24th April 2023 – Spring Migration on Hold

A Private Tour today in North Norfolk, focused more on photography and on visiting sites which could be worth spending more time at over the coming days. With a cold and blustery NW wind, it was a decidedly chilly and unspring-like day, but we managed to dodge the showers and stayed dry.

After our last visit, the number of Shorelarks at Holkham had dropped to one since and there had been no sign of that yesterday, so we thought it might have gone too. Then it was reported again first thing this morning, and since Grey Partridge was also on the target list, we decided to have a look there first.

As we arrived at Holkham, some dark clouds were just pushing inland and we could see blue skies approaching from the north. We parked on Lady Anne’s Drive and set off towards the pines. The pair of Grey Partridges were in their usual place on the grazing marsh, though not as close as they can be at times, and we found a spot where we could some shots. A Willow Warbler and a couple of Chiffchaffs were singing in the sheltered side of the pines and a Sedge Warbler was display flighting from the brambles.

Grey Partridge – the first of several

It was breezy the other side of the pines and the wind had obviously pushed the tide in over parts of the saltmarsh as it was quite wet looking out at the Gap. A small flock of Brent Geese were feeding out in the vegetation and a couple of Oystercatchers were feeding on the edge of the path. We set off east, and the Beach Warden in his ATV flushed several Shelduck and the Oystercatchers from the path ahead of us.

The sun was out now. There were a few Meadow Pipits on the saltmarsh and ahead of us we noticed a Wheatear too. We stopped to look, and realised there were more Wheatears further up. We counted at least seven in the end, northbound migrants presumably dropping in here to feed rather than heading on out over the sea into the strong headwind. They looked particularly smart in the low sunshine, so we stopped to watch them for a while.

Wheatear – stopping off

Continuing on to the cordon, there was no sign of the Shorelark now (as of the time of writing, it still hasn’t been seen again). There were a few Meadow Pipits and Skylarks feeding in the vegetation and a couple of Ringed Plovers down at the far end around the sandier patches. We had a good look, but drew a blank, so we decided to head back and get out of the wind. On our way, we heard a Greenshank calling and looked over to see it drop down on the pools now at the beach end of the Gap path. Another migrant stopping off in the wind.

We were going to have a walk at Burnham Norton, to look for Yellow Wagtails, but when we arrived we could see rain approaching. The cattle were right over by the seawall, so it would be very wet and windy out there shortly. We decided to try something else. There were lots of Avocets and a few Lapwings out on the grazing marshes, a Marsh Harrier quartering out over the grass, and a Spoonbill flew over.

Yellowhammer was another target species, so we headed inland in the minibus to see if we could find any. The weather was not ideal to find birds singing today, but at the first place we visited we heard one as we drove up. We found somewhere to stop and got out, just in time to see the Yellowhammer drop off the wires and down into the field below, behind a high hedge. As we walked back down the road to see if we could see in to the field, it flew out and landed in the hedge the other side of the road, beyond where we had parked. As we walked over to look for it, it came up into the top of the hedge, just enough time to get a few shots, before it flew back to the field where it had been earlier. A pair of Grey Partridges flew across the road and landed in the crop the other side.

We tried another couple of sites for Yellowhammer, but the first was quiet, the seed strip now looking quite bare, and at the second we could hear one calling as we pulled up but it went quiet when we stopped and we couldn’t find it. It was a bit too windy – a project to revisit over the next few days. We decided to head over to Cley.

We drove down to the beach car park first, to look for waders in the Eye Field. There were a couple of Ruff around the pool as we drove down the road and as we drove on towards the car park we realised too late that there were two more, males moulting into breeding plumage, in the near edge of the field immediately beyond the fence. Unfortunately, as we pulled up in the minibus they were too close to the road and spooked.

We could see the flock of twenty or so Bar-tailed Godwits further back in the field, so we parked in the car park and walked up to the fence at the back of the overflow parking area. They were a bit far for photography, but there was no way we could get much closer to them without spooking them, so we had to content ourselves with some more distant flock shots. There were some nice rusty summer males in with them. It was time for lunch, so we drove back to the Visitor Centre. A Lapwing posed for photos on the grass by the road as we left the car park.

Bar-tailed Godwits – in the Eye Field

It was too windy to use the picnic tables, so we sat on the back of the minibus in the shelter of the bottom car park. We had been intending to spend an hour or two in the hides here this afternoon, hoping to catch up with the long-staying Long-billed Dowitcher plus any other close waders and possibly a Spoonbill dropping in. There had been no news on the dowitcher all morning, so we already feared the worst and speaking to staff in the Centre confirmed that it had not been seen today. It has been here for over 6 months, so perhaps it has finally decided to move on. Time for a change of plan for us.

We drove down to Kelling for a walk down the lane towards the Water Meadow. One of the fields at the top of the lane was just being cultivated, so there were no Brown Hares in there today and none in the weedy field opposite either. There were few warblers singing here too, as we walked down to the copse, possibly due to the cooler weather. Looking across from the gate, we could see lots of Hares more distantly on the field opposite still and then we found at least seven hunkered down in the next field by the path. There was a quick burst of boxing activity from two of them, but mostly they were keeping down out of the wind. Another pair of Grey Partridge were in the field here too.

From down at the crosstrack, there were a few commoner ducks on the Water Meadow. A Common Whitethroat flew across but disappeared into the alexanders and brambles on the Quags. A couple of 2nd summer Mediterranean Gulls flew over, one called several times and did a quick circuit round over the pool. A Stonechat perched up on the top of the brambles down the lane towards Salthouse.

As we drove back west, we diverted down to the beach car park at Cley again, to see if the waders were any closer. The Bar-tailed Godwits had moved further back, so we turned round and headed on to Morston. There had been a few Ring Ouzels here over the last few days, more migrants waiting for suitable weather conditions to continue on to Scandinavia.

As we walked down the footpath, we could hear a Ring Ouzel calling in the trees and had a brief glimpse of one as it flew out and back in again. We carried on down to the end and installed ourselves by the gate, to wait for them to drop down into the field to feed. They were not particularly accommodating today, and for some time we had glimpses of them flying in and out, and one perched briefly in the bushes.

Redstart – a female

We noticed some movement at the bottom of the hedge across the end of the field, and a flash of red. It was a Common Redstart, a female, a scarce migrant here in the spring. We watched it as it kept dropping down to the ground to feed and then flicking back up into the hedge. There were two more Grey Partridges here too – it was a good day for those today!

Eventually the Ring Ouzels did drop down into the field. Two males fed on the grassy edge for a minute or so, before moving out into the middle with a Blackbird. They didn’t linger long though today, and soon flew back up into the trees. They had been showing really well here with patience in previous days, so another one to try again when the wind dropped later in the week.

Ring Ouzels – eventually dropped down to feed

A Whimbrel flew over and dropped down towards the saltmarsh. We lost sight of it behind the bank, so we walked up and had a look on the pools to see if it was there. There was no further sign of it, although there were a few Brent Geese out on the saltmarsh.

Round at the harbour car park, we found another Whimbrel feeding in the harbour channel. Using the minibus as a mobile hide, we were able to position ourselves for great views of it down on the edge of the water, before it disappeared back into the saltmarsh beyond.

Whimbrel – in the harbour channel

A nice way to end the day. We had some mixed fortunes in the wind, but there were now several places to revisit and lots of things to follow up on over the coming days.

1st & 2nd Sept 2021 – Two Autumn Days

A two day Private Tour in North Norfolk. Wednesday was very cloudy and grey but dry, with a cool northerly wind which was not as strong as forecast. Thursday was mostly cloudy and grey too, but the wind had dropped further and we had a couple of very brief glimpses of what appeared to be the sun – a very rare sight in the UK this summer!

Wednesday 1st September

With a request to try some seawatching if possible, we headed first to Sheringham this morning. Conditions are all important for seawatching and there was forecast to be a moderate to blustery north wind again today. However, as we drove down, we noticed that the trees were not moving as much as we would have expected. When we got to Sheringham our fears were confirmed and the wind had indeed fallen lighter than forecast.

We decided to have a go anyway, as there has been some significant movements of waders and wildfowl this week which are not so dependent on conditions. There were still a few ducks moving – little groups of Teal, several parties of Common Scoter, and a few Wigeon with them. One Redshank flying west was the only wader this morning.

There were still Gannets passing by and others feeding offshore, plus some distant Kittiwakes and one or two Sandwich Terns closer in. A Great Skua came up briefly up off the sea, probably waiting to attack one of the terns if it could spy one with a fish. Two more flew west along the horizon but were very distant and very hard to see. A Red-throated Diver flying west was easier to see and a Guillemot flew past.

We gave it an hour but it didn’t look like we would get much more of interest this morning, so we opted to move on and drove further east to Cromer. There were not many gulls on the beach or around the pier at first – a few hanging in the air over the east end of the prom, and lots more out chasing behind a distant crab boat. There was a surf school on the beach this morning, so lots of disturbance on the sand.

We stopped on the far side of the pier to scan. A Fulmar flew past offshore and there were still some Common Scoter passing. Then we spotted our target – a juvenile Caspian Gull flying round the end of the pier, but unfortunately it went round behind the lifeboat house and was lost to view. A dark juvenile Lesser Black-backed Gull was more accommodating.

As we waited to see if the Caspian Gull would reappear, more large gulls started to drift in from the sea and land on the beach. On cue either the same or another Caspian Gull flew in and landed with them. We had just got the scopes on it, when it was flushed by one of the surfers, and the gulls all scattered. Most seemed to fly off east.

