A cold, breezy day with rain from early morning saw very little in the way of migrants other than a late Ring Ouzel along with a Woodcock, 11 Chiffchaffs, 35 Goldcrests and six Firecrests. The Eurasian Treecreeper was seen at the Long Pits again and a Snow Bunting flew over the Observatory in the late afternoon. Two Little Egrets were feeding at the Long Pits.
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| Ring Ouzel Turdus torquatus Dungeness 11th November 2026 |
Two Porpoises and two Grey Seals were feeding offshore.
A cold easterly wind all day saw a few grounded migrants and a trickle of birds overhead. The highlights of the day were a Eurasian Treecreeper at the Long Pits and a Snow Bunting flying over the trapping area. Other migrants of note included 79 Stock Doves, a Woodcock, 15 Chiffchaffs, a Siberian Chiffchaff, 25 Goldcrests, eight Firecrests and a Brambling.
A Grey Seal was seen offshore.
Elsewhere, the Isabelline Wheatear was still showing well at the southern end of Dengemarsh Gully.
A calm and cold morning saw a few birds passing overhead and a reasonable small arrival of migrants in the bushes. Two Woodlarks, a Rock Pipit, five Bramblings, 17 Redpolls and one Mealy Redpoll, eight Siskins and a Snow Bunting were of note overhead. Grounded migrants included 18 Chiffchaffs, a Blackcap, 42 Goldcrests, ten Firecrests, 55 Redwings and 51 Fieldfares. Six Dartford Warblers were scattered across the Point and a Great White Egret was feeding at the Long Pits. The sea was very quiet.
Three Grey Seals were feeding offshore.
Elsewhere, the Isabelline Wheatear was showing really well at Dengemarsh Gully, the drake Ring-necked Duck was still on the Scotney Caravan Park Pit and the Cattle Egret flock feeding at Cockles increased to 32.
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| Isabelline Wheatear Oenanthe isabellinus Dengemarsh Gully 9th November 2026 |
A cold, foggy morning. The highlight of the day was a superb Rough-legged Buzzard photographed as flew over the Desert and out over the Point. Other birds passing overhead included 1846 Stock Doves, a Redshank, eight Skylarks, a Fieldfare, a Brambling, 70 Goldfinches and eight Siskins. It was very quiet in the bushes with just six Chiffchaffs, ten Goldcrests and a Firecrest. Two Dartford Warblers were also seen.
Elsewhere, the Isabelline Wheatear was showing again at Dengemarsh Gully.
Cold and foggy/misty for most of the day. There was just a trickle of birds overhead and a few grounded migrants. Birds passing overhead included 1260 Stock Doves, a Grey Plover, a Redshank, a Woodlark, 11 Skylarks, six Fieldfares, a Grey Wagtail, a Rock Pipit, a Brambling and 33 Siskins. Grounded migrants included a Lapwing, two Woodcocks, a Snipe, nine Chiffchaffs, a Blackcap, 17 Goldcrests, two Firecrests and 45 Blackbirds. Two Dartford Warblers and nine Black Redstarts were also seen.
A Brown Hare was seen.
Elsewhere, the Isabelline Wheatear first seen at Dengemarsh Gully on November 3rd was seen again. The drake Ring-necked Duck was still on the Scotney Caravan Park Pit.
A calm, overcast morning saw a small arrival of migrants in the bushes and passing overhead. A party of nine Pink-footed Geese headed east over the area while other notable bits and pieces included a Barn Owl and a Short-eared Owl at dusk and a Long-eared Owl trapped, four Mealy Redpolls and a Yellowhammer. Eight Chiffchaffs, three Dartford Warblers, 50 Goldcrests, six Firecrests, 25 Redwings, 56 Blackbirds, three Fieldfares, two Bramblings, 50 Siskins and four Lesser Redpolls were also seen.
Seawatching was very quiet but did produce a flock of 14 White-fronted Geese passing east, five Eiders west, two Mediterranean Gulls, two Sandwich Terns and 150 Razorbills.
Three Grey Seals were feeding offshore.
The Ring-necked Duck remains on the Scotney Caravan Park Pit, six Bewick's Swans were on ARC again, 25 Cattle Egrets were feeding at Cockles Bridge and came in to roost with 27 Great White Egrets at ARC.
The wind started to drop overnight but it was still quite windy for the morning and very quiet for migrants. Grounded migrants and birds passing overhead included just two Woodcock, seven Chiffchaffs, four Goldcrests, a Firecrest, 25 Blackbird, a Brambling, a Redpoll, 150 Goldfinches and five Siskins.
Seawatching was also slow-going with only 12 Wigeon, an Eider, two Red-breasted Mergansers, a Mediterranean Gull, five Sandwich Terns and a Sooty Shearwater of interest.
A Grey Squirrel was in the trapping area and two Grey Seals were feeding offshore.
The drake Ring-necked Duck was still on the Scotney Caravan Park Pit and a party of six Bewick's Swans arrived on the ARC pit with one of the adults bearing a neck collar/radio transmitter called Michaela by the German ringing project.
Another miserable day of gale force easterly winds and lots of work around the Observatory meant limited coverage today. Seawatching produced just a Knot, 58 Dunlin, four Sandwich Terns, a Little Gull and three Mediterranean Gulls of any note. Four Chiffchaffs, a Firecrest and 19 Blackbirds were seen in the bushes.
Singles of Porpoise, Common Seal and Grey Seal were seen offshore.
A gale force and cold easterly wind with occasional rain made for difficult birding. Of note offshore were a Scaup, four Velvet Scoters, a Little Gull, five Mediterranean Gulls, three Sandwich Terns and a Little Egret. Virtually birdless on the land with just two Firecrests, a Fieldfare, four Redpolls and 70 Goldfinches of any note.
Two Grey Seals and a Common Seal were seen offshore.
The clear highlight of the day though was at Dengemarsh where an Isabelline Wheatear was found - a new species for Dungeness.
Overhead passage included 1520 Stock Doves, ten Lapwings, two Snipe, four Great White Egrets, a Short-eared Owl, a Woodlark, two Swallows, a Mistle Thrush, 38 Fieldfares, a Grey Wagtail, three Rock Pipits, 80 Chaffinch, six Bramblings, 300 Goldfinches and 25 Siskins.
There was a decent spread of migrants on the ground with a Woodcock, ten Chiffchaffs, a Siberian Chiffchaff, 30 Goldcrests, nine Firecrests, 15 Redwings, 25 Blackbirds, and a Common Redpoll. Two Dartford Warblers and eight Black Redstarts were also seen.
Wildfowl were a feature offshore with 53 Wigeon, four Teal and 237 Common Scoter west and singles of Goldeneye and Goosander east. Four Bar-tailed Godwits, two Little Gulls, 28 Mediterranean Gulls, 11 Sandwich Terns and an Arctic Skua were also of interest.
A Grey Seal was feeding offshore.
The drake Ring-necked Duck was still at the Scotney Caravan Park Pit.