Day 2 of a 3-day Early Winter Tour in Norfolk. After some more wintry showers overnight, we woke to freezing fog this morning. Depending on which forecast you looked at, either it was meant to be bright with sunny intervals all morning or the fog was due to lift after a couple of hours – unfortunately that was all wrong. The local news last night mentioned that, with light winds, there was a risk any fog could linger, and so it did, all day. Thankfully it lifted a little for periods and we were able to see some good birds, despite the fog.
It was a slow drive up to the coast this morning, the roads treacherous with the freezing fog and an overnight covering of snow which was now turning to slush. When we arrived at Titchwell, it was highly unusual but not a great surprise to see only two other cars already there. We had a quick look in the bushes in the overflow car park and out over the paddocks from the gates at the end, but apart from a few gulls it was quiet. At least the fog seemed to have lifted a bit, so we decided to head out onto the reserve. As we walked down along the path to the Visitor Centre, a Treecreeper landed on a tree in front of us and posed nicely.
Treecreeper – by the path
There was quite a bit of water in the ditches either side of the main path and no sign of any Water Rails there this morning as we passed. Out of the trees, we could see right to the back of the reedbed now. One Marsh Harrier was perched in the dead trees and another two came up out of the reeds and circled round. The pools and channels in the reedbed looked largely frozen, so we pressed on to the Freshmarsh.
Just before we got to Island Hide, we noticed a Goosander on the water behind the closest island. It swam round and straight towards the hide, so we decided to head down in the hope we would get a closer view. Unfortunately, by the time we got into the hide it had flown off, so we set about trying to see what else we could find. Some people in the hide told us there was a Water Rail along the edge of the reedbed, so we got the scope on it. It disappeared back into the reeds, but a little later emerged further along and then followed the edge all the way until we lost sight of it in the corner.
Water Rail – came out of the reeds
There were lots of ducks on the water – Wigeon, Teal, Gadwall, Shoveler and three Pintail. A small flock of Brent Geese were over towards the back and we noticed a small duck behind which promptly dived under the surface. A distinctive shape, we knew immediately it was a Smew, so we got the scope on it when it resurfaced. A ‘redhead’, a female or immature, we were watching it when we realised there were actually two Smew out there. After a while, they came together and we watched them catching small fish. A rare bird here these days, we put the news out and it caused quite a stir – a succession of the staff coming out to see them.
Smew – two redheads on the Freshmarsh
Back out on the main path, there were more ducks on the next compartment and a Grey Plover and a couple of Dunlin were feeding in with them. We had a better view of the Grey Plover from the path down to Parrinder Hide, before it then flew off.
Grey Plover – on the Freshmarsh
When we got into the hide, a pair of Stonechats were on the new bund, perching up on the tops of the dead thistles and dropping down to the ground to find food. We were hoping there might be a few more waders on here, given it was just after high tide, but there were only more ducks. A Marsh Harrier appeared, hovering over the reeds just to the left of the hide, before turning and heading back to the far bank.
Marsh Harrier – hovering
We had hoped that the fog might continue to lift, but it was now proving to be more stubborn. We decided to head out towards the beach anyway, and try our luck. We heard the Spotted Redshank call a couple of times as we walked out and it sounded like it was still out on the saltmarsh. We stopped to look through the waders in the channel at the far end of Volunteer Marsh – plenty of Common Redshank, some nice close Grey Plover, Ringed Plover, Dunlin and Curlew. A single Black-tailed Godwit down towards the back was the first we had seen.
The Spotted Redshank called again and this time it seemed like the sound was coming from the Tidal Pool, so we walked over the bank and scanned its favourite spots but there was no sign of it there either – another Black-tailed Godwit and a couple more Grey Plover and Common Redshanks. A Kingfisher shot across over the water and disappeared in under the bank ahead of us, but quickly flew back out and disappeared over the bank back towards Volunteer Marsh.
Further up, there were more mixed godwits and several Pintail dozing. We were going to have a quick look at them on our way to the beach, but the fog started to descend again, so we pressed on. Quite a few Reed Buntings were perched on the suaeda before the dunes and a flock of Linnets flew in and landed on the bushes by the old pill box.
The tide was going out now but had still not uncovered the mussel beds. There were lots of Bar-tailed Godwits on the beach and lots of Oystercatchers feeding along the shoreline away towards Brancaster. In with them were a few Sanderling and some little groups of Knot. A seal pup had been left behind by the tide at the top of the beach off to the east of us, but it quickly attracted the attention of several paparazzi who had walked down that way and it made its way quickly back to the water.
The fog was coming and going – at one point there was a patch of blue sky and we could see the sun through the clouds behind us. From the top of the beach, we could only see the first bit of the sea and managed to make out a couple of Goldeneye on the water towards Brancaster and a Common Scoter. We were hoping to see more of the scoter flock, so we hung on for a bit but it quickly became clear that visibility was unlikely to improve.
As we started to make our way back, a Weasel ran across the path ahead of us. Two drake Pintail had now woken up and were upending much closer to the path. A nice view, we could see that neither had yet completely regrown its long pin-tailed central tail feathers.
Pintail – now woken up
There was still no sign of the Spotted Redshank, but passing the Freshmarsh, a small group of Golden Plover flew in and landed on one of the islands so we stopped to get them in the scope. Back at the Visitor Centre, after a quick look in the shop we opted for an early lunch and a hot drink from the cafe. A Siskin called and we managed to find it in the top of the alders with the flock of Goldfinches. A Great Spotted Woodpecker flew over calling.
After lunch, we headed round to Snettisham. The fog seemed to get thicker as we got round to the Wash coast and when we got up to the outer seawall, we could barely even see any mud beyond the shore or across the pit to the other side. We walked down to Rotary Hide – a few Dunlin and Redshank were on the nearest pools and we could hear Grey Plovers calling in the mist.
There were some other people in the hide and they were looking through their scope. The first bird we got onto was the drake Long-tailed Duck in the gloom, but it dived and disappeared into the murk. The fog was thickening and thinning slightly, and during the marginally clearer moments, when we could almost see across to the other side, we kept refinding the Long-tailed Duck and got some reasonable views of it in the end.
Long-tailed Duck – in the fog
There were lots of Goldeneye on the pit too and some of the drakes were displaying to the females, throwing their heads back. We could see a few Tufted Ducks too and three drake Common Pochard appeared out of the fog.
Goldeneye – lots on the pits
The people in the hide told us they had not seen the Great Northern Diver earlier but a message came through now to say it was visible again from Shore Hide, so we set off down the path to see if we could see it. They did tell us there had been a couple of Snow Buntings down along the shore, so we scanned the gravel on the way down and found them feeding on the stones. They are always very well camouflaged, and all the more so in the mist, but they were very obliging and allowed us close views as we walked past. One Snow Bunting was paler than the other – perhaps the subspecies nivalis from Scandinavia, with the darker one an insulae from Iceland.
Snow Bunting – the paler one
Down in Shore Hide, the fog seemed even thicker that even. There were more Goldeneye and Tufted Ducks from here and a Kingfisher shot past over the water in front of the hide and disappeared into the bank a bit further up. Eventually, the Great Northern Diver appeared out of the gloom further up the pit and although it was diving continually, we eventually all got onto it. It spent a lot of its time swimming with its head held out in front of it, low to the water’s surface. It would snorkel too, with its head underwater, before diving. It disappeared back into the fog and then reappeared a little closer to the hide, where we watched it catch what appeared to be a small crab, although it was hard to see in these conditions.
Great Northern Diver – in the fog
When the Great Northern Diver disappeared back into the gloom again, we decided to make our way back. With the sun starting to go down and losing any of the limited strength it had today, the fog was definitely deepening again and the light was going. It had not been an ideal day for birding, but we had done remarkably well, given the conditions.
A week long tour to the Scottish Highlands, with visits up to the Moray and Aberdeenshire coasts, as well as the chance to catch up with a few additional birds on the way up and on the way back. If you like the sound of what we got up to, we are already planning the dates to head up to Scotland again in 2024 – you would be very welcome to join us!
Sunday 19th March
Travel day. Three of the group met in Norfolk early in the afternoon, for a flat and uneventful journey out through the Fens and then up the A1/A1(M). After a quick stop for coffee at Wetherby, we went on to Darlington where we met up with the rest of the group. We had an early booking in a pub in town for dinner – it was Mother’s Day and had obviously been busy earlier in the day, but we now had the place to ourselves and a chance to discuss plans for the next couple of days. Then it was an early night, ahead of the onward journey tomorrow, when the fun would start.
Monday 20th March
Normally we would make a very early start and head up into the Pennines first thing, but with heavy rain forecast on the moors this morning, we had a change of plan. After a bit of a lie in, we met at 6.30am and drove over to Redcar, getting round Middlesborough before the traffic got too busy. It was cloudy but dry and fairly bright here, as we parked at the far end of the esplanade and got out to scan the sea.
There were a few small groups of Common Eider off this end of the beach, but not the eider we were looking for, as well as several Velvet Scoter and a single Red-throated Diver. Further off to the north, we could see a much larger group of Eider and looking through carefully we quickly picked out the 2nd winter drake King Eider which has been spending the winter here. It was very distant from here, and hard to see as even though there was only a light swell the waves were breaking on the rocks in front of the ducks, which all then swam into the breakers and started diving.
We walked back along to the other end of the esplanade. By the time we got there, most of the Eider flock had come out of the water onto the rocks. There was no sign of the King Eider with them initially, but then we realised it was in the pool just in front, feeding mostly with its head down. Walking out across the beach to the shore, it was much closer now and we had some great views. A very smart bird and a great one to start the trip with.
King Eider – a smart 2nd winter drake
There were two or three Shag on the rocks too, and a female Long-tailed Duck appeared briefly in one of the pools which were forming between the reefs as the tide went out. A large flock of Common Scoter whirled round and landed on the sea, some distance off to the north across the bay. A selection of waders were on the rocks as well, including Oystercatchers, lots of Redshank, Turnstones and Sanderling. One or two of the latter two flew in and fed up and down on the edge of the sand in front of us.
It was time for breakfast and we had worked up a hunger with some early morning birding. There was nothing on the seafront open yet, so we drove round to Morrison’s and had a welcome hot drink and bite to eat in the cafe there, before resuming the journey north.
There had been an Alpine Swift at Bamburgh Castle on 17th and what could possibly be the same bird was reported again there this morning. It was only five miles off the A1, so we made a short diversion to see if we could catch up with it. Unfortunately there was no further sign of the swift, which had flown off inland before we arrived. We waited a while to see if it might come back, and we did see a Fulmar flying around the castle and a distant line of Whooper Swans heading north inland. Out to sea, we could see three Red-breasted Mergansers, a small group of Long-tailed Ducks with some smart drakes, another small party of Common Scoter and a couple of Razorbills out on the water and we picked up one or two Kittiwakes flying past. It was a lovely spot to stand and watch, down below the imposing castle, but we had a long journey ahead of us still, so we set off again on our way north.
It was cloudy but dry and bright in Northumberland, but the weather started to deteriorate as we got into Scotland. We stopped in Musselburgh to get some lunch, then drove down to the mouth of the Esk river and had a quick walk out to the edge of the sea. We were hoping to catch up with some more sea duck here, but it was drizzling now, and very misty out to sea. We could see lots of Goldeneye close in, but only about half a dozen Velvet Scoter were visible further out, along with a few Long-tailed Ducks. We did manage to find single of Red-necked Grebe and Slavonian Grebe, just visible on the edge of the mist when it lifted a little, and a lone Gannet resting on the sea in a line of gulls.
It was a slow drive then round Edinburgh and we carried on north through heavier rain on the final leg of the journey, up to Carrbridge, our base for the next few days. A nice hot cup of tea and biscuits were waiting for us on our arrival at the guest house and after settling in we enjoyed a delicious three course dinner.
Tuesday 21st March
We were all up early today for a short trip out before breakfast. We drove up onto the moors and parked on the edge of the road. The Black Grouse were already displaying on a small grassy hillside across the valley, nine males. Opening the windows, we could hear their bubbling calls. A lovely way to start the morning.
Black Grouse – facing off
Several of the Black Grouse were facing off in pairs, occasionally having a go at each other, darting forward and lashing out with bill and legs, but no contact was made and the posturing continued. There was patchy cloud this morning, but as the sun started to rise it got high enough that it was shining on the lek and the Black Grouse looked very smart now in the sunshine. There were one or two Curlews displaying here too and a Raven flew over kronking. A couple of Roe Deer were feeding down in the valley.
We still had some time before breakfast, so we decided to drive over to Lochindorb for a quick look. Scanning from the road on the way down, we spotted three very distant Red Grouse on the edge of the loch. We got out and got the scope on one. We could hear Golden Plover calling, and two flew high overhead just as we got back into the minibus. Further round, we found another pair of Red Grouse very close to the road this time. We watched them from the minibus creeping through the heather, occasionally raising their heads, the male with bright coral-red eyebrows.
Red Grouse – smart eyebrows!
We had been told that no divers had returned yet to the loch, but we stopped for a quick scan anyway, just in case. All we could find were lots of Goldeneye. Then it was time to head back to the guest house for breakfast.
After breakfast we headed out again. After a quick stop to refuel in the filling station in the village, we slowed as we headed back over the bridge and stopped to look at the river. A Dipper was down below, in the water. It came out onto a rock and posed for us to get a good look, before it flew off downstream.
With the Scottish Capercaillie population in freefall, perilously low now, we do not go in to the woods at dawn – we do not go looking for them, as the risk of disturbance is too high. However, we do venture into the pines later in the morning, to look for other specialities of the Caledonian Forest. So we drove on now, down to the woods at Boat of Garten. We checked the feeders by the road first, but there were just one or two Chaffinches coming in. The pool opposite is quite dry this year, but a couple of Teal were new for the trip list, with the Wigeon and Mallard, and a Mistle Thrush was feeding on the ground nearby. As we walked back towards the car park, twelve Pink-footed Geese flew over calling, and circled over the fields the other side of the road.
Walking into the woods, there were plenty of tits in the trees at first, mainly Coal Tits, plus Great Tits and one or two Blue Tits. A Goldcrest was flitting around in a tree above us and a Mistle Thrush was singing from the tops somewhere. There were more Chaffinches, and a few Siskins flew back and forth overhead calling. We walked on down a bit further, but the further we got from the road and the feeders, the fewer birds there were.
There has been lots of logging recently here, and there was a lot of recreational disturbance this morning too, people with dogs barking and mountain bikers. It is one thing trying to restrict early access to the woods for birders to try to protect Capercaillie leks from disturbance, but there were no signs anywhere suggesting recreational users should also stay out in the early mornings. There still seems to be a distinct lack of joined up planning and advice here.
Moving on, we stopped at the Golf Club on the other side of the village. There were three people in the car park looking as we pulled up, but they hadn’t seen any sign of the Waxwing this morning. We got out and started scanning and there it was, in the top of a small birch tree over beyond the tennis courts. We had a quick look at it through the scope before it flew down to a small bush and started feeding on berries.
We walked round on the road and viewed through the fence from the staff car park at first. One of the greenkeepers walked past along the path only a couple of metres from the Waxwing and it didn’t move, so we asked permission to go in ourselves. We walked round to the path and had great views now, without the fence in the way. It gobbled down lots of berries quickly, then climbed up into the middle of the bush and stopped, preening and digesting.
Waxwing – eating berries
The sky had cleared during the morning and it was nice and sunny now, with lots of patches of blue sky. It was warming up too, so we headed off to look for raptors. We drove up through one of the valleys and parked in a convenient gateway where we had a good view of the surrounding hills. When we got out, several Common Buzzards were circling up already. Perfect timing for a coffee break and a muffin while we scanned (we would not go hungry this week!).