Change of plan, we went to get some bread from the nearby shops to see if we could tempt one in. When we got back, we noticed a few gulls on the booking office at near end of the pier so we walked back to get an angle to have a quick look through them before any food would cause chaos. Lucky we did, as there was a juvenile Caspian Gull standing on the roof.

Caspian Gull – a Dutch-ringed juvenile

We had a really good look at the Caspian Gull through the scopes now. It was wearing a red colour-ring with the code ‘F.E’ – a quick check with one of the local birders confirmed it was a Dutch bird, ringed in the colony where it was born, in May this year. We could see its strikingly pale head, particularly compared to the nearby juvenile Herring Gulls, and dark shawl, long pointed face and long parallel-sided bill.

Mission accomplished here, we moved on again. There had been a Red-breasted Flycatcher at Trimingham yesterday afternoon, but a message came through to say there was no sign of it this morning. So we made our way back to to Beeston Bump to see if we could find any migrants ourselves. We were just walking down the track towards the railway line, when something flicked across in front of us. It landed on the edge of the hedge the other side. A Pied Flycatcher! It flicked back across the track and perched up nicely for a couple of seconds, then flew to the other side again and was lost to view. As we walked slowly up to where it had been we couldn’t find it again now.

Pied Flycatcher – perched in the hedge briefly

Emboldened by our Pied Flycatcher, we continued on across the railway line and explored the bushes in the hope of finding more migrants. There were several Linnets and Goldfinches and a couple of Chiffchaffs calling from the shelter of the bushes, but no other obvious migrants. Perhaps it was a bit too cool and breezy so close to the clifftop, which is why the Pied Flycatcher had moved to the more sheltered lane? A rather tatty Common Blue butterfly was a bit of a surprise, given the cool weather.

As we made our way back to the minibus, a large Hoverfly Volucella inanis, one of the big hornet or wasp mimics, was trying to warm up on a branch by the track. It was time for lunch now, so we drove up to the picnic area at Pretty Corner where we were out of the wind. After lunch, we made our way west towards Wells and stopped at the pools just before town.

As we parked and got out of the bus, we heard Whimbrel calling and looked up to see two flying high west. We scanned the pools from the car park first. The pool to the west of the track is now dry, but there is still lots of water to the east. A single Ringed Plover flew round with a Dunlin and they both landed on the mud at the front. Another small group of Dunlin was feeding slightly further behind.

Four small waders flew up from somewhere at the back of the pools and we watched them as they flew across. As they got closer, we could see they were four Little Stints. They continued on over the track, and we watched as they disappeared off west, round the front of Wells. There were several Common Snipe feeding round the muddy edges of the pool and lots of Black-tailed Godwit and Ruff further back.

Common Snipe – one of several around the pool

We could see a good number of Wigeon in the grass around the pool, with increasing numbers now returning for the winter, as we saw earlier this morning. Through the scopes, we picked out a few Gadwall and Shoveler at back. The other side of the track, there were lots of geese loafing around the dry pools, mainly Greylags but with several Egyptian Geese too.

There were lots of distant hirundines over the edge of Wells and we were just looking through them to see if we could find a late Swift when a Hobby appeared. It shot through them and then disappeared off inland. We could see it circling away in the distance. Several Common Buzzards kept coming up from the pig fields just inland and a Marsh Harrier was hunting briefly over the fields beyond the pools.

We walked on down the track for closer views of some of the waders. As we scanned, we picked up the Hobby again, way off to the east now, harrassing another flock of Swallows over the trees in the distance.

As we were scanning the far corner of the pool from the end of the track, we picked up a Common Sandpiper flying towards us over the water. It flew straight over our heads, and dropped down the other side of the track. There is still lots of water in the foot drain, so we scanned down along the muddy edge and found the Common Sandpiper feeding there with a Green Sandpiper too. At one point we had the two of them side by side, a great opportunity for comparison.

Common Sandpiper – landed on the edge of the foot drain

It was already mid-afternoon now, and we wanted to have quick look in Wells Woods before we finished, to see if we could find any more migrants, so we walked back. A Golden Plover flew round over the pool calling. As we got back to the minibus, all the Greylags in the stubble field over towards Wells were flushed by a small plane which came in overhead, and they all flew in calling noisily.

As we walked into the Woods at Wells, we had a quick look at the boating lake. Three Tufted Ducks and several Little Grebes were additions to the tour list. There were several Mallard on the water, with one drake already moulted back to breeding plumage and looking very smart again.

The trees were rather quiet at first. We could hear a Blackcap calling from deep in the brambles out in the middle, and a Chiffchaff calling as we approached the edge of the Dell. we continued on round the north side of the Dell, where we could hear Jays and Magpies calling too.

It tends to be all or nothing in here, as most of the birds go round together in large flocks, led by the tits. We wrre just making our way round the far side of the Dell when we heard a Pied Flycatcher calling. We came out of the denser trees and as we looked down along the edge, it was suddenly alive with birds – we didn’t know where to look! There were lots of warblers – Chiffchaffs and several lovely lemon-yellow Willow Warblers. A selection of tits with them too. We watched a pair of Goldcrests in a holm oak, as an adult fed a juvenile.

It was hard to tell exactly how many there were, as we had lots of brief views of Pied Flycatchers flashing in and out of the trees, but eventually one showed itself better. A couple of Jays were chasing each other on the ground, below the trees.

We followed the flock as the birds flew across to the south side of the track. The Pied Flycatchers were a little easier to see in the more isolated birches. We could hear several calling, and saw two chasing each other – there were at least two and probably three or more. A Common Whitethroat flicked out of a low bush in front of us and we could see it in a low briar clump. A cronking noise alerted us to a pair of Ravens and we turned to see first one and then the second fly up off Quarles Marsh calling and disappear over the caravan park. As we looked over, a male Bullfinch landed on the top of the hawthorns briefly.

Suddenly everyone felt rather tired now, after all the day’s excitement, so we decided to head back. We had another day to look forward to tomorrow,

Thursday 2nd September

We set off from the accommodation inland to head down towards coast, and on our way we stopped to scan some barns. A Little Owl was perched on the roof of one, rather distant, but we had a nice view of it through the scope.

Continuing on to Stiffkey Greenway, as we drove in along the track down to the car park there were lots of birds in the vegetation – Whitethroats, Goldfinches, Dunnocks. We had stopped to look but another car came in behind us so we had to move. By the time we had parked and got out of the minibus, they had mostly disappeared. We could hear a Greenfinch calling further back.

Scanning the saltmarsh from the edge of the car park, we picked up a Greenshank out in the vegetation and stopped to get the scope on it. A large flock of Golden Plover came up off the saltmarsh and flew past us. Two of three Marsh Harriers were out hunting and a distant Kestrel was hovering.

As we walked west, we could see several Curlew out on the saltmarsh. A Whimbrel flew up from fairly close to the track and landed further back in the vegetation. A Sparrowhawk flew across, mobbed by Black-headed Gulls. It dropped down on the saltmarsh out of view – we could tell it was still there as occasionally one of the gulls would stoop down at it, but it wouldn’t come up again. A lone Spoonbill flew past.

Spoonbill – flew past

The bushes by the path were quiet and even round the whirligig, where there are lots of berries, we couldn’t find anything. We decided to just have a quick look along the path just the other side of the Whirligig then head back, and it was good we did. The bushes here were alive with warblers – Common Whitethroats and Lesser Whitethroat, and Blackcaps. They were hard to see at first, flitting around on the far side of the hedge. A Reed Bunting was more obliging, and perched up on top.

We eventually got good views of several warblers in the top of a large hawthorn. Another bird appeared with them – a Redstart! It only stayed a second, but we all got a look at it before it flicked off back into the bushes.

The flock appeared to be heading along the hedge line so we continued round for a better look. We caught the back end of a flock tits heading inland along the track, which presumably took some of the other birds with it. There were several Common Whitethroats still lingering in the bushes. Someone had a brief flash of what might have been a Pied Flycatcher. Then we had a brief glimpse of what might have been the Redstart again, as it flicked across. But despite waiting a few minutes, nothing came out again.

We walked back round and the bushes where everything had been were now quiet. So we decided to walk back. The Whimbrel was on the saltmarsh just below the path, but flew back as we approached. It landed on the edge of a small pool, near to a roosting Curlew and through the scope we could see the Whimbrel feeding just behind it, another great comparison.

Whimbrel – feeding on the saltmarsh

Given the Redstart hinted at the possibility of migrants freshly arrived, we decided to have a quick look in Campsite Wood. It was disappointingly quiet – plenty of Woodpigeons, as usual, we heard a couple of Great Tits, but nothing else. The wind seemed to have picked up a little compared to earlier, and the wood is very exposed to a north wind. There were also still quite a few people in the wood despite the campsite being much quieter now.

Out the far side of the wood, we scanned and picked up a couple of Common Buzzards hanging in the air in the distance. A Kestrel flew in off the saltmarsh and hovered right above us. Two Speckled Wood butterflies were feeding on overripe blackberries deep in the brambles. We walked back along the front, passing a Little Egret feeding in the channel next to us.

Little Egret – feeding in the channel

When we got back to the minibus, we stopped for a coffee break. Checking the news, there didn’t seem to be much new turning up elsewhere, so we decided to head over to Titchwell for the afternoon, to try to add some waders to the list. It was already midday by the time we got there, so we stopped for an early lunch. A Common Swift passed back and forth over the sallows from the picnic area – the first we have seen for several weeks now, as most have already left us for the winter.

