August 16th 2022: Oare Marshes

It was good to meet up with Andy and some fellow SDOS members for our annual visit to Oare marshes, primarily in search of the Bonaparte's gull which has been visiting the reserve every summer since 2013.

This is one of my favourite nature reserves, in a beautiful setting with a sense of wide open skies creating a peaceful atmosphere. There are good paths around an open flood pool area and hides overlooking the river Swale.  Across the road a network of scrub and pasture is interspersed with ditches and a wider creek, giving a nice variety of habitats. The area was historically used for gunpowder production and we had a vey interesting talk on the subject at a recent Sdos meeting - a huge explosion basically put an end to the industry at this location!

We arrived fairly early, around 8.30 and scanned the berry-laden bushes, finding Common Whitethroat, Linnets, Blue Tit and Goldfinches feeding. The air was pleasantly warm and the scene was very autumnal, despite only being mid August. I noted a Sparrowhawk fly over, but it quickly disappeared from view behind a large tree. Clive then got us onto a pair of Stock Doves heading in the opposite direction.

  Moving along the road to East Flood, the recently announced drought was much in evidence; the low water levels were striking in comparison to previous visits, with much mud exposed, and checking my records for last year I noted we were then bemoaning the high water levels as there had been too much rain! Such are the vagaries of British weather. Despite the limited water coverage a sprinkling of waders were present, including Lapwing, Greenshank and Redshank. Both Swifts and Swallows were active over the marshes and we were delighted to find a Hobby hawking at speed across the water before disappearing into the distance. I do love  the fast, acrobatic flight of Hobbies!

 Low tide was around mid morning, so we headed towards the River Swale to scan the mudflats east of the slipway. the preferred location of the Bonaparte’s Gull.  With a lot of the tidal mud exposed, and many Black-headed Gulls, it was some time before we managed to locate the bird.  It’s distinguishing features of black bill, pinkish legs and distinctive eye spot were not easy to pick out against the mud and in poor light, but we all eventually enjoyed some very good views, although the grey light was not good for photography. The bird gradually crept closer, prompting Andy to go the car for his camera, but moving along the path on his return he was unable to relocate the bird, which was probably disturbed by passers by. Both Curlew and Whimbrel were also present here, and we noted the evocative seven-note call of the Whimbrel several times across the day. 

 Next we headed west towards the creek, where we found a pair of Snipe,  three Green Sandpipers and our first Teal of the autumn. The party split here, with some of us continuing on to the sluice at Dan's Dock, where we had a nice flurry of activity. A short, light shower caused the Marsh Frogs to burst into song, and we spotted several large green individuals semi-submerged just below the sluice gates. Wagtails and Pipits came down to feed, whilst Linnets and Starlings filled the bushes and an elusive but vocal Water Rail  crept briefly across a gap in the reeds. Further along the footpath some obliging Whinchats flitted regularly from ground to fence line, and on a concrete boulder just beyond,  a single Wheatear posed for some time. Over the distant copse, a Marsh Harrier soared low towards the reedbed, scattering the Wood Pigeons in its path. 

Green Sandpipers

We retraced our footsteps to join the rest of the group, and headed towards a hide looking across the River Swale, arriving just in time as the heavens opened! Some of us saw a single Grey Plover in stunning summer plumage, unfortunately disappearing from view as the deluge arrived. (We later spotted it fly over the East Flood). A few Turnstone flew in and a flock of around 40 Avocet rested on the mud, spreading out to actively feed as the rain hammered down. Redshanks were everywhere, in great numbers. As the skies cleared and visibility improved, we were able to make out a good number of Seals on a distant spit. Clive then spotted a flock of around 50 terns blown in by the poor weather, which flew over the hide, with around half a dozen birds, all Common Terns, briefly landing on the mudflat in front. The tide was coming in fast now, and as we continued our walk, row after row of Black-tailed Godwits flew over our heads, low and purposeful,  dropping down onto East Flood, a spectacular sight. We estimated around 3000 birds roosting on the flood by the time we reached the road. 

Godwits

We failed to find any Bearded Tits amongst the reeds, but Reed and Sedge Warblers were some compensation and we had good numbers of Yellow Wagtails dotted around the margins, some with bright, butter-yellow breasts, whilst the juveniles showing more muted colouration. Kevin alerted us to a flash of Kingfisher as it darted along the ditch and we had some much better sightings of Water Rail here, a total of at least five seen today, including some juveniles.  Back at the road we found six Ringed Plovers and a few Dunlin to add to our waderfest, but sadly no Curlew Sandpiper or Little Stint which we have seen in previous years. 

We set off for home around 3, hoping to avoid any rush hour traffic, our tally for the day over 60 species, and with the tern and godwit flypasts, some memorable experiences to treasure. All in all, it was a grand day out, with some good birds and excellent company.

Avocets

All photos by Kevin Midgeley.