Come and volunteer at Dungeness Bird Observatory this year! We have a couple of positions available to help out with the monitoring of the wildlife on the Dungeness peninsula as well as helping in the running of the Observatory!

Come stay at the Observatory this spring with the season being well underway with plenty of offshore passage the last couple of days! Theres plenty of availability and for a very reasonable price of £15 per night for friends, and £20 per night for others! Come along and see some migration in action!

2 Blackcaps, 1 Chiffchaff, usual Redwings, Mistle Thrushes and stuff. 40 species noted, 88 minutes. #TunbridgeWells #DunorlanPark #KentBirding

Some analysis on a Kentish 'Iceland Gull', Originally photographed last month to the north. Flew past me y'day along the cliffs at South foreland. perdixbirding.com/2026/03/04/0...

Vis-mig? northdownsandbeyond.blogspot.com/2026/03/a-du...

40 species around Dunorlan Park today including Peregrine (my first in #TunbridgeWells this year) and singing Chiffchaff (my first summer migrant of the year a few days earlier than usual). Seeing red too: a bit of Redpoll action, Red Kite and Redwings - and sun, two days in a row!

Come stay at the Observatory this spring with the season being well underway already! We have plenty of availability and for a very reasonable price of £15 per night for friends, and £20 per night for others!

Finally after 7 weeks of watching and photographing this Lesser Whitethroat)halimodendri)? it gave me this look and I just knew it was going to do the deed 💩, safely collected into a moth pot. #UKBirding

4 adult Med Gulls at Whetsted GP’s this morning. Little Owl calling at Haysden this evening was my first within 5 miles of home this year and that brings me up to 91 species now having, at last, also added Peregrine today. Looked for Hawfinch today without luck which is probably not surprising.

I was pleased when I saw Crossbills and Woodlarks locally this morning (albeit just into Sussex) but then spoke to Tracey who has seen Egyptian Plover, Senegal Thick-knee, Little Green & Blue-cheeked Bee-eaters and a list of various other reasonable birds this afternoon (and a load of tombs).

The two Shore Larks reappeared for the first time this year, while the other overwintering rarities in Kent (Bluetail, American Wigeon and Pallas’s Warbler) remained on show. For full weekly highlights see kentos.org.uk. #kentbirding

The house has just gone on the market, shout if you want it or call up Sumner Pridham. #TunbridgeWells has lots going for it. We plan to move to Norwich and Taverham is a favoured area - it’s also where we saw an overwintering Hoopoe on this day 1994 (on a school playing field, no idea which one).

My first days birding away from the local area in 2026. A certain warbler the main target (after 6 weeks 🤷🏻‍♂️) but it was great to see the American Wigeon, drake Goosander, 3 Whooper Swans, 32 Bewick’s (backlit with an awesome lightening display), Tree Sparrows, etc. Good to catch up with folk too 👍🏻

I remember hearing about the Falcated Teal as we left the Great Bustard site in Suffolk. I also remember the look of bewilderment on a dog walkers face as the car loads started pouring into Pitsford Resr, Northants, and despite it being 39 years ago I still remember the duck amongst the Wigeon!

This is a great write up Steve, thank you 👍🏻 @dungenessbirdobs.bsky.social

In my lunch hour 35 years ago today I found this beauty at the tip in Tunbridge Wells, quite the surprise. The only other Shore Lark that I have seen in West Kent was a bird at Bough Beech Resr the following year.

At least two birds on this list that I scored: the gull in Essex (on my fourth attempt) and the Sussex sparrow but… … the bird that caught my eye (not in real life): Great Snipe in #TunbridgeWells - not just 1, but 2 🤔 for two days in 1912 so a bit before my time. I wonder where (/what) they were!?

Dungeness: Grey Seal photobombing a Gannet at the fishing boats this afternoon. #UKBirding #Kentbirding

Bluetail last weekend, a rarer red-tail this weekend…

Looking forward to seeing how many different species we can find… #TunbridgeWells

I started my weekend by trudging around Whetsted GP’s where I got 51 species (just 80% of my NYD total there). 2 White-fronted Geese the best plus 3 Great White Egrets, 2 Ravens, drake Goldeneye, 600 Lapwing and a Muscovy Duck 🤭 RED-FLANKED BLUETAIL was #236 for West Kent - amazing!

It was only 200 metres more to Surrey 🧐🫣😎. Kent and LNHS won though 🫣🤗. Red-flanked Bluetail found by Will Oliver yesterday afternoon and very very elusive . Still difficult today but a few saw it well with patience . Also in the area, Woodcock, Brambling, Crossbills

Coot, just one, but that’s infinitely more than I had at Dunorlan Park in 2025. Also noted: at least 35 Moorhens around the same island where there was a very small area of unfrozen water. -5c 20 species by 8am. I may have seen more if I could have waited until sunrise… #TunbridgeWells

I popped out this morning before a slightly stressful day of work. 6 new birds for the year - Red Kite the best. Finished with pizza in the frozen snow this evening.

64 species at Whetsted GP’s, 42 at Haysden. 70 in total today. 4 White-front’s at Whetsted & 2 at Haysden probably the best - unless the duck I found in fading light on Haysden Lake was Lesser Scaup 🤔 13 Goosander & 6 Mandarin Haysden, 2 Goldeneye Whetsted the best if the rest. #KentBirding

My best UK birds this year were both at Dungeness and, as Owen notes, they were both new birds for the area. Both were also conveniently vocal although the Zitting Cisticola showed rather better than the EBW (though still wasn’t very easy). Happy New Year everyone!