After lunch, we made our way out onto the reserve. There were lots of House Martins and a few Swallows hawking over the reedbed, but we couldn’t see the Swift now. A Marsh Harrier was quartering over the Thornham grazing marsh but there was no sign now of the Whinchat which had been reported here earlier. The reedbed pool held just one Tufted Duck, but we found two Common Pochard diving in the channel just beyond. A Cetti’s Warbler sang a couple of times very half-heartedly in reeds.

The works are still ongoing on the Freshmarsh, with the diggers working out on the edge of the reeds today, but the waders didn’t seem to care. It anything, the low water levels and freshly churned up mud are proving more attractive for them this year. We could see lots of Black-tailed Godwit and Ruff scattered around the scrapes, and plenty of Avocets still too, although numbers are now dropping.

Ruff – feeding on the Freshmarsh

A couple of Common Snipe flew off before we could get the scope on them, but a group of Turnstone bathing and preening on the edge of the new bund lingered a little longer, before they flew off too, back towards the beach. A single Knot was roosting behind a large lump of mud churned up by the diggers and we picked up a couple of Ringed Plovers feeding on the drier mud.

The Dunlin were obviously favouring the area at the back, where the diggers are working. When a group were disturbed and flew round, we could see a flash of a white rump with them. They landed our side of the new N/S bund, and a quick scan confirmed a juvenile Curlew Sandpiper was in with them. We got it in the scope, as it stopped to bathe. There were a couple of Little Stints in the flock too, but the whole flock quickly drifted back and disappeared behind the new bank again.

The variety and number of ducks is steadily increasing now, as birds return for the winter. We could see lots of Teal out here today, along with a few Gadwall and Shoveler, and a couple of Pintail asleep.

We decided to walk round to Parrinder to see if we could get a better look at the small waders. We didn’t go into the hide, but scanned from the balcony beyond, where a bit of elevation meant we could see more of the mud over the fence round Avocet Island. We could see Curlew Sandpiper again from here. It was over on the mud in front of the diggers, and didn’t seem at all concerned. We counted at least five Little Stints too, all fresh juveniles, from here. Eventually a couple came in a bit closer and fed for a while where we could get a good look at them through the scopes. A Common Sandpiper was working its way back along the edge of the new muddy channel by the bund.

Little Stints – two of the five today

There were lots of Linnets, Meadow Pipits and a few Pied Wagtails in front of the hide too, taking advantage of the works to feed on the dried out bits of the new scrapes.

We decided to head out to the Tidal Pools, as it was approaching high tide and we figured there should be some birds roosting on there now. A lone Redshank was on the near channel of Volunteer Marsh as we passed, and a few more plus a handful of Black-tailed Godwits and a couple of Curlew on the muddy channel at the far end.

There were lots of waders roosting on the Tidal Pools – most impressive, there were at least a thousand Knot. A large gathering of Oystercatchers were on the grassy island too. Scanning the edges, we found a couple of Grey Plover, including one very smart one which dropped in briefly. Several Turnstone included two very smart birds still in breeding plumage.

Two Pintail were upending in the water, perhaps the same two as we had seen earlier on the Freshmarsh. Both were drakes in eclipse plumage, so not looking their best.

Having come this far, we decided to continue on to the beach. Several little groups of Sanderling were running in and out of the waves along the shore. There were more waders, including a number of Bar-tailed Godwits further up along the beach, towards Thornham Point. A few gulls and Turnstones were feeding on shellfish which had been washed up on beach. When something flushed all the Knot from the Tidal Pools, we turned to see them fly out over the beach. Half landed out on the shore, but the others flew round and then went back to where they had come from.

Knot – flying out over the beach

There was not much out to sea now – the seawatching had dried up steadily as the wind had dropped further today – just one Sandwich Tern fishing offshore, and a few distant Cormorants coming and going from Scolt Head.

As we turned to walk back, all the Knot went up again. We looked up to see a young Peregrine flying over. It headed out over the beach.

Peregrine – flushed the Knot from the Tidal Pools

That was a nice bird to end the two days – we made our way back to the minibus and headed back inland to the accommodation.

6th Oct 2020 – A Relaxed Autumn Day

A Private Tour in North Norfolk today, a relaxed-paced tour with some gentle walking. It was mostly cloudy, with a few light showers which were thankfully all very brief, and the sun did even make a couple of appearances in the afternoon, although the breeze picked up too.

We started the day at Titchwell – you need to get here early these days to be sure of a place in the Covid-reduced car park, which is still filling up by mid-morning. We had no problem today, and there was still just one car in the overflow area, so we had a quick walk round to see if we could find anything in the bushes. It was rather quiet here today, although a small group of Greenfinches came out of the bushes.

A large flock of Pink-footed Geese came up from the fields inland of the village – we could hear their yelping calls, although they never gained enough height to enable us to get a clear view above the hedge. A small gaggle of Greylags came in from the same direction, flying overhead and heading for the reserve. Their honking was much deeper, but a couple of higher pitched yelps in their midst alerted us to a single Pink-footed Goose which had obviously hooked onto the wrong flock and was coming in with them.

There were some tits in the sallows along the path to the Visitor Centre. A Goldcrest disappeared in deeper before anyone could get onto it, and all we could see were Blue Tits. We could hear Siskins calling overhead, but couldn’t see them through the trees. Once we had negotiated the new ‘Welcome Hub’ (although the ‘welcome’ could perhaps have been a little warmer after we were asked for the third time if we were members!), we were finally able to get onto the reserve.

We stopped to scan the grazing marsh, looking over towards Thornham, a couple of times. Once we were out of the trees, we spotted a pair of Stonechats sitting on the leeward side of one of the bramble clumps preening. A third Stonechat appeared, hovering over the reeds nearby. A small group of Linnets flew over and a party of Meadow Pipits dropped down into the long grass in the meadow back towards the road.

We heard more Siskins calling and turned to see one fly out of the alders by the path back behind us. It circled out over the trees beyond the Visitor Centre and picked up another two Siskins, with all three of them then settling back down in the alder from where the first had appeared. We could see a smart green and yellow male in the top of the tree. A small group of Chaffinches flew over the trees too, and continued on west out over the grazing marsh, presumably migrants just arrived from the Continent for the winter.

The Thornham grazing marsh ‘pool’ is mostly dry and very overgrown now. A single Little Egret was feeding in the channel on the far side. We could hear Bearded Tits calling but it was rather windy today, and the most we got were a couple of glimpses of birds as they flew up briefly.

We were just about to walk away when a Bearded Tit called again, and we looked over the top of the bank to see a male on the top of a reed stem just below. Unfortunately the long grass on the top of the bank meant it was impossible to see unless you were tall enough and it flew down again almost immediately, before everyone could see it.

Bearded Tit – unfortunately only perched up briefly

Another small group of Pink-footed Geese came in over the reedbed behind us, calling, and we watched as they headed on west towards Thornham. There would be quite a bit of wildfowl on the move today – migration in action.

As we walked away, we heard lots of Bearded Tits calling behind us now, and turned round to see a flock of eight fly over the reeds and drop down below the bank. We decided not to have another go at seeing one in the tops, and carried on out along the path.

We stopped by the Reedbed Pool and looked out over the reedbed. There were several House Martins over the back of the reeds and in with them we found a single Common Swift. Most of the latter have already long since left us to head to Africa for the winter, but one or two often linger later. We watched as they made their way west, pausing briefly to hawk for insects over the trees by the Visitor Centre.

Red Kite – flew west over the reedbed and on towards Thornham

A Red Kite was hanging in the air too, in the distance over Willow Wood, and made its way slowly west over the back of the reedbed and then across the main path and out towards Thornham. Hard to tell if it was on the move today too, but a little later we picked up a second Red Kite way off to the east, being mobbed by two Jackdaws out over Brancaster Marsh.

As we walked up towards Island Hide, a moth flew up out of the grass below the bank and landed again up by the path to the hide. When we got there, someone was already photographing it. We stopped to look – it was a Mallow moth, a not uncommon species to find at this time of year. A Common Frog on the path this morning added to the general wildlife list.

Mallow moth – landed in the grass by the path to Island Hide

As it was nice and bright, we stopped on the main path to look out across the Freshmarsh. There was a large group of godwits out in the middle, and through the scope we could see they were a mixture of Black-tailed Godwits and a smaller number of Bar-tailed Godwits. The latter were clearly smaller, and despite the fact that they were asleep we could see their dark-streaked paler upperparts.

Most of the Avocets have gone south for the winter now, but we counted eleven still out on one of the small islands today. There were a couple of Ruff and a single Dunlin on the mud on the edge of the next island over, in with the gulls, and a small group of Golden Plover higher up on the grass. We got the plovers in the scope and admired their gold-spangled upperparts.

There were quite a few ducks on the Freshmarsh again, though perhaps not as many Wigeon as recently. The drake Teal are still mostly in drab eclipse plumage, though we got the scope on one which had started to moult out and showing patches of grey-looking finely vermiculated flank feathers. One of the drake Shovelers was already more advanced, with just some dark scalloped feathers left in its white breast and flanks. In contrast, the resident drake Mallard and Gadwall are already mostly back in their smart breeding plumage. A couple of Brent Geese dropped in briefly, before heading back out towards the beach.

Another group of Bearded Tits were in the reeds just below the bank here too, but were similarly elusive in the breezy conditions. We had more glimpses of them as they flew up from time to time, but dropped straight back in out of view.

The tide was just going out and the channel on the Volunteer Marsh was still largely full of water, but we stopped to admire a Common Redshank feeding on the recently exposed mud, its orange legs shining in the sunlight, which had poked out from behind the clouds. There were a few Common Redshanks further back and several Curlews, but nothing else on here today.