A Kestrel appeared with the Buzzards, and then we noticed a Goshawk circling above. It started displaying, slow flapping high over the trees, before it eventually drifted off down the valley and we lost sight of it. A short while later, another Goshawk appeared, low in front of the hillside opposite this time. It disappeared behind some trees but then circled up higher shortly after and we had great views as it did so.
Goshawk – circled up
A Golden Eagle appeared high over the valley the other way now. It was dropping away from us all the time, and we eventually lost sight of it over the hills across the other side. After a while, one of the group spotted another Golden Eagle circling further up the valley. As we were trying to get it in the scope, we picked up a Peregrine flying over too! We got the scope on the Golden Eagle now, and it was joined first by a young White-tailed Eagle and then by another Golden Eagle, the three of them circling together for some time. It was great to see the shape difference between the two species side by side. Eventually, the two Golden Eagles broke off and drifted out over the valley. They were very high now, and we watched as they grappled talons a couple of times before breaking apart and disappearing off in different directions. What a great coffee break!
The RSPB reserve at Loch Garten had been closed last year when we were here for refurbishment of the Visitor Centre, but had reopened shortly after, so we were surprised to find it closed again. They are building a new ‘Welcome Hub’ and toilet block now, which was meant to be completed but works are running behind schedule apparently. There was no access along the path towards the Centre, so we stopped in the car park to check through the birds. There were no feeders up again, and all we could find in a quick look were lots of Coal Tits and Chaffinches, and a couple of Treecreepers in the trees at the back. There were lots of Common Frogs in the pool in the middle.
We needed a stop to use facilities, so we headed back into Nethy Bridge. It was time for lunch too now, so we stopped to use the picnic tables by the river in the village. Having spent lots of time in the minibus the last few days, or standing around this morning, we decided to go for a short walk along the river and back round through the village. There were lots of Chaffinches and Siskins in the trees down by the river and around the feeders in the gardens, but despite our best efforts we could not find a Brambling with them.
A little further on, a Dipper appeared ahead of us on the rocks in the river. It was busy feeding at first, diving under the water. Several times we saw it come up with caddisfly larvae, which it beat on a rock to remove the case before eating. Then it stopped feeding and started to sing from a rock in the middle. We had great views of it in the scope. When it started to feed again, we walked on and expected it to fly off back past us, but remarkably it allowed us to get right alongside it. It stopped just a few metres from us and started singing again – the sharper notes heard more clearly over the sound of the churning water all around. Wnbelievably obliging, stunning views.
Dipper – singing
Eventually the Dipper did fly back down stream behind us, so we walked on upstream and then cut back through the trees towards the road. There were more birds coming and going from the feeder in the gardens from here. We took a track into the woods, where there were several more feeders up. Again, we found lots of Coal Tits and a few Great Tits, Blue Tits and Chaffinches, but no sign of the hoped for Crested Tit. We walked on into the wood, but it was increasingly quiet away from the feeders so we decided to turn back.
We decided to try our luck at another wood nearby. As we walked up the hillside through the trees, we could hear Long-tailed Tits calling and a Red Kite appeared above the tops overhead. It was mid afternoon, and rather quiet now. We stopped to watch a Treecreeper scaling one of the pine trunks, then followed it down a side turning. We didn’t get too far before we came to a fence, so had to turn back. It was fortuitous we did, as back at the junction we heard Crossbills calling quietly high in the pines above us now.
We tried to locate them and as we shifted position three Crossbills flew out of the pines above us, two disappearing off deeper into the trees but a male landed high in one of the pine by the path. We had a quick look at it before it flew again, back across the path and lower down the hillside. We walked down and realised where it was when a pine cone was dropped form the treetops. Eventually, we spotted two flitting around high in the tree and then the male appeared briefly on a branch high above us. When it flew again, further back, we could still hear calling, then it flew again and disappeared off over the trees.
Crossbill – most likely ‘Scottish’
The taxonomic position of Crossbills is very complicated, and debate continues to rage over where the birds in Scotland fall, given there are Common Crossbills, Parrot Crossbills and ‘Scottish’ Crossbills all present at times. The flight call of these birds sounded more like Parrot/’Scottish’ and less like the sharp ‘glipping’ flight call of most Common Crossbills, but while the male looked largish billed, but the bill did not look big enough for Parrot. ‘Scottish’ Crossbill would appear to be the closest fit, but there are no diagnostic features which can be used to identify ‘Scottish’ Crossbills now.
Back down to the minibus, we still had a little time to play with before we had to be back. There had been a drake Ring-necked Duck on Loch Vaa the last few days, so we drove round there to see if we could find it. It had been a lovely sunny day up to now, but we could see grey cloud approaching. We found the path behind the cemetery car park and walked up over the bank and down to the edge of the loch, Where we quickly located the Ring-necked Duck out in the middle with several Tufted Ducks. Smart.
Ring-necked Duck – a smart drake
There were also four Goosander on here, two drakes and two redhead females. Two Little Grebes were laughing at us from the edge. It started to drizzle now, although thankfully not for long, but we decided it was time to head back in time for dinner.
Wednesday 22nd March
The weather forecast for today was not good, with a yellow wind warning in place and sleet showers expected, but we set out to make the best of it. We had a short pre-breakfast walk today – it was raining when we met outside but quickly cleared through on the wind which was already picking up. Down at the bridge, we heard a Dipper calling and looked downstream to see two together on a rock on the bend in the distance. They took off and flew straight towards us, the first continuing straight on underneath the bridge below us, while the other landed in the river briefly, then followed.
We walked across to the other side and looked across at the old bridge, to see both Dippers on the rocks here now. They were perched together, wing flicking, and then both disappeared into a cleft in the rock. We wondered whether they might be prospecting for a nest site, but when they came out again, one flew across the river and collected a bill full of nest material before they both flew off downstream again, and were lost to view round the bend.
A pair of Grey Wagtails appeared too, on the rocks below the old bridge, and both went to investigate the cleft in the rocks as well, before disappearing round the bend in the river. We set off along the riverside path, and could hear the male Grey Wagtail still singing below us.
There were lots of Greenfinches in the trees, still much commoner here than back home, and a few House Sparrows in the gardens. A Mistle Thrush was down on the grass in the paddocks and another was up on the wires beyond. Down from the wobbly bridge, a female Goosander was preening in the rocks on the corner of the river. We could see more dark clouds approaching from the west and the wind was starting to pick up, so we cut back along Station Road, pausing just to watch a Treecreeper in the birches across the road. We were almost back to the main road when it started to sleet, so heads down we hurried back to the warmth of the guest house for breakfast.
The sun came out over breakfast and we could see blue sky outside the window, but as we gathered outside after breakfast another sleet shower blew in. We were planning to have another walk in the woods first so we decided to drive down to Loch Mallachie and by the time we arrived, the skies had cleared once again. It was clearly going to be a stop start day with the showers, but we had only walked a short way into through woods when the sky went dark above the trees and the tops started to lash around in the wind. It looked like there might be a heavy shower coming, so we walked quickly back to the minibus, but it cleared through more quickly than we were expecting so we were able to resume our walk.
We had not gone far, when we heard Crossbills calling in the trees above us. They sounded more like Common Crossbills, but it was still windy and we couldn’t see where they were before they seemed to disappear back over the trees and it went quiet. There were a few Coal Tits and Chaffinches in the trees, more Siskins over, and we heard Crossbills over again further down, but otherwise it was fairly quiet in the trees this morning. No sign of our hoped for Crested Tits.
Common Toads – on the path
There were lots of Common Toads on the path as we got down towards the loch, but it was more open here and very windy. We had a quick scan over the water but could just see a single Goldeneye and a Mallard in the reeds at the back, so we continued on round the corner of the path and back into the shelter of the trees. As we walked back, there were several more Goldeneye in the more sheltered edge of Loch Garten. We got back to the minibus just in time as it started sleeting again.
Given the weather, we thought we would have another quick from the minibus to see if there were any tits back in the car park at Loch Garten while it was raining. There was even less activity than yesterday, but we put some seed out, and quickly the Chaffinches and Coal Tits came down to take advantage. A Treecreeper appeared in the trees behind again. When the rain started to ease, all the birds disappeared back into the trees so we decided to move on.
After a quick stop in Nethy Bridge again to use the facilities, we drove over to Strathdearn. At least the raptors might appreciaet the wind. It started to sleet as we drove up the A9, and continued heavily for quite a time to the point where we even started to wonder whether we might have to abandon the day, before thankfully it cleared through just as we got to the valley and the sun came out. The views were stunning now as we drove up the narrow, winding road. We could see some dots right on the top of the hillside opposite which turned out to be a herd of Red Deer.
We parked at the top of the valley and it was so windy at first we struggled to open the door on the exposed side of the minibus. We all got out in the lee of minibus (doors on both sides and a bench seat in the front a big advantage!) and scanned the surrounding hills from the shelter of the vehicle. Two Peregrines appeared along the ridge behind us, chasing each other.
We didn’t have to wait too long before a Golden Eagle appeared over the hills opposite, dropping down behind a ridge, then coming back up again, then disappearing from view once more. A Raven drifted over. Then the same or another Golden Eagle came up, drifting right across the valley to our side now and hanging in the air over the ridge back along the road. It started to come towards us, gaining a little height, and we thought it might eventually come right over our heads before a Peregrine powered up towards it from the cliffs below. A Common Buzzard was up too now, all three together in the same view. The Peregrine had a go at the Golden Eagle, diving at it a couple of times from above. The Eagle quickly decided to head back across valley.
The raptors were clearly enjoying the wind today, as we had hoped they would. There was a juvenile Peregrine along the ridge behind us pretty much throughout, playing in the wind and landing on the slope. We got it in the scope for a closer look a couple of times. Then two Merlins appeared, chasing around above the trees further up the valley, before towering up higher into the sky. We watched one gain a lot of height and then shoot off across valley before dropping down sharply behind the ridge the other side.
Peregrine – enjoying the wind
While we were enjoying all the raptor action, the wind had dropped a fraction. We had thought we might need to find somewhere more sheltered for lunch, but it was now nice enough we could stop and eat here, amid all the activity. Thankfully, we had finished eating and packed away before we could see the next bank of cloud coming over the head of the valley, so we decided to move on. We were lucky with the timing today!
We drove back down the valley as the rain blew in. There were still patches of sunshine and blue sky and some impressive rainbows, dropping down to the valley below. We thought there must be a pot of gold down there somewhere, but perhaps we had already seen our Golden Eagle gold! The Farr road is one of our favourites, bleak and open out on the high moors, stunning scenery and it was especially moody today. As we drove over the tops there was rain one side, and it even seemed like the cloud was below us and we were looking down on the weather, before we got to the blue sky and had some stunning views over the hills ahead as we dropped down the other side. The weather might be challenging but the views sure were special!
Back down to earth, we drove round to Loch Ruthven. A female Stonechat was on the fence as we got out of the minibus. It was nice enough now, but given the vagaries of the weather today we made our way quickly down along the path. We scanned the loch as we passed but couldn’t see anything on the water through the trees, although it was very choppy in the wind and there was a remarkable swell running across and there were some impressive waves breaking on the shore. We headed quickly to the shelter of hide.
Five Teal and a couple of Mallard were feeding in the sheltered corner in front of the hider and a female Goosander was dozing on a rock opposite, right over the far side. There were two Little Grebes over there too and a lone Cormorant appeared out in the middle. We sat in the hide and scanned round, but we couldn’t find any Slavonian Grebes from here, which was what we had come to try to find. Three Red Kites and two Common Buzzards were playing over the trees on the ridge on the far side, and a flock of Starlings occasionally whirled round, three Fieldfares with them.
Another squally shower blew in, so we closed the windows and hunkered down, before once again it cleared through as quickly as it had arrived. We decided to walk back now, and as we made our way along the path we scanned the loch through the trees again. There was a Slavonian Grebe now out on the water! In pretty much full summer plumage already, we hurried on to the small beach and got it in the scope. A nice view, ironically it then sailed out further down the loch to where we would have been able to see it from the hide. Still, it was a smart bird and it was mission accomplished!
Slavonian Grebe – on the way back
Back at the car park, it was sunny again now. Scanning the surrounding hills, we could see six more Red Kites over the clearfell and hillside opposite. One or two Common Buzzards circled up too and a Raven appeared over a distant hillside and started tumbling. We stopped to watch for a few minutes.
Given the apocalyptic forecast this morning, we had not only managed to survive the day but actually had a remarkably productive one. We had a bit of a drive back, and then had a little bit of time to relax before another delicious three course dinner tonight.
Thursday 23rd March
Before breakfast, we drove over to Nethy Bridge to have another go for Crested Tit. They can always be tricky after the winter, when they stop coming to feeders and retreat into the forests where they spend more time in the tops of the trees, but at this time of year we are on the cusp. It was not a particularly warm start to the year too this year (unlike 2022) and we had hoped we might still find some coming to food. It was chilly and damp as we walked down through the trees at first, the morning light not yet coming through, and perhaps not surprising there was nothing actually on the feeders. We could hear a Great Spotted Woodpecker calling, and looked up to see it perched in the very top of a pine. Another two were drumming more distantly, one either side.
Red Squirrel – above the path
We walked on along the path, to where it was a bit more open and there was a bit more light making it in. A Red Squirrel ran across in front of us, perhaps surprisingly the first we had seen, and up into a small pine, climbing right up into the top. We stood underneath watching, and it decided to make a dash for it. It ran down the line of trees beside the path, hopping from branch to branch, tree to tree, occasionally stopping and staring down.
There was still very little activity, even out in the open, although there was an annoying cloud in front of the sun. We saw one or two Coal Tits, Chaffinches, and Siskin over, as usual. Finally the early sun started to break through, and the light was now catching the tops of the trees, so we walked back in to the thicker trees. A Crossbill flew over calling. Back at the feeders, there were several Coal Tits… and there was a Crested Tit too. It looked like it might fly off initially but thankfully it stayed and we watched it for a minute or two on the feeder. Then it flew up into the trees behind and called, before it disappeared up into the tops of the pines.
Crested Tit – on the feeders
We waited for a few minutes to see whether the Crested Tit would come back in, but it didn’t. Then it was time to head back for breakfast. There were several Roe Deer in the fields. We looked over to the Cairngorms on our way back to Carrbridge and were surprised to be able to see the tops now for the first time. That wasn’t in the forecast! We stopped briefly to take some scenic photos, but food was calling.
Given the sunny morning, a change of plan so after breakfast we drove up to Cairngorm Base Station. There were several Chaffinches in the car park when we drove in, and by the time we had parked and got out they had been joined by a Snow Bunting on the wall. It dropped down onto the verge so we walked over for a closer look, just as another two Snow Buntings flew in and landed on the wall. Lovely close views. We had a quick look in the garden, but it was quiet, just a single Raven overhead and a few Meadow Pipits over the ski slope beyond.
Snow Bunting – in the car parkSnow Bunting – feeding on the bank
We had not thought we would be able to today, but the weather was so good we decided to have short walk up towards the Northern Corries. There had been fresh snow yesterday and overnight on the tops, but the lower slopes were still largely snow free. While it still looked very windy up on the top of the ridge (it had been gusting up to 109mph here yesterday!), it was more sheltered down here. We only had about an hour to play with, not long enough really to get high enough, but we walked for about half of that and then stopped to scan. There were lots of people out today, making the most of the sunshine, several groups of hikers heading up along all of the paths and we could see walkers already high on snowy ridges. Lots of disturbance. There was no sign of any movement on the slopes above us, apart from people. It was beautiful here though, and a great view.
Then we had to head back down to meet back up with a couple of the group who had stayed behind. We stopped for coffee down at the Base Station, and several of the group indulged in hot chocolate from the café, with marshmallows and topped with whipped cream. It was amazing to sit outside in the sunshine, with clear blue sky above – not what was forecast!
