr Grebes and 2 Marsh Harriers. Looking back to Cow Corner, I noticed a large gathering of gulls, so I headed off that way, meeting Martyn en route. About 850 Herring Gulls were present but we couldn't find anything exciting. I went off to see if I could relocate the pinkfeet or yesterday's Green Sandp. Having failed on both counts I decided to call it a day, arriving home just in time to get a call from Martyn about the Med Gull. I didn't go back which might suggest that I have already given up on the 2008 year list.

(Brendan Ryan)

19th January

A rather quiet morning at Grove today with grey skies and a blustery south west wind. Brendan started early with Tawny Owl before meeting Marc and I at Grove entrance gate at 6.45am. Some of the Avian highlights today were, 1 Kingfisher, 3 Ruff, 2 Little Egrets, c800 Teal, 53 Mute Swans, 5 Marsh Harriers, 190 Jackdaws and the first Linnets of the year with two over the Ramp. In the Harrison's Drove area there were 1 Jack Snipe, 34 Common Snipe, 2 Stonechats at least 10 Water Pipits and 3 Bearded Tits. Also today were, 2 Shelducks, c1900 Lapwings, 47 Fieldfares, 2 Redwing, 1 Cetti's Warbler, 2 Golden Plover and 1 Green Sandpiper. Added at Stodmarsh were 1 Woodcock, 30 Siskins, 3 Mistle Thrushes, 1 Great-spotted Woodpecker and 8 Long-tailed Tits. Surprisingly there were no Gulls in the valley although there were a few flyovers and some on Hersden Lake, to distant to watch. The usual commoner bits were around the reserve with the as expected at the feeding station. At Collard's the duck were well spread out and many were sheltering in the western corner and weren't visable from behind the trees, therefore no meaningful counts could be done. However there was a drake Goldeneye, 7 Pintail and 6 Gt-cr Grebes present.The Cormorants had begun to return to their nest trees.

Today was the first time the three of us Valley birders had recorded the three Snipe species in one day, Common Snipe, Jack Snipe and Woodcock, it would be intresting to know if any other birders have managed this on thier patches?

(Martyn Wilson, Marc Heath, Brendan Ryan & John Hollyer)

17th January

Thirty minutes at Cow Corner from 4pm produced, 2 Marsh Harrier, 1 Sparrowhawk, 1 kestrel, 2 Mistle Thrush, 1 Siskin, c40 Stock Doves, 1 Great-spotted Woodpecker and c150 Fieldfare whilst 5 Red-legged Partridge were in fields to the south of Stodmarsh reserve (the first of the year).

(Marc Heath)

14th January

Taking the option that you cannot see many birds whilst sitting indoors i decided to visit Stodmarsh,arrived about midday.Met two young ladies who were putting on waders,was the flooding that bad!!! Yes it was raining but carried on but did not see very much,so ventured up to the marsh hide,arrived wet and cold.Then when the rain ceased things livened up quickly.5 Water Pipits seen,but highlight was an imm.Peregrine which sat on a metal gate preening and drying its wings,it then flew and chased a ringtail Hen Harrier,and then  another ringtail appeared,the Peregrine returned to the gate.In total 4 Marsh Harriers in the area,i returned to the wood at Stodmarsh and as dusk was coming i found 2 Siskin and 6 Redpoll near the car-park,by now the Fieldfares were arriving in good numbers,and the ploughed field produced a flock of well over 1,000 Lapwings,i felt therefore my decision was rewarded,

(Malcolm Mcvail)

13th January

At a more blustery and wet Grove Ferry & Stodmarsh today were, 2 Tawny Owls, 1 Little Owl, 8 Marsh Harriers 1+ ringtail Hen Harrier and 20 Mute Swans, no sign of the Bewick's this morning. There were, 6 Pintail (4 drakes), 100+ Fieldfares, 2 Shelducks, 4 Redshank, 9 Ruff (plus another 6 at Cow Corner/Wesbere Marshes), 1 Green Sandpiper, 4 Bearded Tits, 1 Kingfisher, 70 Snipe and 1 Jack Snipe. Only one sighting of Bittern today but, there were at least 30 Water Pipits (10+ at Harrison's and at least 20 at Marsh Hide) and 2 Peregrine Falcons. There were, 3 Golden Plovers, 1 Little Egret, 2 Tufted Ducks, 1 Kestrel, 8 Long-tailed Tits, 6 Goldfinch, 36 Pochards, 3 Great-crested Grebes and a male Sparrowhawk.

