November 4th

Matt and I arrived at Reculver Towers at 0630 just as the overnight rain had moved off south and stayed until 1200. There was a very fresh NNW wind blowing and we enjoyed the best seawatch of the year so far with most birds flying west. We counted 151 Gannet, 48W and 103 E, 937 Kittiwakes, 98 Razorbills and 10 Pomarine Skuas, including 2 adults one with spoons (192nd). We also saw 142 Dark-bellied Brent Geese, 9 Red-throated Divers, 12 Teal, 19 Common Scoter, 1 Rock Pipit, 16 Arctic Skuas, 12 Little Gulls, 1 Slavonian Grebe sitting on the sea off the Towers (193rd), 45 Cormorants, 7 Great Crested Grebes, 13 Great Skuas, 10 Mediterranean Gulls, 1 male Black Redstart at the Towers, 7 Sandwich Terns, 1 Red-necked Grebe flying W with a Great Crested Grebe, 14 Dunlin, 1 Grey Plover, 2 Oystercatchers, 1 Sooty Shearwater E (194th) and a flock of 165 Starlings flying in off the sea.