A cold and strong NE restricted any migration on the land but there was a steady movement of birds offshore. Twelve hours of seawatching produced ten Shelducks, 26 Oystercatchers, three Grey Plovers, 69 Whimbrel, 390 Bar-tailed Godwits, two Sanderlings, 1064 Sandwich Terns and two Arctic Skuas. A Swift, 44 Swallows, four Yellow Wagtails and a Rock Pipit also arrived.
Six Porpoises and two Grey Seals were seen offshore.
Seawatching produced five Shelduck, 29 Common Scoter, ten Red-breasted Mergansers, 51 Oystercatchers, 19 Grey Plovers, 83 Whimbrel, 199 Bar-tailed Godwits, a Knot, a Mediterranean Gull, 883 Sandwich Terns and seven Arctic Terns. Very quiet on the land with just four Willow Warblers, eight Blackcaps, 13 Lesser Whitethroats and seven Wheatears of note.
A pod of three Bottle-nose Dolphins were seen.
A Grizzled Skipper was seen.
It was a bit of a return to normality on the land with very few migrants to be seen other than 22 Willow Warblers, eight Blackcaps and 17 Lesser Whitethroats. Seven Yellow Wagtails flew over and a flock of 15 Corn Bunting were feeding at the Point again. The sea was very quiet in the morning but improved as the wind veered into the north-east and induced an afternoon movement of 70 Whimbrel, 745 Bar-tailed Godwits, four Little Gulls and an Arctic Skua.
Five Porpoises and a Grey Seal were feeding offshore.
Light showers and a light NW wind resulted in an excellent fall of migrants with quality in the form of a singing Wood Warbler at the Long Pits, a female Pied Flycatcher in a private garden, two Garden Warblers, two Redstarts, a Ring Ouzel, a Tree Pipit and a Green Sandpiper while numbers were provided by 110 Willow Warblers, 21 Chiffchaffs, eight Sedge Warblers, 23 Blackcaps, 17 Lesser Whitethroats, 100 Whitethroats and 26 Wheatears. A flock of 40 Corn Buntings were feeding in the railway circle area. An Egyptian Goose, a Greenshank, a Red Kite and 24 Swallows also flew over. The sea was very quiet.
A Streamer and a Waved Umber were of interest from a small catch in the moth trap.
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| Streamer Anticlea derivata Dungeness 18th April 2026 |
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| Waved Umber Menophra abruptaria Dungeness 18th April 2026 |
Two Grizzled Skippers in the Desert were the first of the year.
A trickle of birds moving offshore included three Teal, 496 Common Scoters, eight Bar-tailed Godwits, 23 Mediterranean Gulls, the first Little Tern of the spring and a Great White Egret. Very quiet on the land with just four House Martins, six Willow Warblers, 12 Chiffchaffs, six Blackcaps, 25 Wheatears, a Yellow Wagtail, a Grey Wagtail, a Redpoll and two Siskins of interest.
Two Porpoises and a Grey Seal were feeding offshore.
Seawatching was very slow today but over ten hours of watching eventually produced two Velvet Scoters, 385 Common Scoters, 45 Kittiwakes, 37 Mediterranean Gulls, six Arctic Skuas, a Pomarine and a Great Skua, 1177 Gannets and a Little Egret. Very quiet on the land except for a Little Ringed Plover in the station carpark in the morning.
Six Porpoises, a Common Seal and a Grey Seal were seen offshore and a Brown Seal was also seen.
Coverage of the sea throughout the day eventually produced 240 Brent Geese, two Shoveler, two Gadwall, 377 Common Scoters, four Red-breasted Merganser, 16 Whimbrel, 41 Curlew, two Little Gulls, 197 Kittiwakes, 24 Mediterranean Gulls, 23 Arctic Skuas, two Great Skuas, 496 Sandwich Terns, 81 Arctic Terns, 91 Common Terns, 229 "commic" Terns, three Black-throated Divers, a Manx Shearwater and 470 Gannets. Very quiet on the land with 17 Swallows and three Yellow Wagtails passing overhead and five Willow Warblers, five Blackcaps and a Firecrest in the bushes.
Four Porpoise and two Grey Seals were feeding offshore.
Very quiet on the land with just three Willow Warblers, 22 Chiffchaffs, six Sedge Warblers, seven Blackcaps, six Lesser Whitethroats, a Brambling, a Redpoll and three Corn Buntings. Seawatching produced a bit of movement offshore including two Shovelers, 475 Common Scoters, eight Whimbrels, three Bar-tailed Godwits, five Little Gulls, 15 Mediterranean Gulls, a Great Skua, ten Arctic Skuas and two each of Black-throated Diver and Great Northern Diver.
A pod of six Bottle-nose Dolphins along with eight Porpoises were seen offshore and two Brown Hares were seen on the land.
The Large Tortoiseshell was still showing at the north end of the Long Pits.
Just under eight hours of seawatching produced a Velvet Scoter, 127 Common Scoters, four Red-breasted Mergansers, two Avocets, a Common Sandpiper, 13 Mediterranean Gulls, a Great Skua and five Arctic Skuas. A Jack Snipe and three Common Snipe, nine Willow Warblers, 23 Chiffchaffs, six Sedge Warblers, nine Blackcaps, eight Lesser Whitethroats, 36 Common Whitethroats, a Firecrest, four Song Thrushes, a Yellow Wagtail, a Rock Pipit, 13 Siskins and 16 Reed Buntings were seen on the land.
Twenty-two Porpoises were feeding offshore and two Brown Hares were seen in the Desert.
The Large Tortoiseshell was seen again at the Long Pits.
Seawatching was the order of the day with 52 Brent Geese, two Velvet Scoters, 195 Common Scoters, 27 Mediterranean Gulls, six Arctic Skuas, a Great Skua, 245 Sandwich Tern, five Common Tern and 17 Manx Shearwaters in six hours of coverage. Thirty-three Swallows and a Grey Wagtail arrived and 14 Willow Warblers, 13 Chiffchaffs, eight Blackcaps, seven Lesser Whitethroat and two Firecrests were seen in the bushes.
The Large Tortoiseshell was seen again at the Long Pits.