May 31st
With the sun continuing to shine brightly we walked from Chamber's Wall to Coldharbour and back this morning. We recorded 1 Common Buzzard, 17 Reed Warbler, 12 Skylarks, 13 Sedge Warblers, 2 Cuckoos, 6 Reed Buntings, 3 Linnets, 8 Whitethroats, 4 Chaffinches, 8 Goldfinches, 3 Mallard, 1 Grey Partridge, 3 Coot, 1 Yellow Wagtail, 2 Tufted Duck, 4 Meadow Pipits, 4 Oystercatchers, 2 Turnstone, 2 Ringed Plovers, 1 Lapwing, 1 Cetti's Warbler, 1 Swallow and 1 Lesser Whitethroat.
Matt was also out this morning and in addition saw 2 Whimbrel, 1 Fulmar, 1 Gannet and 1male and 3 juvenile Stonechats.
He also found 1 Ruderal Bumblebee, 1 Variable Damselfly and 1 Emperor Dragonfly.

First summer Black-headed Gull with particularly developed brown hood

Goldfinch

On his walk this morning Derek Smith found a new colony of Pyramidal Orchids together with 28 Bee Orchid near Shuart.

Bee Orchids - Derek Smith

Pyramidal Orchid - Derek Smith

May 30th
We spent the morning ringing at Reculver where we saw 1 Cuckoo, 6 Blackcaps, 1 Green Woodpecker, 1 Cetti's Warbler, 1 Garden Warbler, 2 Sparrowhawks, 6 Chiffchaffs, 1 Mallard, 4 Whitethroats, 2 Skylarks, 2 Jays, 1 Sparrowhawk, 14 Sand Martins, 1 Peregrine, 2 Swallows, 2 Kestrels, 1 Common Buzzard and 5 Reed Warblers.
On the insect front we found a colony of Tree Bumblebees, 8 Banded Demoiselle, 200+ Blue-tailed Damselflies, 1 Norfolk Hawker, 2 Small Heaths and 2 Speckled Woods.

Birds ringed 13: Wren 1, Chiffchaff 4, Blackcap 4, Robin 1, Dunnock 2, Song Thrush 1.

Common Buzzard over the railway at Reculver - David Elliott

May 29th
With the sun shining brightly we walked inland at Reculver and recorded 1 Cuckoo, 9 Blackcaps, 8 Chiffchaffs, 3 Great Spotted Woodpeckers, 2 Jays, 2 Goldfinches, 9 Reed Warblers, 11 Whitethroats, 11 Moorhens, made up of two family groups, 5 Cetti's Warblers, 6 Chaffinches, 1 Linnets, 6 Skylarks, 1 Bullfinch, 5 Mute Swans, 2 Mallard, 2 Reed Buntings and 6 Sand Martins.

Dog Rose flower

This morning Terry Wilson found a singing Nightingale on the railway emabankment near Plumpudding.
I managed to obtain some better shots of a male Long-horned Bee in my garden this afternoon feeding on Purple Toadflax.

Male Long-horned Bee

May 28th
It was another sunny morning but there was a chilly NE wind blowing in off the sea as we walked from Chamber's Wall to Coldharbour and back. It was relatively quiet but we did manage to record 4 Goldfinches, 15 Skylarks, 13 Whitethroats, 2 Blackcaps, 3 Reed Buntings, 8 Mute Swans, 5 Reed Warblers, 9 Linnets, 5 Sedge Warblers, 1 Chaffinch, 6 Mallard, 2 Cetti's Warblers, 2 Little Egrets, 3 Lapwings, 1 Yellow Wagtail, 2 Tufted Duck, 1 Coot, 4 Meadow Pipits, 1 Sand Martin, 2 Oystercatchers, 6 Swallows and 1 Cuckoo.

Meadow Pipit

This afternoon I have been struggling to take decent photos of a variety of bees we get in our garden at Bishopstone. The results have not been spectatcular but below are two of my efforts.

Male Long-horned Bee

Early Bumblebee

May 27th

On another beautiful early summer morning we walked from Chamber's Wall to Coldharbour and counted 9 Linnets, 19 Skylarks, 1 Blackcap, 8 Sedge Warblers, 12 Reed Warblers, 14 Whitethroats, 7 Mute Swans, including 5 flying E out at sea, 6 Mallard, 1 Chiffchaff, 7 Reed Buntings, 1 Cetti's Warbler, 6 Swallows, 2 Shoveler and 2 Coot with a young chick. We also saw 6 Ringed Plovers, 14 Turnstone, 6 Oystercatchers, 1 Little Egret, 6 Meadow Pipits, 12 Sand Martins, 3 Yellow Wagtails, 1 Cuckoo, 1 Common Buzzard, 1 Kestrel, 2 Chaffinches, 6 Goldfinches, 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull, 1 Green Woodpecker and 1 Red Kite drifting W.