(Martyn Wilson, Marc Heath, Steve Ashton & Alan Ashdown)

12th January

In the hour as it got dark (4pm - 5pm) at Stodmarsh this afternoon there were 14 Marsh Harriers and 1 ringtail Hen Harrier going to roost, 8 Corn Buntings flew over the Lampen Wall, 6 Bearded Tits along the reedbeds, 1 Green Sandpiper calling as it flew over at dusk, 180+ Fieldfares, several singing Cetti's and a huge flock of Rooks and Jackdaws leaving the reserve.

(Derek Smith)  

There were 21 Water Pipits counted at the Marsh hide this afternoon, being spooked by a passing Sparrowhawk. 6+ Marsh Harriers were seen as well as at least 2 Ring-tailed Hen Harriers. 100+ Fieldfares were into roost.

(Steve Ashton.)  

There were 4 Canada Geese at Westbere this morning on the flooded meadows across the river. 

(Sue Morton)

A great morning in the valley today with some good quality birds. The 4 Bewick's Swans left their usual left hand pool roost at 7.20 this morning and there were 36 Mute Swans, 8 Ruff, 2400+ Lapwings, 3 Pink-footed Geese, 2 Shelducks, 14 Marsh Harriers and 2 ringtail Hen Harriers. Also today were, 8 Corn Buntings, 2 Shelducks, 2 Kingfishers, 16 Wigeon west, 4 Little Egrets, 3 Redshank, 60+ Fieldfares, 1 Jay, 2 Grey Herons, 1 Pied Wagtail and 4 Ring-necked Parakeets. A drake Pintail was on the main pool and by far the best sight of the day and the year so far was a Peregrine attempting to take down a Bittern just in front of the ramp, at least 3 Bitterns were seen and probably 4 with, 1 at the Reed Bed Hide at Stodmarsh, 1 at Marsh Hide and 2-3 at Grove Ferry itself. There were, 58 Golden Plovers, 2 Bearded Tits, 1 Great-spotted and 1 Green Woodpeckers, 3 Snipe, 10+ Water Pipits, 3 Stonechats, 2 Sparrowhawks, a Common Buzzard (1st one this year), 2 Water rails and a Kesrel with, the usual suspects on the feeders. Only other additions were 2 Little Grebes at Westbere and a Little Owl  and 1,400 Lapwings at Cow Corner. At Collard's there were 232 Tufted Duck, 6 Goldeneye inc 2 drakes, 56 Pochard, one Little and 8 Gt-cr Grebes. There were very few gulls in the valley today for some reason and this afternoon Westbere was completely devoid of any gulls. We did add a Chiffchaff and a male Stonechat (in the water meadows)

(Martyn, Marc, Brendan, Norman McCanch, John Hollyer, John Cantelo & Alan Ashdown)

10th January

I had a few hours in the valley today before and after work. I made visits to to Grove, Stodmarsh and Collards and in gale force winds and rain, I observed the following: On arrival at Grove early on there were 7 Marsh Harrier in the air together, also 5 Ruff, 2 Shelduck, 1 Kingfisher, 4 Bullfinch, 1 Cetti's Warbler, at least 8 Water Pipit, 3 at Harrisons and 5 from the Marsh hide, 1 Pintail, 1 Peregrine, 1 ring tail Hen Harrier, 2 Great spotted Woodpecker, 1 Goldcrest and 4 Mistle Thrush. I had a good hour going through all the Gulls at collards and found a second winter Mediterranean Gull, see distant record shot, but no other unusual Gulls to identify. 1 Stonechat was seen, 1 Redshank, c4000 Lapwing, c800 Teal, the wind prevented much scanning of Collards but the usual Tufted Duck, Wigeon and Pochard were present. As I left Grove late on c80 Fieldfare were flying to roost, 1 Little Egret flew over the paddock and c15 Corn Bunting flew low over the reeds towards the Green hide area.

(Marc Heath)

7th January

I cycled down to Grove Ferry after work tonight for 45 minutes and observed the following from the ramp: 172 Cormorant towards Stodmarsh, 35 Corn Bunting into roost, 3 Marsh Harrier, 1 Redshank, 2 Shelduck, 1 Little Egret, 3 Pheasant, 5 Mute Swan, 3 Water Pipit over the ramp, c200 Fieldfare around the reserve, 1000+ Lapwing and c600 Teal.

(Marc Heath)

6th January

Colour-ringed Gull update

1st - Orange ring with Green 3180 (it has to be this code as there are no alpha-numeric codes in this combination) It is from a project run by the Central Science Laboratory (A Government Agency) that specializes in assessing bird strike hazards e.g. airports, wind farms etc.  

