30th April Following a couple of things to do after work I dashed to Kent with Paul Baker, where the roads were unusually kind, for a Crested Lark. We arrived to find the bird had gone missing and it took about an hour and a half for it to be refound. If gave several good flight views and then a more prolonged scope view on a shingle bank which allowed better appreciation of the plumage details. My first UK lifer since January 2008.
29th April A call from Jeff Delve allowed me to have a second bite at the cherry as five Dotterel were in the same pea fields as the trip of eight birds last Saturday. These birds were scoped well and included a really bright female and what appeared to be a couple of first-year birds.
25th April A day out to Minsmere today with Sheryl which provided a nice day out but birding was tougher than usual here. The weather was fine but there was an increase in wind strength from the south west which really added a chill. From the car park we could hear a couple of Nightingales. We headed along North Wall and up onto Dunwich Heath where the Dartford Warblers as usual proved to be very difficult to photograph though probably eight were seen along with a few Stonechats, some Red Deer, a couple of Willow Warblers and a fly over Med. Gull.
Back at Minsmere, after a cup of tea and some cake at the coastguard cafe, it was already getting breezy and get colder. East hide provided some waders, mostly Black-tailed Godwits and Avocets, but there were a few Ruff, a Spotted Redshank, some very smart summer plumaged Bar-tailed Godwits and a bunch of Knot. Both Common and Sandwich Terns were present and at at least 3 pairs of Med. Gulls.
Cetti's Warblers were commonly heard all around the reserve though only a few Sedge and Reed Warblers were noted, though one of the former showed well by West Hide. At the visitor centre feeders both Coal and Marsh Tits paid a visit whilst a smart male Orange-tip finally made its long awaited addition to my list of photographed British Butterfly collection.
It was now late afternoon so we set off around the second loop trail via the road where a Nightingale sung from by the road but showed only briefly. The years first Small Coppers were seen whilst from the Island Mere hide there were at least 5+ Marsh Harriers, a couple of Bearded Tits, 4+ Swifts and 25+ mixed Sand and House Martins. Little was seen from the Bittern Hide. More Roe Deer were seen along the walk back to the visitor centre as was a single Treecreeper which Sheryl proudly found. A final addition on the drive out of the reserve was a Muntjac which showed well in a nearby field. It was a fair day though not worth missing the trip of eight Dotterels on Wallasea Island for, hopefully they will be there tomorrow.
22nd April My first visit to Doggetts Pits, Rochford this year revealed a few migrants, most notably a singing Reed Warbler. However I came in search of butterflies and I added a few to the year list, these being a male Orange-tip, a Holly Blue, Green-veined Whites and Small Tortoiseshells. Also here were Peacocks, five Speckled Woods and Small whites.
19th April A south coast trip out today in search of butterflies. I visited Mill Hill near Shoreham West Sussex this morning with the wife where it started of windy and cold. Butterflies were hard to find though on the lower slopes of the west facing hill from the main car park some small moths were located but were very mobile. In the longer grass and the very bottom I found my target, Grizzled Skipper. One sat up and performed very well for the camera for about half an hour. Searching the immediate area resulted in more being found, especially once the sun came out and got warmer. We ended up with nine Grizzleds as well as at least four Dingy Skippers with several again showing well. A few other butterflies were seen, Peacock and Small Whites and a few birds of noted were Lesser Whitethroat, Cetti's Warbler, Yellowhmmer, a hybrid CarrionxHooded Crow and a female Blackcap seen by Sheryl. Excellent start to the years butterfly targets.
