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Local weather

Update

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6th Apr

There was a nice arrival of migrants on the land with 75 Chiffchaffs, 50 Willow Warblers, 14 Blackcaps, two Goldcrests, a Firecrest, a Ring Ouzel, two Redstarts, 33 Wheatears and a Corn Bunting. Eight Buzzards, four Swallows and a Siskin flew over.

The sea continued to disappoint despite ESE winds with 202 Common Scoters, four Mediterranean Gulls and 227 Sandwich Terns in four hours of watching.

Redstart Phoenicurus phoenicurus   Dungeness   6th April 2026 (Jonathan Singlewood-Dodds.)

Four Porpoises and two Grey Seals were feeding offshore and a Brown Hare was seen on the land.

The warm weather brought out a range of insects with a Large Tortoiseshell in the Moat, an Ornate Shieldbug and the rare beetle Hister quadrimaculata of great note.

Large Tortoiseshell Aglais polychloros   Dungeness   6th April 2026


Ornate Shieldbug Eurydema ornata   Dungeness   6th April 2026


Hister quadrimaculata   Dungeness   6th April 2026


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7th Apr

There were a handful of migrants on the land with a Ring Ouzel caught in the moat being the highlight along with ten Sand Martins, a House Martin, 25 Chiffchaffs, two Willow Warblers, two Blackcaps and a White Wagtail.

Nearly 12 hours of seawatching eventually produced 36 Shelducks, 74 Shovelers, seven Gadwall, three Pintail, nine Teal, five Velvet Scoters, 424 Common Scoters, eight Red-breasted Mergansers, 35 Whimbrel, 11 Common Terns, 643 Sandwich Terns, 18 Little Gulls, four Mediterranean Gulls, four Arctic Skuas and a Great Skua.

Ring Ouzel Turdus torquatus   Dungeness   7th April 2026 (Jonathan Singlewood-Dodds)

A pod of seven White-beaked Dolphins moved east this morning and four Porpoises and two Grey Seals were feeding offshore.

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Tony Greenland, RIP

It was very sad to hear of the death of Tony Greenland. Tony was a long time supporter of the Observatory, being on the committee in the 1970s, and returning to become a regular contributor and keen sea-watcher. His many stories and anecdotes kept everyone amused. He had been unwell for quite a well and is much missed. Our thoughts are with Christine and his family.


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5th Apr

Very quiet on the land with just a Great Spotted Woodpecker, three Swallows, four Willow Warblers, 15 Chiffchaffs of interest. Seawatching was also slow going with 4.5hrs of coverage producing just five Eider, 110 Sandwich Terns, six Mediterranean Gulls, three Arctic Skuas and a Great Skua of note. 

Two Porpoises and two Grey Seals were feeding offshore.

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4th Apr

The early morning seawatch was very quiet but things picked up a bit in the afternoon as the wind increased from the SW. Notable counts included 469 Brent Geese, two Gadwall, a Velvet Scoter, 707 Common Scoters, 19 Curlew, 99 Kittiwakes, five Little Gulls, 11 Mediterranean Gulls, 347 Sandwich Terns,  a Great Skua, seven Arctic Skuas and a Black-throated Diver. On the land, two Swallows, eight Willow Warblers, 25 Chiffchaffs, three Blackcaps and three Wheatears were of note. 

Five Porpoises and two Grey Seals were feeding offshore.

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3rd Apr

With strong SW winds blowing most of the interest was offshore. Over eight hours of watching produced 181 Brent Geese, two Garganey, four Shoveler, three Teal, 641 Common Scoters, 30 Mediterranean Gulls, 404 Sandwich Terns, the first two Common Terns of the spring, three Arctic Skuas and a Little Egret. Four Willow Warblers, 18 Chiffchaffs and 310 Meadow Pipits were of note on the land.

Three Porpoises and a Grey Seal were feeding offshore and Weasel was seen at the Long Pits.

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2nd Apr

Nine Willow Warblers, 15 Chiffchaffs, a Firecrest, 57 Redwings, two Fieldfares and a Brambling were seen around the recording area and two Short-eared Owls came in from the south. Two Mediterranean Gulls flew east.

Four Porpoises were feeding offshore.

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1st Apr

Small numbers of migrants arrived again this morning including eight Willow Warblers, 24 Chiffchaffs, five Song Thrushes, three Redwings, a Redpoll and seven Siskins. A flock of 16 Shovelers, a Mediterranean Gull and 25 Sandwich Terns were the best of a very quiet sea.

Seven Porpoises were feeding offshore.

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31st Mar

A murky morning produced a small arrival of migrants with a Ring Ouzel of particular note along with four Sand Martins, five Willow Warblers, 25 Chiffchaffs, three Blackcaps, four Song Thrushes, three Wheatears, a Grey Wagtail and 25 Chaffinches. The sea remains quiet although six Shovelers, a Red-breasted Merganser, a Mediterranean Gull and a Little Egret were of interest.

Two Porpoises were feeding offshore.

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30th Mar

Fairly quiet on the land with just six Chiffchaffs, a Firecrest, three Wheatears, seven Siskins and a Corn Bunting of note. Seawatching was also very slow with just 16 Pintail and a Manx Shearwater of interest.

Two Porpoises were feeding offshore.

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