Tuesday 27th March 2012

An early start this morning - 5000 plants to go in the ground at work!  A Meadow Pipit was displaying near Gallagher's Gallop and a pair of Little Owls were found in one of the paddocks near East Malling, with another bird in it's usual haunt near Kiln Barn Farm.  Later a couple of Buzzards were reported over the research station by a colleague.

Venus, Jupiter and Mars all showed very well this evening as well!

Monday 26th March 2011

A day off work and a cycle ride to Shipbourne from Barming turned loads of Beeflies, a Brimstone, 5x Peacocks, 2x Commas, 1x 'White' and my first Bluebells of the year!!!!

Wednesday 21st March 2012

I managed to get my Wheatears this morning - two males, distantly in the Paris Farm Paddocks (too far for a photo...even by my standards!).  Yesterday's Stonechat have moved on, but the sun and heat (18.C on the research station) brought out a good number of butterflies with 9x Comma and 2x Peacock seen on the circular track around Oaken Wood, Barming.  A good day for Song Thrushes with 7x birds in total being seen along my cycle route into work.

Tuesday 20th March 2012

Another bright day and I was hopeful that I might get sight of a Wheatear on patch today - it had that feel about it.  3x Chiffchaffs were heard calling around the east side of Oaken Wood, the Little Owl was sunning itself opposite Kiln Barn Farm with a small flock of Linnets flitted restlessly around the nearby hedgerow.  No migrants in either the Sweets Lane or Paris Farm paddocks, but I was pleased to pick out a cracking male Stonechat further along the footpath between Paris Farm and Kiln Barn Road (exactly where I'd had one in September last year).  Nearby a field of Meadow Pipits were flushed up by a low swooping Sparrowhawk.  A butterfly/moth was also seen - it landed momentarily before taking flight - it looked much too small for a Red Admiral - any suggestions (based on the my awkward photo!)

19th March 2012

First Chiffchaff of the year on patch today, just S of the underpass on Gallagher's Gallop.  80+ Fieldfare, 5+ Redwing and a charm of Goldfinch and Linnet were feeding in the one of the research station's orchards (N of the main entrance track leading from Kiln Barn Road).  Later I followed a female Sparrowhawk as it swooped over Mill Street, East Malling (a species I failed to connect with in this tetrad before) and happened on probably the same bird as I entered the research station 5 minutes later.

Wednesday 29th February 2012

A quick bike ride out at lunchtime to try and get Grey Heron, Skylark, Meadow Pipit or Linnet onto the West Malling/Mill St tetrad of the KOS winter Atlas.  Third attempt to do so, but I wasn't lucky - very surprising that these species remain absent despite some ideal habitat for these species.

I did see a Red Admiral in East Malling, woken from it's slumbers by the Spring-like sunshine.  23x Pied Wagtails shuffled around the newly-harrowed organic plot on the Research land, until a Sparrowhawk cast its shadow across them.  One of the Common Gulls that has been frequenting the research land was found dead, minus its head, probably a victim of a fox.  I was pleased to find a Kingfisher on the watercress beds, the first I'd seen on this part of the patch for a number of years, to be topped on my cycle home in the evening with a pair of Little Owls near Kiln Barn Farm.

Tuesday 28th February 2012

Glad to have caught up with the Hooded Merganser, just 20 minutes off patch at East Peckham, late this afternoon after missing out a couple of weekends ago.  Both my lads were in tow, having picked them up straight from school, and it cost be a couple of quid in sweets to entice them along - but once there they seemed quite interested.  I can feel a few trips coming on!