Kent Ornithological Society 
Apparent ‘Eastern’ Lesser White-throat – Tankerton – Jim Bloor
Best bird of the week was an apparent Siberian or Central Asian Lesser Whitethroat in a birder’s garden in Tankerton on 14 and 15 March. It is very difficult to be certain of the identification of the Eastern subspecies without DNA evidence, but photos do seem supportive and could even be suggestive of the Central Asian subspecies, of which only one has been recorded in Kent before. The timing also looks good, as it would be very early for our Lesser Whitethroats to return, while ‘Eastern’Lesser Whitethroats often are recorded overwintering.
As the week warmed up, some migration started to develop.
The first Garganey of the year was seen at Stodmarsh on the 15th, with numbers picking up over the week with a handfulflying past Dungeness and St Margeret, while a drake was at Dengemarsh as well on the 18th. The first Northern Wheatear and Swallow were also at Dungeness on the 20th. Several Woodlarks were seen along the coast..
Apart from the Garganey, there was decent wildfowl movement along the coast, with Scaups past Dungeness on 18th (drake) and Tankerton on the 15th (female). Also a Velvet Scooter past Swalecliffe on the 19th while a Pale-bellied Brent joined a decent sized passage of Dark-bellied Brent past Dungeness on the 19th. A Black-throated Diver flew past Dungeness as well as a group of four Black-necked Grebe and then three Slovenian Grebe a day later. A male Eider was on the North coast, including at Foreness Point on 17th.
Further highlights include a White Stork that flew over Sandwich on the 19th. A new Long-tailed Duck was discovered in the Dungeness area, a male was at Lade GPs on 13 and 14 March, while the female seems to have disappeared from New Diggins. There were still 5 Hen Harriers coming into roost at Grove Ferry and 12 Short-eared Owls at Elmley, where the 6 Spoonbills also were on show. A Snow Bunting was at Cliftonville from the 17th, with the male still at Reculver earlier in the week.
With a few more warmer days coming up, we can expect more summer migrants to return, such as Sedge Warbler or House Martin. Enjoy.
Peter Eerdmans
(Thanks to all the observers who posted their records on the KOS Sightings website, BirdGuides, eBird and/or the main Kent Birding WhatsApp groups, Thursday-to-Thursday. Apologies for any omissions. If anyone has any photos they think may be useful for the weekly, please send to me by Wednesday. All records of rarities are still subject to official confirmation by the relevant rarities committees)