August 15th
We arrived at Reculver just as the heavy, early morning rain was dying out and managed a reasonably dry walk along the seawall. The tide was half way out and there were good numbers of gulls and terns sitting on the beach or feeding just offshore. We counted 1,000 Black-headed Gulls, 800 Herring Gulls, 4 Common Gulls, 3 juvenile Mediterranean Gulls, 51 Common Terns and 24 Sandwich Terns. Other birds we saw included 3 Little Egrets, 8 Pied Wagtails, 13 Cormorants, 4 Oystercatchers, 2 Greenshank in off the sea, 5 Linnets, 10 Ringed Plovers, 14 Redshank, 2 Grey Herons, 4 Common Sandpipers, 1 Wheatear, 13 Turnstone, 29 Swallows and 28 House Martins around the Towers, 1 Kingfisher and 1 Willow Warbler on the rocks.

Juvenile Mediterranean Gull

August 14th
Most of the warblers appear to have continued their journey south over night as it was relatively quiet at Reculver this morning. On our walk from Chamber's Wall to Coldharbour we counted 84 Linnets, 1 Green Woodpecker, 15 Goldfinches, 7 Whitethroats, 1 Green Sandpiper, 7 Dunlin, 12 Sandwich Terns, 5 Ringed Plovers, 5 Redshank, 1 Willow Warbler, 2 Little Egrets, 5 Oystercatchers, 3 Common Terns, 1 immature male Eider, 13 Mallard, 8 Cormorants, 8 Swallows W, 4 Turnstone, 1 Common Sandpiper, 1 Yellow Wagtail and 12 Lapwings.

August 13th
It was quieter this morning as we ringed on the Marsh south of the railway. We saw 5 Willow Warblers, 16 Whitethroats, 7 Greenfinches, 8 Goldfinches, 11 Green Sandpipers, 1 Great Spotted Woodpecker, 15 Sedge Warblers, 8 Reed Warblers, 1 Marsh Harrier, 2 Kestrels, 1 Grey Heron, 3 Common Buzzards, 1 Turtle Dove and 1 Yellow Wagtail.

Birds ringed 40: Willow Warbler 2, Linnet 1, Sedge Warbler 11, Whitethroat 15, Great Tit 1, Reed Bunting 3, Reed Warbler 4, Greenfinch 2, Dunnock 1.

August 12th
Another morning another ringing session this time at Reculver where we saw 3 Green Woodpeckers, 5 Mallard, 1 Grey Heron, 45 Willow Warblers, 2 Cetti's Warblers, 2 Chiffchaffs, 2 Common Buzzards, 1 Treecreeper (181st), 4 Blackcaps, 3 Whitethroats, 2 Great Spotted Woodpeckers, 1 Green Sandpiper, 2 Sparrowhawks, 5 Sedge Warblers, 10 Reed Warblers and 1 Kestrel.

Birds ringed 53: Willow Warbler 32, Chiffchaff 1, Treecreeper 1, Reed Warbler 6, Sedge Warbler 3, Great Tit 1, Blackcap 4, Whitethroat 1, Blue Tit 2, Robin 1, Dunnock 1.

Treecreeper

First winter Willow Warbler

Derek Smith was also out this morning and walked from Shuart along the railway embankment and back via Plumpudding. He counted 8 Common Buzzards, 2 Marsh Harriers, 2 Sparrowhawks, 4 Kestrels, 18 Redshank, 1 summer plumaged Knot, 2 Sanderling, 42 Ringed Plovers, 1 Green Sandpiper, 2 Spotted Flycatchers, 6 Yellow Wagtails, 28 Whitethroats, 5 Lesser Whitethroats, 8 Sedge Warblers, 23 Reed Warblers, 16 Willow Warblers and 3 Chiffchaffs.

Spotted Flycatcher - Derek Smith

Willow Warbler - Derek Smith

August 11th
We spent a beautiful sunny morning ringing on the Marsh south of the railway. Birds seen included 2 Green Woodpeckers, 1 Spotted Flycatcher (180th), 20 Willow Warblers, 1 Kestrel, 1 Green Sandpiper, 2 Ringed Plovers, 6 Golden Plovers, 1 Curlew, 2 Grey Herons, 6 Yellow Wagtails, and overnight arrival of at least 70 Sedge Warblers, 25 Reed Warblers, 20 Whitethroats and 1 Common Buzzard. There was also a Wood Sandpiper in Coldharbour.

Birds ringed 80: Willow Warbler 12, Wren 1, Sedge Warbler 40, Reed Warbler 11, Reed Bunting 1, Whitethroat 13, Blackbird 1, Green Woodpecker 1.