The plan was to head up to the Moray coast for the afternoon, so we had a long drive now up to Lossiemouth from here. We arrived in time for lunch, and ate on the edge of the harbour, looking out to sea. There were lots of Razorbills out on the water, some close in, some larger groups diving in unison. A few Common Scoter and Common Eider were further out and a couple of Gannets flew past. Two Sandwich Terns flew in over bay and past in front of us, our first of the year. We checked through all the gulls, but there was no sign of the Glaucous Gull around the harbour today. A succession of Typhoons came in low over town behind us, heading for RAF Lossiemouth, and a Peacock butterfly fluttered around the car park in the sunshine.
Common Eider – off the harbour wall
We could see lots of waders on the harbour wall distantly from here, mainly Purple Sandpipers. So after lunch, we walked round for a closer look. A Carrion x Hooded Crow hybrid was preening on the top of some crab pots, mostly black but with some grey patches. A female Eider was in the harbour between the boats and five more Eider were on the sea just off the end of the harbour wall, including several very smart drakes, so we got them in the scopes for a close up look. A summer plumaged Red-throated Diver was on the sea here too.
Down at the end of the harbour wall, we could just see some of the Purple Sandpipers on the edge above us. We climbed up the steps at the end and from the top could see an amazing number – we counted at least 120 Purple Sandpipers, together with a smaller number of Turnstones and a single Sanderling. They were mostly sleeping over high tide, but one or two were preening and occasionally there was a shuffle through the flock.
Purple Sandpiper – 1 of over 120 today
We scanned the sea and quickly found a Great Northern Diver offshore, an adult just starting to moult into breeding plumage, but there was no sign of any different gulls on the sea from here either. A large flock of Pink-footed Geese was circling over the fields distantly inland. The tide was already falling and as we came back down, the Purple Sandpipers were starting to head out to feed, flying right over the heads of those who had stayed down on the quay below. As we walked back round, a Rock Pipit was feeding on the stones just ahead of us.
Rock Pipit – on the quay
We stopped to use the loos overlooking the estuary and could see lots of gulls now starting to gather on the falling tide. While people used the facilities, we scanned through, but again could find no sign of the Glaucous Gull, or the Iceland Gull which has been seen here later in the day recently. There were still more gulls dropping in, but we had other places we needed to visit so after a good look through we had to move on.
As we drove on west along the coast, a Merlin shot low over a field beside the road. We pulled up to check a large herd of swans in some winter wheat and were not surprised to find they were 30 Whooper Swans. Surprisingly, our first Linnet of the trip was perched in a bush by the road too.
We parked in the car park at Findhorn and walked up through the dunes to the beach. It was beautiful here looking out across the Moray Firth in the sunshine, but it was flat calm this afternoon so most of the birds were very distant. There were good numbers of auks again, and we managed to find one Guillemot closer in as well as more Razorbills. The only ducks we could pick out were some very distant Common Scoter off here today, and we managed to find a lone drake Red-breasted Merganser some way off to our right, which then flew past in front of us, low over the breakers. A Harbour Porpoise broke the surface once briefly.
Red-breasted Merganser – flew past
There were lots of gulls feeding in the river mouth, but despite checking through we couldn’t see anything obviously different with them. There were lots of seals on the beach beyond the river, a mixture of Common & Grey Seals. Several Carrion x Hooded Crow hybrids were on the beach, sporting different amounts of grey, and one pure-looking Hooded Crow flew past in front of us, heading down to the river mouth.
On our way back, we had time for a quick stop in at Easter Dalziel to see if we could find the Green-winged Teal that has been lingering here. It had been here for over a week, although not reported for the last three days, but it hadn’t been reported daily during its stay anyway so we figured it could still be here. We took the small road down towards the site and found it had recently been closed off at the railway and there was no way through. At least 15 Yellowhammers were perched in the bushes at the back of the next door cattle field as we turned round.
We managed to find a way round, and located the flood where the grid reference indicted, but there was not much water here and only two Mallard. We turned down a side road to head back and found the next field down also had a flood, larger and better looking. There were lots of Teal on here, so we thought our luck might be in, but as we scanned with the scope we found they were all just Eurasian Teal. We had to head back now, to get back in time for dinner. A little further on a large flock of Pink-footed Geese were feeding in a wheat field next to the road.
It was just a short drive back down the A9 to Carrbridge, back to the guest house. It was a Scottish themed dinner tonight – haggis and neeps to start, followed by salmon. Aurora activity was high tonight so after 9pm a few of the group went out to check. There was a bit of patchy cloud but there was a striking glow in the sky behind. A little bit of green and maybe pink was just about visible with the naked eye, but it looked distinctly more impressive with a long exposure image from a camera which really brings out the colours.
Friday 24th March
It was forecast to rain this morning, so we didn’t go out for an early walk. After breakfast, we set off on the long drive up to Fraserburgh. It was raining most of the way but stopped as we got into Aberdeenshire and then started to brighten up as we approached the coast. Coming out of Banff, we could see swans over the ridge ahead and we drove underneath about thirty Whooper Swans as they headed out over the sea.
We parked by the lighthouse and got out to scan the sea. The Ross’s Gull had been seen late morning/early afternoon the last couple of days, so we had timed our visit to be around at that time, and it had already been reported flying past again much earlier today. There was no sign of it out over the sea when we arrived, just a steady stream of Kittiwakes moving, so we stood and continued to scan. It does only seem to appear sporadically, often just once a day.
Gannet – past the Head
There were lots of things to watch while we waited. There was a constant trickle of Gannets passing by, including some nice close ones right over the end of Kinnaird Head. There were lots of auks too, Razorbills and Guillemots, on the sea and flying past, and a large number of Shags. A few Fulmar skimmed low over the sea offshore too and a couple of Harbour Porpoise broke the surface briefly.
There were other birds moving offshore, these heading north on migration, particularly more Whooper Swans. After the ones at Banff earlier, we now had two more groups flying north out over the sea – twenty-eight and around forty. We also picked up five Skylarks flying north way out to sea and a Curlew too. It was a lovely place to sit and watch but we couldn’t wait all day. Our patience was rewarded a Puffin out on the water which was then joined by a second. It was already lunchtime but the decision was made to move on for lunch, so we drove west to Portsoy and down to the harbour.
Whooper Swans – lots on the move today
We ate lunch looking out over the sea from the dolphin statue, a lovely spot to stand particularly on a sunny afternoon. No White-billed Divers had been reported off the coast here yet this year, but we figured someone had to be the first and around Portsoy is often the main area to find them. We had a good scan while we ate but all we could see today were three very distant Great Northern Divers away to the west. Six smart Long-tailed Ducks were on the water closer in plus a couple of Eider and more auks.
We decided to try Cullen next. As we got out on the clifftop, a male Yellowhammer was singing in the bushes. Scanning the sea, we could see lots more divers. We eventually counted at least twenty-four Great Northern Divers, mostly rather distant, and three Red-throated Divers closer in, but we couldn’t find any other divers off here today. There were two or three Black Guillemots on the sea too, a nice addition to the trip list, but the biggest surprise was finding more Whooper Swans, this time swimming in a tight raft a couple of miles out to sea, presumably stopping to rest on their journey. They really were on the move in good numbers today.
Yellowhammer – singing on the clifftop
We had time for one last stop at Lossiemouth. We were too early for the white-winged gulls when we were there last time, as they only came back in the late afternoon yesterday. There were lots of gulls on the estuary now, but scanning from the toilet block end we couldn’t pick out anything in with them initially. There were a couple of Bar-tailed Godwits on the edge of the water opposite too, and two or three Grey Herons. It felt like our luck might be out today, particularly when news came through now that the first White-billed Diver of the spring had just been found only around 10 miles further along the coast. Unfortunately it was just too late for us to get there now, as we had to be back in Carrbridge in time for dinner. We had the right idea today, but we had just tried all the wrong places!
We just had time for a quick scan from the car park further down around the estuary and just as we had almost given up hope we picked up the adult Iceland Gull on the mud opposite. We could see its long, pure white wingtips and next to a Herring Gull it was noticeably slightly smaller. A nice late consolation prize.
Iceland Gull – a nice adult
We drove back inland and could see dark clouds ahead of us before we drove into heavy rain. It was very gloomy and wet across the moors We arrived back at the guest house with just enough time for a short break before our last dinner in Carrbridge – curry night!
Saturday 25th March
We were packing before breakfast, so there was no time for an early walk today. After breakfast, we said our goodbyes to Christine at the guesthouse and set off on our way back south. We arrived at Loch of the Lowes just as it had opened, perfect timing, but got out to the hide to discover that the pair of Ospreys had both just flown off. Thankfully, after only a short wait, the female Osprey flew back in to the nest and we had a great view through the scopes. We could see her shuffling, and on the pictures from the CCTV camera could see she was rearranging the nest.
Osprey – back on the nest
The Osprey flew again, dropping down behind the trees, but was back just a few minutes later and landed on the post now, above the CCTV camera. She perched there for some time, preening, then looking around and up to the skies, possibly looking for the male. For the first time, both the Ospreys had returned here on the same day this year, on 17th March, the female first and the male around 6 hours later, the earliest date the female has returned (the male was back on 13th last year). We had received regular updates from several other nest sites during our stay in Carrbridge, but strangely none of the other nest sites we had thought we might visit were occupied before we left.
We scanned the loch, but all we could see today were a few Goldeneye, Tufted Ducks, Teal, Mallard and Canada Geese, several Great Crested Grebe and a single Little Grebe, and lots of Black-headed Gulls. A few Sand Martins above the trees just beyond the Osprey nest, and a couple of times a much larger flock came up, presumably feeding over the loch just beyond trees.
We stopped outside to watch the feeders. There were lots of tits coming and going, particularly Coal Tits, and lots of Chaffinches. A Nuthatch and a Great Spotted Woodpecker came in and out a couple of times. Some of the group had been in the hide watching the Osprey when the Nuthatch visited, and we could still hear it calling in the trees when they came out. It then took ages to reappear, although we did see a Red Squirrel hopping agilely through the trees while we waited. Finally the Nuthatch called and flew in to the peanuts, then up into a nearby oak and we watched as it hammered a nut into the bark.
Nuthatch – eventually came in again
It was time to carry on south. We drove through drizzle on and off on the way down, but it brightened up by the time we got past Edinburgh and round to Dunbar. There had been three Alpine Swifts here for several days, only a very short distance off the A1, so we turned off and onto the access road down to Barns Ness to see if we could see them. Several cars were pulled up on the verge so we stopped and got out. We quickly located the Alpine Swifts over the trees, hawking low over the tops, back and forth. We had nice views in the scope of their white bellies and throats as they twisted and turned.
A major invasion of Alpine Swifts had taken place while we were up in Scotland, with birds overshooting on their way back north from Africa to Europe. We had missed the one at Bamburgh on our way up, so it was nice to get in on some of the action on our way back.
After watching the Alpine Swifts for a while, we continued down to the beach car park for a late lunch. There were still birds to see while we ate – a few Eider on the sea, two Red-breasted Merganser offshore, Gannets and Kittiwakes passing. Two Linnets landed on top of a gorse bush nearby. Afterwards, as we drove back to the entrance to the car park to use the loos, two Stonechats were on the fence. We could see one of the Alpine Swifts right over the road now, back where we had been standing earlier, but by the time everyone had finished using the facilities and we drove back, it had disappeared. There were only two Alpine Swifts now, still out over the trees and just a bit too distant for photos still.
We set off on our way south again. We were heading for Darlington, but we realised we still had time for one last stop on the way, if everything went to plan. The regular wintering Black Scoter in Northumberland has been elusive and difficult to see this year. After no reports for almost a month, it had been seen again two days ago at Cocklawburn and then at Stag Rocks yesterday, where it was still present this morning. Another message had come out while we were having lunch that it was till there and with the suggestion it was apparently ‘showing well’ now. The site is only a few miles off the A1, so we figured we would have a go.
We parked in the car park and walked up to the clifftop to scan the sea. A couple of Common Scoter and Long-tailed Ducks were out on the water. Someone then kindly drove up and wound down their window to tell us that the Black Scoter was still on the sea with three Common Scoter, further up, off the lighthouse, but had drifted a little north. We had a very quick walk up to make sure we got onto it before it drifted too far and became difficult to refind, but we needn’t have worried – it was still just offshore from the lighthouse.
Black Scoter – with three Commons
We have seen it several times further north off Goswick in previous winters, and the Black Scoter can often be very distant, out on the sea. But it was amazingly close now, and we had great views in the scope of its bulbous yellow bill, a perfect comparison with two drake Common Scoter in the same group with just a yellow stripe down the front of their bills, the difference very clear now. From down on the rocks below the lighthouse, it was even closer – and the yellow top of the bill stood out even through binoculars in the late afternoon sunshine. Closely related to Common Scoter, Black Scoter is a very rare visitor to the UK being more usually found in North America or NE Siberia. While the driver ran back to the car park to get the minibus, one of the group found some Purple Sandpipers on the rocks here too.
We had been lucky with the weather again today. Continuing on down to Darlington, we drove into more rain. We arrived just as it was getting dark, and had time for a quick break before we met up for our last dinner together to reminisce about the trip and say our goodbyes.
Day 3 of a 3-day Early Winter Tour today. It was a mostly rather grey and overcast day with a chilly east wind, but it stayed dry until we were on our way home at the end of another very successful day’s birding.
It was a very grey start and with a gusty east wind still we decided to start with a quick look out at the sea at Cley. There were not as many birds moving as yesterday – fewer auks, some distant lines and several closer Guillemots; a few small groups of Common Scoter flew past; one or two Gannets and a few Red-throated Divers. Were just about to move on when someone called a Great Northern Diver and we managed to pick it up heading east offshore. A nice return for our 40 minutes work.
Wigeon – by Lady Anne’s Drive
As it started to brighten up a little, we made our way along the coast to Holkham. The car park was quite busy (for a weekday in early December at least!), and it turned out there was a 5 mile fun run here this morning. Thankfully, it didn’t seem to be disturbing the birds. There were lots of Wigeon on the grazing marsh right beside Lady Anne’s Drive.
A couple of what resembled clods of earth out in the grass were actually Grey Partridges. We found an angle where we could get a clearer view and counted six together. They were busy feeding, mostly heads down, but one looked up occasionally and showed its orange face.
Grey Partridge – two of the six
Scanning the trees in the distance, out towards Decoy Wood, there were a few Marsh Harriers up, and several Common Buzzards mostly perched on the bushes. A Red Kite drifted over and a Sparrowhawk flew across. A Raven flew in towards us kronking, over Lady Anne’s Drive and disappeared off east.
Raven – flew in kronking
From the top of the Drive, we scanned down along the hedgeline to the west. There were several Blackbirds and a Jay out on the grass. Three Bullfinches were feeding on the remains of the blackberries in the hedge – two browner females and a smart pink male. They stayed out in view feeding for a while, giving us plenty of time to admire them through the scopes.
Bullfinch – in the hedge
Out onto the saltmarsh, we turned east and walked down towards the cordon. Not far along, there was a flock of Linnets, pipits and Skylarks feeding out in the vegetation not far in from the path. But we could see some rather ominous dark clouds approaching ahead so we decided to head for the Shorelarks first, just in case the weather deteriorated, and come back to the other birds later.
We were glad we did. When we arrived, the Shorelarks were in the cordon but very close to the fence. We watched as they picked around at the dead flower heads, feeding – great views, some of the best we have had of them this winter. Some were in and out of the vegetation but we eventually saw all twelve of the Shorelarks together that are currently enjoying the hospitality here. Smart birds, with their yellow faces and black masks.
Shorelark – showing well!