Male Shoveler

May 26th
It was very warm again this morning as we walked from Chamber's Wall to Coldharbour. There wasn't a great deal different to be seen but we did manage to count 17 Skylarks, 18 Whitethroats, 9 Linnets, 16 Reed Warblers, 5 Reed Buntings, 12 Sedge Warblers, 7 Goldfinches, 1 Kestrel, 3 Swallows, 1 Grey Heron, 3 Yellow Wagtails, 1 Blackcap, 1 Shoveler, 2 Coot, 1 Redshank, 4 Mallard, 6 Meadow Pipits, 2 Ringed Plovers, 2 Oystercatchers, 1 Common Sandpiper, 2 Cuckoos, 1 Corn Bunting, 1 Lesser Whitethroat, 1 Grey Partridge, 2 Hobbies and 1 Sparrowhawk.

Coot

At about 1120 whilst sitting in our garden at Bishopstone a Serin (164th) sang for about a minute before flying away. This is a new species for our garden and is the 143rd species to be recorded since we moved here in 1972.

May 25th
We spent a sunny and warm morning ringing out on the Marsh south of the railway. During the time we were there we saw 1 Cuckoo, 2 Blackcaps, 4 Goldfinches, 5 Skylarks, 2 Chaffinches, 6 Whitethroats, 3 Yellow Wagtails, 6 Reed Warblers, 4 Sedge Warblers, 3 Mallard, 1 Green Woodpecker, 1 Sparrowhawk, 1 Kestrel, 1 Cetti's Warbler, 1 Red Kite W, 1 Marsh Harrier, 4 Common Buzzards and 6 Swifts.

Birds ringed 14: Wren 1, Reed Warbler 2, Linnet 1, Whitethroat 5, Sedge Warbler 2, Blue Tit 1, Cetti's Warbler 1, Blackbird 1

Reed Warbler

May 24th
We had a ringing session at Reculver this morning where we counted 4 Blackcaps, 4 Chiffchaffs, 1 Cuckoo, 7 Reed Warblers, 3 Skylarks, 5 Whitethroats, 2 Garden Warblers, 4 Swifts W, 1 Common Buzzard, 30 Sand Martins, 1 Moorhen, 2 House Martins W, 4 Goldfinches, 2 Cetti's Warblers, 1 Great Spotted Woodpecker, 1 Kestrel and 1 Swallow.

Birds ringed 9: Chiffchaff 2, Blue Tit 4, Reed Warbler 1, Chaffinch 1, Blackbird 1

May 23rd
On a sunny but blustery morning we walked inland at Reculver and recorded 8 Chaffinches, 7 Blackcaps, 2 Goldfinches, 2 Kestrels, 2 Greenfinches, 8 Whitethroats, 2 Moorhens with 4 small young, 5 Cetti's Warblers, 3 Chiffchaffs, 1 singing Nightingale, 2 Cuckoos, 4 Red Kites, 3 Pied Wagtails. 1 Great Spotted Woodpecker, 5 Reed Warblers and 10 Sand Martins.

This afternoon a number of thundery showers passed by south of us along the Channel coast

May 22nd
There was a completely different feel to the weather this morning with cloud and a moderate SW wind blowing as we walked from Chamber's Wall to Coldharbour and back via the Green Wall. We recorded 16 Linnets, 10 Skylarks, 19 Whitethroats, 20 Reed Warblers, 14 Sedge Warblers, 2 Swallows, 2 Chaffinches, 7 Mallard, 4 Reed Buntings, 4 Corn Buntings, 22 Stock Doves, 6 House Martins W, 7 Swifts W, 3 Little Egrets, 3 Cuckoos, 4 Oystercatchers, 2 Shelduck, 4 Ringed Plovers, 1 Sanderling 3 Mediterranean Gulls W, 4 Meadow Pipits, 2 Coot, 1 Cetti's Warbler, 2 Shoveler, 1 Chiffchaff, 8 Red Kites W over the Thanet Way and Wagtail Farm at 0900 and 2 Yellow Wagtails.

2 adult Little Egrets feeding at low tide

Matt was also out this morning and walked from Shuart to Plumpudding and back via Brooksend. His highlights included 2 Lesser Whitethroats, 1 Kestrel, 2 Grey Partridges, 15 Swifts W, 2 Turtle Doves,  12 Tufted Ducks, 1 Common Sandpiper and 23 Ring-necked Parakeets.
This afternoon we had a very warm, bright and breezy walk inland from Reculver. We saw 1 Jay, 2 Chiffchaffs, 4 Whitethroats, 1 Blackcap, 1 Cuckoo, 10 Swifts flying W, 4 Reed Warblers, 1 Cetti's Warbler, 1 Great Spotted Woodpecker and 1 Garden Warbler.
We also found 100+ Blue-tailed Damselflies, 5 Banded Demoiselles, 3 Small Heath butterflies and out first Small Tortoiseshell and Painted Lady butterflies of the year.

