31st

There were 117 Great Crested Grebes on a mirror-calm sea and, on Worth marshes, an adult male Marsh Harrier and 2 Bewick's Swans.

30th

On a dull but calm morning there were 3 Marsh Harrier in the area, plus 42 White-fronted Geese near the Chequers.

28th

There were some interesting birds over the Christmas period, if only for brief periods, beginning with 53 Pink-footed Geese and 35 Whitefronts on Worth marshes on the 21st. A flock of 16 Pink-feet was seen over the Estate on Boxing Day, which also featured a Marsh Harrier, a Sandwich Tern was in Pegwell on the 23rd and today's highlights included a Little Egret and an adult male Hen Harrier.

19th

On a bright and sharp day with an early frost there were 2 Chiffchaffs on the Estate, a party of 9 Snow Buntings on the beach and, on Worth marshes, a Peregrine and a female Marsh Harrier.

17th

Cold and cheerless in a strengthening easterly wind, there was a Chiffchaff in the Elms, but it was otherwise very quiet.

16th

A clear, still and cold day that was as good as anyone has a right to expect in December. A White-fronted Goose was on Restharrow Scrape, the ringers trapped a Common Redpoll, grey and chunky alongside an accompanying Lesser (photographed, on right) and on New Downs were a Jack Snipe, 2 Spotted Redshanks and a Dartford Warbler, hopping about in some brambles close to the river.

14th

The Black-tailed Godwit was on Restharrow Scrape again and 2 Chiffchaffs were on the Estate and Prince's conifers. There are also notable numbers of Stonechats in the area, which have been highlighted by extended coverage for the BTO Atlas project. Including eight in the Roaring Gutter/Cinque Ports areas, just outside our recording area, a total of 38 has been located in the last four days, including ten on New Downs and 14 along the beach from Prince's to the Point.

12th

A hard frost greeted the morning and remained stubbornly slow to clear, despite some lovely sunshine. A Lapland Bunting flew over Dickson's Corner, 16 Siskins flew N and a male Blackcap was on the Estate. A stroll across Worth marshes in the afternoon was enlivened by a Peregrine that took exception to the presence of a female Marsh Harrier and on New Downs 4,100 Golden Plover were present, along with a second Marsh Harrier and a Spotted Redshank. The Black-tailed Godwit was on a partially frozen Restharrow Scrape again, after an absence of a couple of days.

11th

At long last, a dry day with some lovely winter sunshine, albeit after a frosty start. A Marsh Harrier - the immature male that has been here since the last week of November - was cruising about near the toll gate and 26 Siskins either flew N or were feeding in the alders on the Estate.

9th

If the car park takes on much more water, we'll be able to add some floating vegetation and wait for the breeding Black Terns. More realistically, the Black-tailed Godwit was still on Restharrow Scrape.

8th

A few hours of half decent weather before rain set in once again produced a Black-tailed Godwit on Restharrow Scrape, a Chiffchaff, a Grey Wagtail and a Siskin on the Estate and, just after mid day, a Spoonbill that drifted N over the golf course towards Pegwell..

7th

A male Marsh Harrier drifted over the fields close to the Observatory around mid day.

4th

The Observatory staff has at least partially recovered from a fairly hateful dose of flu and is able to report sightings of a Great Northern Diver offshore on a very stormy 2nd and a Bittern over the Estate this morning, which at least had the good grace to be fairly pleasant.