After a while, something spooked the Shorelarks and they took off. They flew round for a minute or so and then came back in past us, landing again in the cordon, but a bit further out now. We took that as a cue to move on.
The dark clouds had passed over so we continued on out to the beach to look at the sea. There were lots of Common Scoter offshore but the first bird we got a scope on was a Velvet Scoter. It was quite close in, but a bit further up the beach from where we were standing. Then scanning back along the shore we found more Velvet Scoters closer to us – eventually we saw eight together, but there could have been more as they were diving and kept breaking into smaller groups. Several Red-breasted Mergansers were close in, diving in the breakers too.
We found a Slavonian Grebe close in too, and then a second one a bit nearer. There were several Great Crested Grebes feeding offshore as well, but we couldn’t see anything different out here today. Turning our attention to the beach, there were a few Sanderling running about on the shore, along with one or two Oystercatchers and Bar-tailed Godwits. A large group of Cormorants were lined up on the sand bar further out, drying their wings.
As we made our way back, we stopped to look at the pipits on the saltmarsh now. There was a nice mix of Rock Pipits and Meadow Pipits, giving good side by side comparisons through the scopes, the Rock Pipits larger and swarthier. A group of Black-tailed Godwits were feeding on the saltmarsh nearby.
Black-tailed Godwits – on the saltmarsh
It was just after midday already, so we decided to stop for an early lunch. News had come through that a dowitcher had appeared at Titchwell, which would be a new bird for most of the group, and everyone was keen to try to see it. If it hung around, we could head back that way this afternoon. We stopped at the Lookout for lunch and while we were eating confirmation came through that it was a Long-billed Dowitcher, possibly the bird that was hanging around at Cley for much of last month.
So after lunch, we set off west. On the way, we made a quick stop overlooking the grazing marshes. As we got out of the minibus, we could immediately see at least 40 Russian White-fronted Geese feeding out on the grass in the near corner.
White-fronted Geese – some of the 40
A Great White Egret immediately stood out, out in the middle, but with most of the cattle taken in for the winter now we weren’t sure whether the Cattle Egrets would still be here. We could see a small group of Belted Galloways right at the back, in front of the pines, but they were behind some brambles and in some very tall vegetation. Luckily, we saw a Cattle Egret fly up and land on the back of one of the cows, just like they do with herd animals on the African savannah! It dropped down again quite quickly, but knowing they were there we continued to scan and when some of the cows moved into a clearer space, we could see at least three Cattle Egrets walking around with them now.
A Kestrel was hovering just in front as we pulled up, there were several Marsh Harriers out on the grazing marsh and several Common Buzzards on various fence posts. A Red Kite drifted over. There were hundreds of Lapwings roosting out on the grass, and when something spooked them they all took to the air together and swirled round, an impressive sight.
We didn’t linger long, as we wanted to get to Titchwell. Arriving in the car park, we headed straight out towards the Freshmarsh. Some locals were just leaving, and mentioned to us that a Long-eared Owl had just been found at Brancaster. First things first – we would go out and try to see the Long-billedDowitcher first, then maybe try for that afterwards.
The Long-billed Dowitcher had been asleep on one of the islands earlier, but had woken up and was feeding actively when we arrived. We had some good views of it through the scopes as it fed along the muddy edge of the island. Like a slightly bulky snipe, with a long straight bill slightly tweaked at the tip, although greyer and plainer with just a well-marked supercilium.
Long-billed Dowitcher – awake on the Freshmarsh
After a while the Long-billed Dowitcher flew over to the next island, where it preened for a couple of minutes on the front edge. Then it walked up onto the muddy bank and went back to sleep. We had seen it well, and we had already had a good look around Titchwell on Friday, so we decided we would move on.
Our thoughts turned back to the Long-eared Owl and we managed to get confirmation that it was still on view round at Brancaster. We parked on Beach Road this time and walked along the bank. We could see a small group on the seawall, close to where we had seen the Hume’s Warbler on Friday. They let us have a look through their scopes first and there was the Long-eared Owl lurking down in one of the sallows.
We managed to find an angle where it wasn’t too obscured and then had good views through our scopes too. It was a bit breezy out here, and it’s ‘ear’ tufts were being blown around. The Long-eared Owl had been found by someone looking for the Hume’s Warbler. Presumably fresh in from the Continent, it was roosting here before heading on inland. As with so many Long-eared Owls which arrive off the sea here, it would not be seen the following day, so we were lucky it happened to turn up when we were at Titchwell anyway this afternoon.
Long-eared Owl – a great way to end
What a great way to end a December long weekend with two excellent birds. And both completely unexpected! The light was starting to go now, a little earlier tonight – it was rather grey and we could see darker clouds approaching. It just started to spit as we got back to minibus and started to rain on and off on the drive back. Perfect timing!
Day 1 of a three day Private Winter Tour today. It was rather grey and cloudy, mostly dry although there was a little bit of misty drizzle on and off around the middle of the day. It was rather mild though, and the wind wasn’t as blustery as it has often been in recent days. We spent the day along the North Norfolk coast.
It was drizzling on our way down to Holkham, but thankfully had stopped by the time we arrived. Getting out of the minibus, we went over to scan the grazing marshes from the edge of Lady Anne’s Drive first. There were lots of Wigeon out on the grass, and a few Teal and Shoveler and a pair of Gadwall around the pools. A pair of Pintail were upending out in the middle, the drake showing off its long pin-shaped tail. Six Barnacle Geese were feeding at back, alongside several Pink-footed Geese too.
Wigeon – out on the grass
A Great White Egret was lurking in the ditch at the back, and as it finally walked out into view, at first all we could see was its head and its long yellow dagger of a bill. There was a nice selection of waders too – several Common Snipe tucked in the grass, Redshank and Curlew, a pair of Oystercatchers and a Black-tailed Godwit flew over.
A single Fieldfare was out on the grass too and a couple of Marsh Harriers were hanging in the air at the back. Further up, we found a pair of Grey Partridge on the top of the bank, above the ditch, and a single Red-legged Partridge was feeding with them. An interesting comparison of the two, side-by-side.
As walked through the pines, we came across a tit flock feeding in the trees – Long-tailed Tits and a few Blue Tits, a Coal Tit singing. Several Goldcrests were flitting around up in one of the holm oaks and a Treecreeper appeared on the trunk briefly. It disappeared out the back before everyone could see it, but we then found it again working its way up the trunk of a pine the other side of the path.
We turned west and walked out through the dunes. A large flock of Shelduck was out on the saltmarsh at back. Then we noticed several smaller birds moving in the vegetation closer to us – lots of Meadow Pipits, and one or two Rock Pipits with them, the latter darker, swarthy, dirtier and more heavily marked below with blotchier spots. There was a small flock of Linnets, and one or two Skylark in there too.
As we carried on out onto the beach, a couple of other birders strode off ahead of us out across the sand. We followed the edge of the dunes more closely and suddenly we realised there were the four Shorelarks right beside us. Very easy to walk past! We had a great view of them. Then a Meadow Pipit alarm called from the dunes behind, and the Shorelarks flew and landed further out on the beach.
Shorelark – one of the four
After a couple of minutes, the Shorelarks flew back in and landed right beside us again. Now we had a bit more time to get them in the scopes and get a closer look.
When the Shorelarks eventually flew a bit further back along the edge of the dunes, we walked out to have a look at the sea. There were a few Oystercatchers on the beach and a small group of Sanderling running up and down along the shore.
Scanning out to sea, we picked up a lone Great Northern Diver. We could see its large bill and dark half collar, until it tucked its head in and went to sleep, bobbing up and down on the waves. There were several Great Crested Grebes too, and some Common Scoter, three closer in and a small raft on the sea further back behind them. Three Red-breasted Mergansers flew past and a rather distant Red-throated Diver flew east, before one of the group picked up three more on the water.
Great Northern Diver – asleep!
We hadn’t seen any Snow Buntings out this way, so we decided to try the other side. As we walked back along the beach towards the Gap, a Ringed Plover flew in and landed on the sand in front of us. A Skylark fluttered up singing over the dunes as we passed, and we came across more Meadow Pipits and a Rock Pipit on the saltmarsh in front of the boardwalk.
We turned east now, and walked out along the edge of the saltmarsh to the cordon. As we arrived at the corner, we could see a flock of Sanderling feeding just beyond the fence a little further down. They flew up and out to the middle, and as they did so a flurry of Snow Buntings came up too. There looked to be around eighty of them and thankfully they all dropped down again.
They seemed to be working their way across towards the path out to the dunes, so we walked up along the side of the cordon. As we stood and watched the Snow Buntings feeding, they came progressively closer and closer until they got to the path where we had positioned ourselves. Then they continued out onto the path right in front of us – stunning!
Snow Bunting – came right out onto the path in front of us
The Snow Buntings crossed over to the other side of the path and then took off. They swirled round and flew over and landed on the track back towards the Gap. We had enjoyed great views so decided to walk back that way – but the Snow Buntings were quickly flushed by walkers and flew up over the pines.
We made our way back to The Lookout to use the facilities. A huge flock of Golden Plover whirled round in the air behind, before dropping back down over towards Wells. As we walked back to the minibus, a pair of Mistle Thrushes was now on the grass the other side of the Drive. We had a quick look for the White-fronted Geese from the road, but there was no sign in any of their favoured spots, so we turned round and drove back east.
We had a request to see a Little Owl, so we diverted inland and quickly found one on the roof of some barns. We stopped to look, and as we got the scopes on it we realised there was a second Little Owl tucked in under the roof just behind it.
Little Owl – one of two today
The Red-breasted Goose had been on Blakeney Freshes this morning, so we called in on our way past. There had been no update for a while though and there were no cars in the car park when we arrived, always a worrying sign. We hadn’t gone too far along the seawall when we bumped into another birder coming back who said all the geese had flown but he didn’t know which way.
It was just about time for lunch, so we decided to have a break first and the try to find the Red-breasted Goose afterwards. As we walked back to the minibus, a Cetti’s Warbler shouted from the reeds and a Marsh Harrier drifted over. As we set off towards Cley, we saw a small flock of Brent Geese heading inland up the Glaven Valley – we hoped the Red-breasted Goose had not gone with them!
The Brent Geese have been feeding at Cley too sometimes, so we had a quick drive round to check the grazing marshes where the Red-breasted Goose has been seen. There was no sign in the Eye Field nor down by Babcock Hide, where we had seen it yesterday. So we turned back to the Visitor Centre for lunch.
Just as we settled down at the picnic tables, the cloud thickened and a bit of light drizzle started falling – perfect timing! Thankfully it was not too bad and patchy – not enough to ruin our lunch. Several Avocet were out on Pat’s Pool and a Marsh Harrier drifted over, disturbing everything.
After lunch, there were still no further reports of the Red-breasted Goose. Hoping it would still be at Blakeney, we drove round to the village and walked up onto Friary Hills to scan the Freshes. We could see a flock of Brent Geese out in the middle below us, but they were mostly hidden by some reeds. A few more Brents were visible way off in the NE corner, with some Pinkfeet, but most of that flock were hidden from view too so it was impossible to say how many were with them. And the Red-breasted Goose could even have headed off inland earlier.
We were still trying to work out what the best approach would be to find the Red-breasted Goose when we got a glimpse of it behind the reeds in the flock of Brents out in the middle. At least we now knew where it was! We then spent some time getting various glimpses – it would appear behind the sparser reeds where we could just make it out, then walk out of view again. We picked out a Pale-bellied Brent in the flock too.
There was a nice bench here to rest our legs and there were a few other birds out here to see too – several Marsh Harriers including a smart pale male, a Little Egret or two. Four Greenfinches landed in a young oak tree in front of us.
We noticed thousands of Pink-footed Geese way off in the distance off Cley beach, which looked to be heading out to sea in a series of long lines. Some then came past us in several skeins a little later, calling – a wonderful sight and sound, so typical of Norfolk in winter. It was only the following day that we read that the number of geese at Cley had dropped dramatically and Pink-footed Geese were seen migrating north over Spurn – the birds we had seen were already heading north, leaving us. The spring exodus of the geese was starting!
Turning our attention back to the Brents, a small group flew up from behind the reeds and circled round before landing out in the open further back. Unfortunately the Red-breasted Goose was not with them. Then the rest of the geese went up too and this we could see the Red-breasted Goose as it took off. The flock circled a couple of times, then landed again, this time in front of the reeds where we could see them. Finally we got a proper view of the Red-breasted Goose!
Red-breasted Goose – finally came out into the open
It had taken longer than planned to see the Red-breasted Goose and the afternoon was already getting on now. As we made our way back to the minibus, some of the group got distracted by the Blakeney wildfowl collection where one of the resident captive Red-breasted Geese was now showing (we had looked on the way out but they were out of view). That one doesn’t count!
We set off west. We made another quick stop at Holkham, where we could now see the flock of White-fronted Geese distantly on the old fort at the back. We had been hoping to get to Titchwell this afternoon, but as we drove on west the light was already starting to go. There were a few waders we hadn’t seen and wouldn’t catch up with elsewhere so a quick change of plan and we diverted down to the harbour at Brancaster Staithe.
As expected, there was a nice selection of waders here – Turnstones, Grey Plovers, Bar-tailed Godwits and Oystercatchers. There were very good numbers of Ringed Plover here today – we counted over 40 out on the sandbank in the middle, and five more on the bank opposite us. There were several Dunlin too. Lots of Teal and Redshank flew in and landed down on the water higher up the channel. A steady stream of Pied Wagtails dropped in down onto a catamaran beached out in the middle of the harbour, presumably to roost. We could see lots of them perched on the decks in the scope and rails.
Brancaster Staithe
It was lovely light now, looking out across the harbour. We had another busy couple of days ahead, so we decided to to call it a day and head for home.
A single day Winter Tour in North Norfolk today. We were lucky with the weather. It was raining as we drove down to the coast, but dry by the time we met up and we could see the clouds were about to clear from the west. We had some nice bright, sunny spells during the morning, before it clouded over again during the afternoon. It was just starting to spit with rain again as we walked back to end the day. Perfect timing!
Our destination for the morning was Holkham. We parked on Lady Anne’s Drive and got out to scan the grazing marshes. There were lots of ducks – lots of Wigeon out on the grass, Teal around the pools and a few Mallard scattered around too.
We got the scopes on a couple of Greylag Geese and admired their outsize orange ‘carrot’ bills. One or two Pink-footed Geese flew over calling, but we managed to find one on the ground too – through the scope we could see the differences from the Greylags, the Pink-footed Goose being smaller, darker and with a more delicate bill, dark with pink markings. An Egyptian Goose flew over, flashing its white upperwing coverts.
Marsh Harrier – flew in over the marshes
There were a couple of Marsh Harriers over the back, and we got the scopes on one perched on a post which had green wing tags. Unfortunately it was too far away to read the code on the tags. A Common Buzzard was perched on the top of a bush on the bank too. After a while, one of the Marsh Harriers drifted over the grazing marshes towards us, flushing all the ducks, and continued out over the other side of the Drive. A Great White Egret flew over too.
There were waders out here too. We got the scope on a close Curlew, admiring its long downcurved bill. A small flock of Ruff flew in over the grass and disappeared off behind us. We managed to spot two Common Snipe hiding in the grass just behind one the pools, and they remained there motionless while we watched them.
Common Snipe – hiding in the grass
A flock of Black-tailed Godwits flew in, whirling round over the grazing marshes before dropping down on one of the pools among the Wigeon. There were lots of Lapwings out on the grass too. Two dropped down quite close to us and one proceeded to repeatedly chase after the other until it flew off – a bit of territoriality, even in the middle of winter.
Lapwing – territorial aggression
Stopping again just before the pines, we had another scan of the grazing meadows and finally managed to locate some Grey Partridge, a small covey of four feeding down below us in the grass and doing a well-camouflaged impression of the nearby dead thistles. Through the scopes we could see their orange faces and dark kidney-shaped belly patches.
