** Good days Birding At Dungeness RSPB Reserve.**

Today was a good day to go birding and with some good birds at Dungeness today that's where I headed. After arriving and going into the centre I asked where the Smews had been seen and they said that they had been seen on Burrows Pit from Firth Hide and Makepiece Hide so that was my where I headed. After scanning the water from the First Hide I saw nothing so then I moved on, again nothing, but as luck would have it a birder told me that they saw it out in front of Christmas Dell Hide. I headed there as quickly as I could because Smew are one of my top 5 birds. When I got there I was so relieved I had seen them, the male and female SMEW.I stayed and watched them for a short while, before heading off to Denge Marsh Hide. The hide was full when I got in there because they was all looking for the same bird as me, but it wasn't showing, then a birder came in and told us all that it was over to the left and could only be seen from about 100 yards up the track through the 5 bar gate. I got there shortly after the others and there it was, probably about 200 yards out, the bird in question is a BLACK THROATED DIVER. I was pleased that I got to see it. After seeing the GREAT NORTHERN DIVER on Sunday all I need now is the Red Throated Diver for the set. There was plenty of the regular species scattered around. after leaving the reserve I went home through the lanes from Lydd towards brooklands, and a few miles on in one of the ploughed fields on the right was a large flock of winter thrushes, FIELDFARE, I estimated between 150-200. So all in all it was a very good day, lovely weather, great birds, and a good lunch at The Pilot in Dungeness. My "Bird of the Day" can be nothing but the ** SMEW **