Common Redshank – its day-glo legs catching the sun

There was just one wader in the corner of the Tidal Pool, right at the back just over the bank. It immediately looked promising – white below and rather pale silvery grey above. Through the scope, we could see it was indeed a Spotted Redshank in non-breeding plumage. We could see its long, needle-fine bill, noticeably longer than the Common Redshank we had just been watching, and the well-marked white supercilium over the bill.

Spotted Redshank – the only bird in the corner of the Tidal Pool

There were a few more waders on the spit a little further up, a tight group of grey Knot, and several Grey Plovers tucked in the samphire higher up along with a single Oystercatcher. One of the Grey Plovers took off and flew past us, flashing its black armpits. About twenty Turnstones were roosting on one of the small muddy islands further up towards the dunes.

Looking out over the saltmarsh behind, we could see a young Marsh Harrier circling, dark chocolate brown with a contrasting pale head which caught the light as it turned. There were a couple of Kestrels too. A little Wren appeared on the concrete bunker just before the dunes.

Wheatear – this very tame bird was feeding on the high tide line

As we got out onto the beach, a Wheatear was feeding on the debris on the high tide line, running about after insects. It was very tame, and came across to within just a few metres of us, standing pumping its tail totally unconcerned by everyone standing there. When it flew a little bit further along, we could see the distinctive white base to its tail.

Our target bird here was Sanderling, but there were not many waders along the shore here at the moment, possibly with too much disturbance from walkers and dog walkers. We could see more birds on the beach up towards Thornham Point – a long line of Cormorants standing with their wings out to dry, lots of gulls, and a scattering of waders in with them. We found a single silvery grey Sanderling, but it was very distant. A large flock of Oystercatchers was still roosting on the sand towards Brancaster. We decided to stop here a while, to see if more waders would come back in as the tide dropped further.

Looking out to sea, there were several Great Crested Grebes on the water. But the highlight here today was the number of birds coming in over the sea. We picked up a large flock of Pink-footed Geese, way out to sea at first. They gradually made their way in towards and past us, until we watched them flying in over Scolt Head island away to the east. Several groups of Wigeon flew in, possibly fresh in from their Russian breeding grounds for the winter. Then we spotted four Skylarks coming in over the sea and watched as they came in, up the beach and over the dunes past us.

As the tide receded, more waders started to fly back in to the shore. First a small group of Knot appeared with several Bar-tailed Godwits just to the left of us. Then more birds arrived down on the edge of the water right in front of us, several Grey Plover and finally a much closer view of several Sanderling, running up and down the shoreline like clockwork toys.

Sanderling – several were on the beach, this one taken the other day

As we started to make our way back, we stopped to admire a couple of Turnstones on the shore of the Tidal Pool just by the concrete bunker now. All the waders were getting restless, seemingly knowing it was time now to head back out to the beach to feed. First the Turnstones flew out over the dunes, followed closely by the Knot which had still been roosting on the spit.

At the far side of the Tidal Pool, we stopped to watch a close Little Egret feeding just below the bank. We could see its yellow feet when it lifted them high of the water, and we watched it shaking one in the mud to try to disturb something to eat. It seemed to find several things around the edge, chasing repeatedly after them.

Little Egret – fishing on the Tidal Pool

A Bloody-nosed Beetle was crossing the path and as we picked it up to move it to safety we had a closer look. It didn’t perform though today, and wouldn’t exude the red liquid from its mouthparts from which its gets its name.

There was a brief shower as we walked back, but it was only light and had thankfully stopped by the time we got back to the Visitor Centre. It remained dry while we had lunch in the picnic area before another quick shower just after we had packed up.

Our destination for the rest of the afternoon was Holkham, and we had no problem parking on Lady Anne’s Drive today. There were a few geese and a family of Mute Swans out on the grazing marsh to the east. The geese were mostly Greylags but a small group of Pink-footed Geese had dropped in for a wash and brush up – we could see them bathing on a small pool. When they came out onto the grass to preen, we got them in the scope for a closer look.

There were lots more Pink-footed Geese on the marshes to the west, mostly hidden beyond the first hedge line. There was a lot of military jet aircraft today – a Eurofighter Typhoon was pulling sharp turns overhead, making a lot of noise and repeatedly flushing the birds. Large flocks of Pink-footed Geese flew around calling noisily and we watched a Great White Egret flying away over the reeds in the distance.

As we set off west along the track on the inland side of the pines, it was quiet at first. We stopped to watch a Jay which kept flying back into an oak tree overhanging the track, harvesting acorns.

We were most of the way to Salts Hole when we came across a tit flock, but they were mostly in the pines and wouldn’t come out into the open. We had a nice view of a couple of Long-tailed Tits but just had glimpses of Goldcrests and heard a Treecreeper calling in the pines. They were moving fast too, and disappeared back the way we had just come, so we decided to try again on our way back.

Long-tailed Tit – we found our first flock on the walk to Salts Hole

There were several Little Grebes on Salts Hole, along with lots of Mallard. One of the grebes laughed maniacally at us as we stood and scanned the edges of the pool. A Treecreeper flew across and disappeared into the holm oaks the other side. A little further on, a Great Spotted Woodpecker was calling from the dead branches at the top of an old pine.

Just before Washington Hide, a small bird was bathing in a puddle in the track ahead of us. We stopped and could see it was a Redstart, but unfortunately just at that moment a particularly noisy group of walkers with trekking poles walked up behind us, talking, and the Redstart flew up into the trees and then disappeared further back out of view.

From the gate overlooking the grazing marsh, we stopped to see if there was anything with the cows – just a Grey Heron feeding in amongst them today. It started to spit with rain again, so we decided to head for Washington Hide, only to find it has been nailed shut! Once again, thankfully the rain stopped quickly and we stood and scanned the grazing marshes from the boardwalk.

A Great White Egret flew up from the pool and dropped down again behind the reeds out of view. A little later, when we saw one flying further back, we assumed at first that it was the same bird, and this time we could see it in the open when it landed on the edge of a small pool in the distance. But then the first Great White Egret flew up again and landed in a ditch just beyond the reeds, where we could get a good view of its snake like neck and long yellow dagger-like bill as it stood looking for food in the water below.

A Redwing dropped out of the pines and disappeared into one of the hawthorns on the edge of the reeds. A Greenshank called but we couldn’t see it behind the trees. A Common Buzzard flew across the gap behind us, over towards the beach. There were lots of small groups of Pink-footed Geese flying past, calling. As the shower clouds cleared north the sun came out again and the view across the marshes looked amazing, striking colours and the light reflecting off the wet reeds and the wings of the Pink-footed Geese.

Pink-footed Geese – catching the afternoon sunshine

We continued on slowly west, but the trees were rather quiet with the increasing breeze now catching them. We wouldn’t be able to go too far today, but we got past Meals House and almost to the crosstracks, before we decided to turn back. We could hear more tits in the pines and holm oaks, but despite it being more sheltered here they wouldn’t come out into the more open deciduous trees by the track today.

We found another tit flock in the holm oaks just before Salts Hole. A Treecreeper appeared briefly a couple of times on the trunks of a couple of trees but typically disappeared round the back. A Goldcrest appeared in a holm oak above the path briefly. But apart from a couple of Long-tailed Tits the birds were hard to see in the dense foliage and quickly disappeared deeper in.

Almost back to Lady Anne’s Drive, we found another tit flock, probably the one we had seen along here earlier. Suddenly we were surrounded by birds, and didn’t know which way to look. There were lots of Goldcrests feeding in an oak tree right above us, one or two Chiffchaffs and a selection of tits. When they started to move again, we realised there were lots more birds deeper in the pines.

The flock started to cross the path, but they were moving fast now. A small warbler flicked across and landed in an oak briefly – a Yellow-browed Warbler. Unfortunately it didn’t stop. We managed to follow the flock for a bit, and found the Yellow-browed Warbler again, but it was immediately chased by a second one and disappeared. A little further along, we heard it call and saw it fly across, but this time everything disappeared further back into the trees.

Everyone was tired after the walk, so after a quick sit down, we continued back to Lady Anne’s Drive. It was time to call it a day now and we headed for home and a chance to put our feet up properly and remember a very enjoyable day out.

22nd Sept 2020 – Private Tour & Wader Spectacular, Day 1

Day 1 of a two day Private Tour arranged in North Norfolk to coincide with a Wader Spectacular. It was a lovely bright & sunny day, with blue skies, hitting the heady heights of 25C in the afternoon. With a big high tide this morning, we were heading up to Snettisham to see the flocks waders today.

We could see large flocks of waders swirling around over the Wash already as we made our way out. When we got up onto the seawall, the tide was still out, which meant we had a bit more time today, so we stopped to scan. A large mass of Oystercatchers and godwits was gathered on the mud up by the sailing club, a mixture of Bar-tailed & Black-tailed Godwits. Lots of Shelduck were bobbing about on the water just offshore.

More smaller waders were still feeding busily on the mud across the channel. A Curlew Sandpiper flew across, identifiable by its white rump, and when it landed we got it in the scope. There were lots of Dunlin and Ringed Plovers out here too. We found a Spotted Redshank in a muddy pool – we could see its long, needle-fine bill when it lifted its head from feeding. Two Knot flew and landed close in on the beach just below the bank.

Four Swallows flew past low over the near edge of the mud. They were on their way south, migrants heading off on the long journey to Africa for the winter, a reminder that the seasons are changing.

The tide was coming in fast now, and the waders started peeling off the mud to the north of us, lines of Oystercatchers and godwits flying past, landing again on the mud further up.

Black-tailed Godwits – flying past to land again further up the Wash

We made our way down further and stopped again in front of Rotary Hide. The waders were now spread out like a vast slick on the mud, tens of thousands of Knot (there were 68,000 here at the last count, last week) and thousands of Oystercatchers (over 6,000 last week).

