Another quiet day with two Hobbies being about the best on offer.
Just one Porpoise was seen.
14th May
Lovely, calm conditions this morning but yet again no grounded migrants to speak of and the sea was also very quiet. Five Spotted Flycatchers were the best on offer.
Two Porpoises and a Grey Seal were feeding offshore and a Brown Hare was at the Point..
13th May
Today saw a small arrival of late migrants with 13 Spotted Flycatchers, a Redstart and five Willow Warblers of note. The sea was very quiet.
Two Porpoises were feeding offshore.
A few Grizzled Skippers continue to be seen and a handful of Variable Damselflies were seen at the Long Pits.
12th May
Very quiet on both land and at sea. The best on offer were eight Swifts, two Sand Martins, a Spotted Flycatcher at the northern end of the Long Pits and a Corn Bunting over the Trapping Area.
Two Porpoises and a Grey Seal were feeding offshore.
This moth was caught by hand as it warmed itself in the rising sun this morning. Although it is worn I think it is likely to be an example of the Cryptic Fern Horisme radicaria. This species was only added to the British list in 2019 but is now considered to be fairly widespread along the east coast of Kent. This is the first record at the Observatory since this date although photographs of "ferns" taken prior to this date show that it had already occurred here.
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| Cryptic Fern Horisme radicaria Dungeness 12th May 2022 |
Grizzled Skippers and Small Coppers continue to be seen in excellent numbers and another worn example of the aberration radicata was found in the Trapping Area.
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| Small Copper Lycaena phlaeas ab radicata Dungeness 12th May 2022. |
In addition, a third individual of the rare (only found at Dungeness) shieldbug Geotomus petiti was found in the Moat.
11th May
Grounded migrants remain hard to come by and the sea was also quiet today with four hours of watching producing just five Eiders, an Avocet and two Arctic Skuas of note. The first Spotted Flycatcher of the spring was seen at the Long Pits.
Two Porpoises and a Grey Seal were feeding offshore.
A Downy Emerald dragonfly was a notable find at the Long Pits whilst Grizzled Skippers continue to be seen in good numbers with at least 15 noted today.
10th May
Much quieter offshore today with five hours of seawatching producing just nine Shelducks, two Mediterranean Gulls, a Black Tern, singles of Great and Pomarine Skuas and three Arctic Skuas. A Little Ringed Plover and 63 Swifts passed overhead but grounded migrants remain almost non-existent.
Five Porpoise and two Grey Seals were seen offshore.
9th May
Today was dominated by seawatching but the individual bird of the day was our fourth Black Kite of the spring. Coverage from dawn to dusk at the seawatch hide produced 19 Shelduck, two Pintail, 475 Common Scoters, four Black-throated Divers, 79 Grey Plover, 114 Whimbrel, 51 Bar-tailed Godwit, seven Knot, 73 Sanderling, a Greenshank, 18 Little Gulls. 28 Little Terns, 5491 Common/ic Terns, 142 Arctic Terns, 48 Black Terns, four Great Skuas, six Arctic Skuas and a superb total of 86 Pomarine Skuas.
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| Black Kite Milvus migrans Dungeness 9th May 2022 Comparing the flight feather damage against images of the earlier birds confirm that this is a different individual to the previous three birds. |
At least 40 Porpoise were feeding offshore along with three Grey Seals.
Ten Grizzled Skippers were seen.
8th May
A day of reasonable seawatching although most of the birds passed in the early morning and late evening. The highlights from nearly nine hours were 30 Grey Plovers, three Avocets, 99 Bar-tailed Godwits, 262 Whimbrels, 135 Knot, 53 Sanderlings, a Greenshank, nine Black Terns, 41 Arctic Terns, a Great Skua, 11 Arctic Skuas and five Pomarine Skuas. A Hobby and two Swift also came in. A Common Sandpiper was seen on the Long Pits, 70 Swallows flew through and a Ring Ouzel was seen in the Desert.
A Grey Seal and four Porpoises were feeding offshore.
7th May
It remains very quiet on the land with just six Buzzards, 40 Swallows, three Willow Warblers, a Ring Ouzel, eight Yellow Wagtails and two Siskins of any note. The sea was also slow-going with nearly six hours of watching producing just a single Velvet Scoter, 22 Whimbrel, 12 Sanderling, three Mediterranean Gulls, 11 Little Terns, three Great Skuas and an Arctic Skua.
At least eight Porpoises and a Grey Seal were feeding offshore and a Brown Hare was seen on the land.
The bird of the day was seen on the RSPB Reserve when a drake Ring-necked Duck was found on Burrowes Pit.
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