Juvenile Green Woodpecker

August 10th
Matt and I arrived at Reculver at 0600 this morning and spent three hours completing an excellent seawatch. With a fresh to strong northerly wind blowing in frequent squalls most birds were flying E and we counted 103 Gannets, 104 Common Scoters, 198 Common Terns, 101 Sandwich Terns, 1 Balearic Shearwater (175th), 8 Great Skuas W, 7 Oystercatchers, 2 Arctic Skuas (176th), 2 Teal, 1 Whimbrel, 1 adult dark phase Pomarine Skua with spoons flying W close inshore (177th), 4 Kittiwakes, 2 Black Terns, 1 adult Sabine's Gull (178th) flying W then back E, 1 juvenile Yellow-legged Gull, 1 Sooty Shearwater (179th), 1 Grey Plover, 1 Peregrine and 4 Fulmars.
After we left Richard Collins spent from 1010 to 1230 at the Towers and recorded 42 Gannets, 1 Arctic Skua, 10 Common Scoter, 9 Common Terns, 56 Sandwich Terns, 1 Black Tern, 1 Kittiwake and 1 Fulmar.
We returned for another session after lunch but things had quietened down considerably as we only counted 4 Black Terns, 58 Common Terns, 32 Sandwich Terns, 11 Gannets, 29 Common Scoter, 1 Great Skua, 2 Arctic Skuas and 1 Curlew.

Today I also received information about two birds we caught on the Marsh. Firstly a Chiffchaff we ringed at Shuart on 30th September 2010 was controlled by a ringer at Hayseley Manor, Arreton, Isle of Wight 192 km WSW an impressive 2,396 days later.

The second bird was a Sedge Warbler we caught four days ago on 6th August on Reculver Marshes that had been ringed on 25th July 2017 at Leighton Moss, near Silverdale, Lancashire. This bird had travelled 412 km SE.

August 9th

On a sunny morning we walked from Chamber's Wall to Coldharbour and down the seawall. We saw 3 Marsh Harriers, 5 Willow Warblers, 2 Green Woodpeckers, 1 Chiffchaff, 12 Whitethroats, 103 Linnets, 9 Goldfinches, 1 Turtle Dove, 11 Dunlin, 15 Common Terns, 9 Black-tailed Godwits flying past Coldharbour, 11 Swallows W, 2 Greenshank, 3 Yellow Wagtails, 6 Oystercatchers, 1 Mallard, 1 Pied Wagtail, 18 Ringed Plovers, 1 Common Sandpiper, 1 Whimbrel, 3 Little Egrets, 3 Redshank, 2 Turnstone, 8 Cormorants and 1 Kestrel.

Dunlin

Derek Smith was out in the Shuart area between 1130 and 1400 and recorded 6 Gannets E, 3 Marsh Harriers, 4 Kestrels, 1 Hobby E, 12 Sandwich Terns E, 9 Yellow Wagtails, 2 Lesser Whitethroats and 5 Willow Warblers.

August 8th
Both the weather and the birds felt more autumnal this morning as we walked from Reculver to Coldharbour and back. We counted 6 Goldfinches, 19 Pied Wagtails, 32 Yellow Wagtails, 13 Cormorants, 1 Kingfisher, 18 Linnets, 11 Sand Martins W, 2 Green Woodpeckers, 1 Grey Heron, 1 Common Sandpiper, 12 Redshank, 48 Ringed Plovers, 6 Oystercatchers, 24 Turnstone, 3 Little Egrets, 1 Curlew, 9 Whitethroats, 5 Wheatears, 27 Mallard, 1 immature male Eider, 4 Teal, 12 Dunlin, 18 Willow Warblers, 14 Sedge Warblers, 3 adult Mediterranean Gulls E, 14 Meadow Pipits, 8 Common Terns E, 14 Swallows W and 250 Starlings.

Juvenile Skylark

August 7th
We spent another sunny morning ringing, this time at Shuart, where we saw 4 Green Woodpeckers, 1 Red-legged Partridge, 2 Marsh Harriers, 2 Willow Warblers, 18 Whitethroats, 3 Ring-necked Parakeets, 33 Swallows, 3 Kestrels, 26 Linnets, 14 Goldfinches, 2 Turtle Doves, 1 Golden Plover, 1 Great Spotted Woodpecker, 15 Sedge Warblers, 10 Reed Warblers and 1 Lesser Whitethroat. We also saw and heard an escaped Cockatiel.

Birds ringed 33: Willow Warbler 6, Wren 1, Reed Warbler 6, Whitethroat 6, Sedge Warbler 8, Goldfinch 2, Great Tit 1, Blue Tit 1, Lesser Whitethroat 1, Robin 1.

Lesser Whitethroat



This afternoon we walked from Chamber's Wall to Coldharbour where there was a "plague" of flying ants. Birds we saw included 1 Grey Heron, 4 Marsh Harriers, 200 Linnets, 40 Goldfinches, 12 Sandwich Terns, 8 Redshank, 26 Common Terns, 4 Turnstone, 3 Ringed Plovers, 10 Oystercatchers, 1 immature male Eider, 2 Yellow Wagtails and 6 Willow Warblers.

