Grove In All Its Glory

I have often thought that I am not a lucky person but in reality I am,  lucky that I have been blessed with the ability to enjoy the country side and all that occurs within it.  I had decided that a walk to the marsh hide would be a good idea today as there had been a juvenile Glossy Ibis showing well in the week so setting off along the track from grove I walked to the ramp where I made my first stop.  Blue, Great and Long Tailed Tits were fooled by the warm temperatures in to thinking it was spring along with a Wren and two Dunnock.  At the ramp there were lots of Reed Bunting and Chaffinch,  I scanned for a Brambling to no avail.  A Marsh Harrier scrambled the ramp locals and the raise in decibels was tremendous.  My next stop was the newly transformed feast hide,  I must thank all those who gave up their time in the week and help to bring the area back under control.. Here there were Teal and lapwing,  Little Egret and a few others.  Along the path to the marsh hide I saw a charm of Goldfinch and several Thrushes coming in of which there were a lot of Fieldfare. On reaching the marsh hide I was rewarded with distant views of the Glossy Ibis and the Grey Heron who seems to like his picture being taken. Six Ruff circled and a few snipe were also seen. This time of the year is stunning, don't miss it.

Warm Winds At Reculver

<>

a h

 Meeting Steve Ashton at the fishermans car park just after 8 this morning  we were greeted with  a strong southerly wind albeit bright and sunny. I was going to go to Dungeness for the day as the Penduline tit seems to be showing but with the big game at lunch time and me being a man utd fan I wanted to be home to watch the local derby if you can call it that with the multi national teams these days  and boy what a waste of a sunny afternoon that was. .Any way back to the birding. We walked along the track from the car park noting a kestrel but not much else before crossing the railway  and turning left along the old embankment. We had a Green Woodpecker and fleeting views of various Thrushes as they skulked in the bushes keeping out of the wind,  a party of Finches flew over but photo opportunities were few and far between even though the light was kind.  Not being a bird lister I just enjoy what ever the walk turns up bird wise however I hope to see a few birds this time of the year that are new to me.  We had good views of Marsh Harrier looking spectacular on the wind they just seem to hang there.  We turned along the green wall heading towards the sea  where we saw two Bearded Tits and a flock of Golden Plover twisting and turning as they flew in the bright morning sunshine. A Peregrine was spotted towards the towers scattering all the birds in its path.  On reaching the sea wall the tide was in and we had good views of Brent Geese, Turnstone,  Two Wheatear and a pair of Meadow Pipits, here we had the bird of the day a Goosander flying towards the towers close in allowing a hurried record shot. We made  our way along the sea shore spotting a raft of Mallard  with a lone Wigeon, more Brent Geese,  Ring Plovers flying by and on the lagoons a  few Redshank calmly paddling in the clear water. Making our way back to the car park we located several Long Tailed Tits in the hedge row allowing a few shots,  they disappeared quickly bringing the mornings ramble to an end. Another enjoyable morning, you can forget all your troubles and everything else with this hobby.  Yesterday I  had an hour with the Bearded Tits at Grove,  they are thinning out now but still stunning to see when you find them. Lastly there is lots of work taking place around the feast hide lets hope we see the iconic Kingfisher back on its post soon.

Grove In The Sunshine

After a cold night I was greeted with a frozen car this morning,  the first of the autumn. I set off for Grove hoping the sun would soon burn off the mist and develop into a nice sunny day like the weather forecast had promised.  As I walked up the track towards the ramp the ghostly appearance of a Barn Owl passed me in the mist and flew towards the feast hide, it looked stunning as flew by reminding me of the great times I had with them back in the summer. I also saw Green Woodpecker, Stonechat, Reed Bunting and Cettis Warbler. Three Marsh Harriers were upsetting the ramp residents causing lots of commotion on a calm morning as I made my way to the track past the feast hide where I hoped to photograph Bearded Tits. Conditions were now perfect for my target bird and I soon found a few to grace the camera,  I clicked away happily for an hour. I met Alan Ashdown,  Steve Ashton,  Adam Faiers,  Martyn Wilson And Mark Chidwick just by the feast hide and we decided as it was so nice to walk to the marsh hide and a circuit via harrisons and middle drove. We saw Fieldfare,  Redwing Stonechat  andWater Rail before finding a small flock of Redpoll, these turned out to be the highlight of the ramble. The morning was most enjoyable with us putting the world to right in all departments as we strolled in the morning sun.

