Monday 10th May

The weather slowly improved throughout the day and by lunchtime the sky was filled with scutting, fluffy clouds against a brilliant blue sky.  A GS Woodpecker peered curiously out of it's nest hole in a tree near the footpath crossing by East Malling railway station. 

A scan of the Paris Farm Paddocks turned up my first House Martins of the year, a couple of birds periodically dropping to the ground before zipping back amongst the Swallows.  Whitethroats scratched out tehir sone from the hedgerow along Easterfields, the Little Owl sat out in it's usuial spot near Kiln Barn Farm and a Grey Heron lifted from the cereal field near the entrance to the research station.

Monday 19th April

Back on patch today after a 2 week holiday - and what a difference.  Blossom everywhere, the first Bluebells emerging and some new patch/walk-in ticks...and not just for the year!  Walking from Barming to East Malling on my usual route I was suprised to hear a Nuthatch calling as I approached the allotments at the top of North Street, Barming.  What's unusual about that I hyear you say - well I've never seen a Nuthatch in Barming in the 5 years I've lived there!  There's plenty of suitable habitat, but I've just never seen or heard them.  It got better - as I approached the track I saw not one, but two birds calling loudly to each other and chasing each around an oak.  A GS Woodpecker was equally vocal and joined in the chase - fighting over a nest hole?! 

Moving on a couple of Chiffchaffs called along Gallagher's Gallop and a Song Thrush sang from alongside the quarry.  Then my second new tick for my 'walk-in' route - a lone Greylag Goose flying low west.  As I approached the underpass a couple of Blackcaps could be heard, with one bird showing briefly - a new patch tick for the year.  A male Bullfinch also called.  The Little Owl was in his usual spot at Kiln Barn Farm, and just a bit further on a couple of Swallows (another patch tick for the year!) sat on the wires near Kiln Barn Cottages.  I'd seen loads of these in Cornwall, but always reassuring to see them back on patch!  A couple of Lesser Black-backed Gulls sat out on Kiln Field (just west of the East Malling Conference Centre).

At lunchtime I paid a brief visit to the Paris Farm paddocks, East Malling, hoping for a migrant.  A couple of Stock Doves sat out on land at the back of East Malling church with a crowd of Wood Pigeons.  A GS Woodpecker drummed away from within a nest hole near the railway crossing and a Coal Tit flitted around the pines at the east end of the railway station.  No migrants were seen in the paddocks, only a Mistle Thrush hoped around on the turf, and a Peacock butterfly basked in the sun.

Friday 5th March

Nice crisp morning and pleased to add Coal Tit to my 'walk in' year list - fliiting around the trees bordering the North Pole allotments, Barming.  3x Great spotted Woodpeckers, chasing each around the treetops by the Water Tower, making a hell of a racket!  At lunchtime I added another 2 Coal Tits to the day list, this time by the footpath crossing the railway just east of East Malling railway station.  Also a few pairs (not parties) of Long-tailed Tits.  Fieldfares are still hanging around, with 25 seen on the orchard floor with a single Redwing. 

I headed off to Bradbourne, passing the South Park plot on the Research Station which was being ploughed.  A few Black-headed and Common Gulls followed the plough, but a larger flock sat out in the adjacent field, 80-90 Black-headed Gull and....a Mediterranean Gull....yeh hey, at last, about bloody time!

6th gull from the left - OK he's looking away - but nice, darkest black hood, all the way down the neck (compare to Black-headed gull above it, with brown-dull black hood) and nice red legs.  No black on wing tips, and if you could see his face, nice big red bill and white eye surrond.

A smart adult, almost in full summer plummage, and only the third record for site.  Unfortunately it was a fair few metres away across the open field and I couldn't get close enough to get a good picture......as ever!  Visit Tony Morris' St Margaret's Blog to see how it should be done (http://stmargaretsphotodiary.blogspot.com/2010/02/looking-at-page-of-bockhills-latest.html)! 

This time 11th from the left, almost in the centre.  Nice dark hood again, and if blow pic up can even see a red bill!

