Racquet tails that is. Pom Sunday (30th) saw me at Birling for a sea-watch stint in the company of Al Redman, Lawrence Pitcher, John and Doreen Cooper, Roger Haggar, Roger Charlwood, Richard Butler et al for a quality 5 hours. I managed 41 Poms, as well as 7 Bonxies, 10 Arctics, 10 Velvet Scoter, and a miscellany of waders, Common Scoter, Gannets etc. There really is nothing better than watching Poms chugging up channel or loafing around on the sea like a flock of avian hyenas. A mid afternoon walk at Normans' Bay turfed up a Little Tern, along with a handful of Arctics.
The previous day (29th) I did my early season BBS visit to the patch. Survey work is always interesting as it involves a different mindset, and with the BBS you note absolutely everything on the transects of "your" square. The most noteworthy birds during my transects were a singing Grasshopper Warbler (second year running), and my first Hobby and Cuckoo of the year on the patch.
Elsewhere on the patch were another Hobby today (1st), and a singing Lesser Whitethroat on White Dyke. There were also 5 Barwit and 3 Whimbrel down Sluice lane and a Northern Wheatear showing Greenland characteristics near Lookers cottage. The Whimbrel pictured above was on the dam at Arlington reservoir on Thursday (28th) when, after a protracted wait, the rumper was seen. Also at Arlington a Little Owl near Chilverbridge house.
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