The Last Few Weeks.

="640" />

Its been a while since I updated my blog, ive been away in Menorca for a week and catching up on chores for another so it was  nice to get out on Sunday for a few hours. Whilst in Menorca near Cala Galdana I walked through a gorge and was delighted to add to my life list Egyptian Vulture and Booted Eagle, the Vultures breed here and were magnificent, if only I had my camera. I saw lots of Spotted Flycatcher Sardinian Warbler and even heard a Nightingale,  truly a place for me to visit again along with the  uncommercialised beaches and turquoise sea, wonderful.  On my return I had a few days working at Arundal a mile from the Pallid Harrier, naturally I had a look for this super bird but was not lucky however did see Red Kite,  Buzzard,  Kestrel and Raven Along with a calling Tawny Owl. Again a cracking location set in delightful  Sussex countryside . With the wife working Sunday I had a a bit more time so set off for Grove to try for a few Bearded Tit shots,  this time of the year there can be at least a 100 or more with the numbers I would imagine boosted from other areas. The light was fantastic when I arrived and I soon located the birds they were very vocal.  I meet a few of the locals and just as we started the camera action we received a call telling us of an Osprey at Reculver ( or was it Seasalter ). We decided to pay a visit as it seemed to be staying put in the oyster beds.  On arrival we could see it from a long way off,  it was huge and sat for some time before  rising and heading south,  wow what a sight well worth the trip.  With the sun now baking down on us I decided to head home.  Monday evening after work with the forecast saying that the weather was to break I paid Oare marshes a visit.  High tide is needed for the best views of the waders as they come in from the coast to roost and with the sun behind me a few shots were managed. I saw Little Stint, Curlew Sandpiper , Golden Plover, Greenshank,  Ringed Plover,  Ruff,  Little Egret,  Green Plover,  Black Tailed Godwit to name but a few and as the sun went down a lone Spoonbill glidded in from the west. So there you are a brief note of whats been going on and a few pictures as follows 1 Bearded Tit..2 Osprey. 3 Osprey. 4 Golden Plover. 5 Black Tailed Godwit..6  Black tailed Godwit. 7 .Little Egret.....Finally a note to all you bloggers for some reason I cannot leave comments on your reports,  I am trying to sort out the problem.

Rye Harbour.

A change of scenery this morning with a trip to Rye Harbour for the Buff Breasted Sandpiper. A spur of the moment decision had myself,  Mike Gould and Steve Ashton setting off about 08.30.  Its a good hour drive from Canterbury via Ashford and across Romney Marsh,  a pleasant drive  taking in some of Kents lovely countryside before crossing in to East Sussex   .It was a very warm bright morning which encouraged lots of people out to make the most of the summer.  We made our way through the caravan park towards the scrapes where we had hoped the Sandpiper would be and on spotting a crowd ahead with scopes and binoculars we soon were enjoying close views .Photography was to be a challenge as the sun was in the wrong location, ( Late pm would be best.) so we decided to have a wander and see what else was about. We bumped into Mike Hook who joined us noting  Linnet, Wheatear, Marsh Harrier, Kestrel and  Little Egret  as we made our way to one of the hides.  Not much from the hide and with the sun beating down it was decided that refreshments were needed.  After tea ( and ice creams ) we made our way back to the scrapes as a couple of hours had passed along with most people and we were able to position ourselves allowing a few photos. Also on the scrape were Curlew Sandpiper Ringed Plover and  Dunlin all coming close. its a shame that we were not here for the evening as i feel we would have nailed the photos.We didn't see many different species throughout our stay, spending nearly all our time with the Sandpipers but all in all a very enjoyable visit............... Photos 1 and 5 are Curlew Sandpiper 2-4 Buff  Breasted Sandpiper.