I moved closer an old plane growled over sending them all up in the air, ironically I got a better pic of that the gull (come on Twisden, what is it?  Harvard?  Grumman?).  This flock of gulls is viewable from the public footpath that runs north, along the research station road, from East Malling Church to Ditton Church.

I zipped down to the lake to see if the Med had dropped in there, but was met with just 25+ Black-headed Gulls, and another new bird for site for the year - a Mistle Thrush! 

Also I've heard from Dave Walker in Barming who was kind enought to send me a photo of one of three Harris Hawks that are frequenting the west Barming area.  He's seeing them on an almost daily basis - so if you see a large raptor floating over the A26, it could well be one of these!  Thanks Dave.

Tuesday 23rd February

Wow wee - 3 (three) Song Thrushes in the garden this morning - small sand all that, but I was pleased when one returned in December, and the last time I think I can remember seeing more than 2 in my garden was probably 1984, so a big event for me!  There seem to be good numbers around at the moment, let's hope they stop and breed successfully (if the cats don't get them).  Got a snap of two of them above.

I tried something different at lunchtime today, and instead of turning left at the research station gate I went left.  A 40-minute jaunt took me off under the railway and then parallel with it and back to East Malling church.  Despite the looming rain there seemed to be plenty of things on the move.  Seven Blackbirds, 3 Song Thrushes and a Green Woodpecker all hopped around a field just SE of the railway bridge.  A GS Woodpecker did a undulating fly-over one of the gardens at Kiln Barn Cottages.  All the usual suspects were seen including good numbers of Blue Tits, however the best find was a murmaration of 500+ Starlings feed voraciously in the paddocks near Paris Farm.  Fieldfares and Redwings were mixed in with them, but it seems like quite a roost has built up here. 

Friday 12th February

Four Snipe just west of Barming bridge this morning and a Kingfisher grooming on the north bank of the River Medway from the bridge first thing this morning. 30+ Fieldfares sat out on the railway embankment trees, a GS Woopecker drummed on the riiverside willows and a Song Thrush tapped away on it's anvil.

A brief visit to Ditton Quarry at lunchtime wasn't too productive, although some pellets were found, possibly Kestrel (anyone want to comment?). No sign of Bullfinches, but a small flock of Redpoll were seen in flight across the orchard just S of the quarry

Monday 18th January

Quick sortie for Woodcock in Barming Woods at lunchtime. Only enough time to check out northern perimeter, but all very quiet in misty conditions. Three GS Woodpeckers drummed out their territories, all very close and at one point I had two birds in view at the same time. I n fact it was so quiet I could hear the birds' wingbeats as they flitted from tree to tree. On the paddock near Kilon Barn Farm over 200 Fieldfares were hopping around, interspersed with a few Redwings. A Pied Wagtail and Meadow Pipit picked around the perimeter of a muddy patch on the adjacent field.

Monday 21st December

Looking towards the derelict Ditton Laboratory building on Kiln Barn Road from the public footpath.

The snow lingered, and was refreshed by a light powdering overnight. I still couldn't get my car off the drive so missed out on the Research Station Solstice run. An eccentric tradition relived each June and December by some mebers of the Research - the rules: one circuit of Bradbourne Lake as the sun rises on the solstice......but only one item of clothing allowed....trainers count as one item! Its pushed some people's imagination to the limit, it's certainly effective in waking you up before work! I could set up a 'separate' blog with photos of this event if there's enough interest.

I walked into East Malling from Barming, in places the snow covering was completely unblemished. Checking the Silver Birch at the top of South Street at I counted 8x Redpolls in two groups (6, 2). The group of six flew down into one of the gardens on the east side of the street, but looking into the rising sun, and conscious that I was pointing my bins towards bedroom windows (!) I had to presume they were Lessers. Five Bullfinches were seen along Gallagher's Gallop (just north of the Water Tower off North Street), along with a couple of Jays. The Silver Birch wood at the bottom of the hill looked quite startingly, almost like a black-and-white photo. A pair of GS Woodpeckers jumped around a tree on the corner of Kiln Barn Road/Winterfields (very appropraitely named today).The cloud started to break as I reached the research station site revealing briefly the adonis blue sky.