The Oystercatchers were walking away from the rising tide, the ones caught by the water marching through others which were still standing on dry mud, so the whole flock seemed to be moving across the mud like an amorphous blob.

The Knot were very jumpy, and kept flying up, whirling round low over the mud, before resettling. A young Marsh Harrier drifted across from the saltmarsh and out over the flocks, putting everything up. Instant chaos! We watched the Knot twisting and turning in unison, flashing alternately dark and light in the morning sunshine, making different shapes in the sky.

Marsh Harrier – drifted over the flocks and put everything up

Waders – twisting and turning in the morning sun

Waders – the flocks made various shapes as they swirled round

Further back, a Peregrine was putting up all the Knot up in the next bay over too. They looked like clouds of grey smoke in the sky. Most of them flew over and joined the flocks already gathered closer to us.

Continuing down to the grassy bank at the end of the path, the tide was still coming in fast. The waders were all increasingly concentrated in the last remaining corner of mud which was not covered by water.

Waders – increasingly concentrated in the last corner of the mud

As usual, the Oystercatchers gave up first, peeling off in waves and flying in past us. Then suddenly all Knot went up. It was spectacular watching the tens of thousands of birds take to the sky. Some flew in overhead, towards the pit behind us, while others towered up into the sky above.

Waders – suddenly all the Knot took to the sky

There was not much left out on the Wash now, just the Curlews in the corner by the saltmarsh, where they would stay to roost. The Knot were starting to drop down to the pit, so we made our way quickly round to South Hide. Relative few Knot had come in yet. There were some on the bank with the Oystercatchers, shuffling nervously, and the island at the bottom of the bank was full. A Common Sandpiper was feeding in the vegetation on the bank in front of them.

There were no Knot at all on the islands in front of the new hide, ‘Knots Landing’ (or ‘not landing’ again today!). There were lots of large lenses poking out of the camera windows and it didn’t help that one photographer had his lens out of the top window with his leg sticking out of the lower level one, waving around! But there was also shooting on the fields inland today, which kept spooking all the Greylags and probably didn’t help encourage the waders to settle.

More Knot started to drop in to join the others on the bank. We could see a large flock high over the pit, with a thick wispy line of birds dropping from it like a thread as they seemed to come down in an orderly queue. But many of the Knot already on the bank kept taking off again and flying round, which meant most of the flock never came in. They were just too nervous today and wouldn’t settle properly.

Waders – the Knot wouldn’t settle properly even on the bank today

We looked back out towards the Wash and we could see that most of the Knot were still out there, whirling round over the water. We went back out of the hide, back to the bank to watch.

A small flock of Siskins came across in front of us, low over the saltmarsh, and we heard a Redpoll calling overhead too. More migrants, this time probably arriving here for the winter. A Chiffchaff started calling and came up out of the suaeda. A flock of Meadow Pipits on the grass behind had also probably dropped in on their way south.

Lots of Knot were flying back and forth low out over the Wash, looking for somewhere to resettle. Thousands more were still high in the sky above. There was a small curl of mud or shallow water still just beyond the edge of the saltmarsh, and some of the birds dropped down to land here. They were nervous though, and kept flying up and round, twisting and turning again.

Something disturbed many of the Knot and Oystercatchers from the pit behind us – they all took off and flew back out to the Wash in a thick line. Added to the others, they stirred everything up again, and everything whirled round again.

Waders – Knot and Oystercatchers flushed from the pit

Waders – continued to whirl round out over the Wash

Eventually more of the birds started to settle out on the margin of the Wash, as the tide started to recede and more mud appeared. Lots of the Knot were now further out, round in the next bay. A Peregrine was still stirring them up, putting up huge clouds.

We decided to have a quick look in Shore Hide. As we walked up, we flushed a young Wheatear ahead of us from the path. It landed on the short grass, but was flushed again by someone who walked past in front of us as we were watching it in the scope. It landed again on the open area closer to the hide, close to the path, and proved to be remarkably tame, letting us walk right past it. Another migrant, stopping off on its way south.

Wheatear – feeding on the short grass by the path

There were not many waders on the pit now. Some Dunlin on one of the islands towards the north end, but we couldn’t find anything different in with them, lots of Common Redshanks, and still some Knot and Oystercatchers on the bank to the south. There were several Spotted Redshanks roosting out on the concrete blocks in middle – one was awake and we got a good look at it through the scope.

A young Peregrine came in, low over the pit, flushing everything. All the Common Redshank flew up, and the Peregrine headed straight into the middle of them, right in front of the hide. It stalled, and didn’t seem to know what to do next, which one to go for, at which point it had missed its opportunity.

Peregrine – first had a go at a flock of Common Redshanks on the pit

The Peregrine then flew over to the bank at the southern end of pit. The remaining Knot started to flush in a panic, and the Peregrine disappeared into their midst. Did it land? We couldn’t see exactly what happened in the ensuing melee, but somehow it managed to grab a Knot and came up with it in its talons. It was struggling to carry it – presumably the Knot was still alive because we could see the Peregrine still pecking at it as it flew up and away over the new hide.

That was quite a show! We headed back out to the edge of the Wash, where the waders were settled again now. Another wave of Knot came up from the pit, remarkable there was anything still on there after the Peregrine had been through. They flew in a long line over our heads, and low out across Wash.

Waders – another wave flying back overhead and out to the Wash

There was lots of exposed wet mud now, and the waders were all spread out across the Wash. We scanned through some of the closer flocks, and found lots of pale silvery grey Sanderling with them now. Presumably they had roosted up along the beach again. The flocks would shuffle occasionally, fly up and round, a quick twist and turn, and then resettle closer to the waters edge. But in the absence of another visit from the Peregrine, the best of the show was over. We decided to make our way back.

As we walked along the path towards Rotary Hide, we could see a couple of people pointing their lenses down at something in the vegetation on the beach. We walked over and could see they were looking at a young Knot just a few metres from them. We had seen one with a broken wing on the rising tide out on the mud near here earlier, so we initially presumed this would be the same bird. But as we got closer we could see it looked fit and well, perhaps just a tame bird arrived from Arctic Greenland having never seen a human before.

Knot – this remarkably tame young bird was on the beach

When we got to the main road, we found a massive tailback again, all the way from the Heacham traffic lights – unbelievably busy for a weekday in late September! It was a gloriously sunny day now though. We had to take a diversion inland again, and round to Titchwell. With the numbers of people obviously heading to the beach today, it was perhaps no surprise that the car park at Titchwell, still partly closed as an attempted Covid restriction, was full.

We were waved past, not even allowed to pull up. Apparently the car park had been full since early this morning, probably beachgoers again enjoying the nice weather on the sand and clogging up the restricted parking for the day, meaning people wanting to actually visit the reserve can’t even get in! It is not often you end up hoping for the weather to deteriorate!

We headed back round to Thornham Harbour for lunch. While we ate, we scanned the saltmarsh. We could see a large flock of Golden Plover in the vegetation and a group of Brent Geese on the beach beyond. More importantly we could see several people out at Thornham Point, across the Titchwell side of the harbour, clearly not seeing any Lapland Buntings. They had been on the beach this morning, but had obviously been disturbed. That was one of our main targets for Titchwell this afternoon, so we decided to head elsewhere.

The Brown Shrike had been reported early this morning still at Warham Greens by one person, but not seen by anyone since. We decided to head over that way to see if it might reappear.

We stopped at Wells. There were lots of geese on the big pool east of the track, mainly Greylags and Canadas, but scanning through we found two Barnacle Geese with them. Presumably feral birds from Holkham, where they breed, but nice to see anyway. There were plenty of ducks too, Wigeon and Teal, a few Shoveler, and we picked out a single Pintail.

The pools have been drying up fast in the recent warm weather, and there were not so many waders on here now, a few Black-tailed Godwits and Ruff on the larger pool to the east. The pool on the west side is now dry, but as we walked down the track, we found a single Common Snipe on the mud by the channel on the far edge.

As we walked in through the bushes beyond, they were rather quiet at first, although it was the heat of the afternoon now. In the hawthorns over by the seawall, we found a mixed flock of finches, mainly Goldfinches and Linnets. Several Wall butterflies came up out of the grass, and we watched a pair chasing each other, displaying.

Wall butterfly – we watched this pair chasing each other

From up on the seawall, we had a look at the Western pool but couldn’t see anything of note. Looking out over the saltmarsh the other side, we could see a distant Red Kite and a Marsh Harrier over the dunes out towards the beach beyond.

We followed the coastal path east. As we walked through the small copse, there were lots of Ivy Bees on the flowering ivy in the sunshine. A fairly recent colonist here, they seem to be doing very well not and numbers are steadily increasing. Out of the copse, a flock of Long-tailed Tits came down along the hedge. We watched as they all passed us, but couldn’t see anything unusual with them. A Blackcap called from deep in the brambles. As we moved on, three Swallows flew west along the hedge, more migrants heading off on their long journey.

We walked down to where the Brown Shrike had been for the last few days, but we were told by people leaving as we arrived that it still hadn’t been seen again. We checked round the area where it had been favouring and found a Redstart up along the first hedge, flicking in and out down to the mown margin of the field, looking for insects. We managed to get it in the scope, but we were looking into the sun.

Three Grey Partridge, flew up from the edge of the field and we could see a single Red-legged Partridge much further up. We tried the hedge where we had seen the shrike the other day, but all we found here was another Redstart. The light was behind us now, so it was a better view of this one. We could see the flash of its red tail as it flew in and out ahead of us.