August 6th
We spent the morning ringing on the Marsh south of the railway where there had been a significant arrival of birds overnight comprising mainly of Whitethroats, Sedge Warblers and Willow Warblers. During our time there we saw 1 Blackcap, 1 Chiffchaff, 75 Whitethroats, 38 Willow Warblers, 60 Sedge Warblers, 1 Grey Heron, 2 Green Woodpeckers, 15 Reed Warblers, 2 Whimbrels W, 8 Goldfinches, 1 Mediterranean Gull W, 6 Swallows W, 1 Great Spotted Woodpecker, 1 Kestrel, 1 Garden Warbler and 2 Sparrowhawks.

Birds ringed 114: Willow Warbler 23, Sedge Warbler 37, Whitethroat 40, Reed Warbler 8, Reed Bunting 3, Garden Warbler 1, Linnet 1, Dunnock 1.

Juvenile Sedge Warbler

August 5th
We spent the morning ringing at Reculver where we saw 2 Sparrowhawks, 30 Willow Warblers, 4 Green Woodpeckers, 1 Grey Heron, 1 Curlew, 3 Little Egrets, 6 Chiffchaffs, 2 Garden Warblers, 4 Blackcaps, 4 Lesser Black-backed Gulls W, 1 Hobby, 2 Jays, 1 Marsh Harrier, 4 Whitethroats, 2 Sedge Warblers, 5 Reed Warblers, 1 Dunlin and 6 Goldfinches.

Birds ringed 48: Willow Warbler 18, Chiffchaff 3, Wren 5, Great Tit 5, Garden Warbler 2, Blackcap 4, Whitethroat 1, Blue Tit 3, Sedge Warbler 1, Robin 1, Reed Warbler 2, Dunnock 1, Goldfinch 2.

Garden Warbler

August 4th
It was blustery and sunny this morning as we walked from Chamber's Wall to Plumpudding lagoon and on to Shuart. We saw 4 Marsh Harriers, 46 Linnets, 7 Redshank, 2 Willow Warblers, 45 Turnstone, 2 Pied Wagtails, 58 Ringed Plovers, 4 Yellow Wagtails, 1 Common Sandpiper, 53 Common Terns, 55 Oystercatchers, 1 immature male Eider, 60 Sanderling, 57 Whimbrel, 3 Sandwich Terns, 2 Little Egrets, 1 Curlew, 5 Whitethroats, 11 Cormorants, 12 Goldfinches, 12 Long-tailed Tits and 1 Kestrel.

Whimbrel

August 3rd
It was very windy this morning as we walked along the seawall from Reculver to Coldharbour. We managed to see 5 Pied Wagtails, 1 Grey Heron, 8 Cormorants, 12 Sandwich Terns, 10 Little Egrets, 25 Sand Martins, 5 Swifts W, 9 Yellow Wagtails, 1 Whitethroat, 73 Common Terns, 6 Redshank, 9 Turnstone, 8 Linnets, 1 Curlew, 1 Whimbrel, 2 Sanderling, 12 Ringed Plovers, 3 Dunlin, including a juvenile, 2 Oystercatchers, 2 Marsh Harriers, 1 immature male Eider, 1 Black Tern, 2 Kestrels, 2 Wheatears and 1 Green Woodpecker.

August 2nd
We managed a morning's ringing at Shuart before the threatened wind and rain arrived. Birds we saw included 3 Green Woodpeckers, 5 Mallard, 2 Red-legged Partridges, 17 Linnets, 8 Willow Warblers, 1 Garden Warbler, 28 Lapwings, 30 Whitethroats, 35 Reed Warblers, 10 Sedge Warblers, 1 Sparrowhawk, 2 Marsh Harriers, 2 Ring-necked Parakeets, 1 Golden Plover, 1 Dunlin, 22 Goldfinches, 1 Blackcap, 2 Kestrels, 1 Green Sandpiper, 3 Yellow Wagtails and 1 Whinchat.

Birds ringed 63: Wren 5, Willow Warbler 6, Reed Warbler 24, Whitethroat 20, Sedge Warbler 4, Garden Warbler 1, Blackcap 1, Goldfinch 1, Dunnock 1.

Willow Warbler

On a wet and windy afternoon we walked from Chamber's Wall to Coldharbour and managed to see 1 Turtle Dove, 12 Swallows, 4 Swifts W, 5 Yellow Wagtails, 14 Common Terns, 3 Little Egrets, 2 Redshank, 1 Curlew, 1 Common Sandpiper, 1 immature male Eider, 4 Turnstone, 1 Dunlin and 1 Green Woodpecker.

August 1st
On a sunny and mild morning we walked from Chamber's Wall to Coldharbour and along to the Oyster Farm. Birds we saw included 12 Goldfinches, 24 Whitethroats, 1 Green Woodpecker, 1 Turtle Dove, 29 Linnets, 17 Little Egrets, 7 Common Terns, 1 Grey Heron, 4 Redshank, 21 Ringed Plovers, 4 Yellow Wagtails, 14 Cormorants, 14 Turnstone, 2 Oystercatchers, 1 immature male Eider, 4 Pied Wagtails, 1 Common Sandpiper, 1 Kestrel, 12 Sanderling, 2 Whimbrel and 14 Meadow Pipits.

The immature male Eider is still at Coldharbour