Bouncing Jack

The last time I looked at the Restharrow Scrape it was totally dry, but when I was in the obs the other day Ian told me it was wetter now.

The rain we have had in the last couple of weeks has raised the water table sufficiently to start the process of refilling the flood.

I had heard that there were a couple of Jack Snipes about, Although they are unobtrusive characters they are also quite charismatic, with their bright braces and perpetual motion bobbing. At first I could see any sign, but then is saw they bouncing motion of one quite close, through the reeds.

Across the little bay a second one appeared in the reeds, but soon decided on an afternoon nap and tucked its head under its wing. Even then it legs gently bobbed up and down.

There were few other birds around but a Carrion Crow dropped in close by for a drink.

The nearest Jack Snipe now started to feed quite actively and slowly worked its way towards me, appearing in the gaps in the reeds for short periods before disappearing.

A few Goldfinches dropped in, and a couple of small parties of about 25 flew over.

There were two Pied Wagtails around and several Meadow Pipits dropped in for a drink.

All the time these transitory visitors provided a distraction I was keeping an eye on the progress of the Jack Snipe.
I had begun to think that they've been trained in two concepts for dealing with photographers, first never stop moving and second make sure there's always a reed obscuring part of you. I was therefore delighted when it came out pretty much in the open.

It even stopped bobbing for a few seconds when something, perhaps a crow passing overhead caught its attention.

Once it got to this gap it carried on working along the edge, but unfortunately the very slight bank meant that only the top half was visible.

Just as I was about to leave a group of three male and two female Pheasants came down to drink. This reminded me I was hungry and needed to go home for some lunch.

Let's be friends

The influx of Stonechats this weekend was noticeable today with several noisily moving along the cliff top and around the scrub behind Hope Point. As I peddled along on my way down to the point (yes peddled, trying to get fitter and bird in a greener way, at least locally) I heard a call I don't normally associate with St Margaret's, Unfortunately I took me a while to pick up the bird as if flew away from me over the Freedown. It was a medium sized wader and the call immediately made me think Spotted Redshank. I listened to tapes when I got in and this re-affirmed my belief that that was what I heard. There were small groups of Goldfinches going over, moving North as well as some Siskins. I also had a group of about five Redpolls.

When I got to the same bushes that held the Dartford Warbler yesterday Steve Ashton was there and said both the Firecrest and the Dartford Warbler were still around, but that the warbler had move up the hill to the nest group of bushes.

Very soon after I located it two of the Stonechats came along and the Dartford Warbler immediately reacted to their presence and then they were off, bush hopping their way down to Hope Point.

It must be something that happens to birds in this area, but like the Wryneck this Dartford Warber had a loose downy feather on its back.

The group moved their way to the scrubby area beyond the point and they continued in the same formation most of the time.

The stonechat sat on top and the Warbler foraged in the bush underneath it. This relationship happens frequently in breeding areas and also with other species pairs such as Desert Warbler and Desert Wheatear and Barred Warbler and Red-backed Shrike. It is often said that the warbler uses the chat or shrike as a lookout while the warbler disturbs prey that its partner utilises. I don't know it this is true but I have seen all three of these associations in their breeding sites.

There seemed have been an influx of thrushes today with a lot more Blackbirds and Song Thrushes in evidence. There was a male Blackcap waiting its turn to drink while I was watching this Song Thrush, but it didn't come down while I was there.

I caught another Chestnut (left) last night, it was certainly paler and brighter than the one I caught the night before (right).

A couple of Autumn gems.

Dartford Warblers aren't conventional migrants, many of the British population remain in their breeding areas during the winter. So though do disperse, this may happen in areas where there are high populations, and when this happens they frequently turn up in other areas, the Kent coast being an area often visited.
There was one in a small group of bushes and trees along the cliff top at Bockhill today. When I first got to area I could hear it calling, it has a distinctive harsh churring call, and almost before I'd got myself organised it popped up on to the top of a bush.

As usual the auto-focus managed to get a twig nice and sharp in front of the bird and almost straight away disappeared down into the thickest part of the undergrowth, stopped calling and disappeared.

A little later I could see it moving about on the middle of the small pine tree and watch it wave its improbably long tail about.

The Dartford Warbler was first described in the UK by John Latham, a physician and eminent ornithologist who lived in Dartford. It wasn't on Dartford Heath that the first specimen was taken, but Bexley Heath, the Bexleyheath Warbler doesn't sound right though. John Latham lived from 1740 to 1837. He was a founder member of the Linnean sociey and was elected to the Royal Society in 1775. As well as being party to the naming of the Sandwich tern and the Kentish Plover, he also examined hundreds of specimens of Australian birds, sent to this country and named many of them.

While I was looking for the Dartford Warbler I was entertained by this hyperactive Firecrest.

And a one point this Peregrine shot straight over my head.

Although the Firecrest often came quite close it seldom came completely out in the open, but the fantastic head pattern lit up the area it was feeding in at any time.

The bright bronze coloured shoulder also stood out. It is the same size as the much commoner Goldcrest, but that is a much plainer bird lacking the head stripes and the bright patch on the shoulder of this little gem.

When it did get out into the open I failed to do it proper justice, but most of the time the light was poor. I believe that further along the path two Wrynecks were seen today, although when I walked along that bit I failed to see either.

The Chestnut (Conistra vaccinii)

A couple of different moths this morning. I thought that the moth above was a Dark Chestnut and when I posted the picture someone on the UKmoths group agreed, but since then I have been persuaded by another that in fact it is a Chestnut, the curve of the front edge of the wing pointing in that direction.

