Conyer located on the north Kent coast is a small hamlet at the head of the Conyer creek which flows into the Swale. It's the site of one of the CES sites I ringed at last summer with rich variety of warbler species and a few breeding Turtle Doves in the scrubby vegetation, comprising of Salix spp. and Buddleja which has formed on site of the old brickworks.
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| Conyer Creek, looking towards the old brickworks. |
On the other side of the creek behind the sea wall contains expanses of low lying grazing marsh, intersected with vegetated ditches. With the recent wet weather many of these fields had small pools, and it was around these that a group of 10 Shore Larks Eremophila alpestris were feeding, although I could get good views through the scope, it was way to distant for photographs.
Having arrived at high tide, many of the waders and waterfowl were roosting out on the mud as it was exposed. Large numbers of Dunlin Calidris alpina, Redshank Tringa totanus, Black-Tailed Godwit Limosa limosa, Oystercatcher Haematopus ostralegus, Teal Anas crecca and Wigeon Mareca penelope were present in the creek itself and occasionally flushed by a female Sparrowhawk Accipiter nisus. Out at the creek mouth a large flocks of Avocets Recurvirostra avosetta were roosting on a small island whilst the large numbers of Brent Geese Branta bernicla were flying up and down the Swale.
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| Saltmarsh alongside the sea wall |
Halfway along the Saxon shore way, close to where the shore larks were feeding strand line detritus and halophytic grasses were two Snow Buntings Plectrophenax nivalis. These dumpy little confiding birds, often appear on the eastern coast of the UK to feed in sand dunes and saltmarshes on the seeds of weeds and grasses which grow there.
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| Snow Bunting, Plectrophenax nivalis |
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| Snow Bunting busy feeding on seeds. |
Having sat down to watch these two feed, it didn't take them long to get within a few meters of me, making it pretty difficult to get any photographs with my 400mm lens. after half an hour in the presents of these little birds it was time to wander back along the creek to the car.
