May 8th
On a wet and windy morning we walked from Chamber's Wall to Coldharbour and along the seawall and were rewarded when a very smart Roseate Tern (154) flew W close inshore with a Common Tern giving an excellent chance for us to study the difference in structure and details of its bill and plumage.
Other birds we saw included 7 Mute Swans, 2 Shelduck, 6 Mallard, 1 Grey Heron, 2 Peregrines, 1 Hobby out at sea probably hunting migrating hirundines, 4 Oystercatchers, 4 Ringed Plovers, 3 Turnstone, 1 Common Sandpiper, 4 Common Terns, 2 Sandwich Terns, 1 Cuckoo, 128 Swifts W in an hour, 23 Swallows W, 24 House Martins W, 1 Sand Martin, 8 Yellow Wagtails, 1 Greenland Wheatear, 6 Reed Warblers, 10 Sedge Warblers, 1 Lesser Whitethroat, 9 Whitethroats, 1 Blackcap, 1 Chiffchaff and 4 Linnets.

Sandwich Terns

After leaving us Matt spent half an hour at the Towers and saw 1 Common Scoter flying E, 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull, 2 Common Terns, 14 Sandwich Terns, 81 Swifts W, 21 Swallows W, 47 House Martins W and 1 Yellow Wagtail.
This afternoon a walk at Shuart produced 1 Marsh Harrier, 1 ring-tail Hen Harrier, 1 Cuckoo, 1 Great Spotted Woodpecker, 78 Swifts W, 4 Long-tailed Tits, 1 Nightingale, 1 Cetti's Warbler, 6 Whitethroats and 1 Chiffchaff.