Redstart – one of two in the hedges here this afternoon

It was lovely being out in the sunshine, and very warm now out of the wind, but after an early start this mornign, we decided it was time to head back. We figured we would have another chance tomorrow if the shrike did reappear later, but it was never seen again so it was the right call. There would be lots of other good things to see tomorrow though.

19th Sept 2020 – Autumn & Wader Spectacular, Day 2

Day 2 of a three day Autumn Tour & Wader Spectacular. It was another sunny day, more blue skies, and although it was breezy again it wasn’t quite as windy as yesterday.

We made our way down to Stiffkey Greens to start the day. The wind seemed to have dropped a bit overnight, so we thought we might stand a chance of finding a few migrants in the coastal bushes. The tide was in, and it was a big tide today backed by the ENE wind, so the saltmarsh was completely covered. A small group of people were out in the water in wetsuits and bathing caps, trying to rescue a sailing boat which had come adrift from somewhere and was floating out in the middle of where the saltmarsh would be later.

The coastal path to the west is often a bit quieter, but the track to the east was flooded by the tide today, so there were more people than usual along here – blackberry pickers, dog walkers, holidaying families with young children out for a walk. Consequently, we didn’t find much in the bushes on the way down to the whirligig.

We kept stopping to scan the flooded saltmarsh, where lots of birds had been displaced by the height of the water today. Little groups of Redshanks were trying to roost around the small islands of vegetation and bushes which were still exposed, with others flying round in lines low over the water looking for somewhere to land. We heard a Greenshank calling, and looked out to see it flying across.

A Spoonbill flew past, heading off east, presumably to roost on Stiffkey Fen. Several Little Egrets were also standing out in the clumps of vegetation, with others flying past. Everything was looking for somewhere to roost over the high tide. Flocks of ducks were flying round too, mainly Wigeon, the males flashing their white wing coverts. A couple of Brent Geese flew past.

Little Egret – looking for somewhere to roost over high tide

Lots of small birds had been pushed off the saltmarsh by the tide today too. A small flock of Skylarks came up over the stubble field just inland. Several Reed Buntings were calling in the brambles and suaeda bushes. Four small birds flew low across over the water in the distance. We only caught them as they disappeared off east – they looked like Lapland Buntings, but they were too far out to be sure and we lost sight of them behind the bushes.

A couple of Marsh Harriers were out hunting, patrolling up and down the lines of higher ground. Continuing on to the whirligig, it was still a bit too windy, despite lighter winds than yesterday, and the brambles here were quiet. There was more activity in the bushes just beyond, several Blackcaps flitting around in the brambles and elders, two or three Blackbirds and a Song Thrush, the latter possibly a continental migrant in for the winter. A Brown Hare sunning itself under the brambles had possibly also been pushed in off the saltmarsh.

A Wheatear flew up off the field beyond the hedge and landed on the top of a hawthorn. It was swaying around, struggling to perch in the wind, before it dropped back down out of view.

Wheatear – struggled to perch on the top of the hedge in the wind

We decided to head back and find somewhere more sheltered. When we got back to the car park, we turned to look out over the saltmarsh and noticed a distinctive large gull flying past. It looked very white-headed, pale grey-mantled and contrastingly dark-winged with dark greater coverts, with a very white tail base and black terminal band. We managed to just grab a couple of photos before it headed away. It was a young Caspian Gull, in its 1st calendar year, 1st winter – not a place we usually expect to see one, a welcome bonus.

Caspian Gull – flew past over the saltmarsh as we reached the car park

We headed for Wells and down beach road where we parked in the beach car park. As we walked in past the boating lake towards the trees, we could see several Little Grebes out on the water.

Cutting in through the birches towards the Dell, we found a couple of birders watching a Redstart. We stopped, and a Pied Flycatcher was flicking about in the trees above too. A good start, and a sign that things had possibly arrived overnight. The birds appeared to be following a tit flock – warblers and flycatchers will often do that here and finding the tits is often the best way to find everything else.

Long-tailed Tit – there were several flycatchers and warblers with the tits

They started to move away rapidly through the birches and we didn’t want to lose them. We could hear the Pied Flycatcher calling much further ahead now, so we followed as quickly as we could. We managed to get ahead of them, and were suddenly surrounded by birds – lots of tits, Long-tailed Tits, Coal Tits; tiny Goldcrests; one or two Treecreepers working their way up the trunks; a couple of Great Spotted Woodpeckers.

A Pied Flycatcher appeared and perched up nicely on a small birch in front of us, making occasional sallies out after insects. Hard to tell if it was the same one we saw earlier, but probably not – there were several in here today.

Pied Flycatcher – perched up in one of the small birches

Following the flock round through the trees on the north side of the Dell, we saw a small shape come up out of the bracken on the top of the bank. It was a Yellow-browed Warbler, and we watched it flicking around in the birches. It disappeared further into the trees and we lost sight of it in all the foliage. We walked round to the other side, and eventually the flock worked its way towards us. The Yellow-browed Warbler appeared in the birches again here briefly.

The tit flock headed on through the trees and we had to take a path away from them to get round to where they appeared to be going. It only took a few seconds, but when we got to the other side they had completely disappeared – as they have a habit of doing!

We decided to walk across to the more open area to the south, to see if we could find anything in the bushes. There is a gap at the back where you can see out across the grazing marshes, and as we rounded the hawthorns a bird flew up onto the barbed wire fence right in front of us – a Red-backed Shrike!

Red-backed Shrike – appeared on the barbed wire fence in front of us

The Red-backed Shrike dropped down to the ground and flew back up to the fence a little further along. We had a longer view of it through our binoculars now – we could see it was very similar to the Brown Shrike we had seen yesterday, also a 1st winter. It was more heavily marked with dark crescents on its upperparts, greyer on the head and nape, and longer-winged too. We were looking into the light from here, and we didn’t notice until we looked at the photos later this it was actually missing its left eye.

It dropped down again, and then shot off across the field to the fence on the other side. We got it in the scope now, and had some more prolonged views. Red-backed Shrikes used to be common breeding birds in the UK, but after a long decline died out as regular breeders in the 1980s, a victim of loss of habitat and intensification of agriculture. They are now mainly scarce passage migrants here, dropping in on their way between their breeding grounds on the continent and their wintering areas in West Africa, although the odd pair sometimes still stays to breed. A nice find for the group!

There were lots of Curlews out on the grazing marshes, and a flock of Pink-footed Geese loafing in the grass in the field beyond. We had a look at them in the scopes too. Two Red Kites were hanging in the air further back towards the main road.

Back on the main path, we made our way on west. There were a couple of Chiffchaffs in the birches by the track and we heard Long-tailed Tits in here too, but they disappeared out the back and along the far edge of the field beyond before we could get a look through them.

There was nothing at the drinking pool – it is very dry now – and not much activity in the deciduous trees further west. As we turned to come back, one of the group spotted some movement under the bushes, a Redstart. We stopped to watch it, sitting motionless for several minutes before flitting across and landing again. As we started to to walk on, we noticed a second Redstart under the trees a little further along.

Redstart – one of two, feeding quietly under the trees

We planned to head back to the Dell to try to find one of the tit flocks again. On our way, we met someone who said that there had been a Red-breasted Flycatcher earlier by the main path, with the tits. There was no sign of them there, so we continued round into the Dell meadow. We found a tit flock in the birches on the north side and had just stopped to look through them when we received a message to say the Red-breasted Flycatcher was across the other side.

The tits moved deeper into the trees, so we went across to look for the Red-breasted Flycatcher. Unfortunately it had moved off again and disappeared – it wasn’t clear whether it was with the tits now or on its own. It had been a long morning, and it would be getting late for lunch if we spent too long chasing round now, so we decided to head back to the car park to get something to eat.

After lunch back in the car park in the sunshine, and a sit down, we headed back in to the woods to look for the Red-breasted Flycatcher again. We walked round the east side of the Dell first, where it had been earlier. We quickly found a tit flock in the trees here, but it was moving fast. We managed to follow it, but it disappeared over the main track and off towards the caravan site before we could tell if there was anything interesting with it.

Back round to the north side of Dell, a Yellow-browed Warbler had just been seen in here again. We couldn’t find it now, but we did see three Pied Flycatchers, and two or three Chiffchaffs in the birches. We seemed to be chasing our tails, so we walked back out to the main path, planning to look in the birches the other side and regroup, and immediately found a tit flock. We had only just stopped to look through them when we got a call from a friend to say that the Red-breasted Flycatcher was back in the trees in the south-east corner of the Dell.

We hurried round and the Red-breasted Flycatcher was now showing well, flitting around down low in the tangles of branches beneath the birches. It was another young bird, a 1st winter – with a dull pale buffy-orange wash across its breast (the adult males had a more obvious orange-red breast). When it perched it would occasionally cock its tail up, and it was possible to see the white sides to the base of the black tail. It seemed to be settled here now, on its own, doing a small circuit up and down in the trees.

Red-breasted Flycatcher – eventually showed well low down under the birches

We spent some time sitting on the bank watching it quietly feeding under the trees. Red-breasted Flycatcher is another scarce visitor here, more in autumn than spring. They breed in Eastern Europe, up through southern Scandinavia and migrate to West Asia for the winter. Another great autumn migrant for us to catch up with.

It had been very productive in the Woods today, but we had spent enough time in the trees now, so we made our way back out to the car park. There was still a bit of time, so we walked over to loon in the harbour. The beach was busy, but there were lots of waders out on the mud the other side of the harbour channel, so we set up the scopes to look through them.

