Saturday 4th March 2023

59 Cormorant went out (but might have missed some) plus 2,888 onto the fishing grounds from the north. On site a drake Pheasant is the first since last April although this is the time of the year that males go wandering. Also offshore southbound 32 Red-throated Diver, 2 Oyk & Brent with northbound 46 Red-throats & Shelduck with 3 Gannets noted in the distance where the Cormorants were congregating. 3 Curlew went out of the estuary then north-eastwards calling evocatively heading on their way back to their breeding grounds. Difficult to know whether a new Dunnock is a migrant or a wandering male in search of a vacant patch. Finally a Stock Dove may well be the same as one noted occasionally over recent weeks & 3 Peregrine put in a similar appearance to yesterday.

The moth traps have been out the last four nights producing nothing so it is notable that the first moth of the year is also an addition to the site list. Spring Usher lives in oak woodland flying from January to early March but has not bothered wandering down here in the past (although we don't tend to trap much in the depths of winter).

Ringing: 1 Dunnock, 1 Linnet.

Friday 3rd March 2023

Migrants non-existent. Offshore southbound 4 Common Scoter with northbound Gannet & Red-throated Diver. Only had a couple of Peregrine sightings so far this year with a couple of odd calls drawing our attention to the local pair seeing off an interloper high above the observatory proving that they are still about in the docks complex somewhere. Finally worth a mention is a dead Fulmar on the tideline as we haven't actually seen one flying past so far this year.

Thursday 2nd March 2023

High pressure with cold north-easterlies at this time of the year don't do us any favours at all. A couple of wandering Canada & Greylag Geese paid a visit & a handful of Red-throated Divers went back and forth in a limited amount of  time spent looking out to sea. On site the first wandering/migrant Great Tit of the spring on a fairly typical date for them to start turning up. It is mostly young females, with good fat loads, that go walkabout in search of new sites at this time of the year with this one fitting the predicted pattern of occurrence.

Ringing: 1 Great Tit.

Wednesday 1st March 2023

The first day of meteorological spring - although it doesn't feel like it ! Cormorant confusion this morning as despite birds going out & in from the north a couple of thousand came in from the south which is not a normal arrival direction. Offshore northbound 46 Red-throated Diver, 4 Gannet & a Shelduck with southbound a drake Eider. A Reed Bunting first thing was today's migrant.

LANDGUARD CONSERVATION TRUST AGM

This years bird observatory AGM will be on Saturday 1st April 2023. Members should have received an agenda plus the minutes of last AGM. If this is not the case it could be that we do not have your up to date email address so please email landguardbomembership@gmail.com for details. 

Tuesday 28th February 2023

We have only six previous records of Black Redstart for the month of February & they were mostly birds known to be overwintering in the area so the first one of the year this morning, by the cottage, was a tad early. Spring usually gets going for this species from the second week of March onwards so more evidence of phenological change if it was still needed. 122 Cormorants went out fishing early and with viewing conditions out to sea ok a wait until gone 9am failed to pick up any flocks coming in from the north to feed. Whilst watching 5 Common Scoter & 5 Red-throated Diver went north plus 11 Barnacle Geese south with presumably the same flock of 11 heading back north a couple of hours later. A couple of Greylags flying around honking away waking the dead as it was barely getting light was their first excursion down here this spring (although temperature wise it feels more like late winter today).

Monday 27th February 2023

 

Couple of Mipits on site for the first time this spring. 165 Cormorants headed out fishing early on but counts offshore deterred by bright sunshine. A visiting Buzzard being harassed by crows late morning only other thing worth a mention.

Sunday 26th February 2023

 Nothing of note to report despite being here on site undertaking management chores for the bulk of the day.