A trip down the river allowed me to see at least 15 different Beavers on the Stour between Grove Ferry bridge and the Hersden lakes. Difficult to photograph in the fading evening light but a few usable images were gained. Thanks to my mate Glen for the ride and also for spotting many of them, which in the undergrowth along the river banks, remained oblivious to my ageing eyes. Plenty of Common Terns fishing the lakes and a Cuckoo kept us company for a while.
After a report on social media that two Common Cranes were seen landing in the vicinity of the Marsh hide at Stodmarsh late afternoon, (07/04/26) I ventured down in the dark early the following morning, guessing that they would have probably roosted over night in the Marsh hide area. The two Cranes were still there, always distant and trying to get any worthwhile images proved to be very difficult given a thick blanket of mist was hanging over the marsh and the birds being out on the edge of the back pool, which is at least 100 metres away from our vantage point in the hide.
Very early morning through the thick mist
Nice when scanning Conifers and coming across a Firecrest chasing insects. It had the courtesy to come out onto the outer branches and posed for a few quick photos.
Scanning the ducks on the water in front of the Reed bed hide on the morning of the 29th (March 2026), I came across a female Red-crested Pochard keeping company with 5 Common Pochards. This is a new Stour Valley bird for me so well worth the visit. It swam around the pool before all of the Pochards took flight and headed west towards Collards.
Several pairs of Peregrines have been seen along the East Kent coastal line with one particular pair seemingly very obliging, seen perched along the cliff face on a few favoured perches and out over the sea showing off their aerial agility. All good fun with the camera trying to catch them in close and free of the seaward facing sun which given the location, is always a problem with this species.
It's been a while, what with the weather and other events taking up my time but the sun now seems to want to shine, albeit still not regularly, so a few trips out have occurred. I came across an obliging Black Redstart, a male, that was seen catching flies on the rocks just below the towers at Reculver on the 5th of March 2026.
Taken (without the snow) from the viewing ramp at Grove Ferry on December 30th 2008.
Merry Christmas.
For a notoriously skulking little visitor from Siberia, the Dusky Warbler found at Westbrook near to Margate on the 8th of November, staying until the 12th, proved to be the most confiding Dusky Warbler I have seen. It had taken a liking to the scrub found below the cliff under the Sunken Gardens at Westbrook and could often be seen foraging for insects on the floor and in and around the coastal vegetation. As is usually the norm with these visiting Warbler types from the far east, they normally only offer fleeting glimpses as they work through bushes and vegetation in search of food but this one afforded superb views on several occasions and was often out in the open allowing the visiting paps to get some reasonable images. Indeed, it made a welcome change to actually get the head and tail of of a Dusky Warbler together in the same frame.
Being so close to home I visited on a few occasions.
A couple of Pallid Swifts had been reported on Thanet, favouring the area between the Captain Digby at Joss Bay and the pumping station at Foreness (07/11/25). Although conditions were not favourable for photographing Swifts, i.e overcast grey skies with a small amount of drizzle throughout my stay, the one bird I saw, spent most of the day along the cliff top and was very close at times, allowing for a few reasonable record shots to mark the occasion.
