Recent Sightings
April 2009
The coming of April saw the breeding season at Rye Harbour really gather pace. The last of our breeding summer visitors arrived, with, the first Little Tern on the 9th, the first Cuckoo on the 13th and the first Turtle Dove (below) on the 24th, while on the Beach Reserve, Wheatear, Ringed Plover and Oystercatcher had all staked their claims to territories by the end of the month, and the same was true of Avocet and Little Ringed Plover on Harbour Farm. For some species, the breeding season was already well advanced – at least 72 nests of Mediterranean Gull, 1400 of Black-headed Gull and 400 of Sandwich Tern were on Ternery Pool late-month and Lapwing, Moorhen, Mallard and Coot had all produced their first chicks before April was out!
Waders during April included up to 45 Knot, 22 Bar-tailed Godwit, 11 Black-tailed Godwit, and three Greenshank, while the traditional Whimbrel roost on the Quarry peaked at 100 on the 28th. The reserve also played host to small numbers of Green Sandpiper, Common Sandpiper and Grey Plover. Waterfowl at Castle Water included several sightings of Garganey, with five on the 27th, 45 Little Egret leaving the roost on the 10th, two Spoonbill briefly on the 5th and, best of the bunch, a Cattle Egret on the 20th. Passerines included a good selection of warblers as might be expected at this time of year. A partial survey of singing males on the 28th found good numbers of Whitethroat, Sedge Warbler and Reed Warbler as well as smaller number of Lesser Whitethroat, Cetti’s Warbler, Blackcap and Chiffchaff. Also present were up tp two singing Grasshopper Warbler, a very unusual occurrence here! Small numbers of House Martin, Sand Martin and Swallow moving through during the month, and even a few Swift from the 16th, while a Black Redstart was on the Beach Reserve on the 2nd, single Redstart here on the 4th and 21st and a Raven on the 11th. Yellow Wagtail numbers peaked at 65 (leaving a reedbed roost sat Castle Water on the 20th), while there were regular sightings of Bearded Tit. Raptors during April included regular Marsh Harrier and Merlin, the occasional Peregrine and up to three Hobby. The highlights, however, were a superb male Hen Harrier over the Beach Reserve on the 27th, with a ‘ringtail’ on the 24th, and even more of a surprise, a female Goshawk at Castle Water on the 24th. Relatively little offshore this month, the highlights being up to three Arctic Skua and a Great Skua on the 21st.
Butterflies active during April included Holly Blue, Orange-tip, Speckled Wood and Painted Lady, while a small range of species in the Lime Kiln Cottage moth trap included Muslin Moth, Reed Dagger, Pebble Prominent and Viper’s Bugloss Moth. In contrast to April 2008, there was plenty of dragonfly/damselfly activity this year, including Hairy Hawker, Four-spotted Chaser, Variable Damselfly, Blue-tailed Damselfly, Azure Damselfly, Red-eyed Damselfly and Large Red Damselfly. This month also saw only the second record of the rare oil beetle Meloe proscarabaeous on the reserve on the 23rd, the rare jumping spider Marpissa muscosa at Castle Water Hide on the 15th, and, a real surprise, a Hornet at the viewpoint on the 22nd. Plants in flower included Wallflower, Danish Scurvygrass, Sea Kale, Spotted Medick and Dove’s Foot Cranesbill.