Continuing on through the trees, we walked east on the edge of the saltmarsh up towards the cordon. A couple of birders walking back the other way told us that the Shorelarks were feeding out on the beach, so we took the path out through the dunes. We had only just got to the beach when we met two locals coming back who told us that the Shorelarks had flown back over the dunes. A quick scan of the beach revealed hundreds of gulls feeding on the tideline on all the shellfish washed up after the recent storms, along with Brent Geese, Oystercatchers, Turnstones and Sanderlings.
Our first priority was to find the Shorelarks this morning, so we cut back through the dunes and round on the north side of the cordon. A quick scan and we could see them down at the far end, so we continued round and got them in the scopes. There were five Shorelarks again today, creeping around in the low vegetation, we could see their bright yellow faces and black masks. Having had a good look, we continued on through the dunes again further along and back out to the beach, and set the scopes up to scan the sea out in Holkham Bay.
There were a few Great Crested Grebes on the sea and as we scanned across we picked up two Red-necked Grebes too, slightly smaller, darker with duller cheeks. One of the group picked up a Great Northern Diver and after watching that for a while, we found a second one further east and a bit further out.
Great Northern Diver – one of two in the Bay
There was a good selection of ducks offshore. First we got the scopes on some Common Eider, a mixture of females and 1st winter males, and Red-breasted Mergansers with their punk haircuts, out beyond the breakers. There were several larger rafts of Common Scoter too, mostly females and immature birds with pale cheeks and dark caps.
A small group of six Velvet Scoter were a little further out and harder to see, but with the sun now out behind us the white spots on their faces caught the sun and we could occasionally see the white in their wings when they flapped. We should strictly say ‘Velvet-type’ Scoter, as there have been claims of a possible Stejneger’s Scoter here in recent days, one of the six, the Asian cousin of our Velvet Scoter and a very similar species. This bird is meant to look a little bigger, chunkier, more angular with a heavier bill. One did seem to be a little bigger today, and seemed to be keeping slightly separate from the others, but as it woke up and preened it looked more like a 1st winter male Velvet Scoter. The birds are just too far out to see enough detail though, it will take a boat trip out to see if there is indeed something different in amongst them.
On our way back, we stopped for another look at the Shorelarks. From the south side of the cordon, the sun was behind us now and the Shorelarks looked really smart, their yellow faces glowing in the low winter light. We were just admiring them through the scopes when for no apparent reason they suddenly took off, along with a single Skylark. The Skylark dropped down again over by the dunes, but after circling round the Shorelarks flew up and over the pines behind us, possibly heading in to find some freshwater.
Shorelark – great views on the way back
When we got back to The Lookout we stopped to use the facilities. Several of the group wanted a hot drink to warm up, so we decided to stop for an early lunch. A Peregrine flew past in the distance, over towards the road, and a Red Kite was hanging in the air over Quarles Marsh. We ate out on the picnic tables today and with one eye still on the grazing marshes spotted the Great White Egret was it dropped back in out on the grass.
After lunch, we drove east. Our destination for the afternoon was to be Cley, but on the way, as the sun was shining, we took a very short diversion just off the coast road towards Wiveton. A small group of birders were standing on the verge looking across the road at the hedge the other side. We found somewhere to park and walked back to join them.
A female Blackcap was flicking around in the ivy and a flock of Long-tailed Tits came through calling. Unfortunately it started to cloud over just as we arrived and the Barred Warbler that everyone was watching for became a little more elusive. We didn’t have to wait long before it appeared on the ivy though, up near the top. But after perching briefly out on the edge, the Barred Warbler flew over the road and disappeared into one of the gardens. We would settle for a brief view and continued round to Cley.
As we walked up the East Bank, we stopped to admire some of the ducks in the sunshine. A pair of Shoveler were feeding on one of the small pools on the grazing marsh, we could see their outsize shovel-like bills when they lifted their heads out of the water. A little further up, we got the scopes on some close Teal on the near edge of the Serpentine.
Shoveler – stunning in the sunshine
A small flock of Dunlin was feeding out on the edge of Pope’s Pool, where several Cormorants were drying their wings on the islands. A Kingfisher shot past low over the reeds behind us and disappeared down into one of the ditches out of view. A huge flock of Pink-footed Geese came up off the marshes in the distance to the east of us, over towards Salthouse. Arnold’s Marsh is still very full of water, but several Little Grebes on the brackish pool the other side of the path were an addition to the day’s list.
We had seen several people out on the shingle ridge to the east as we walked out, and two people walking back now confirmed that there were still two Snow Buntings out there, our main target for the afternoon. We could see darker clouds approaching from the west, so we decided to head straight out now. As we approached their favoured spot, we saw some movement on the shingle ahead of us. A single Snow Bunting, it hunkered down in a shallow depression in the stones and we got it in the scope.
Snow Bunting – hunkered down in the shingle
The Snow Bunting was very well camouflaged and very difficult to pick up unless you knew exactly where it was, but we had a great view through the scope. A fairly dark individual, it was probably a young bird of the Icelandic race. While we were watching it, a second paler bird picked its way over the shingle towards it, from further back.
We had a quick scan of the sea from here. We picked up a couple of Red-throated Divers on the water, and got one of them in the scope, although it was diving continually and hard to keep track of. There were a few Guillemots out here too, which were a bit easier to see. A small skein of Pink-footed Geese flew over behind us calling. The wind had licked up and it was getting chilly out here with the light starting to go. We decided to head back.
It was starting to spit with rain now, but it was nearly time to call it a day anyway. We had a quick drive round between Cley and Salthouse, to see if we could find the Brent Geese anywhere while we warmed up in the minibus, but there was no sign of them either in the Eye Field or on the winter wheat east of Walsey Hills, areas which they have been favouring.
As we drove back towards Wells, it started to rain. We had been very lucky with the weather today, and it had been a great day out.
Day 3 of a three day tour today, our last day. After two days down in the Brecks, we would spend the day up on the North Norfolk coast today, looking for some of our lingering winter visitors as well as one or two early spring arrivals. It was damp and drizzly for much of the day, but it didn’t stop us getting out and seeing lots of birds.
Our destination for the morning was Holkham. There were still quite a few Wigeon by Lady Anne’s Drive, but it looks like numbers are already starting to drop now as birds which have spent the winter here start heading back to Russia. The regular very pale Common Buzzard was perched on a bush out in the middle of the grazing marshes and six Marsh Harriers were hanging in the air over the reeds the other side.
We made our way straight through the pines and out onto the saltmarsh. A large flock of pipits circled over as we descended the boardwalk and we could hear both Meadow Pipits and Rock Pipits calling. Several of the Rock Pipits landed on the edge of the saltmarsh right by the path, where we could get a closer look at them. The Rock Pipits come here from Scandinavia for the winter. We could see some of them were moulting and getting slightly pink on the breast – they can begin to look increasingly like Water Pipits at this time of year, a pitfall for the unwary.
Scandinavian Rock Pipit – one of several out on the saltmarsh
As we walked on further east, we scanned the saltmarsh for any movement. We were almost at the cordon before we found the Shorelarks, well hidden in the taller vegetation. At first we could only see one or two when they moved, but as we got closer we could see there were at least 5-6. As we stood and watched them, more and more appeared, so that by the end we had counted a minimum of 12, but it was still hard to know exactly how many were really there.
Shorelarks – still on the saltmarsh at Holkham
The Shorelarks are always one of the highlights of winter birding here on the coast, so we spent a bit of time watching them. They gradually worked their way closer to the path and we had a great look at them through the scope. Despite the grey weather, their yellow faces still really stood out when they lifted their heads. There were a few Linnets and Meadow Pipits feeding on the saltmarsh with them.
The latest forecast had been for it to be dry all morning, but at this point it started spitting with rain. It was only light, so we carried on out to the beach anyway. As we started scanning the sea, there didn’t look to be much out there today at first. There were a few Great Crested Grebes, and a lone female Common Scoter. Then one of group spotted diver quite close inshore – a Great Northern Diver. It was diving regularly and moving west steadily each time it resurfaced, but eventually we all got some good views of it between dives.
There were not many waders down on the beach today. Several Oystercatchers were standing along the shore, and two Sanderling were running in and out of the waves, at least until they were all flushed by someone walking a pack of dogs along the beach.
Making our way back to Lady Anne’s Drive, we decided to brave the drizzle and walked west along the path on the inland side of the pines. We hadn’t gone far before we heard a Chiffchaff calling in the trees. Along here, it is hard to tell whether this is a bird which has spent the winter here, or an early returning breeding bird. With the unseasonally warm weather at the end of February, Chiffchaffs have already returned very early in several places.
As we passed Salts Hole, we stopped for a quick look. A little group of Tufted Ducks was over on the edge of the reeds and one Little Grebe was still in the far corner. We could see a few geese out on the grazing meadows beyond and through the scope we could see there were several Pink-footed Geese with a pair of Greylags. Most of the Pink-footed Geese which spent the winter here have already left, on their way back north before they head back to Iceland for the breeding season, but a small number often linger here much later. There was a pair of Egyptian Geese out here too, and a Grey Heron.
A little further on, we stopped for another look out over the grazing marshes. We could see several Shelduck on the small pools out in the middle, and there were two drake Pintail in with them too, although for much of the time we could only see their elongated tail feathers sticking up as they upended. A Cetti’s Warbler sang from the reeds over in front of Washington Hide.
With the drizzle picking up a bit, we made our way quickly on to Joe Jordan Hide, to get out of the rain. It was quite busy in the hide (clearly lots of other people had the same idea to shelter in here!), but eventually we managed to sit down. A Great White Egret was feeding out on the grazing marshes off to the right of the hide.
Great White Egret – out on the grazing marshes from Joe Jordan Hide
The first Spoonbills have already started to return to the breeding colony and we quickly located two out on the marshes, but they were way off in the distance and hard to see in the mist, heads down feeding in a ditch. Thankfully a bit later on one appeared much closer, and we had a better view of it in the scope. We could see its spoon-shaped bill when it lifted its head.
Spoonbill – one of the first returning birds
A Marsh Harrier was perched in a bush out along one of the ditch lines and there were lots of Cormorants in the trees behind the old fort. Down on the pools we could see four Avocets feeding in the shallows and several Shoveler and Teal scattered around.
The pines had been fairly quiet on the way out but as we started to walk back we came across a mixed flock of tits. We had passed some swarms of gnats gathered over the path in the damp conditions earlier and now we watched as a couple of Long-tailed Tits flew out from a large bush on the verge and hovered right out over the middle of the path, trying to catch some of the gnats. They hovered for second or two before flying back into the bush but then came out to try again. Really interesting to watch, and not behaviour you see often. A Goldcrest was flitting around in the bush too.
We stopped for lunch in The Lookout café, out of the rain. After lunch, as we made our way back to the van, we could see lots of gulls swarming over the grazing marsh, and landing down on the grass. We heard the distinctive call of a Mediterranean Gull and looking through the flock could see at least four in with the Black-headed Gulls.
Our next stop was at Holme. We were hoping to see some birds on the sea here so we walked straight out to the beach, where we were sheltered from the wind by the pines. There were lots of Red-breasted Mergansers on the water and scanning through we could see a dark duck in with them. It was a Velvet Scoter. You could just make out a pale spot on its cheek, but it was not until it flew round that you could see the diagnostic white in its wings. A small group of dark-winged Common Scoter flew past just afterwards.
Otherwise, the sea here was fairly quiet, with just a few Great Crested Grebes and a single Guillemot offshore. A couple of small groups of Brent Geese flew past and more unusually we picked up a flock of six Pink-footed Geese coming in off the sea. They should really be going the other way now!
Walking through the dunes to Gore Point, it was windier out of the lee of the Firs, although at least the rain had eased off now. The tide was coming in and there were a few waders roosting on the beach, at first several small groups of Oystercatchers. Further along, out on the point, we got the scopes on a flock of Bar-tailed Godwits. There were several smaller grey Knot in with them, as well as a couple of Grey Plover and a single Dunlin. A lone Turnstone was feeding on the shoreline a bit further along.
Oystercatchers – there were a few waders roosting on the beach at Holme
The sea was noticeably more choppy on the far side of the point. Scanning the sea from the shelter of the dunes, we could see a distant group of Eiders out on the water. A closer Red-throated Diver was diving constantly but a single Great Northern Diver was a long way out too. A Gannet and a Fulmar flew past.
We had wanted to see the Long-tailed Ducks off here, but they proved rather hard to find and harder still to see. We eventually found a few in with a larger group of Red-breasted Mergansers, but they were quite distant and diving constantly. Out in the choppier water, when they did surface they looked not unlike the froth on the wave crests and they kept disappearing into the troughs.
It was already getting late now, but we drove back along the coast to Titchwell to finish the day. We wanted to at least walk out to Parrinder Hide to get a proper look at the Mediterranean Gulls, but it took some time to find a Water Rail first. We eventually found one when it walked back into the bottom of the ditch from the vegetation in the bank beyond. We got a good look at it then, as it walked along through the water.
Water Rail – eventually showed itself in the ditch
The rain may have eased but the wind had now picked up, and it was rather gusty this evening. The Marsh Harriers seemed to be enjoying it, with several up over the back of the reedbed as we walked out.
Three waders were on the pool out on Lavender Marsh. Two were the usual Common Redshanks, but as we glanced across the one asleep at the back looked rather pale. A quick look through the scope, confirmed it was slightly more silvery grey above, spotted with white, a touch lighter than the Common Redshank next to it. We could also just see tiny bit of pale supercilium, just visible where the bill was tucked into its back. It was a Spotted Redshank. They normally like to roost on the Tidal Pools, but it was perhaps a bit more sheltered on here this evening.
Spotted Redshank – asleep on Lavender March with a Common Redshank
After we had all had a look at it through the scope, the Spotted Redshank woke up briefly and flashed its distinctive longer, needle-fine bill, just in case any of the group had any lingering doubts over its identity. A Grey Plover appeared from behind the vegetation at front.
The water level on the Freshmarsh is still fairly high – good for ducks, but not so good for waders. The Avocets which were on here were roosting on one of the only exposed small islands, by the corner of the path to Parrinder Hide.
Avocets – roosting on one of the few exposed islands
As we headed straight down the path for the shelter of Parrinder Hide, we heard a Water Pipit call from the other side of the bank. When we got into the hide, we looked back along the edge of the water but there was no sign of it that way. A quick look out the other side of the hide and we found it feeding on the shore. We had a good look at it through the scope.
Having seen the closely related Rock Pipits this morning, it was interesting to contrast them with the Water Pipit this evening. The Water Pipit was noticeably whiter below, cleaner with more defined black streaks, with whiter wing bars and a whiter supercilium. It was also greyer above, not so oily olive-brown.
Water Pipit – feeding along the water’s edge beyond the hide
The fenced off Avocet Island was chock full of gulls (perhaps it should be renamed ‘Gull Island’!). We had come to see Mediterranean Gulls and there were lots here, in with Black-headed Gulls. Several appeared to be paired up already and were even still displaying. It was a good opportunity to compare the two species – the Mediterranean Gulls with a blacker, more extensive hood, heavier red bill and pure white wing tips.
Mediterranean Gull – there are lots back now in with the Black-headed Gulls
There were more gulls coming in to roost, bobbing around on the open water in the middle. As well as all the smaller gulls, we could see several Herring Gulls, Lesser Black-backed Gulls and a few Great Black-backed Gulls. We had a look at a few adults of each of the three species and talked about the main differences between them. (we decided to leave the more confusing immatures to a later lesson!).
The Marsh Harriers were gathering over the reedbed beyond to roost. More were flying in all the time – one came in over the Volunteer Marsh and straight over Avocet Island, sending all the gulls up into the air. The Marsh Harriers seemed to be playing in the wind this evening and we counted a minimum of twenty all in the air at the same time.
