It was good to be able to have my first bird watching trip for November and I decided to head to Reculver and see what I could see. There was a light north westerly wind when I arrived with lots of sunshine and some cloud and the tide was in. Shortly after I arrived 3 Guillemot (155) flew east which made a good start. Sadly they were probably close enough to have tried for a photo but I had forgotten to turn the camera on and by the time it was ready to go they were out of sight. Still, I was well chuffed to see them. A few Gannet were on the move, most were a long way out but I did have a group of 4 come through closer.
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| Gannets |
As I came down onto the sea wall a Grey Wagtail flew past and landed at the foot of the towers briefly. I had 4 Brent Geese east and moments later 4 west which presumably were the same birds. A Herring Gull's eye shone in the light as it hung above me in the wind and eyed me warily. Out to sea I saw a total of 3 Red-throated Divers heading east. Small groups of Chaffinch were moving west.
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| Brent Geese |
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| Herring Gull |
At my next stop of sitting on the sea wall and looking out to sea, a flock of 30 Common Scoter flew east with a single bird east closer in. The small movement of Gannets appeared to have mostly come to an end. 7 Redshank flew up from the oyster farm before settling back down again and a Grey Heron flew over and landed on the rocks much to the disgust of the Black-headed Gulls.
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| Common Scoter |
The Stonechats appeared to be enjoying the sunshine and the increase of insects on the wing that it brought with it. I still find that every time I see a Stonechat it lifts the spirits. They are beautiful little birds just bursting with character and attitude.
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| Stonechat |
I hadn't gone much further when I had a Snow Bunting fly past along the shore heading west. It appeared to come down behind some rocks so I walked back to see if it had or whether it had carried on west out of sight. I really didn't expect it to actually be there but it was definitely my lucky day as once I could see the other side of the rocks there it was sat resting on one. What a little beauty and a sight that definitely made my day.
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| Snow Bunting |
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| Snow Bunting |
Well chuffed I headed back towards Coldharbour. A group of Carrion crows were busy feeding along the shore and one of them flew past with a large beakful of vegetation while another showed off white patches on its primary feathers as it came past.
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| Carrion Crow |
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| Carrion Crow |
Coldharbour had 2 Little Grebe on it and a Stonechat was on the shingle bank with a small flock of 7 Linnet. As I headed for a seat on the sea wall just past Coldharbour a Cetti's Warbler was its usual vocal self. I was very pleased to also then hear the welcome sound of a Bearded Tit calling and a short while later I saw it fly above the reeds briefly. It was great to catch up with one and I have always loved the sound of their calls. The sea remained quiet while I took a break apart from a flock of Brent Geese flying east in a 'snaking' formation and a single Gannet west.
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| Brent Geese |
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| Brent Geese |
I headed back towards Reculver and hadn't gone very far when I heard the distinctive call of Raven (156) and had one bird fly to the side of me while another flew the other side behind me. Both then headed in the direction of Shuart. I only managed to get useable photos of one of them and the photos are fairly heavily cropped and not very good but they make good memory shots of amazing sounding birds.
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| Raven |
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| Raven |
The tide was rapidly going out and the wind had dropped right down as I walked back resulting in a selection of waders and gulls on the newly exposed shore and mussel beds. 8 Mallard flew in for a wash and brush up while Ringed Plover, Oystercatcher, Redshank and Turnstone were busy feeding away. A single Curlew completed the selection of waders. On the other side of the sea wall the sheep fields were proving attractive to a 400 strong flock of Starling. As I reached the junction of the green bank a Snipe flew up from the oyster farm and 25 Corn Bunting were on some of the bushes. I kept my eyes open for a Short-eared Owl, while I headed for Reculver, but did not have any luck. I finished an enjoyable visit with a view of the underside of a Mushroom that was growing at the base of the Roman Wall. I am not sure what type it is at the moment.
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Birds seen this visit include: Black-headed Gulls, Herring Gulls, 2 Common Gull, 34 Brent Geese (28 east, 36 west), 15 Sanderling, 4 Wren, 9 Great Black-backed Gull, 3 Guillemot east, 17 Gannet (17 east, 12 West), 3 Red-throated Diver east, 31 Common Scoter east, 2 Kestrel, 32 Chaffinch west, House Sparrows, Starlings, 1 Grey Wagtail, 7 Robin, 5 Pied Wagtail, 12 Meadow Pipit, Carrion Crow, 27 Redshank, 11 Stonechat, 6 Mute Swan, 4 Goldfinch, 2 Blue Tit, 2 Great Tit, 8 Skylark, 6 Reed Bunting, 3 Pied Wagtail, 6 Blackbird, 1 Grey Heron, 15 Turnstone, 1 Sparrowhawk, 2 Little Egret, 1 Cetti's Warbler, 2 Little Grebe, 32 Linnet, 8 Oystercatcher, 4 Magpie, 31 Corn Bunting, 2 Raven, 3 Coot, 21 Ringed Plover, 8 Mallard, 1 Dunnock, 4 Pheasant, 1 Snipe, 1 Curlew, 1 Rock Pipit
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