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| 1 | 2 |  » Stats |
Members: 50,126
Threads: 82,270
Posts: 852,650
Top Poster: glsammy (15,069)
| | Welcome to our newest member, Kathy P | |  | 
15-02-2009, 10:28 PM
|  | Moderator | | Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Belvedere, Kent
Posts: 10,025
| | | Birds at Riverside Country park, Gillingham, Kent
Hi All,
Had a lovely day out today at Riverside Country Park in Gillingham. I'd never been there before but will definitely be back!
It was overcast all day and the light was quite poor so these are not amongst my best photographs but I've added five (possibly six) species to my 2009 list so I'm very happy anyway.
I arrived about 8:30 and was sitting in my car photographing this female blackbird... 
when a green woodpecker came down - new species number 1...  
Walking along the Saxon Shore Way there were good numbers of redshank on the mudflats... 
and also a few curlew... 
I sat for 5 mins on a bench on my way back and this male blackbird came within a few feet of me, giving me probably my best shot of the day...  
I grabbed a coffee in the visitor centre and photographed robin and dunnock while drinking it...     
Saw a wren there too but he was too quick for me.
I'd been told that a flock of waxwings had been seen on the road outside the park so I went out looking for them. No luck but I did see a mistle thrush - new species number 2... 
and a couple of fieldfares... 
Back out on the Medway it was new species number 3 - brent geese... 
...number 4, the world's muddiest oystercatcher...  
..and number 5, a mediterranean gull...  
The possible sixth new species for the year is this lot... 
A bit too far away to tell if they were bar-tailed or black-tailed godwits. And the picture is none too sharp so I still can't tell for sure. I'm leaning towards black-tailed but would welcome other opinions!
Dave P.
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(a.k.a. "Horizontal Dave")
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16-02-2009, 06:17 AM
|  | Commander of the Wild Empire | | Join Date: Aug 2008
Posts: 4,220
| | | Re: Birds at Riverside Country park, Gillingham, Kent
Some great shots there Dave. 
I'm absolutely no expert, but I'd guess Black-tailed Godwits - I can see no streaking and the bill looks fairly straight. 
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16-02-2009, 06:31 AM
|  | Dame Commander of the Wild Empire | | Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: North Kent
Posts: 9,724
| | | Re: Birds at Riverside Country park, Gillingham, Kent
Looks like you had a nice day. May have to pop along there this week. 
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The female of the species is more deadly than the male.:p |
16-02-2009, 07:55 AM
|  | Commander of the Wild Empire | | Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: N.Cheshire
Posts: 1,389
| | | Re: Birds at Riverside Country park, Gillingham, Kent
Some lovely images there Dave!
The Brent Geese are great aren't they?
I found this one earlier in the year! 
I think the Godwits are Black Tailed!
We've seen more Mistles than Song Thrushes this year so far.......super pics,thanks for sharing your day out! |
16-02-2009, 01:54 PM
|  | Member of the Wild Empire | | Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Chatham
Posts: 426
| | | Re: Birds at Riverside Country park, Gillingham, Kent
Ha ha
I go there nearly every weekend and just come back from there today
I to got pictures of the curlews,robins etc. Plus Redshanks and Green shanks are very common there
Its great for ducks and wading birds |
16-02-2009, 02:06 PM
|  | Knight Commander of the Wild Empire | | Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Romford, Essex
Posts: 5,355
| | | Re: Birds at Riverside Country park, Gillingham, Kent
Ah the 'other' rainham marshes, Ive spent many Friday afternoons/Monday mornings there. The redshanks can be quite confiding there. Is it a coincidence the site was featured in one of the birdwatching magazines this month?  |
16-02-2009, 02:08 PM
|  | Wild Member | | Join Date: Jan 2009
Posts: 136
| | | Re: Birds at Riverside Country park, Gillingham, Kent
They all look like Black-tailed to me (except for the Shelduck) |
16-02-2009, 10:14 PM
| | Moderator | | Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Belvedere, Kent
Posts: 10,025
| | | Re: Birds at Riverside Country park, Gillingham, Kent
Thanks everyone!
We appear to be unanimous with black-tailed godwits so it was only five new species. I'd already seen black-taileds at Crossness. Nice to see them again anyway.
Dave P.
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(a.k.a. "Horizontal Dave")
"A good man is hard to find, especially if he's hiding. In a field. With combat fatigues and a false beard." - Wilson Dixon |
16-02-2009, 10:27 PM
|  | Active Member | | Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Uplees, Faversham, Kent
Posts: 41
| | | Re: Birds at Riverside Country park, Gillingham, Kent
They will definately be Black-tailed in this part of the estuary. The Bar-wits are normally found at the eastern end of the Swale at Shellness.
Riverside is also worth visiting at high tide when large numbers of ducks and the odd R-B Merganser can be seen from Bloors Wharf. | | |
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