With all the excitement over the gulls, we had not noticed the time and it was already getting late. Unfortunately it was time to call it a day, and wrap up what had been three very successful day’s birding, despite the weather.
A Private Tour today in North Norfolk. A glorious sunny day, unseasonably warm with temperatures up to 16C by the afternoon. With lots of birds singing now, it felt like spring had sprung! But it is not set to last, so we had a good day out trying to make the most of it.
There have been lots of birds on the sea in NW Norfolk in the last few days – divers, grebes, seaduck – so we decided to start the day up there to try to see some of them. On our way west along the coast road, we stopped to admire a Barn Owl which was dozing on a post, warming itself in the early sunshine.
Barn Owl – enjoying the morning sun on a post by the road
The Barn Owl stared at us for a while, seemingly unhappy at being rudely awoken from its slumbers, then flew back across the field and landed on another post on the other side.
Our first scheduled stop of the morning was at Titchwell. As we walked down the path towards the Visitor Centre, a Chiffchaff was singing from somewhere deep in the sallows. They have started singing early this year, lulled into thinking spring is here already with all the recent warm weather. We could hear our first Mediterranean Gulls of the day flying over too.
The feeders had been taken down for refilling, so there were no birds coming in, but there was lots of chattering from high in the trees around the Visitor Centre. We heard a redpoll singing and looked up to find a Lesser Redpoll perched in the very top of one of the trees. There were quite a few redpolls here this morning and several Siskins too. They were very mobile, flying around in the trees. When a little group of redpolls came down into the bushes lower down, we picked up one or two Mealy Redpolls too.
There have been small numbers of finches on the move in the last week or so, birds starting to head back north after spending the winter further south. We would hear small numbers of Siskin in particular moving through the day.
Stopping to scan the Thornham grazing meadow, a distant Common Buzzard was down in the grass in the middle and another was even further off on a bush at the back. Looking down into the ditch below the path, a Water Rail was picking around in the leaves in the bottom. We stopped to watch it, and a second Water Rail ran across the path a bit further up, which we could then see down in the water in the bottom as we walked on.
Water Rail – one of two in the ditch this morning
A couple of Cetti’s Warblers were calling from the edges of the reedbed, but despite one being very close to the path typically it kept well hidden. A male Reed Bunting was more obliging, perched in one of the small bushes. Through the scope we could see that its black head was still partly obscured by brown fringing which it still gradually wearing of.
Several Marsh Harriers were up beyond the bank at the back, over Brancaster marsh. Then another Marsh Harrier appeared closer to us, up from the reedbed. It was a male and as it flew across we could see it was carrying a couple of pieces of reed in its talons. It dropped down again into the reeds, presumably busy building up a nesting platform.
The old pool on Thornham grazing marsh is now getting overgrown and hard to see anything, but a quick look across as we passed revealed a Redshank down on the pool at the front and a smaller birds picking round the edge nearby. It was a Water Pipit. We had a good look at it through the scope, before it worked its way further back into the vegetation and disappeared.
Water Pipit – a nice surprise on the old pool on Thornham GM
The Water Pipit in recent days has mostly been seen feeding on the cut reed by the reedbed pool on the other side of the path, but they can be very difficult to see out here. There was one out here too, this morning. But it wasn’t until the first Water Pipit flew over from the Thornham side that we could see it. It flew across and chased off the new arrival, which returned across the path. What was possibly a third Water Pipit then flew up from the back and disappeared back over the reeds.
Several Common Snipe were also well hidden, roosting in the cut reeds. There were a few ducks out at the back of the reedbed pool – Common Pochard and Tufted Ducks. A Little Grebe was hiding behind the reeds on one of the small pools just below the path. A few Wigeon were feeding out on the saltmarsh behind us.
The Water Level on the Freshmarsh is still very high, although it has started to go down a touch and there was a little more mud exposed around the tallest of the islands. The Avocets were still roosting in the deeper water, with a good number now back here. On the small island by the junction with the path to Parrinder Hide, we could just see a small group of Knot busy bathing and preening on the mud at the back. A lone Golden Plover was standing with the Lapwings on the drier mud in the middle.
Avocets – more are back now, roosting out on the Freshmarsh
Some people returning from the beach told us there were a couple of Black-throated Divers offshore, so we decided to head straight out there. We had a quick look at the Volunteer Marsh on our way past. It looked pretty empty at first, apart from a few Redshanks, until a flock of Knot appeared from out of the vegetation and whirled round before flying back out towards the beach. There were more waders along the channel at the far end, more Redshanks, several Curlews, one or two Black-tailed Godwits and a little group of six Dunlin.
With the tide coming in, more waders were roosting on the non-tidal ‘Tidal Pools’. The water level has dropped here a little in the warm weather and there is a bit more space for them on here at the moment. There were several more little groups of Knot, with a few Bar-tailed Godwits and Grey Plover standing with them. A few diminutive Dunlin were running round the mud next to them.
By the time we got out to the beach, the Black-throated Divers had drifted east towards Scolt and further out. It was also very hazy offshore, but we managed to get one of the divers in the scope and get a good look at it – we could see the distinctive white flank patch. Several Great Crested Grebes and a single Razorbill were closer in, but everything else was rather distant. There were a few Red-breasted Mergansers and Goldeneye and three Eider flew past in the distance.
High tide was not until midday today, so we decided to make our way slowly back and head round to Holme to see if there was any more to see on the sea there. We called in at Parrinder Hide to admire the Mediterranean Gulls. Numbers are growing steadily now and it will be interesting to see how many pairs breed in 2019, after the big increase in pairs last year. We could see several pairs displaying in with the more numerous Black-headed Gulls on the fenced off Avocet Island, and we got a couple in the scope to look at the differences between the two species.
Mediterranean Gulls – displaying on Avocet Island in with the Black-headed Gulls
There were a few ducks still on the Freshmarsh. A good number of Teal were sleeping along the edge of the bank either side of the hide. Several pairs of Gadwall were roosting on the smaller islands along with a few Shoveler.
As we came out of the hide, we could hear a Marsh Harrier calling high above. We could just see it way up in the blue sky. It was flapping steadily and calling at first, but as it got back over towards the reedbed it started to tumble and twist, skydancing. A couple of Common Buzzards appeared in the sky too, circling over the path before drifting off west, possibly birds on the move.
We cut across by Meadow Trail, where there was no sign of the Woodcock now, round to Patsy’s Reedbed. There were not so many ducks on here today – just a few Gadwall, Common Pochard and Tufted Duck. Several Common Snipe were hiding in the cut reeds along the edge. Two or three Marsh Harrier circled up over the reedbed, and one drifted closer over the back of the pool.
Marsh Harrier – circled over the back of Patsy’s Reedbed
The highlight here though was the Bearded Tit. We could hear two birds pinging, one in the reeds in front of the right of the viewpoint and a second back on the edge of the reeds on the left of the pool. That second Bearded Tit worked its way closer along the edge of the pool and then perched up for a few seconds in full view – a smart male with powder blue-grey head black moustache. It zipped across the open water and disappeared into the reeds where the first bird had been calling, at which point both then went quiet.
Back to the Visitor Centre and after stopping to get a quick cup of tea, we headed round to Holme. It was lunchtime now, so we walked out to the beach with our food and scanned the sea while we ate. A Red Kite circled over the pines and drifted out over the beach, perhaps another raptor on the move taking advantage of the warm weather.
There were more birds on the sea off The Firs, but it was very hazy here too. The highlight was a Red-necked Grebe, which at one point swam up to join a small group of Great Crested Grebes, giving us a great comparison. There were lots more Red-breasted Mergansers off here and several more Eiders too. We still hadn’t found the Long-tailed Ducks, so once we had finished eating we decided to walk up through the dunes to Gore Point to try our luck there.
Another Marsh Harrier was calling from high over the grazing marshes, and we looked across to see several geese out on the grass. They were mostly Greylags but there were a small number of Pink-footed Geese still here too, smaller, darker-headed and darker-billed. Most of the winter’s Pink-footed Geese have already departed on their way back north, but a few are still lingering along the coast. The Brent Geese stay here a little longer and there was a tight flock out on the grazing marshes and several smaller groups flying in and out from the beach.
Brent Geese – flying past as we walked up to Gore Point
There were a lot more birds on the sea off Gore Point, and it didn’t take long to find the Long-tailed Ducks. They were diving regularly and hard to count, but eventually we got to a total of 21 together. The long tails of the drakes were hard to see when they were diving but when they stopped a couple of the drakes appeared to be displaying, swimming after a female with their tails cocked in the air.
There were even more Red-breasted Mergansers here – there seemed to be a very good number of them today, though they were too spread out to count easily. A distant Velvet Scoter appeared too briefly, but disappeared again when we took our eyes off it. A single Great Northern Diver was very distant, but a closer Slavonian Grebe then appeared. A Fulmar flew past low over the water. Non-avian interest included a Harbour Porpoise which rested at the surface for a few seconds before diving again.
Having walked up to Gore Point, we were a little later than planned leaving Holme which meant we could only enjoy a brief visit to Holkham on our way back east. There were lots of Wigeon still out on the grazing marshes by Lady Anne’s Drive as we parked, but not so many geese here now.
Out through the pines, we walked east on the edge of the saltmarsh. As we got closer to the cordon, we could see lots of pipits out in vegetation. A closer look revealed they were a mixture of Scandinavian Rock Pipits and Meadow Pipits. It was interesting to compare the two side by side, and also to compare and contrast the Rock Pipits with the closely related Water Pipit which we had seen earlier. There were a few Skylarks here too and one or two were singing in the sunshine.
There were a few people watching the Shorelarks already. They were quite a long way back in the taller vegetation before the cordon again, and a couple of people couldn’t resist the temptation to walk out onto the saltmarsh to get closer. We stood on the path and admired them through the scope. It was lovely afternoon light now and their bright yellow faces glowed in the sunshine when they lifted their heads.
Shorelarks – still out on the saltmarsh
The best strategy with the Shorelarks is to wait and let them come to you, and we could see they were gradually working their way towards the path further along. We walked up and watched them, busily picking around and creeping through the vegetation. We carried on a little further to see if the Dartford Warbler was still around, despite the fact it has not been reported here for a week or two. There was no sign of it and no sign of the Stonechat which has previously helped to tempt it out of the dense buckthorn, so we didn’t linger here.
Shorelarks – great views when they worked their way closer to the path
When we returned to the Shorelarks, they were very close to the path now and walking very slowly we were able to position ourselves without disturbing them. It was a great view of them from here. We tried to count them – there were at least 10 in the closer group, but there were still some further back on the saltmarsh which were mostly hidden. We still had one last thing we wanted to try to do today, so we eventually had to tear ourselves away
Continuing on along the coast, we parked and made our way down a track towards the saltmarsh. A male Marsh Harrier was still out hunting and crossed the track ahead of us. A few Chaffinches and tits flew in and out of the hedges ahead of us. We could hear a couple of Yellowhammers singing and had nice views of one of the males perched in the top of the hedge, bright yellow in the evening sun.
Yellowhammer – one of two males singing in the hedge
As we got down to the edge of the saltmarsh, a Barn Owl flew past across the grass in front of us. A nice start! A Peregrine was perched out on one of the sandbanks in the distance, but it was a long way off and little more than a blob in the misty haze even through the scope. A Marsh Harrier was quartering the back of the saltmarsh and a couple of late Common Buzzards circled over the edge of the field behind us calling.
Then a Hen Harrier appeared, a ringtail, flying in across the back of the saltmarsh. It was a long way off, but through the scope we could see the white square at the base of its tail. Shortly after, a second ringtail flew in a bit closer. It landed down in the vegetation for a few minutes and when it flew up again it came across and flushed the first Hen Harrier from where it was hiding. We saw the two of them several times over the next 15 minutes or so.
We really wanted to see a Merlin here, but they were a bit elusive this evening. Eventually the one other person down here with us spotted one, right at the back of the saltmarsh, perched on the top of a small bush. It was a long way off, but we could see what it was through the scope.
That was a great way to end, so with the light starting to go now we walked back up the track. There were loads of Brown Hares out in the fields here now. We stopped to listen to a couple of Grey Partridge calling from the next field over, which were then accompanied by a Red-legged Partridge calling too. Then it was time to head for home.
A Private Tour in North Norfolk today. It was to be a different day to normal, as we were planning to try to catch up with a selection of the scarcer winter visitors along the coast, as well as aiming to see as many different species as possible. We would need to cover quite a bit of ground, a bit of a whistle-stop tour of North Norfolk. After a grey start, it brightened up for a time during the morning, though it was rather breezy all day. We were forecast rain in the afternoon, and it arrived a bit earlier than forecast, but it didn’t stop us having a great – and very successful – day out.
It was an early start. As we drove up towards the coast, it was just getting light. We stopped off on the way, just in time to catch a Barn Owl out hunting still, before it went in to roost. An over-wintering Chiffchaff was calling from some trees nearby and the first Pink-footed Geese flew over, heading inland to feed.
Barn Owl – one of the first birds we caught up with, early this morning
At our next stop, as we walked out beside the grazing marshes, the first bird we saw was another Barn Owl out hunting. It flew round over the field, disappeared over the bank, then came back again and did a couple more circuits before landing down in the grass. It stayed there for a minute, looking round, before flying off round the trees beyond. It was still early and rather cold here, and there didn’t seem to be many other birds awake yet. A Marsh Harrier quartered the grazing marshes.
We looped round to Cley and headed down to the beach. There has been a large flock of scoter on the sea here in recent days, but there was no sign of them this morning. While we were scanning, we noticed a flock of small birds fly up from the beach away to the east. Snow Buntings. We walked down along the shingle for a closer look.
The Snow Buntings were very flighty, flying up well before we got anywhere near, and heading further down the beach. Thankfully, as we got to where they had been feeding, they flew back in and landed on the shingle right in front of us. They were remarkably well camouflaged against the stones, but they were really close so we got a good really look at them. We counted at least 70 of them in the flock here today, although it was hard to get an accurate figure as they wouldn’t stop moving!
Snow Buntings – very well camouflaged on the shingle
While we were walking out for the Snow Buntings, we noticed a couple of gulls on the beach beyond. One was rather pale, and through the scope we could see it was the juvenile Glaucous Gull which has been hanging around here for a few days now. It has been feeding on dead seals washed up on the beach in last week’s storms, but this morning it was loafing. When we got down the beach, it was lying down on the beach, dozing. Still, we could see its very pale wing tips, much paler than the rest of the bird.
Glaucous Gull – the juvenile was dozing on the beach first thing this morning
Looking out across North Scrape, there were several Shelducks scattered around the water. A small group of ducks closer to the front were all Pintail, busy upending in the shallows. As we turned to walk back, several groups of Brent Geese flew in, from the direction of the harbour where they had presumably roosted last night.
We stopped to have another scan of the sea when we got back to the beach car park. There was still no sign of the scoter flock, but we did pick up a Red-throated Diver on the water just offshore. A Guillemot flying past was a nice bonus too.
It was a very successful stop at Cley, but we had a busy day ahead and no time to explore the rest of the reserve today, so we moved on. We headed inland again next, to check out some farm buildings where there are sometimes Little Owls. It didn’t feel like a particularly good day to be looking for them – given the grey skies and wind – and they have not been very active recently anyway, but we thought we would have a quick look. Our luck was in. The first place we stopped, we spotted a Little Owl. It had found a sheltered spot, out of the wind, in the window of an old barn.
We moved on again, heading back across and down to the coast at Holkham. As we drove up along Lady Anne’s Drive, we could see more Pink-footed Geese out on the grazing marshes. There were lots of Wigeon out on the grass too, and a scattering of Teal around the pools.
