Sandwich Bay, Pegwell Bay and Oare Marshes

I teamed up with Christian C and Magnus A at first light for a day birding in Kent. We started at Sandwich Bay, where highlights included my first Lesser Whitethroat, Cuckoo, Reed Warblers (two) and Yellow Wagtails (five) of the year, as well as three Corn Buntings, a Yellowhammer, two Rose-ringed Parakeets, 11 House Martins, six Wheatears and a Rock Pipit. Lapwings and Greylags had young and offshore were two Fulmars, a Gannet, 12 Great Crested Grebes and 12 Common Scoters. Four Avocets were on the Restharrow Scrape, along with six frisky Shovelers.

After lunch, we visited Pegwell Bay, finding a Spoonbill on the sandspit and seeing two Dark-bellied Brent Geese, four Whimbrel, a Yellow Wagtail and 85 Shelducks of note, as well as hearing a Cuckoo and a handful of Sedge and Reed Warblers.

Spoonbill at Pegwell Bay

We headed home via Oare Marshes, which had disappointingly high water levels. However, we logged a Hobby, a male Ruff, 200 Black-tailed Godwits, two Knots, a Peregrine, a Water Rail, six Whimbrel, five Avocets and a Bearded Reedling.

Recent lifers

The star bird lately was obviously the Pacific Swift at Trimley Marshes. I saw this on Saturday, with the news coming out shortly after 10am. I had just got up and planned a day of revision but there was no way I couldn't go for this. Despite my best efforts and Franko phoning around for me I couldn't team up with anyone but I was fairly confident that being able to drive there at 1.30pm, when my dad was due to finish with the car for the day, would be good enough. I arranged to pick up Dan and Michael Booker and Harry Ramm from Dartford and collected Ian from Wallington, completely filling the car. Once we got to Dartford, the rest of the journey was fairly efficient, but storms and a brief spell of negative news on the bird dampened spirits on the way. The bird reappeared on the pager, though, prompting a cheers and a slightly heavier foot on the gas.

On arrival it was evident that getting to the precise viewing location was going to be a miserable affair and we got soaked immediately. I think the walk was a little under three miles each way and we were treated to a complementary hailstorm for much of the trek. I hadn't eaten in hours, was soaked to the skin and feeling utterly miserable. Knowing such weather can see swifts off, I didn't want to ask returning birders for the latest news as I approached, although I felt so crappy that I didn't think seeing the bird would be the buzz that it should. Eventually we got to the river wall overlooking the marsh and the PACIFIC SWIFT was picked up as the weather began to soften - I was very wrong about the buzz being killed, this was one absolute cracker and I no longer cared how long it would take for my socks to dry, or that I would have to drive home with a wet arse. The bird cruised back and forth across the marsh at its leisure, allowing intimate scrutiny of its features through the scope and opportunities for photographs. Happy happy happy! A summer-plumaged Spotted Redshank and a Yellow Wagtail were good back-up birds alongside the Avocets, Oystercatchers etc. I just about managed to get Dan, Mike and Harry back to Dartford in time for the train and Ian and I got home some time around 10.15pm. Ta for the company!

On Sunday 9th May, I picked Ian up and we headed Kent-bound for the Bee-eater that was present for its second day at Pegwell Bay Country Park. I had only been to the place once before, where I saw the Zitting Cisticola (all of its congeners are called cisticolas, so I don't see why we should call this one 'Fan-tailed Warbler' so that it can fade into the pages with the acros, phylloscs etc ... even though it's a slightly naff name). We joined the end of the crowd when we found the right place, the bird apparently being close and in the open in a small bush, but it turned out that we couldn't see it from where we were standing. By the time we reangled and just about got on it, the Bee-eater took flight, right over our heads. It proved mobile but a couple of hours on site were rewarded with prolonged flight views and some distant looks at it perched prominently atop tall hawthorns and the like. It was nice to catch up with Neil Randon there.

Even though Ian didn't need Black Kite, I did, so on the way back we stopped near Selling and got onto the Black Kite cruising slowly over the valley with surprisingly little trouble. We left it in the same bit of sky that we first saw it in, after the passing of at least half an hour! I'd seen these abroad but not for ages and Britain is what matters for me so this was like a totally new bird and it was great to have a long look at what made it a Black Kite, in a British setting.

My exams are all over now so I can thankfully return to birding without such pains that normal life brings, for a few months at least.

Kent at its best

Today I had a thoroughly enjoyable day out birding with Kevin McManus in Kent.

Our main target was the Zitting Cisticola/Fan-tailed Warbler at Pegwell Bay. After leaving, negative news streamed through on the pager. I had heard the weather would clear up early/mid afternoon so the bird may show then. To kill the time, we made the minor detour of going to see the Shorelark at Swalecliffe.

This bird was a lot easier than I thought. I imagined this being the sort of twitch where you couldn't find the place at all, but driving through a nearby town, along the coastal path, I spotted a small group of birders on a shingle beach. We parked up and got out, soon reaching the other birders and enjoying good views of the Shorelark (year tick 237). It flew. The bird was relocated and we enjoyed even better views for perhaps a half hour or so until a couple of walkers and their dog flushed the bird. It flew up and round and landed pretty close to us, staying still for a few minutes with a great pose, allowing for some good phone-scoped shots. After just less than an hour with the bird, we headed back to the car just after 13:00 and made our way to Pegwell Bay, not expecting much.On the way, some positive news came out, as I was semi expecting considering the slightly improved weather. We arrived at Pegwell Bay Country Park at roughly 13:30 and joined the waiting birders behind the hide. Kevin walked slightly further on to get a better angle. Two minutes later . . . 'It's showing!'; we all raced over there and Kevin directed us to the bird which was surprisingly near. I couldn't really get onto it but did see it drop down. This was at roughly 14:00.

We waited again for a while, watching thousands of Golden Plovers fly over-head until I eventually got onto the bird in flight, and everybody else did too. It landed, showing reasonably well, for ten seconds at the most, some of which I had it in the scope, before it dropped down into the grass. Yes! Zitting Cisticola firmly in the bag now and after all this time of trying to go for it! We walked back to the car, very happy and warmed ourselves up after waiting there for over an hour (though it seemed a lot longer).

Sorry but the Cisticola was too brief for pics. There's plenty others on the web though.

This was a thoroughly enjoyable day with 100% success rate.