A Common Tern at Rye Meads

27th August 2026

As I arrived at Rye Meads I was aware that the third brood of Kingfishers had fledged and was therefore expecting very few cars in the car park, but in the event far more than I had expected. I was therefore expecting the Draper Hide to be fairly full. I walked up the ramp and opened the door..........to am empty hide.............. with only the sound of chasing Kingfishers in my ears.

They eventually landed in the trees to the left of the hide next to the Kingfisher bank, and after a few changes of perch both flew off and were never seen again. From the flight photo you can see brown feet which indicates a juvenile, so probably one of the Kingfisher Hide youngsters.

Of the usual suspects both Heron and Little Grebe were present right in front of the hide, with the latter feeding two young.

One of the Lapwings was getting ready for a bath and was having a soak in the shallow water.

And then splash time to get those feathers wet................

.....................before the compulsory wing flap.

There were four Snipe present which, fortunately, were feeding in the open rather than hiding in the vegetation.

What magnificent birds!!

Only one Common Sandpiper today.................

.....................but five Green Sandpipers.

But the star of the show today was the single Common Tern which kept us all entertained as it spent quite a lot of its time fishing in front of the Draper Hide before it leaves on its long migraton journey in the next few days.

Here are a few shots of its fishing attempts.

And then a well-earned rest..................

.......................and a preen to look after those precious feathers that will take it on its long journey

Well another fantastic couple of hours in the Draper Hide and good to have a catch-up with Chris Gibson, and talk cameras with Douglas.