Moth Licences for 'Friends'

Friends of Dungeness Moth Licences

With the changes in permission for moth trapping in the area around the Long Pits, Dungeness, we are very pleased to announce that we have 2 moth licences for use by 'Friends' of the Observatory. Please contact the Warden for more information.

20th July

Little to report on the bird front except for nine Mediterranean Gulls and two juvenile Yellow-legged Gulls on the beach and four Common Sandpipers and a Whimbrel passing over after dark.

Three Porpoises were feeding offshore in the evening.

An evening search for orthoptera produced eight nymphal Sickle-bearing Bush-crickets and a Tree Cricket nymph. A Common Toad was also found.

Common Toad Bufo bufo   Dungeness   20th July 2018

19th July

A still start again today, with the wind gradually picking up throughout the day.

A look at the Patch this morning produced five Mediterranean Gulls, nine Gannets and a single Arctic Skua which was busy harassing the terns feeding near the Patch. Two Ringed Plovers were moving along the beach and a single juvenile Yellow-legged Gull was also present near the Sea Watch Hide.

Elsewhere throughout the day a few migrants were starting to appear, a single Common Sandpiper was present at the Long Pits. A Whimbrel flew over the Desert. A single Yellow Wagtail and Sand Martin flew over the trapping area.

A single Porpoise was seen this morning by the Patch.

A torchlight search this evening produced five Sickle-bearing Bush-cricket nymphs, which were all sitting prominently on the tops of the ragwort.

Elsewhere, three Wood Sandpipers, three Little Stints and a Curlew Sandpiper were present on ARC Pit at the RSPB Reserve.

18th July

A cloudy start to the day but warming rapidly by mid-morning becoming another warm, still day.

A single Green Sandpiper flew south over the trapping area this morning. 

The Patch had very few large gulls present. The only notable species were four Mediterranean Gulls, three adults and one juvenile and nine Common Terns.

Three Grey Herons were seen flying north along the coast this evening.

Elsewhere, three Wood Sandpipers were present on the RSPB Reserve, with two present on Burrow's and a single bird on ARC.

17th July

Another warm and clear day, although sunrise brought a gentle westerly breeze which continued throughout the day.

Birds were again few and far between, with an hours afternoon sea watching at the fishing boats only producing a single Gannet, nine Mediterranean Gulls, one Kittiwake and a few Common Terns and Sandwich Terns, which were busy feeding along the colour change.

Two Porpoise were also feeding offshore.

Elsewhere, two Wood Sandpipers were seen on Burrow's Pit at the RSPB Reserve.

16th July

An extremely warm and windless start to the day, although with very few notable birds.

A few small mixed flocks of Swallows and Sand Martins were the only obvious migrants moving south.

On the sea, eight Common Scoter flew west and two Gannets slowly drifted east. The Patch was largely empty of gulls and terns this afternoon while the beach was largely filled with fishermen.

A single Grey Seal was seen up near the Lifeboat Station.

Elsewhere, a Wood Sandpiper was present on ARC pit this evening.

11th July

An overcast but still start this morning, with very few birds in the area. 24 Swifts flew south over the Trapping Area first thing and a Curlew could be heard flying west towards the RSPB Reserve.

Five Mediterranean Gulls were present at the Patch, along with a single juvenile Yellow-legged Gull.

Elsewhere, a Wood Sandpiper was present on Burrow's at the RSPB Reserve.

10th July

A quiet day bird wise, except for gulls at the Patch this morning. A total of 15 adult and two juvenile Mediterranean Gulls were present on the beach. A single juvenile Yellow-legged Gull was also feeding close to the boil with 15 Common Terns and a few Sandwich Terns.

Around the Moat there was lots of butterfly activity. Small Skipper, Essex Skipper, Meadow Brown, Gatekeeper and Marbled White were in plentiful numbers along with a few Brown Argus, Common Blue and Small Copper, including one female individual of the fascination var radiata.

9th July

Another good day for Mediterranean Gulls with 16 present around the recording area. 12 adults and two juveniles were present at the Patch this morning along with a single juvenile Yellow-legged Gull. The numbers of gulls has slowly been building.

A Redshank flew over the Point. Four Swifts flew north and six Sand Martins flew south.

A single Grey Seal was seen by the Patch this morning.

A single Terrapin of unknown species was seen in the top Long Pit this afternoon.

The first Migrant Hawker Aeshna mixta of the year was seen by the Old Lighthouse this morning.

The moth trap has continued to be busy during this extended period of still, warm weather. 44 species of macro moth were trapped including Six Sussex Emerald, one Kent Black Arches and two Plumed Fanfoot. 45 species of micro moth were in the trap including two Anerastia lotella, a Metzneria aestivella, two Ethmia bipunctella, and five Cynaeda dentalis.

8th July

The Patch is steadily getting busier as the month progresses. 16 Mediterranean Gulls including several juveniles were present on the beach this morning. Three Yellow-legged Gulls, one adult and two juveniles were also present.

Five Grey Herons came in off the sea and headed towards the Lydd Ranges. A Grey Wagtail flew west along the beach by the Power Station and a Yellow Wagtail was seen at the Top of the Long Pits.

Four Harbour Porpoise and two Grey Seals were seen at the fishing boats this afternoon.

The moth trap was quieter this morning but held six Sussex Emerald, a particularly high count for the observatory moth trap. Two Small Red-eyed Damselflies were seen at the southern end of the Long Pits.