Nine members found hazy sunshine and a cool breeze blowing from the sea at this excellent reserve. The fun began in the car park with a couple of Sedge Warblers settling into their summer quarters with raucous song and flight display; they proved to be all around the East Flood with a count of fifteen. Cetti’s Warblers and Linnets were also very vocal. From the sea wall a few waders could be seen, Redshanks, Curlews and an Oystercatcher plus a few Shelducks. An appreciable number of Mediterranean Gulls were wheeling around and mewing while at the edge of The Swale a Common Tern was patrolling. Further out the water was quiet with just a Great Crested Grebe in view but a dozen or so seals were hauled up on the opposite side.

The initial stages of the walk were uneventful with an occasional Reed Bunting and Stonechat leavening the diet of Sedge Warblers. A couple of Common Buzzards became the first raptors of the day but it was not until the East Flood came into view that the action started. There the first impression was of hundreds of Black-tailed Godwits, the great majority in handsome breeding plumage, spread all over. Among them were many Redshanks and a few dozen Avocets sweeping the flood. Waterfowl were represented mainly by Teal with the odd Shoveler, Mallard, Gadwall, Greylag and Mute Swan. Careful scanning revealed two Green Sandpipers and a Ruff among the waders. At this point panic broke out among the flocks typical of the reaction that a Peregrine produces but on this occasion the culprit was a White-tailed Eagle passing right overhead, its “barn door” wings seeming to darken the sky, an exhilarating moment. A Red Kite was near it and its size appeared diminutive in comparison.

Then it was on to the hide for lunch and more leisurely observation. Some Turnstones were roosting on a distant bank; a Common Snipe was winkled out from a small tussock; and then two Greenshanks flew in and gave close views. It remained however the ubiquitous Black-tailed Godwits that continue to catch the eye in their burnished plumage. On the final stage of the circuit a few of the commoner birds finally gave themselves up, Great Tit, Dunnock and Robin followed shortly by a Moorhen and then a single Lapwing. On the West Flood a few Little Egrets and Grey Herons were sighted and then a fine male Marsh Harrier appeared on patrol over the reeds. The walk concluded in a now bitter wind with a look at the ditches on the west side which unusually was extensively under water. There the final sighting of the day was a pair of Little Grebes bringing the species list to a satisfying 62.