Parking at the north end of the drive, we could see a large flock of Brent Geese feeding in the field next door. Most of them are Dark-bellied Brents, the regular form here which breeds in Siberia and spends the winter along the coast here. Looking through them carefully, we found one which was noticeably paler below, brighter white on the flanks and round under the belly. It was a Pale-bellied Brent, a scarce visitor here.
There was also a darker goose with them, with a more striking white collar than the others – one of the regular Black Brant hybrids, the result of a past pairing between a Black Brant (the third form of Brent Goose, which normally winters along the Pacific coasts) and one of our Dark-bellied Brents. They are regular here, with as many as three in the Wells / Holkham area, returning to the same fields each winter. A pitfall for the unwary, they are often misidentified as pure Black Brants.
Black Brant hybrid – one of the regular birds, with the Brents by the Drive
A careful scan around the field produced a Grey Partridge, over towards the back. We could see its orange face and the distinctive dark kidney mark on its belly through the scope. We were heading out for the beach, so we cut through the trees, which were quiet today.
Since Christmas, the Shorelarks have been more elusive and spend a lot of their time feeding in the taller saltmarsh vegetation where they can be hard to see. Thankfully, as we walked out towards the cordon, someone had already found them and a small group of people had gathered to watch them.
The Shorelarks were only a few metres out from the path, but were still very difficult to see, creeping around in the vegetation. Thankfully, one stopped to preen on a little tussock and we were able quickly to get it in the scope. We could see its bright yellow face and distinctive black mask. Once we had found one, we could see there were more around it. Probably there were all 26 here, but we could see no more then 3-4 at any time and at times it was hard to see any at all!
Shorelark – hard to see in the taller vegetation on the saltmarsh
Continuing on to the cordon, a flock of small birds flew up from the edge of the sandy path ahead of us, and landed back down again. More Snow Buntings. There were eighteen here now (they were joined by another two when we walked back), the flock having declined since Christmas as some of the birds seem to have moved on. They are very obliging though, and let us walk right past them without flying off.
Snow Buntings – another 20 were at Holkham today
The sea at Holkham has been quiet in recent days, but we thought we would try our luck here, as we were doing so well. There were several Cormorants out on the sandbar just offshore, drying their wings. A few Oystercatchers were out there too, and a small flock of Sanderling whirled round and landed in with them.
Having set up the scope, we found it happened to be pointing right at a small party of Red-breasted Mergansers which were bobbing about on the water in front of the sandbar. Otherwise, the sea looked pretty empty on our first scan – just a single Common Scoter offshore.
On our next scan across, we spotted a diver quite close in, behind the breakers. We assumed it would be one of the two Great Northern Divers which we have seen here regularly in the last couple of weeks, but when it surfaced again from behind the waves we realised it was actually a Black-throated Diver. We could see the distinctive white patch on the rear flanks. A good bird to see here, the rarest of the three regular divers in Norfolk. Further down the beach, we then found a Great Northern Diver just offshore too. A three diver day – a rare treat indeed in this part of the world!
Back at the car, we made our way on west. We could see a lot of geese in one of the fields by the road, more than usual, so we pulled into a conveniently placed layby to check them out. A quick scan with binoculars revealed there were several Russian White-fronted Geese in with the regular Greylags and Egyptian Geese. Unfortunately, just at that moment a Marsh Harrier drifted across. The geese put their heads up and, as the harrier began to circle over them, they were off.
Russian White-fronted Geese – flushed by a Marsh Harrier as we pulled up
As we quickly got out of the car, we realised there were more White-fronted Geese out here – probably at least 120 in total. We watched as they all disappeared off over the grazing marshes towards the pines. The one thing we failed to find here was a Great White Egret, but rather than linger we figured we could have another quick look on our way back later.
A quick diversion down to the harbour at Brancaster Staithe added Black-tailed Godwit and Bar-tailed Godwit to the day’s list, as well as Little Egret. But there didn’t seem to be anything much else here, so we continued on to our next destination, Titchwell.
The feeders in front of the Visitor Centre were well-stocked but rather unusually devoid of birds when we arrived. There were a few Chaffinches, Goldfinches and a single Greenfinch on the feeders the other side, as well as Blue Tits and Great Tits for the list. We headed straight out onto the reserve, and a quick look in the ditch by the main path as we passed quickly revealed a Water Rail lurking in the water in the bottom.
Water Rail – lurking in the ditch by the main path
The sun was out as we walked along the path by the reedbed. It almost felt for a moment as if the forecast of rain later might be too pessimistic. The reedbed pool produced Gadwall and Tufted Duck, and we could see a single Grey Plover and a Curlew on Lavendar Marsh, but was otherwise fairly quiet, so we continued out to Parrinder Hide.
The Freshmarsh is very full of water at the moment, so there are not many places for waders here currently. There were a few Lapwings and a little group of Dunlin on the small remaining muddy island by the junction to the hide. Scanning through the ducks on the bigger, drier fenced-off island we were struck by the lack of Golden Plovers today – they must all have been feeding in the fields inland. Well, almost all, as we eventually found just a single one pretending to be a Wigeon.
There has been a Water Pipit regularly on this island, but it can be very elusive in the vegetation. Thankfully today, we found it pretty quickly, feeding on the spit on the front edge.
Common Redshank – on Volunteer Marsh as we passed
With not much else on here, we decided to head straight out to the beach. Apart from a few Redshanks and a couple of Grey Plover, there wasn’t much to see on Volunteer Marsh either. The now non-tidal ‘Tidal Pools’ are very full of water after last weeks high tides, which means there is very little island space left for roosting waders. There had apparently been some Knot on here earlier, but all we could find now was Oystercatchers and Bar-tailed Godwits, along with a small number of Dunlin and a couple more Grey Plovers.
The sea has been very productive at Titchwell in recent weeks and was one of the main reasons for coming here today, but when we got to the dunes one of the reserve volunteers was just leaving and told us there wasn’t much out there. He wasn’t wrong. All we could see on the sea was a single Common Scoter. We could see some cloud building from the west, and it started to spit with rain, so we decided to cut our losses. On the walk back to the car, the raft of Common Pochard and Tufted Duck which hadn’t been on the Freshmarsh on our way out had now reappeared.
We did a quick loop inland via Choseley on our way to Thornham, but the hedges along the side of the road here were quiet again, as they had been at the weekend. We decided to stop for lunch at Thornham Harbour and try for the Twite. While we were eating, the Twite first flew up and landed on the fence by the old sluice gate, then flew in over the saltmarsh and over to the coal barn, where they landed on the roof. After a couple of minutes they flew back in past us and landed down by the puddles in the car park for a drink, where we finally got a good look at them.
Twite – flew in and landed in the car park while we were having lunch
After lunch, we headed round to Holme. As we drove down the track towards the Firs, we could see a photographer with a long lens pointing it into one of the gardens, his car abandoned in the middle of the road with the door still open. As we passed, we looked across to see what he was trying to photograph and saw a Barn Owl on a pile of brash in the back garden. A couple of Mistle Thrushes were in one of the trees on the other side of the road.
When the seaduck are not at Titchwell, Holme can be a good place to look instead. As we got down to the beach, there didn’t seem to be much offshore at first, apart from a trawler being followed by a huge mob of hungry gulls. As we scanned across, we first found a few Great Crested Grebes out on the water. Then we picked up some Eider a bit further offshore, which helpfully started to fly in much closer after the trawler had passed, lots of females, several 1st winter drakes and one or two very smart adult drakes.
A paler bird caught the light a bit further out, on the sea away to the east. It didn’t look like a gull and when it surfaced again from behind the waves we could see it was a drake Long-tailed Duck, one of the birds we were hoping to see today.
There were more waders on the beach here, over towards Thornham Harbour, with a small group of Knot in with the Grey Plover and Dunlin. It had brightened up again while we were at Holme, but now we could see some very dark clouds heading our way. We got back to the car, just as it started to rain.
Our next destination was Snettisham. As we got out onto the seawall, the tide was well out. There was a big flock of Golden Plover out on the mud, and a large huddle of Oystercatchers on the beach away to the north. More waders scattered liberally around, mostly Bar-tailed Godwit, Grey Plover and Dunlin. But it was raining hard now and windy and exposed up here, so we couldn’t spend long standing and scanning without risking getting very wet.
We had come here mainly to try to see the Smew which has been at Snettisham on and off for several weeks now. It can disappear at times, but thankfully today it was on the first pit just south of the cross bank, diving with three drake Goldeneye. We had a quick look at it – it was a bit more sheltered on the inland side of the seawall – and then continued on down towards the hide.
Smew – still at Snettisham on one of the pits today
The Short-eared Owl, which had gone missing at the weekend, was apparently back under its usual bramble bush yesterday, so we made our way round to see if we could see it. Sure enough, there it was. It looked a bit bedraggled in the rain, and we were in danger of becoming the same, so with our mission here accomplished we made a swift retreat. Still, it meant we had racked up three different owls on our travels today.
Short-eared Owl – back under its usual bramble bush in the rain
Back in the car, we made our way back east inland. We made a quick stop by a field with a strip planted with seed mix. We were looking mainly for Yellowhammers, and could see lots of birds in the hedge right at the back. They were mainly Reed Buntings, but as we scanned through them we found several Yellowhammers in with them. Even in the gloomy conditions, the bright yellow males really stood out.
Then we spotted a Tree Sparrow too. It dropped straight down out of sight, but as we scanned back we found a second Tree Sparrow a bit further back which stayed put until we all got a look at it. We could see the black spot on its white cheek. Not a great view in the driving rain, but a real bonus and not one we were expecting to get today.
There were a few common farmland birds which we had missed on our way out, so we had a look to see if we could find them on the way back, cutting across back to the coast road at Holkham. But it was a bit of a struggle to find much in the rain now. A quick stop back at Holkham was more productive though. Having drawn a blank on Great White Egret this morning, we found four together out on the grazing marshes this afternoon. For what was not that long ago a rarity in the UK, four together is quite a sight (well, away from Somerset at least)!
We had planned to finish the day at one of the raptor roosts, but when we got there the conditions were really dreadful. It was getting dark, but the driving rain meant visibility was much worse than it should have otherwise been. We headed for shelter and were told by the two people already there that they had just seen a male Hen Harrier land out on the marshes. Unfortunately they couldn’t find it again now – they couldn’t even find the post it was next to at first!
Thankfully, as we scanned across trying to find it, we spotted a harrier fly up at the back of the saltmarsh. It was not the male, but it was a ringtail Hen Harrier. We could see the flash of the white square at the base of its tail. It landed again and we could just make it out, perched on the ground.
That was more than we thought we would see, given the conditions, so we decided to call it a day. When we got back to the warm and dry, we tallied up the day’s list. 100 species! Not bad at all for a mid-winter day, and even more so given the conditions this afternoon. It just goes to show…
Day 1 of a two day Private Tour in North Norfolk today. We were lucky with the weather today – dry with some bright spells and even some blue sky at times, albeit with a rather fresh southerly wind and cloudier in the afternoon.
Our first destination for the day was Holkham. As we drove up along Lady Anne’s Drive, a pair of Egyptian Geese were out on the grass in one of the fields and we could see several Teal and a larger group of Wigeon around the edges of the pools.
As we got out of the car, we could hear lots of Pink-footed Geese calling. As it is full moon in a couple of days time, they had possibly been feeding inland overnight rather than roosting here and were therefore in no hurry to head out to the fields again this morning.
The Pink-footed Geese were rather jumpy this morning. Something disturbed them, although we couldn’t see what it was, and about 10,000 birds took off and filled the skies. It was an impressive sight, and sound. A small number flew off over our heads, but most settled straight back down on the grass. A little group landed much closer and we got them in the scope. We could see their pink-legs and feet in the short grass, glowing in the morning sunlight, as well as their small, dark bills with a narrow band of pink.
Pink-footed Geese – there were thousands in the fields still this morning
A large white bird came up out of the reeds in the distance, in front of Washington Hide. A Great White Egret, it circled round but quickly dropped back down again behind the line of sallows. A very pale buzzard flew over, flashing a white base to the tail as it disappeared off towards the Park, but it was just the regular pale Common Buzzard which can usually be found hanging around here, rather than something rarer.
As we made our way up to the pines, a big flock of Lapwings flew up from the grazing marshes over towards Wells. There were lots Curlews out here too, on the fields beyond The Lookout café, although it is rather hard to see past the new building! Walking along the boardwalk through the trees, we flushed several Jays from the ground which flew up into the pines.
Out on the saltmarsh the other side, a small group of Brent Geese were feeding in the short vegetation. We stopped to look at them, all the regular Dark-bellied Brent Geese, here for the winter from their breeding grounds in Siberia. We could see a good number of stripy-backed juveniles in with the adults, suggesting it was a better breeding season in 2018 than it had been last year.
We walked east on the path on the edge of the saltmarsh. As the new cordoned off area came into view, we spotted a large flock of small birds whirling around out in the middle. They were Snow Buntings, we could see the white flashing in their wings as they turned, at least 60 of them. They landed back down on the open sand at the far end of the cordon, so we made our way over for a closer look.
When we got to the fence, we noticed some other birds moving about on the edge of the vegetation out in the middle, the Shorelarks, just what we were hoping to see here today. They were very well camouflaged, and hard to see until they moved, but through the scope we could see their yellow faces and black bandit masks. Smart birds!
Shorelarks – there were at least 7 already out on the saltmarsh when we arrived
There were at least seven Shorelarks already here, possibly more hiding in the vegetation beyond. Scarce winter visitors here from Scandinavia, this is one of the best places in the country to see them.
The Snow Buntings were very flighty, as usual, and the next thing we knew they flew back over and landed on the sandy path ahead of us. They were feeding along the edge of the dunes, on the tideline, presumably looking for seedheads washed up from the saltmarsh. It looked like they might come straight past us, but then they were off again.
Once we had finished admiring the Shorelarks, we set off towards the beach. The Snow Buntings had landed again on the sand at the far end of the cordon and seemed completely unfazed by us walking past. We could see a variety of different shades, some much paler, whiter birds, some browner – a diverse mixture of ages and sexes, as well as birds from both the Scandinavian and Icelandic races.
Snow Bunting – just part of the big flock at Holkham at the moment
The tide was out, which meant there was quite a bit of beach between us and the sea. There were lots of gulls and Oystercatchers down by the sea, and several Cormorants drying their wings on the sandbar beyond. A large flock of Sanderlings whirled round on the shoreline off to the east.
Scanning the sea, we could see several Guillemots on the water, their white faces catching the light. A much larger bird was swimming just offshore beyond the sandbar, a Great Northern Diver. Similarly black above and white below, we could see its large dagger of a bill and black half collar.
There were a few ducks on the sea too, but they were a long way offshore today. We got a distant flock of Common Scoter in the scope, and could see the pale cheeks and dark caps of the females and young birds. One of the scoter flapped its wings and flashed a white panel, a Velvet Scoter, but it was impossible to pick out of the flock on the sea at that distance and unfortunately it didn’t repeat the wing-flap which singled it out from the others. A female Red-breasted Merganser much closer in was much easier to see.
There were several Great Crested Grebes on the sea too, black and white too but much longer-necked than the diver. Then we picked up two much smaller Slavonian Grebes just off the beach a long way off to the west around the bay. We had a look at them through the scope and thought about walking over to get a bit closer but it would probably have meant getting wet feet so thought better of it!
It had been a very productive couple of hours at Holkham, and we still had an hour before we had to pick up someone else in Wells. We decided to pop into the woods there for a quick look to see if we could find any redpolls – they are very mobile and consequently very hit and miss, so they would either be there or not!
The Brent Geese were starting to gather on the old Pitch & Putt course along Beach Road as we drove past. As we walked into the woods, a couple of Little Grebes were on the edge of the reeds on the boating lake, with some Tufted Ducks over towards the back.