There were lots of Oystercatchers, Grey Plovers and Knot. Several Bar-tailed Godwits were on the wet sand opposite, and we had a good look at them through the scopes. A few Turnstones were feeding along the far edge of the channel and further back, we found a couple of Ringed Plovers. A small group of Brent Geese was on the mud too.

There would be plenty of time for more waders tomorrow. It had been a great day, with some really good birds. For now, it was time to call it a day – we had an early start planned for tomorrow.

18th Sept 2020 – Autumn & Wader Spectacular, Day 1

Day 1 of a three day Autumn Tour & Wader Spectacular. It was a gloriously sunny day with wall-to-wall blue skies, pleasantly warm out of the blustery ENE wind.

On our way over to Holkham, two Red Kites hung in the air over the trees just west of Wells. As we drove up along Lady Anne’s Drive, we could see a small group of Egyptian Geese out on the grass, and as we got out of the minibus a couple of Marsh Harriers were enjoying the wind over the bank off to the east.

We set off west on the inland side of the pines, where we thought it would be more sheltered from the wind. A Brambling was calling its wheezy call and we had just found it perched high in a poplar near the path when we had to get out of the way for a Land Rover coming down the track. When we looked back it was gone. A fresh arrival, come here from Scandinavia for the winter.

There would be rather too many Land Rovers going back and forth along the first part of the track today, often the same vehicle five, six, or more times. Apparently they are filming a Land Rover corporate video here at the moment, racing up and down the beach in vehicles and careering over various other parts of the estate. They were certainly getting their carbon budget soaring this morning, with all the toing and froing. A Chiffchaff was singing in the bushes. And, as we walked on west, a very pale Common Buzzard came over the tops of the trees above our heads.

We hadn’t gone too much further when we encoutered our first tit flock. We could hear the Long-tailed Tits calling at first, before finding them in the trees, along with Coal, Blue and Great Tits, one or two Treecreepers, several Goldcrests and Chiffchaffs. When a small warbler flew up into the top of a young oak, we caught a flash of a bold yellowish-white supercilium and a couple of pale wing bars. A Yellow-browed Warbler!

The Long-tailed Tits were on the move and the Yellow-browed Warbler quickly dropped back out of view, deeper into the trees. We could see the flock still moving through parallel with the path and a little further on, it came back out to the trees on the side of the track. The Yellow-browed Warbler flew across and landed in the top of an oak the other side, above the track. We were standing underneath, and could see it flitting around in the leaves towards the top, directly above our heads.

As the flock moved on again, the Yellow-browed Warbler flew back across the track and disappeared into the trees once more. We continued to follow but just before we got to Salts Hole, it crossed back and disappeared deeper into some thick holm oaks on the edge of the pines, where we lost sight of them.

Yellow-browed Warblers used to be very scarce visitors here, wandering off course on their way between their breeding range east of the Urals to wintering sites in SE Asia. But over the last 30 or so years, they have become increasingly common here and are now expected from mid-September. As their breeding range has expanded westwards, birds are now routinely wintering in western Europe.

Scanning across Salts Hole, we could see several Little Grebes out on the water. A Kingfisher popped up on a post at the back, then flew across to the reeds the other side. It didn’t seem to know what it wanted to do, as it flew backwards and forwards in front of the reeds several times, before flying up into a holm oak where it landed. Then it was quickly off again and disappeared round the reeds.

Kingfisher – spent several minutes zooming around Salts Hole

A little further on, there is a muddy pool in the reeds by the track, and as we passed by the Kingfisher flew in and landed in a tangle right next to us, just a few feet away. Unfortunately it didn’t stay long – presumably it saw us, because it quickly flew off again and we watched it disappeared away over the track ahead of us, in a flash of electric blue.

When we got to the gate just before Washington Hide, we stopped to scan across the grazing marshes. There had apparently been a Redstart on the fence here earlier but it had flown up over the bushes and there was no sign of it now. Further back, over the reeds, we picked up a distant group of Pink-footed Geese flying in, which dropped down out of view beyond.

When we got to Washington Hide, we walked up onto the boardwalk for a better view. We could now see the Pinkfeet out on the grass in the distance, and got them in the scope for a closer look. A Great White Egret flew in over the reeds, and dropped in at the back of the pool out of view. A few moments later, a second Great White Egret flew in and attempted to land on the pool too, but was quickly chased off by the first.

Several Common Darters were basking on the handrail of the boardwalk, as we set off west again. Just before Meals House, we stopped to watch several Goldcrests feeding in the holm oaks. We had a great view of them, the adults with their golden crown stripes and a juvenile still with an all grey head, at least until another fleet of Land Rovers appeared, and we had to get out of the way again.

Goldcrest – we stopped to watch several in the holm oaks before Meals House

There was too much disturbance around Meals House, which is where the Land Rover crew is basing themselves, lots of vehicles and people. We had a quick look in the sycamores, but there was nothing in there today. The only good news was that once we got beyond Meals House, we would not be bothered by the Land Rovers any more.

Before the crosstracks, we came across another tit flock – we could hear Long-tailed Tits calling and see birds flitting around in the holm oaks. but the trees here were just catching the wind and the birds stayed in the thicker trees and didn’t come out to the more open ones by the path.

Just beyond the crosstracks, we heard a Pied Flycatcher calling. At first, we could just see it flicking around deep in an oak tree, but it remained frustratingly out of view. It moved into a thicker tangle behind, then across to a small hawthorn next to the oak. Suddenly it flew out, making a sally after an insect, which it caught. This time it landed right on the front of the hawthorn and we finally got a good look at it. A migrant, on its way south probably from Scandinavia, stopping off here to feed before continuing on its way to West Africa.

Pied Flycatcher – finally landed in the open, on the front of the hawthorn

There was a good selection of butterflies, enjoying the sunshine in the more sheltered spots today. A smart Red Admiral basking on the path, a Small Copper feeding on ivy flowers, a Speckled Wood resting on a branch. There were a few dragonflies too – as well as the ever-present Common Darters, we saw a few Migrant Hawkers and one apple-green Southern Hawker hawking around the edges of the trees. A Willow Emerald damselfly was hanging on a branch over the path by a small group of sallows, a recent colonist, it is amazing how quickly it has spread.

Willow Emerald damselfly – on a branch overhanging the path

Out of the trees, we walked up into the edge of the dunes. Someone we passed told us there was a Redstart in the next valley, so we walked round to where we could get a clear view. The Redstart flicked round out of view behind some bushes, a flash of an orange-red tail. We stationed ourselves at the end of the valley and waited for it to reappear.

There were several Stonechats here, flitting from the bushes down to the ground and back up again. Eventually the Redstart reappeared and gave itself up properly. Several times it perched nicely on the top of one of the small bushes, where we could get it in the scopes. Another nice migrant on its way from Scandinavia to Africa.

Looking out across the grazing marshes, we could see the herd of cattle distantly in the top corner. From time to time, a white shape would appear in the long grass in between them, the Cattle Egrets. We counted at least four, the maximum we could see simultaneously, but there could have been more. Another Great White Egret was stalking along the edge of the reeds out on the pool on the edge of the grazing marsh, looking the other way towards Decoy Wood. Through the scopes, we could see its long dagger-like yellow bill.

A Green Woodpecker yaffled from behind the natterjack pools and we looked across to see it fly up and across past us, heading for the pines. A small group of Siskins came out of the trees and flew over, heading off west – we saw, and particularly heard, quite a few small parties today. An orange Wall butterfly posed nicely in the short grass on the dunes.

On the walk back, another Brambling flew over calling and dropped down into the bushes by the ditch beyond the reeds. Presumably the same Pied Flycatcher flitted across the path and landed briefly in the cherry trees just before the crosstracks. A Bullfinch called and perched briefly in the bushes by the path in front of Washington Hide, where three late Sand Martins were hawking over the reeds. The Kingfisher was still flying around Salts Hole as we passed.

There is nowhere to sit in The Lookout now, as all the tables have been removed, so we drove over the road and up to the car park by the Park for lunch. It was better here, out of the wind. A perfect place for a post-lunch nap on the grass in the sunshine, but we didn’t have time for dozing this afternoon.

A Brown Shrike had been found earlier this morning at Warham Greens, a short drive along the coast, so we decided to head over there to try to see it. We managed to find a parking space on Garden Drove and walked down the track towards the saltmarsh. Permission had been granted to go into the edge of the field, so we walked along the mown weedy margin to where several people were already gathered. The large open field meant we could maintain social distancing and avoid ‘mingling’ between bubbles, while all enjoying the bird.

We were quickly looking at the Brown Shrike, perched low down, in the dead umbellifers at the bottom of the hedge. It kept dropping down to the ground on the margin after insects, before flying back up to another perch. We had great views of it in the scopes. Brown above, with a more chestnut crown in the sunshine, and a distinct blackish mask.

Brown Shrike – feeding from the umbellifers on the edge of the field

It was a young Brown Shrike, a 1st winter, with dark scallop markings on its scapulars but otherwise a rather plain brown mantle, not as strongly-marked as a similar-looking young Red-backed Shrike would be above.We could see the rather short primary projection too, another good distinguishing feature.

Brown Shrikes breed across Russia and spend the winter in India and east into SE Asia, so this young bird was a long way off course. They are rare visitors to the UK, and this was only the second one to be identified in Norfolk. An interesting bird for us to catch up with.

Another Redstart was flicking in and out of the umbellifers close to the shrike, flashing its orange red tail. A Whimbrel flew in off the saltmarsh calling, across in front of us, and disappeared off over the field inland.

Back to the minibus, we drove further east to Stiffkey. A flock of Long-tailed Tits was up in the trees in the small copse by the permissive path as we walked down beside the road, but we couldn’t see anything in with them today.