Winter thrushes on trees, canes and on the wing (click to enlarge). Snow on North Downs beyond.

The orchards near Kiln Barn Road that have been full of Fieldfare were deserted, the fallen apples totally covered in snow. I knew where the birds would be, in the orchards that hadn't been picked; the genebank at the back of the church in East Malling (where the Waxwings were seen) and the orchard viewable from the public footpath just west of the main laboratory complex. I ventured out at lunchtime to check out my theory and was amazed at the shear number of winter thrushes that were in the process of what could be called a feeding frenzy.

Redwings which have been relatively scarce on site up until now outnumbered the Fieldfares by about 2 to 1. Lots of Blackbirds and Chaffinches picked around on the ground, while the Fieldfares and Redwings stabbed away at the apples left on the trees and Starlings, Woodpigeons, a couple of Green Woodpeckers and a lone Song Thrush joined in. A Sparrowhawk swept threw and was suprisingly unsuccessful despite the density of the flocks. The genebank was the same, although there seemed to be a greater proportion of Fieldfare here. It was hard to keep track, let alone count the birds. I scanned through as much as possible to see if I could locate a Brambling or even a Waxwing (for Greenie!), if there were any in this swarm then I didn't pick them out. An amazing sight, all viewable from the east-west public footpath on the Research Station, but probably will only last while the snow does.


A special train was passing through East Malling this evening - Tornado, the newly rebuilt steam locomotive on it's first run down this line. My lad's madder on trains than I am on birds, and as it was the shortest day I wasn't confident we'd get a very good view as it sped through East Malling, so we caught up with it at Maidstone West. I was impressed!

Wednesday 9th December

Another fine morning, with mist hanging in the river valley in Barming. I clocked up 26 species in total on my walk in to work this morning, including the Little Owl and 2x Common Gull by Kiln Barn Farm. However I failed to see or hear a Dunnock, unheard off on this route! I spent most of the morning lifting strawberries in Newgates (between Kiln Barn Road and Hermitage Lane), on the Research Station site but saw only a Skylark in all that time.

I only had 15 minutes or so again at lunchtime so I quickly checked the orchard (genebank) at the back of East Malling Church. Fieldfare numbers have increased masively over the last few days as have Chaffinches. I scanned carefully through the churchyard and orchard for Brambling but no sign. I was pleased with a flock of 24 Linnets which dropped onto the parallel fallow ground, it's been a long time since I've seen a flock of these on site. A GS Woodpecker, dipped across the orchard as I left.

Friday 4th December

A long-awaited walk into work this morning, with no rain or wind to contend with. Peering over the wall to the orchards, opposite the pedestrian crossing on the A26 East Barming I quickly racked up 10 species, including 10+ Redwing, 15 Fieldfare, Green Woodpecker and Sparrowhawk...not bad sightings just off a main road! The rest of the route was alive with birds again; Bullfinches (by Pea Field), GS Woodpecker (opposite Heath Road) and a noticeable increase in Redwing numbers, with birds being seen in two new locations for the winter, and five individuals being picked out feeding in a single tree halfway up North Street. Seven Stock Doves were an unexpected addition, sitting out with the Crows by Gallagher's Gallop. The Little Owl was the last tick of the morning, huddled in it's usual spot in Kiln Barn Farm Cattle shed. Twenty-four species in total, but lacking regulars such as Jay, Pied Wagtail and both Goldfinches and Greenfinches.

Checking the plots mid-morning I was glad to see a Kestrel hunting over the west side of the site, and nine Skylarks and a Pied Wagtail took to the air as I walked down one of the strawed alleyways. The sun was still shining at lunchtime so I did a quick sortie over to Ditton Court Quarry. More Redwings, accompanied by too many Blackbirds to keep tabs on, were feeding on the ground, but were extremley shy and flighty. Eight Lesser Redpolls were still feeding on the Alder trees with the charm of Goldfinches.