It was very quiet at first, as we made our way through the trees, just the odd Robin or Wren calling, and one or two Blackbirds. As we approached the Dell though, we could hear Redpolls calling quietly, and we looked up into the birches ahead of us to see several of them feeding on catkins in the tops. They were against the light here and hard to see clearly, but the more we looked the more we could see. There appeared to be at least fifty of them in total.
We walked quietly underneath them and up onto the dune the other side, where the light was better. From here, we could see they were mostly Mealy Redpolls (the Scandinavian race of Common Redpoll), and we had a good view of several through the scope, including one male with a lovely pinky-red wash on its breast. A smaller, browner one with them was a Lesser Redpoll.
The Redpolls were mobile, moving through the trees, and it was impossible to get a good look at all of them from any one point. They were busily feeding on the catkins and we could see showers of chaff falling like snow from the birches. We couldn’t see any sign of an Arctic Redpoll from here though, so we moved round again to get a different angle and try some other trees.
It took a bit of searching, but eventually we found a much paler Redpoll in with the others. Through the scope, as it moved, we could see it had a plain white rump and thick undertail coverts with a single narrow dark streak. It was the Arctic Redpoll we had been looking for. More specifically, it was a Coues’s Arctic Redpoll, the race we get most often here, also from Scandinavia but from further north than the Mealies. We all managed to get a good look at it before it moved back into the tops. Then suddenly the flock erupted from the trees and flew off.
Coues’s Arctic Redpoll – we eventually found one in with the Mealy Redpolls
We still had enough time to walk a quick loop around the far side of the Dell, but we couldn’t find any sign of a tit flock in here today. Then it was back up to Wells to pick up the other member of the group. After a quick break for lunch in the pub in Stiffkey, we carried on east along the coast road to Cley.
We didn’t have enough time to explore the reserve at Cley today, but we wanted to have a quick look at the sea. A Common Buzzard was perched on a post by the Beach Road, and another large flock of Brent Geese was feeding out in the Eye Field. From up on the shingle, it didn’t take long to find our target here – a Red-throated Diver. There were actually quite a few here, mostly a long way offshore, but we eventually got a decent view of one through the scope. There were several Guillemots offshore too.
As we made our way back along Beach Road, we looked across to see all the ducks flush off the reserve. A Marsh Harrier was flying over and had spooked them, surprisingly the first we had seen today. We headed round to Blakeney, and as we pulled up we noticed a male Stonechat on the brambles on the edge of the grazing marshes, right next to where we had parked.
Stonechat – feeding on the edge of the grazing marshes
We were hoping to catch a Barn Owl out here this afternoon, and as we stopped to look at the Stonechat, one flew across the grazing marsh right in front of us. A very good start! It headed off towards the seawall, so we walked round that way to see if we could find it again.
Despite the fact they don’t count, it is impossible not to admire some of the captive ducks and geese in the rather random wildfowl collection by Blakeney Harbour. The large gull on the platform here was also an oddity – with a darker mantle than a Herring Gull, but lighter than a Lesser Black-backed Gull, and odd pinky-yellow legs, it is a Lesser Black-backed x Herring Gull hybrid. It is a regular here, coming back each winter, to take advantage of the food put out for the ducks.
Lesser Black-backed x Herring Gull hybrid – the regular bird at the duck bird
Out on the seawall, there was no further sign of the Barn Owl. A Curlew was feeding on the sand on the far side of the channel. Several Marsh Harriers were circling out over the reeds in the middle of the Freshes, gathering to roost, and a couple more were having a last patrol out over the saltmarsh. One Marsh Harrier landed in a bush, where we could get it in the scope.
Their high-pitched yelping calls announced a group of Pink-footed Geese coming up off the grazing marshes. We looked across to see several hundred more hiding out in the grass. As we walked out along the seawall, more and more of them took off and headed off inland.
Out over the saltmarsh, a flock of about twenty small birds flew up and circled round, their distinctive bouncy flight helping to identify them as Linnets. From the corner of the bank, we stopped to scan the open mud. There were lots of waders out here, a mixture of small Dunlin running around, larger Grey Plover and Redshank, and larger still Black-tailed Godwits and Curlew, all with different shaped bills and different feeding actions. There were lots of Shelduck too.
It was a great view as the sun set behind the clouds away to the south-west as we walked out, but with the shortest day tomorrow, the light started to go quickly now. We started to make our way back. As we looked across to the far side of the Freshes, we could see another Barn Owl hunting as it came up from behind the reeds. It was a long way off though.
We thought the Barn Owl might come round to our side, but it turned and went back the other way. As we stopped and watched it, we could hear Bearded Tits from the reeds nearby, although they typically kept themselves tucked well down out of the wind. It was time to call it a day, so we made our way back to the car. We had enjoyed a good day out today – let’s see what else tomorrow brings.
Day 1 of a three day long weekend of Early Winter Tours today. It still had a distinctly autumnal feel this morning, misty and grey first thing. The cloud gradually lifted a bit and even though it remained cloudy, it was dry and mild.
As we made our way east along the coast road, we could see a couple of large skeins of Pink-footed Geese flying in from the coast. They landed in a field by the road and through the hedge we could see thousands of them already packed in there. Unfortunately there was nowhere to pull in and we had someone else right behind us, so we couldn’t stop.
Our first destination for the morning was Blakeney. As we got out of the car by the harbour, it was rather misty further out across the saltmarsh. A lone Curlew was busy feeding down in the harbour channel. We stopped by the wildfowl collection briefly – amongst all the captive exotics there were lots of opportunists come to help themselves to all the seed put out, mostly Mallards and Black-headed Gulls.
Curlew – feeding in the harbour channel at Blakeney
A gaggle of Brent Geese was feeding out on the saltmarsh in the middle of the harbour, so we got the scope on them for a closer look. There was a gathering of gulls next to them, again mainly Black-headed Gulls with one or two Common Gulls in amongst them. A couple of Lesser Black-backed Gulls were perched on the top of the masts of the yachts pulled up at the far end of the car park.
A slightly paler backed large gull was swimming down in the harbour channel. It was not pale enough for a Herring Gull, and too dark for a Lesser Black-backed Gull, with legs neither pink nor yellow, but a rather insipid fleshy colour. It is a regular here, and has been coming back for years, having found rich pickings on the seed in the wildfowl collection. It is a hybrid, probably Lesser Black-backed x Herring Gull.
Looking out across the grazing marshes, we could see three Marsh Harriers circling in the mist, slow to get going this morning. One perched in the top of a bush so we could look at it in the scope. A Common Buzzard flew over, heading for the trees over by the village. Then out over the saltmarsh, we spotted a Merlin hunting, flying across low and fast. We got several flashes of it as it darted back and forth and then it eventually landed, perched on a dead branch out in the middle.
The pools below the bank held a few Teal and one or two Redshank. A Little Grebe was busy diving on the largest of them. A Water Rail squealed from deep in the reeds and a couple of Reed Buntings flew up and across to the saltmarsh. A flock of Linnets was feeding out on the edge of the harbour, and whirled round from time to time.
A pipit flew in over the bank calling, and dropped down onto a small puddle in the cut grass on the edge of the Freshes. It was a Rock Pipit – come in from the salty side for a bathe. As it fed round the edge for a couple of minutes beforehand, we could see it was wearing a yellow colour ring and through the scope we could read the black letters. It is probably from Norway – the Rock Pipits which spend the winter out on the saltmarsh here are of the Scandinavian race, littoralis.
Rock Pipit – a colour-ringed bird, probably from Norway
Looking out into the harbour from the corner of the seawall, we could see lots of waders on the more open mud. Hundreds of small Dunlin were scurrying around busily, with a scattering of the larger Grey Plover standing or walking slowly around in amongst them. Two slightly larger and dumpier grey birds in with the Dunlin were two Knot. There were more Redshank and Curlew too. When something flushed lots of waders from further out in the harbour, a flock of Black-tailed Godwits circled round and we spotted three Common Snipe which came calling out of the mist.
This is a good site for Twite in the winter and there has been a group here for the last few days. As we stood scanning the harbour, they flew in and landed down by the path in the wet grass briefly. Unfortunately, just at that moment, two people decided to walk down the path and flushed them.
Thankfully the Twite didn’t fly far and landed again in the low vegetation a little further along. We walked over and got great views of them in the scope, sixteen of them in total (although they are very well camouflaged even in the low vegetation and not easy to count!). We could see their yellow bills and orangey breasts. Three Skylarks were picking around in the low vegetation too.
Twite – there were 16 at Blakeney today
On the walk back to the car, we found a pair of Stonechats feeding in the reeds just below the seawall. We stopped to watch them, fluttering up from the tops, flycatching, before landing back and flicking their tails.
Continuing on east along the coast, our next stop was at Sheringham. We wanted to try to see the King Eider which has been lingering offshore here for a couple of weeks now. It has been favouring the water off the west end of the prom, so we started our search there. There were several Great Black-backed Gulls and Herring Gulls on the groynes below the cliffs and a 1st winter Caspian Gull flew past, heading west towards a couple of crab boats which were hauling up their pots away to the west, surrounded by gulls.
Looking out to sea, we could see lots of Starlings coming in over the water, in small groups or larger flocks of 50 or so, birds arriving from the continent for the winter. They seemed to be streaming in constantly. Several groups of Starlings came in right towards us and over the cliffs where we were standing. There were a few thrushes in with them, Redwings and Fieldfares. One or two Blackbirds came in low over the sea too.
We picked up a Woodcock coming in next. It seemed to head straight into the face of the cliffs, but a couple of seconds later it circled over the top and came along the path straight towards us. At the last minute it saw us, just before it crashed into us, panicked and went to land on the path just a couple of metres away, then changed its mind and flew up over the bank and off across the golf course. There was a great variety of migrants arriving this afternoon – this Woodcock had possibly come in all the way from Russia for the winter.
There was no sign of the King Eider on the sea off the lifeboat station, so we walked a little further west along the cliffs until we had a better view beyond. We stopped to scan and could see a few Gannets circling out over the water. A small group of Red-throated Divers flew past. There were a few ducks moving offshore too – a flock of Wigeon, then a line of Common Scoter with several Teal following behind – more migrants arriving for the winter.
Finally we spotted the King Eider, but it was a long way back to the east of where we were now. We had a quick look through the scope, but it was rather distant. So we walked back towards the prom to try to get a closer look. Unfortunately, by the time we got there, it had disappeared again. A crab boat had motored out to where it had just been.
There are normally one or two Purple Sandpipers which spend the winter here, so we decided to walk down along the prom to see if we could fine one, while keeping our eyes peeled for the King Eider. Half way along, we met a couple of other birders who had found the King Eider again, but it was now a lot further out. Apparently, it had moved offshore in response to the crab boat. It was also steadily drifting east. We had another look at it, but figured we might be able to get a better view from the east end.
We scanned the rocky sea defences as we made our way further. There were lots of Turnstones along the prom, perched on the wall, or feeding on chips thrown down onto the concrete for them. When we got to ‘the tank’, we looked over the railing and could see a Purple Sandpiper feeding with one of the Turnstones on the seaweed covered rocks below us.
Purple Sandpiper – feeding on the sea defences along the prom
Thankfully we had already enjoyed good views of the Purple Sandpiper, before something spooked all the birds along the prom – gulls, feral pigeons, waders, the lot. We couldn’t see any likely threat here, but the Turnstones flew off and took the Purple Sandpiper with them.
Finally, we got a good view of the King Eider from here. It is an immature male, still moulting out of eclipse plumage, but over the last couple of weeks it has been here it is gradually starting to look a bit brighter. We could see the bright orange frontal lobes at the base of the bill, between its regular dives to look for crabs.
King Eider – the immature male was still off Sheringham
King Eider is a high arctic species, which is very rare this far south. They breed in arctic Russia and winter along the north Scandinavian coast. Presumably, once this bird completes its moult, it will make its way back north. But in the meantime, it seems to be finding plenty to eat here.
Back at the car, we stopped for lunch in one of the shelters on the top of the cliffs, overlooking the sea. Afterwards, we started to make our way back west.
When we got to Salthouse, we turned towards the beach. There were lots of Wigeon on the pools on the edge of the grazing marsh. We parked and walked up over the shingle until we could see the sea. A few Gannets drifted past offshore and one of the first birds we found on the sea was the Great Northern Diver which had been reported here earlier. We had a good look at it through the scope between dives – a big diver with a heavy bill and black half collar.
Great Northern Diver – on the sea off Salthouse today
There were several Guillemots and Razorbills further out on the sea today, all busily diving too. A group of at least 18 Pied Wagtails were feeding further up the beach on the top of the shingle, fluttering about looking for insects on the stones.
As we made our way back to the car, we bumped into one of the locals who informed us that the Yellow-browed Warbler was showing well just the other side of Sarbury Hill. We found somewhere to park and walked along the footpath to where it had been. There were a couple of other people there watching it and after a minute or so it flew up into a sycamore in the hedge.
Yellow-browed Warbler – in a hedge along the footpath between Salthouse & Cley
The Yellow-browed Warbler was hard to see at first, flitting around in the back of the tree and occasionally disappearing down into some thicker hawthorns next to it, but eventually everyone got a good look at it. This is rather late for a Yellow-browed Warbler – they are regular now between mid September and the end of October, but few linger this long. Hopefully it will still find enough food to fuel up before continuing on its journey.
We headed round to Cley beach next, in the hope we might catch up with a Short-eared Owl here. Half way along Beach Road, we stopped to talk to a couple of people up on the West Bank looking out over the marshes beyond. They had just seen a Short-eared Owl, but it had gone down into the vegetation out along the start of Blakeney Point.
We continued on to the car park, intending to have a look out to sea from here while keeping one eye out for the owl. As we got out of the car, a large flock of Golden Plover whirled over the Eye Field, breaking up into smaller groups and joining up again, before drifting away. Their yelping calls alerted us to several skeins of Pink-footed Geese flying in from the west. We watched as they whiffled down onto the grazing marshes. Through the scope, we could see a flock of Brent Geese, a couple of Canada Geese and all the Pinkfeet in one view.
Pink-footed Geese – whiffling down to the grazing marshes
Turning our attention to the sea, a quick scan revealed three Velvet Scoters offshore. Through the scope, we could see the two white spots on their dark brown faces and the white in the wing forming a diagonal white stripe on their flanks. A female Common Scoter appeared with them and several Guillemots were offshore too.
With no sign of the Short-eared Owl reappearing, we decided to walk along the shingle to see if we could find the flock of Snow Buntings which had been along here earlier. We had just started walking away when we got a phone message to say the owl was up again and headed our way. We turned back, and had another scan which quickly revealed the Short-eared Owl perched on the top of a post, against the skyline.
One everyone had enjoyed a good look at the Short-eared Owl through the scope, it was off again hunting, flying with distinctive stiff wing beats. It disappeared round behind some gorse bushes and didn’t come out the other side so presumably had landed again. We could see several Marsh Harriers starting to gather over the marshes beyond, before going to roost.
It was getting dark fast now, not helped by the grey and overcast afternoon, but we decided to have a quick look for the Snow Buntings anyway. We got as far as the point where the vegetation is thickest on the top of the shingle, between the pill box and North Scrape, when we head a ‘crest calling and turned to see it fly right past us. It was either a Goldcrest or a Firecrest, though it sounded perhaps more like the latter, presumably fresh in off the sea. It circled round, but unfortunately we lost sight of it in the gloom as it dropped down into the vegetation. We had a quick look where it seemed to go down but there was no sign.
The light was clearly going now, so we decided to call it a day and head back to the car. With more birds arriving this evening, it will be interesting to see what tomorrow brings.
The Bird ID Company 