18th April A hard won day today with a fair scattering of local migrants. I started off in Gunners Park at 7am and almost immediately noted that there was actually little about before I had even gone a few yards from the car. There was very little song. It was chilly and more than a little breezy but at least it was from the east. There was a male Wheatear in the reserve that disappeared soon after I saw it and a few pairs of Shelducks but that was it for the reserve. The bushes yielded very little and I didn't stray much from the coastal strip with only single Blackcap, Chiffchaff and Lesser Whitethroats and a couple of Whitethroats noted. More promising were the 19 Swallows that moved through during the morning but alas no Red-rumped amongst them. I walked along the coastal path and in doing so had the best birds with five Sandwich Terns, a Common Tern, a Common Sandpiper which was possibly the same that was later seen on the lake and seven Common Scoters whilst two Fulmars flew west close inshore at about 8am. It was just after I finished trying to get half decent photos of singing Whitethroat that I returned to the seawall and at that very moment one of the Fulmars came back past again close in. I managed some record shots of the bird, nothing to write home about but it is the first SOG photographed Fulmar. After this and little else moving I drove to Star Lane Pits at Wakering.
A Cettis Warbler was singing on arrival as were a single Reed Warbler and Blackcap but the main target was easily seen with three drake and one female Mandarin on the southern side of the large 'public' fishing lake. From here I visited Wakering Stairs where the wind was rather stronger now. I heard a Grasshopper Warbler about 100yards west of the end of the road from the seawall but did not see it and the far west end bird was not in voice at all, or was this the same bird just moved. Both the whitethroat species were noted along with a Blackcap and a Whimbrel whilst two Siskins flew east and there were a few Swallows and one Sand Martin.
Following a short drive along Potton Road where two Sedge Warblers were heard I called it a day for the morning and returned home.
In the evening I decided to go to Paglesham Lagoon which was again windy. There were many Black-headed Gulls but no Little Gulls but there were 40+ Yellow Wagtails at the southern end as well as 12+ Swallows and 1+ House Martin. Two Whimbrel and 40+ Black-tailed Godwits were pushed off the nearby river by the rising tide. Whitethroats and Sedge Warblers were heard but not seen in the breezy conditions.
On the way home I had a Cuckoo at Churchend and a Little Owl along Scotts Hall Road later on. So rounded off a long day.
11th April Final dedicated gull day of the season and it produced another new Caspian Gull, a tatty but still good looking 1st-summer bird. Gull numbers were well down with only a couple of Common Gulls amongst the several hundred birds present. There were at least three pairs of adult Med. Gulls as well as a couple of first-winters, a first-winter Yellow-legged Gull and a Herring Gull with very pale primaries which looked more like fading than of hybrid origin.
Apart from some very smart looking Lesser Black-backed Gulls it was harder work today so it seems as good a time as any to call it a day for the season.
10th April Spring, finally. Arrived at Gunners Parks at 8.30am and little was happening apart from the resident Greenfinches. A male Whitethroat was singing by the southern most bridge whilst almost immediately four Sand Martins flew over. That was it for an hour until I logged three Swallows, a singing Chiffchaff by the old batteries and a singing Blackcap near the pond. No Wheatears in the reserve despite the grand weather.
From here I made a short stop in Shoebury whee I had singing Chiffchaff and Blackcap but little else. Fleet Head however was more productive late morning to mid afternoon. A Cettis Warbler was singing by the car park on arrival but I had to wait until I reach the Avocet Pool before I got anything else of real note. Here there were three Wheatears including a very confiding bird, at least eight Yellow Wagtails, ten Brown Hares, a Swallow, two Avocets and a fly over adult pair of calling Mediterranean Gulls. On the main fleet at the nearth end were two Greenshanks.
Numerous butterflies were out today with Peacocks and Small Whites the most numerous seen.
A good day, weather wise, and time well spent photographing Wheatear.
4th April Another gull day today. Weather started off grim with a little light rain but ended up being glorious. Highlights from the day were three different Caspian Gulls, two first-years and a fourth-year. I initially thought there were three first-years however examination of the images proved that there were only two birds. There were also 6 adult pairs of Mediterranean Gulls, including a white rung bird, and two separate second-summers. A first-year GlaucousxHerring Gull hybrid was only seen briefly and eluded further detection.
A very brief visit to Wat Tyler produced singing Cetti's Warbler and Blackcap whilst a Brimstone was seen.
Finally a second-summer Med.Gull flew over the road along Canvey Seafront mid afternoon.