January 21st
The day or should I say night started with a big surprise!  I awoke at 0300 and heard a male Long-eared Owl (113th) calling 15 or 20 times somewhere behind our back garden at Bishopstone. We have lived here since 1972 and this is the first record and takes our garden total to 141 species.
At a more reasonable hour we met Matt at Reculver and walked to Coldharbour in frosty and calm conditions. We saw 8 Great Crested Grebes, 4 Red-throated Divers, 588 Dark-bellied Brent Geese, 17 Mute Swans, 5 Sanderling, 1 Little Owl, 1 Grey Wagtail, 45 Golden Plovers, 4 Grey Herons, 8 Shelduck, 1 Snipe, 5 Redshank, 2 Grey Plovers, 7 Chaffinches, 54 Mallard, 1 Wigeon, 4 Gadwall, 13 Oystercatchers, 3 Ringed Plovers, 6 Tufted Ducks, 1 Pochard, 1 Great Spotted Woodpecker and 1 Siskin.

Grey Plover