The Stodmarsh Bitterns

" />

Its been a long long time since a pair of Bitterns have reared a successful brood at Stodmarsh. There has been lots of work behind the scene to encourage a pair to stay for the spring and the last few years a booming male has been heard and so hopes were high . A wonderful achievement  occurred this year when a successful  brood of three albeit at the second attempt   occurred giving hours of pleasure for those who have made a visit to see them. I spend a lot of time watching Bitterns in the winter from the Reedbed hide enduring the cold weather waiting for a fleeting view of a bird on the ice or in the air,  so to be able to watch four birds ( three juveniles and a female ) in a warm climate has been a pleasure. The camera was snapping away with lots of opportunities for all however the wind blowing the reeds about mucked up a lot of  photos. I watched on a few occasions the female arrive with food and the youngsters scrambling to be first to meet her, this was comical  as the birds were not very good at flying. They showed all the normal mannerisms of a fully fledged bird skypointing etc and i could clearly see them moving their loose throat feathers to blend in with the reeds. It was  a change to watch these birds amongst the green foliage with lots still in summer bloom adding welcome colour from the winter setting that i am used to. These birds will probably move on soon and we will have the wintering birds from Holland etc coming in to boost the numbers again. Here is a few photos from todays visit.

Oare marshes

With a few spare hours today i thought i would pay Oare Marshes a visit, the time slot i had did not fare well for the tide nor for photography however i saw a good few birds. Most of the time i was looking towards the East flood. Here Yellow Wagtail showed well along with a pair of linnet, there were single little Egret and Heron with many Black Tailed Godwit, Avocet, Ruff, Golden Plover, Redshank, Lapwing and the odd Greenshank. Moving on to the Raines hide a pair of Green Sandpiper was all that was on offer although along the path there were Reed Warbler, Chiffchaff, Long Tailed Tit and Whitethroat. I did not see any Wheatear. A pair of Common Tern and a single Kestrel completed the list. All in all lots to look at although i do wish we could see the birds closer. On a final note its a shame some

birds have to have so much bling on them, this Ruff being an example, perhaps its time to back off from this dated way of tracking birds

Backsands

I've been trying hard to find time to get out to Backsands scrape at Sandwich for a while. Working in London makes the week days difficult so i was pleased to meet Steve Ashton at the polly tunnels for a morning visit today. Its a fair walk to the scrape and with a mid day high tide we were pleased on arrival to find we were the only two there. We sat in the photographers hide and awaited the birds to come near. First was a Green Sandpiper, followed by one of four Wood Sandpipers and then Greenshank. we took lots of photos as the birds came near, there were Common Sandpiper Ruff and then a party of Redshank. A Perigrine made a few sorties along with a Sparrowhawk, all these with the local residents made for a great morning. With high tide approaching we awaited with great anticipation,  bear in mind we were the only two there we could not believe it when we were greeted by a couple with three dogs. They let the dogs run riot through the amassing birds in front of us and made their way round to where we were sitting. I asked if they would put the dogs on a lead but was greeted with defiance. So there we are  , even when you are on your own in the middle of nowhere there is always some one to piss on your firework!

Rain stops play

I was looking forward to the weekend , with spare time on both days to play with the camera, however the good old english summer put paid to this mornings outing so i thought i would post a picture of the first Cirl Bunting picture i took whilst in Devon earlier this year. Charming birds, very tolerant, allowing me to get close. This one was on a telephone wire, very characteristic although not pleasing for the photo. I was lucky to see them a few times, theres more pictures on my flickr site which you can see via the link.

Restharrow Respite

I spent the weekend and Monday in our caravan at a lovely location near Throwley Forstal Ashford Kent. Away from tv,radio and mobile phones it was a tranquil break. We walked around Kingswood, Wye on Saturday and Sunday morning making a pleasent change from my normal stomping ground. Excellent views of Buzzard,  young Green Woodpeckers,  Blackcap,  Willow warbler and Chiffchaff were to be had, although bird song was conspicuous by its absence we were greeted with Goldcrest and Coal Tits as we turned in to the evergreen section. The walk was a good five miles and very enjoyable. Along the lanes near the site many Linnet, Yellowhammer,  Greenfinch,  Dunnock,  Goldfinch and House Sparrows, a lovely free weekend with no pressure from everyday tasks. I returned home having to do a night shift in London. I work on the telephone system running along the roads and yes you have guessed it, right in the trouble zone. We lasted an hour before making a run for it home, madness or what. I went back on days today and there was a lot of unrest, however a safer option. This evening after work i visited restharrow hoping to see Wood sandpiper, i was pleased to catch up with this lovely wader