White-rumped Sandpiper - Peter Eerdmans

Another intriguing raptor sighting this week following last week's possible Long-legged Buzzard. On the 24th a falcon with dark upper wing, a barred, almost sandy-coloured tail, powerful, long wings and a 'contrasty' underwing was seen coming off the sea at North Foreland, pointing to an Eleonora's Falcon. Unfortunately the sighting was only brief and no photos were obtained. There has only been one accepted record of Eleonora's Falcon in Kent, the widely watched individual at Worth in May 2022. A more cooperative albeit distant bird was an adult White-rumped Sandpiper discovered at Oare Marshes in the early morning of the 29th. It was still present throughout the day on the 30th. It seems likely this is a returning bird, as last year there was one from 28-30 July at Oare. Although near-annual in recent years, it remains a rare wader for Kent. 

Little Stint - Martin Casemore

Apart from the White-rumped Sandpiper, there was some other wader migration with a couple of Curlew Sandpipers (two Dungeness and one at Pegwell), two Little Stint (Cliffe and Dungeness) and five Wood Sandpipers (at Worth). Ospreys have started their return passage with two sightings this week (Dover and Conyer), while a couple of Honey Buzzards flew in off the sea at Dover and Walmer. Two juvenile Black Terns were at Dungeness RSPB from the 28th.

There was a slight pick-up in warbler migration with 80 Willow Warblers counted at Dungeness on the 28th, while there was a Pied Flycatcher at Bockhill on the 27th, a Common Redstart there the 25th, two Grasshopper Warblers also at Bockhill on the 30th, a juvenile Whinchat at North Foreland on the 28th, and another at Sandwich on the 30th.

Whinchat - John Carnell

The Bonaparte's Gull remained at Oare, while the number of Mediterranean Gulls at Pegwell increased to 3150, possibly a county record? Sea-watching was quiet.

After some investigative work, it was determined that last week's Gull-billed Tern was ringed in the nest on the north German coast on 12 June 2025. It spent most of the summer of 2025 in the northeast of the Netherlands, before turning up last week, as a 2nd calendar-year, at Dungeness.

July has turned up some good birds, what will August bring? Good luck.

Peter Eerdmans

Gull-billed Tern - ringing history 

(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)