Painted Lady

May 21st
On an increasingly muggy morning we walked from Chamber's Wall to Coldharbour. Birds we saw included 22 Reed Warblers, 5 Goldfinches, 18 Sedge Warblers, 15 Skylarks, 5 Yellow Wagtails, 10 Whitethroats, 3 Blackcaps, 7 Linnets, 4 Swallows, 1 Cetti's Warbler, 1 Grey Partridge, 9 Shoveler, 1 Lesser Whitethroat, 2 Mallard, 6 Oystercatchers, 1 Cuckoo, 8 Meadow Pipits, 13 Ringed Plovers, 1 Common Sandpiper, 5 Shelduck, 11 Turnstone, 1 Grey Heron, 1 Pied Wagtail, 3 Reed Buntings, 2 Coot, 1 Kestrel, 1 Chiffchaff and 1 Hobby.

Female Yellow Wagtail

This afternoon 2 Red Kites flew W together over our garden at Bishopstone.

Red Kite

May 20th
It was very warm this morning as we walked inland at Reculver and recorded 6 Blackcaps, 3 Cuckoos, 11 Whitethroats, 18 Reed Warblers, 4 Cetti's Warblers, 2 Chiffchaffs, 5 Mute Swans, 1 Great Spotted Woodpecker, 15 Sand Martins, 3 Reed Buntings, 9 Skylarks, 1 Meadow Pipit, 1 Shelduck, 8 Linnets, 5 Goldfinches, 2 Kestrels, 1 Lesser Whitethroat, 1 Jay, 2 Common Buzzards and 1 Pied Wagtail.
We also found 10 Banded Demoiselles and 2 Hairy Dragonflies.

Banded Demoiselle

Marsh Frog

May 19th
On another warm and sunny morning we walked out to Coldharbour and saw 2 Blackcaps, 6 Swallows, 17 Sedge Warblers, 15 Skylarks, 9 Linnets, 14 Reed Warblers, 18 Whitethroats, 2 Chiffchaffs, 1 Cetti's Warbler, 6 Yellow Wagtails, 9 Shoveler, including a female with 6 ducklings, 6 Mallard, 2 Corn Buntings, 10 Meadow Pipits, 7 Reed Buntings, 2 Common Buzzards, 1 Shelduck, 6 Ringed Plovers, 8 Oystercatchers, 8 Turnstone, 1 Stonechat, 4 Goldfinches, 1 Cuckoo, 3 Chaffinches, 1 Moorhen and 1 male Marsh Harrier.

Oystercatcher stretching

May 18th
It was great to be out on such a warm and sunny morning as we walked out to Coldharbour. Birds we saw included 15 Skylarks, 4 Goldfinches, 14 Whitethroats, 12 Mallard, 6 Sedge Warblers, 14 Reed Warblers, 1 House Martin W, 5 Cuckoos, 1 Kestrel, 8 Linnets, 8 Swallows and 1 Spotted Flycatcher flying W along the railway embankment. Other birds we recorded were 3 Shoveler, 2 Lapwings W, 2 male Yellow Wagtails, 2 Coot, 16 Meadow Pipits, 1 Pied Wagtails, 2 Little Egrets, 8 Ringed Plovers, 3 Shelduck, 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull, 5 Oystercatchers, 5 Turnstone, 1 singing Corn Bunting, 10 Mute Swans, 3 Reed Buntings, 1 Cetti's Warbler, 1 Blackcap, 1 Chiffchaff, 1 Lesser Whitethroat and 1 Common Buzzard. We also saw our first 2 Small Heath butterflies of the year.
As we drove home a Red Kite flew W over the Thanet Way near the Roman Galley.

Male Shoveler

Female Shoveler

One of five Cuckoos on the Marsh this morning

May 17th
This morning began sunny but clouded over a bit later as we walked inland at Reculver. We recorded 8 Whitethroats, 1 Great Spotted Woodpecker, 15 Reed Warblers, 6 Blackcaps, 3 Chiffchaffs, 1 Sparrowhawk, 3 Cetti's Warblers, 1 Common Buzzard, 2 Coot, 1 Chaffinch, 3 Cuckoos, 1 Mute Swan, 11 Sand Martins, 1 Reed Bunting, 6 Skylarks, 2 Shelduck, 6 Linnets, 3 Swallows, 1 Green Woodpecker, 1 Kestrel, 1 Mallard, 1 male Marsh Harrier, 1 Grey Heron and 1 singing Garden Warbler.
We also saw 2 Brown Argus, 2 Banded Demoiselles and 1 Hairy Dragonfly.

Male Banded Demoiselle

Brown Argus

Matt's highlights at Coldharbour this morning were 2 Little Terns flying W and 1 late Dark-bellied Brent Goose flying W.

Skylark - Matt Hindle