Kent Double

                                                           NEW HYTHE LAKES

                                         24th , 26th & 31st December 2024

                                                          

American Yellow Warbler.

I just pulled into the KFC in Whitstable at lunch time on Christmas eve having promised my brother lunch when i got a message from AE saying there is a F'@"£4%ing  AMERICAN YELLOW WARBLER at New Hythe !!!!!!

Thanks for letting me know so quickly AE.

Having quickly checked all information i quickly went home grabbed all my birding gear and headed straight to New Hythe , my poor brother was promised lunch and all he got was standing near a sewage works with lots of crazy birders !!!!

Needless to say it didn't take long to see this glorious looking American warbler , bright yellow with faint reddish streaks on the breast, it was constantly calling and was quite aggressive towards any Chiffchaff that dared enter the Alder trees it had made it's current new home.

It was surprisingly hard to photograph as it was mainly keeping high in the trees but i did manage some photos, here are a selection :

Bright Yellow underparts & tail.

Yellow head & underwing

Faint reddish breast streaks

Always a branch in the way.

Constantly calling.

American Yellow Warbler

Congratulations to local patch birder Glenn Honey on his tremendous well deserved find plus putting the news out so quickly.

Needless to say this is a 1st record for Kent plus a very, very welcome new species for me.

PARK AVENUE BROADSTAIRS

27th December 2024

Eurasian Scops Owl photo from Durham in 2017.

Still recovering from the excitement of the American Yellow Warbler news reached the birding community of a Eurasian Scops Owl being seen at Broadstairs cricket ground on & off for approx. 5 days !!!

So on the evening of the 27th December 2024 i joined a rather hushed crowd of birders in the hope the Scops Owl would put in an appearance.

Thankfully at 16.58 the Eurasian Scops Owl was seen in some trees near the club house, it then flew into a large Oak tree and i was able to see it through my scope.

I never managed any photos however i did enjoy watching it. 

The above photo was of a day roosting bird  digi scoped in Rythope Durham in 2017, and the one below is of another day roosting bird in Kazakhstan also in 2017.

Eurasian Scops Owl. Photo taken in Kazakhstan 2017.

The Eurasian Scops Owl is only the 3rd record for Kent.