2nd - Red ring with White code - almost certainly from the Orford Ness gull colony that is part of an ongoing study by Languard Bird Observatory, Suffolk.  

The other two - White with Black code - again almost surely from the Mallydams RSPCA Wildlife rescue centre in Fairlight E.Sussex

(Many thanks to Dylan Wrathall)

Spent a few hours at Stodmarsh this afternoon. At least 11 Water Pipit on the pools from the Marsh Hide - could have been more as they were constantly flying between the two. 1 Lesser Redpoll with the Siskins in the alder wood otherwise much as expected

(Dylan Wrathall)

A very quiet start at Grove Ferry this morning, there was no sign of any Bewick's Swans and only 29 Mutes, although a Bittern was seen in flight over the Oxbow ay 7.10am. There were 6 Marsh Harriers, 3 Little Egrets, 2 Grey Herons, 100+ Fieldfares, 1 Redshank, 5 Ruff and 40+ Golden Plovers. Harrison's Drove was as dead as usual but, a single Water Pipit did eventually drop in as did a single Skylark and 2 Shelducks flew over, 3 Stonechats were also in that area. A couple of Bearded Tits were heard at Aquatic Corner while 5 Great-spotted Woodpeckers were seen along the river as well as 2 Green Woodpeckers and 3 Jays. The feeders had the usual and there were 2 Cetti's Warblers and 30+ Snipe. I made my way up to Collard's where Brendan was already watching an adult Yellow-legged Gull and a second adult was also located, no sign of any potential Caspians but four colour-ringed Gulls were present (2 white with black lettering, 1 yellow with green lettering and a red with white). On the lake were at least 3 Goldeneye,142 Tufted Duck, 38 Pochard, pair of Pintail and 2 Little Grebes. A male Sparrowhawk buzzed past the bushes within two feet as we watched the Gulls. A little later at Stodmarsh Brendan and I had 1 Woodcock 30ish Siskins and a Treecreeper being the only birds of note.
(Martyn Wilson, Pete Solly & Brendan Ryan)

Returned to Grove in the afternoon in the hope of adding to the year list but alas none of the target birds showed. Highlights included 5 Redshank, 9 Ruff, 31 Golden Plover, one Ringtail Hen Harrier and 30 Corn Buntings into roost. One Chiffchaff was calling along the river. It was reported that earlier in the afternoon a Peregine had been seen to take a Teal. It started to rain so I abandoned the ramp and any hope of Bewick's and ended the day where I had started, at Cow Corner, where 2 Little Owls were calling but I wasn't able to find a Barn Owl in the Westbere/Hersden area

(Brendan Ryan)

For a change I had an hour at Stodmarsh this morning from dawn having already logged 4 Tawny Owls in the darkness. The following were noted: 3 Water Rail, 4 Cetti's Warbler, 5 Redwing, 1 Goldeneye on the main lake, 1 Green Woodpecker, 6 Marsh Harrier in the air together, 1 Kingfisher, 44 Great black backed Gull on the main lake, 172 Cormorant in their trees and 4 Great crested Grebe. There was 1 Wigeon, c50 Siskin in the alder wood, 1 Water Pipit over, Good numbers of Fieldfare leaving roost, 2 Great spotted Woodpecker, 2 Jay and 2 Goldcrest.

(Marc Heath)

5th January

A brief visit to Collard's early afternoon produced 106 Tufted Duck, 6 Goldeneye including one drake, 3 Gt-cr Grebes and 2 Marsh Harriers. Although there were fewer gulls in the field than usual, they did include a fine adult Yellow-legged Gull

(Brendan Ryan)

Just 38 Mute Swans at Grove Ferry today, presumably most had left prior to 7.00am but the 4 Bewick's Swans were still present, leaving the right hand pool at 7.17. Also today were, 2 Shelducks, 1 Kingfisher, 3 Ruff, 300+ Lapwing, 6 Marsh Harriers, 100+ Fieldfares and 2 ringtail Hen Harriers. There were, 2 Cetti's Warblers, 1 Kestrel, 26 Stock Doves, 38 Snipe, 3 Little Egrets, 134 Golden Plovers, 1800 Teal, 1 Sparrowhawk and 4 Stonechats. A Bittern showed well in flight on three occasions and on the final flight was seen to drop along the river bank aproaching the Oxbow. At Marsh Hide there were at least 9 Water Pipits and possibly as many as 15 while a Grey Heron was seen, 1 Green Woodpecker and a steady passage of large Gulls heading up the valley.