I was only saying to a friend yesterday that I hadn't caught a Merveille du Jour this year and this gem of a moth was in the trap this morning. In fact it is right in the middle of the dates I've caught them before, the earliest being the 8th and the latest the 24th.

If you saw "Inside Out - South-east" on the Beeb last night you will have seen the piece about pollution from ships, that obviously affects ports such as Dover more that other areas. I was surprised to learn just how large a polluter shipping is and in particular it is such a major emitter of Sulphur.

This ferry is smoking, but nothing like the thick smoke that they often throw out as they leave the port. Some new research in Denmark shows that pollution from ships kills a significant number of people each year. I believe they said around 1000 people p.a. in Denmark, which if extrapolated to the UK would be much higher. We worry about car emissions, quite rightly, but one giant container ship can emit almost the same amount of cancer and asthma causing pollutants as 50 million cars.

One of the main problems seems to be that up until recently shipping has be allowed to use low grade, bunker fuel, that is cheaper but contains high levels of sulphur and other carcinogen producing chemicals. Although governments are now pressuring the shipping industry to clean up0 their act, the industry has such a powerful lobby they are slow to act, where it might impinge on their profits. The international rules that will require ships to burn "clean" fuel don't come into force until 2015. Research in the USA says that shipping pollution kills 60,00 world wide, and costs the US economy 500 million dollars a year. Here in Dover we can be reassured because the DDC spokesman on Transport said "we are monitoring the situation". That will do a lot I am sure!

I had to have another look at the Wryneck this afternoon, eager to get some more (better) pictures, with my older camera (20D), as my 40D is once again on its way back to Canon.

There was no one else around and we got quite close to each other. A couple of times it disappeared into the grass and appeared almost on my feet.

It stayed on this post posing for a long time.

The toes are arranged two pointing forward and two backwards.

One more session with the Cuckoo's Mate.

I took the opportunity of a bright morning, and fewer people around to get a bit closer to the Wryneck, if it was still around. In the days when they were a comparatively common bird in Kent they had the local name of Cuckoo's mate as the two arrived in spring at about the same time. Other country names for this strange bird are "Snake-bird", "tongue-bird, "writheneck" and "summer-bird", It is a great shame that the last is no longer true.

Although I walked down the path very slowly, looking for movement in the grass I was surprised, as was the Wryneck, when it flew up from just about two feet away and landed in a small bush not far away.

I wasn't long before it was on the path and feeding. Wrynecks are great ant-eaters, but I couldn't see any ants in the grass, I presume it will eat any small insects that are around.

Each time a jogger or walker came by it took flew to a nearby bush and sometimes used its time preening.

The cryptic pattern is one of the most striking of all our birds. It is only when it hops along the ground that its similarity to the other woodpecker becomes noticeable.

When it flew down again it was sometimes quite hard to follow as it frequently wandered of into the longer grass.

Peering along he path eventually a head would pop out and then it would come completely into view. The next time I pointed my camera at the bird it refused to work. So it's back to Jessops again tomorrow!

A day of scarcities

This rather distant view of the Wryneck at Bockhill today reminds me of my first encounter with a Wryneck in Kent. When Pam and I moved into Crayford in 1971 we lived a couple of hundred yards into Greater London (Bexley) but with Dartford Heath at the top of the road. In those day it was safe to walk across the heath with out being accused of being there for various antisocial activities. I used to walk across it before turning towards Dartford and work in the morning. One morning in the spring of 1971 I suddenly heard what I though was a small bird of prey calling. The noise sounded as if the bird was flying round in a circle. I slowly realised that, it was in fact, above my head and on looking up there was a Wryneck sitting in the tree directly above me. I heard them for the next two years, but by then the new A2 had been cut through the heath and destroyed much of their favoured habitat. Additionally one of the most infamous egg-collectors of the time came from Hawley, so who knows how much damage he caused to a declining population.

The most pleasing thing about today's bird was that although it was on show all the time it did come out into the open enabling lot of people to get really excellent views. On chap I was talking to told me it was a first, causing my reminiscence above. I suppose that my days of teaching an evening class still mean that I get a buzz when someone gets to see something for the first time. There were other scarce birds reported in the area including a Barred Warbler and a Dartford Warbler. Two or three Ring Ouzels put in brief appearances loudly announcing their presence with their rattling calls.

Scarce Bordered Straw (Helicoverpa armigera)

Mothing last night was a bit more interesting than of late. I was pleased to find this Scarce Bordered Straw in my MV trap. It is the first for two years and apart from the phenomenal year of 2006 when I caught 163 it is a rather scarce migrant.

Large Wainscot ( Rhizedra lutosa)

Large Wainscots are typical autumn moths, they seem somewhat slow and furry, as if prepared for the cold nights. Despite this passive appearance this one was quite awkward once I move it and kept wandering away from the position I wanted to photograph it in. As the light was poor I had the camera on time release, to try to avoid the shake that pressing the shutter creates. This is OK if the subject sits still, but twice I was left with a blank piece of log when it walked away as the seconds ticked down.

Green-brindled Crescent (Allophyes oxyacanthae)

Another of the moths that only appears late in the year, the Green-brindled Crescent is a common moth of woodlands, hedgerows and suburban gardens. The caterpillars hatch in the spring and feed on Hawthorn and Blackthorn.