STROOD SCRUTINY

Armed with the telescope for the walk along the Strood Channel on Monday 11th, there were plenty of waders on the mud to scrutinise. One group to catch the eye were 170 golden plover, pictured above, roosting on the opposite side of the channel. Most of them still had their black underparts of their breeding plumage. Nearby for comparison were some of the 50 grey plovers some strikingly marked, showing their mix of silver upperparts and jet black underparts.

Having decided to count all the redshank, I was very surprised to find there were virtually 500 birds in this channel. An impressive count and it's not even anywhere near winter yet, when redshank numbers are normally at their highest. Amongst the other waders seen were 3 greenshank, spotted redshank, whimbrel, 50 curlew, 10 black-tailed godwits, bar-tailed godwit, 10 oystercatchers, 2 turnstone, 2 ringed plovers, 5 lapwing and only 2 dunlin.

Up to five little egrets were seen in various locations either on the mudflats, or amongst the Ray saltmarsh. Four little terns including a couple of noisy juveniles flew up and down the channel.

Flocks of wood pigeons kept rising into the air to the west, over Ray Island and the Feldy marshes on the mainland. I had nearly given up trying to locate the culprit when the dashing shape of a peregrine hurtled high over the Strood. It powered its way eastwards in very determined mood, creating chaos below it as it sped on by.
One kestrel left the Island and headed over to Ray Island, while a second bird perched up on some overhead wires near the caravan site.

The pair of wheatears were present for their second day along the shore side of the seawall. As with yesterday a yellow wagtail, corn bunting, 2 sub-singing reed warblers, 2 linnets and 2 pied wagtails were also present.


The mute swans were finding plenty to feed on in this section of borrow-dyke. A juvenile little grebe stopped calling repeatedly and hid in the club-rushes.

The weather turned cloudy and supressed the dragonfly activity. However it was good to see up to 5 of the recent colonists to the UK in the last few years of the small red-eyed damselflies resting on the weed in the middle of the water. Also seen were the emperor, black-tailed skimmer and common blue damselflies.