How Yoda lost his head

All the ingredients were in place for a good few hours at Cliffe today: baking spring sunshine, a mild south westerly breeze, the promise of migrants filtering through. And yet, for all its splendour, there was a dark side lurking to spoil my mood.

It may have been that I was spoiled by last week's adventures in Spain, where the skies were buzzing with a never-ending parade of hirundines and every step promised something new. Or perhaps my mind was clouded by the inevitable rush anybody with a passion for birds and the natural world feels during April's earliest days. Ok, so I didn't really expect a carpet of exotic migrants waiting to be discovered upon my arrival but then I guess I didn't expect to be greeted by things like this either:

Or this:

Look at these two photos, how different are they?

The fly-tipping in the top photo makes me livid. Look at it. People have a stunning nature reserve of international importance on their doorstep and this is what they think of it. This lot was dumped around by the black barn pools, a heap of garden waste and plastic rubbish, I just hope there's no troublesome seeds or plant matter in there. In what reality do some people think this is a fair and decent thing to do?

Now the second photo. I haven't walked down the track between the reserve and Cliffe village for a while, maybe since the winter. So I was surprised and  disappointed to see the old Courtshole Farm complex being developed, particularly sited as it is, just several hundred metres from the reserve boundary. Admittedly, I'd heard something was happening to it and it was in disrepair and largely only used for holding cattle in winter (as far I could tell?) but still...a shame. OK, so maybe they're converting it into flats or affordable homes for the kids who are growing up here I thought...ha, wrong! That sign reads "14 Executive Homes within a Gated Development". My stomach turned when I read that. Just what is an 'executive home' exactly? And WHY does a small, rural community in North Kent need an exclusive 'gated development' just yards from a SSSI boundary and historic church? In what reality...

So you see, I guess I was a bit distracted and I haven't even told you about the dirt biker or the people traipsing through a private field, toddler in tow, frightening all the livestock. I said there was a dark side in this post didn't I?

"Patience you must have" 

This aside, it was actually a pretty nice couple of hours at Cliffe in the sunshine. A single sub-adult Spoonbill was still present on Flamingo, while a couple of swallows and a single House Martin passed through headed north. Shoveler and Black-tailed godwits were still present in good number and at least three Sedge warblers were back on territory around Black Barns. Best of all though, were three nightingales singing loudly along the Saxon Shore Way. Always hidden, even when standing seemingly yards from them, it's great to have them back again.

Sitting out on the wall by the concrete coffins for a bit, several Mediterranean gulls drifted up river close in, cawing softly all the way. I love hearing the calls of these birds - instantly conjuring up thoughts of warm hazy days, just like their name. There were no terns to be seen but a single Harbour Porpoise was a bonus as it surfaced several times a short way off and headed down river towards the estuary. Topping off an eventful afternoon was a Black Swan on the pool at coastguard's, I had to do a double-take (!):

Mega: a totally genuine Black Swan (Cygnus atratus) Cliffe Pools, 13/4/14

After a shaky start, I think you'd agree there's plenty of reasons here not to let the dark side win...