RXwildlife Sightings

PETT MARSH. Sunday 6th April 08. The morning started around 5.30, I had to wait a while for dawn to break so I could see something, but I could hear the B.H.Gulls and the Med.Gulls calling as they flew over head , they were coming from the beach and heading up the panel. Heard my first Willow Warb.of  the  Spring ,also in good voice were Chiff-Chaffs and Cettis Warbs. At the Pools there were 3 Swallows and there was a Yellow Wag. on the beach. Still about 4/600 Commom Scoters and a Arctic Skua [east] in the bay. On the wader front there were 40 Turnstones on the beach , a Green Sand and 2 Bl.T.Godwits up the Panel.

Amazingly after the snow, there appears to have been a movement of Willow Warbler into the reserve with at least three in song. Fifteen plus Swallow are also present. A surprise was a brood of seven very small Greylag Geese which were probably hatched yesterday in the poor weather.

The snow began to fall on Sunday as I attempted to do my WeBS (Wetland Bird Survey) count. It is amazing how often the weather is not good on count day. Most of the duck were hidden in the reeds and the most obvious birds were five Swallow trying hard to feed low over the roadside pool. On the beach there was a Yellow Wagtail with the Pied Wagtail and about 100 Common Scoter were in view. 

To read the recently produced Hastings Country Park Nature Reserve Biodiversity Report for 2007 (660kb) click on the image below. The document contains an updated wildlife summary for the nature reserve as well as wildlife reports for last year.