(Martyn Wilson, Marc Heath, Phil Parker & John Cantelo)

3rd January 

Although obviously not a good day for birdwatching, a visit by 4 Black Swans provided some interest at Westbere Lake and they certainly made a change from looking at gulls!

(Sue Morton)

With cold temperatures, low cloud, drizzle turning to sleet I made my way over to Grove Ferry mid afternoon for a few hours in the hope of some bird action, that was my mistake. I made brief visits to the Marsh, Harrisons and the Green hide but only managed a few birds, notably 1 Water Pipit. Other birds noted included: 1 Marsh Harrier, 1 Green Woodpecker, 1 Stonechat, 1 Water Rail, 1 Kingfisher, 1 Great spotted Woodpecker, 2 Goldfinch, 1 Bullfinch, c40 Golden Plover, 2 Gadwall, 3 Shelduck, c200 Teal, 1 Pied Wagtail, 2 Redshank, 2 Common Gull landed briefly, 2 Great Tit and 1 Mistle Thrush noted. 2 Bewick's Swans flew West over the ramp and landed on Stodmarsh lake at 3.06pm.

(Marc Heath)

1st January

With the locals and other birders turning out in force, the ramp was a busy place with the anticipation of new birds for the year. Most areas were visited between dawn and dusk and an impressive 91 species were seen or heard. Marc managed to log 82 species for the day, a good total despite a few easy birds missed. The following were seen or heard today in the valley: Great crested Grebe, Little Grebe, Cormorant, Little Egret, Mute Swan, 4 adult Bewick's Swans, 5 White fronted Geese, 1 Pink footed Goose, Greylag Geese, Shelduck, Mallard, Gadwall, Pintail, Shoveler, Wigeon, Teal, Pochard, Tufted Duck, Goldeneye, Marsh Harrier, 3 ring tail Hen Harrier, Sparrowhawk, Kestrel, Peregrine, Pheasant, Water Rail, Moorhen, Coot, 1 Grey Plover, Golden Plover, Lapwing, 1 Dunlin, Redshank, 1 Spotted Redshank, 1 Woodcock, Snipe, Ruff, Black headed Gull, Common Gull, Herring Gull, Lesser black backed Gull, Great black backed Gull, Feral Pigeon, Stock Dove, Wood Pigeon, Collared Dove, 3 Tawny Owl, 2 Little Owl, Kingfisher, Green Woodpecker, Great spotted Woodpecker, Skylark, 11 Water Pipit, Meadow Pipit, Pied Wagtail, 2 Grey Wagtail, Wren, Dunnock, Robin, Stonechat, Song Thrush, Mistle Thrush, Redwing, Fieldfare, Blackbird, Cetti's Warbler, Chiffchaff, Goldcrest, 1 Firecrest, Great Tit, Blue Tit, Bearded Tit, Long tailed Tit, Treecreeper, Magpie, Jay, Jackdaw, Carrion Crow, Rook, Starling, House Sparrow, Chaffinch, Lesser Redpoll, Goldfinch, Greenfinch, Siskin, Bullfinch, Reed Bunting, Yellowhammer and 23 Corn Bunting. Many thanks to all those who helped with the big day. Norman McCanch had a probable Common Crane over Grove today, the bird called a few times but with the low cloud was not seen.

(Marc Heath, Martyn Wilson, Brendan Ryan, Steve Ashton, Alan Ashdown, Phil Parker, Sue Morton, John Hollyer, Norman McCanch, John Cantelo, Chris Gibbard)

Had a delayed start due to early morning rain and got to Cow Corner about 9.00. Birded though the day till dark and managed a respectable 81 species. It would seem that at least 91 species were recorded in the valley today. My highlights included Firecrest, Pinkfoot and Water Pipit in the Cow Corner/Collard's area, 100 Siskin, 2 Redpoll in the Alder Wood, one Chiffchaff at Stodmarsh plus another heard calling with the bullfinch like call of tristis Chiffchaff. I encountered another Chiffchaff at Westbere where there were again 1,000s of large gulls which only got a cursory look as I wanted to get to Grove for dusk. At Grove highlights included a Spotted Redshank, found by Chris Gibbard, a ringtail Hen Harrier (to add to 2 that had passed through to roost earlier in the afternoon) and a Peregrine. Notable misses which were seen by others included Little Egret, Woodcock (flushed while I was looking the wrong way!), Treecreeper and Bewick's Swan. I am not aware of anyone having seen Bittern in the valley today although there were a lot of people looking.

(Brendan Ryan)

A Ring necked Parakeet was seen on Grove Ferry hill today.

(Dylan & Simon Wrathall)