A big surprise in my garden today, a Lesser Whitethroat sp! As for separating it to a race, after spending time looking at images online and reading various papers, I've come to the conclusion that it's above my pay grade. Lots more images still to edit. #UKBirding #kentbirding

Great Northern Diver Ramsgate Harbour mouth currently #KentBirding

Local birding has seemed like hard work at times this year. 3 new birds for Dunorlan Park with Wheatear, Crossbill and Great Black-backed Gull and a reasonable count of 43 Moorhen on 16 December. 43 is also the number of species noted there this morning - 3 Ravens the best.

A few random orchid pic’s from England in 2025. The highlights were probably from Kent: three alba Lady Orchids, 95 Bee Orchids on one roundabout and some pretty cool Late Spider’s. We enjoyed a few other orchids while out of the county. #orchids

2025 was a quieter year for Odonata for me but the Vagrant Emperors at Carlton Marshes made for a good day out in Suffolk with a bonus Red-veined Darter - which I still haven’t seen in Kent. The weekend in southCumbria, north Lancashire & West Yorkshire provided bits including Black Darter.

Butterflies from 2025 included my first Large Tortoiseshells. I chose somewhere further north for a birthday weekend away to include some High Brown Fritillary action and a small number of Northern Brown Argus. Back in Kent it’s always good to see Heath Fritillaries when passing. #Butterflies

Memories: 27/12 has provided Scops Owl🦉- Broadstairs (2024), my first Iceland Gull (Felixstowe, 1986), my first Lesser Scaup (Lechlade, 1994) and Northern Harrier (Titchwell, 2010). Boxing Day best birds: Spur-winged Plover 😲 at Dungeness (1997) & Brunnich’s Guillemot, Portland Harbour (2013).

On this day 2024 news broke and I was out of door. 32 minutes later I was on site, Frank was there already. He will be greatly missed on the Kent birding scene.

Treecreeper noted at half the sites visited today. I didn’t really expect to see them at the dentist or WH Smith’s - which was most traumatic as it’s no longer called that. 60 years of my life changed 😟 Woolworths closed 17 years ago, now this. May as well close the town 😢 5 Little Grebe best.

Tawny Owl the best at Dunorlan Park, #TunbridgeWells early this morning - and some good colours before the sun rose. A good count of at least 43 Moorhen yesterday morning (but still no Coot this year).

I’m not quite sure why I searched for well over four hours for the Yellow-browed Warbler to show but I did, and it did. A ten minute performance about 2:30pm. Also Little Egret, Grey Wagtail, Little Grebe and a presumed Otter along the River Lark, Mildenhall (Suffolk).

After a silly busy week (with another looming) I thought I’d remember back to some good times earlier this year when @traceyappleton.bsky.social and I spent a week on the beautiful island of #Rhodes It wasn’t warm but it was brilliant! We went specifically for orchids but saw other stuff too.

There may not be enough water in #TunbridgeWells but there was no shortage of Lapwings - well, 80 or so. A female Blackcap was also a surprise in Dunorlan Park especially as they didn’t even hang on into October this year. I avoided birding the water treatment works today 🤭 #KentBirding

We swung by Seahouses where this duck was in the harbour in failing light yesterday afternoon. A hybrid Eider x Mallard by all accounts. It was with c.10 Eider. A mid-morning Woodcock flying beside us for a short distance somewhere on the A702 was the only other noteworthy ‘on the way home’ bird.

Some mixed weather in the Lake District this weekend but great to see some snow on Sunday morning.

A chilly and quick, for me, walk round Dunorlan Park this morning as the mist rose and the frost lay yielded 29 bird species including a small number of Lesser Redpolls. #TunbridgeWells

25 Cattle Egrets (at least) in field behind Woolpack Inn. #KentBirding

Spring has sprung, although the Black-headed Gulls were standing on a thin layer of ice at Dunorlan Park first thing this morning. #TunbridgeWells

A very late Swallow with damaged tail streamer over #TunbridgeWells sewage works this afternoon. There’s plenty of insect food available still.

I was hoping for a better experience when I eventually got my first Crossbill for patch but there we go: two heading south - picked up calling - I got on to a back-end murky silhouette view as they disappeared off. Half a dozen Siskins too - and Woodpigeons heading somewhere.

After a disappointing Seawatch this morning, and after arriving at the Obs, we found that the Pallas’s Warbler rung on Sunday had been caught again in the moat, always worth a photo. @dungenessbirdobs.bsky.social #birds #birding #kentbirding #ukbitding

The first few days of November have produced two Sibe’ Stonechats in Kent (Bockhill, 2008, & Dungeness - thank you Jacob, dungenessbirdobs.bsky.social - 3 years ago today) Also: the superb summer plumaged White-biller Diver off Margate (2018) and Shorelark was also a mega Dungeness bird in 2019.

Dunorlan’ this morning: I had it in mind that it was All Saints Day but some @rtwparkrun.bsky.social participants didn’t seem to be dressed accordingly 😲😳😃 I hope everyone enjoyed it, maybe the first muddy one of the season. Birds: 38 species, triple Common Gull the highlight 🤷🏻‍♂️ #TunbridgeWells

40 species of birds on my wander around Dunorlan Park before work today including Common Gull again, 20+ over-flying Redpoll and my first Chiffchaff for a couple of weeks. A few more Blackbird and Redwing noted too. #63 species for the month is probably a record - 19 visits. #TunbridgeWells