It was quiet along the riverbank, a bit windy out here today. When we got to one of the places where we could get a view over the reeds, we could see the Spoonbills gathered on the island. Some were asleep, but others were awake and preening, so we could see their distinctive bills. We counted at least 18 today, a good number considering the tide was out, although some were sitting down and there might have been a few more. Two took off and flew over past us, before turning and heading out towards the harbour.

Spoonbills – we counted at least 18 roosting on the island

When we got up onto the seawall, we couldn’t see the Spoonbills. Where they are roosting at the moment is hidden behind the reeds from here. There were lots of Greylags, plus a few Canada Geese loafing on the grass. A liberal scattering of moulting ducks too, included Wigeon, Teal and Mallard. A Pintail was swimming out on the water – though now in dull eclipse plumage, the size and shape still sets it apart from the others.

A few Ruff and Black-tailed Godwits were scattered round among all the wildfowl. We walked further up and looked back to see a single Green Sandpiper, tucked in on the edge of the reeds, working its way along the this strip of mud beyond the water. A Common Buzzard perched up on the edge of the poplars at the back was busy eating something.

The tide was still out in the Harbour. We could see all the seals hauled out on the sandbars beyond Blakeney Point, in the distance. A Greenshank flew past down the creek, and landed on the shore of the channel a bit further up, by the boats. Another three Spoonbills flew out past us, heading from the Fen out into the Harbour to feed in the muddy creeks.

Spoonbills – flying out from the Fen to feed in the Harbour

Looking out into the pit, we could see a couple of Brent Geese. They are just starting to return here for the winter now, back from their breeding grounds in Siberia. There was a good selection of waders too, if a little distant – Knot, Grey Plover, Oystercatchers, Curlew, a single Bar-tailed Godwit. There were lots of gulls loafing on the mud too.

We continued round and down to the edge of the harbour, where we stood admiring the view in the later afternoon sunshine. The Greenshank was now feeding on the edge of the channel opposite, giving us lovely views.

Greenshank – feeding in the harbour channel

It is a magical spot here, and we could have sat for hours, but it was time to head back. It had been an exciting first day – two more days to look forward to.

20th Sept 2019 – Autumn Migration, Day 1

Day 1 of a three day Autumn Migration tour today. It was a glorious sunny day, warm with light SE winds. Lovely weather to be out and about, if a little too good for bringing in tired migrants!

Our first destination for the morning was Snettisham. As we drove across towards the Wash coast, we passed some old farm buildings beside the road. A shape in the frame of an old window caught our eye – a Little Owl looking out. It had been rather cool overnight and it had found a spot in the morning sun to warm itself. A nice start to the day.

Little Owl – sunning itself in the window of an old barn

A little further on, and a Red Kite flew up from beside the road together with a dark chocolate brown juvenile Marsh Harrier, presumably from some carrion nearby. They crossed the road low just in front of us. Just beyond, a Common Buzzard perched on a hedge was enjoying morning sun.

As we made our way down towards the Wash at Snettisham, there were several Little Egrets on the pits. There were three Common Gulls in with the Black-headed Gulls and, as ever, lots of Greylag Geese.

It was not one of the biggest high tides today, not enough to cover all the mud, but it was going to push a lot of the birds up towards the shore. When we got up onto the seawall, we could see the tide was already well in. The mud along the edge of the water was covered in birds – a dark slick of Oystercatchers and the bright grey/white of Knot in their thousands, catching the sunlight.

The Knot were all rather jumpy, occasionally flying up and swirling round out over the water. We could see what looked like clouds of smoke further out, over the middle of the Wash, but on closer inspection they were more Knot, tens of thousands of them. Something was obviously spooking them, but it meant we were treated to a great show!

Waders – swirling flocks of Knot and Oystercatchers out over the Wash

When the waders settled again, we had a closer look through the scope. In with all the Knot and Oystercatchers, we could see lots of Bar-tailed Godwits too. Higher up, on the drier mud, the Curlews were more sparsely scattered, still hundreds of them, mostly asleep on one leg with their long bills tucked in their backs.

Little groups of smaller waders were flying in and landing down along the near edge, on the mud in front of us. There were several Ringed Plovers and Turnstones, and one or two Knot with them, giving us  a closer look than the vast flocks further back. Looking further up the shore, we could see a small group of silvery-white Sanderling scurrying around on the sandy spit. A few Sandwich Terns flew back and forth calling, along with a single Common Tern.

Knot – we had a closer view of one or two feeding on the near shore

There were a few hirundines moving today, little groups of Swallows, but in the bright and sunny conditions many were going over high, particularly the House Martins. They are leaving us now, heading off south on their way to Africa for the winter.

While we were scanning the sky, we picked up a small flock of geese, very distant. They were flying high, very different from the local Greylags, smaller and shorter-necked too. They were heading our way and once they got within earshot, our thoughts were confirmed and they were Pink-footed Geese. Eventually they came right overhead, and out over the Wash. There were a few Brent Geese, freshly returned from Russia for the winter, and several Pintail out on the Wash too.

Pink-footed Geese – flew in high and dropped down towards the Wash

Further down along the seawall, we found two Greenshanks on the pit just north of the causeway. They were busy feeding, much paler, more elegant than the Common Redshank which was with them. A Common Sandpiper flew in and we watched it creeping along the far bank, in and out of the reeds on the edge. We could see the distinctive notch of white extending up between the grey breast and wings.

There were a few Wigeon on here too, our first of the tour. Looking down over the other pit, to the south, we were looking into the sun but we could see a Spoonbill roosting in with the Greylags and Cormorants out in the middle and what looked like two Spotted Redshanks next to it. They were distant from here and we were looking into the sun, so we decided to walk down to Shore Hide.

On our way, we scanned the Wash again. We could see some very distant Grey Plover with the remnants of their black summer bellies and a little group of Dunlin. Both additions to our wader list, although we would have better views of them later.

From Shore Hide, we had a much better view of the Spoonbill. It was mostly doing what Spoonbills seem to like doing best – sleeping! But it did wake up eventually, showing us its spoon-shaped bill. It was a juvenile, with a dull fleshy-coloured bill lacking the adult’s yellow tip. Then it suddenly flew off, down the pit and back out towards the Wash. The two Spotted Redshanks with it were also asleep, but another one a little further over with another group of geese on the next islands was awake, so we could see its distinctive long, needle-fine bill.

Spoonbill – with two Spotted Redshanks, roosting on the Pit

With the tide not covering the mud, there were not the huge hordes of waders roosting on here today, although one of the islands further up was fairly packed with Common Redshanks and we could see more waders down at the south end. There were lots of geese, mainly Greylags, with several Canada Geese, including a mixed pair with four Canada x Greylag hybrid juveniles. There were a few Egyptian Geese too, and ducks including a few Gadwall, Teal, Shoveler and three Tufted Ducks. A couple of Little Grebes were busy diving.

Someone in the hide told us they had seen a Whinchat further down, so we decided to walk down to South Hide to have a look. We stopped to scan the bushes where it had been, but there was no sign of it at first. In the sunshine, we could see lots of raptors circling up – several Marsh Harriers, one or two Common Buzzards over, and a couple of Kestrels hovering. One of the Marsh Harriers flushed a Peregrine out on the saltmarsh, which flew round and landed on a post off in the distance.

Two large corvids flying in from the edge of the Wash immediately looked different, large-billed, heavy headed, with thick necks – two Ravens! They started to circle, and we could hear their kronking calls, before they gradually drifted off inland and we lost sight of them behind the trees. Ravens are still very scarce in Norfolk, so this was a very welcome bonus.

We found two Stonechats first, on the suaeda bushes out on the edge of the saltmarsh, then a Whinchat appeared with them. They kept dropping down into the vegetation out of view or over the far edge of the bushes where we couldn’t see them, but there seemed to be more Stonechats now, at least four. The Whinchat seemed to be favouring a larger dead elder bush which provided a good vantage point and just as it looked like a second Whinchat joined it, a Kestrel dropped down and landed in the bush flushing them. We had a nice view of the Kestrel in the scope though.

Round at South Hide, we could see the islands here were full of Black-tailed Godwits. Most of the adults are now in drab grey-brown non-breeding plumage but a few still had remnants of their brighter rusty feathers and several juveniles were also more brightly coloured too. Most of the Avocets have gone south now, but four were lingering with them, including a brown-backed juvenile which fed in the small pool down at the front. A Little Egret walked across below the hide, its yellow feet flashing in the sunshine.

After walking back to the minibus, we made our way round to Titchwell. We cut across inland, where we started to flush Jays from the hedgerows, flying along in front of us flashing their white rumps. There seemed to be lots of Jays on the move up here today, following the ridge.

Round at Titchwell, we stopped for lunch in the picnic area. We could hear a Great Spotted Woodpecker calling and had a brief glimpse of it flying through the tops of the trees. Afterwards we headed out onto the reserve. A family of Greenfinches was calling up in the birches above the feeders.

There were lots of Bearded Tits calling in the reeds from the main path, but they were keeping down today. A Cetti’s Warbler was singing, and also typically kept itself well hidden. There were lots of Common Pochard diving on the back of the Reedbed Pool, along with a couple of Tufted Ducks. Out on the saltmarsh opposite, a Curlew was very well camouflaged in the vegetation, more so than the Lapwings.

While we were standing by the reedbed, eleven Spoonbills flew up from the Freshmarsh beyond. It looked like they might head off south, but they turned over the reeds and flew straight towards us, coming right overhead, before heading out over the saltmarsh. They circled round and eventually landed, so we could get them in the scope. Mostly adults here, with yellow-tipped bills.

Spoonbills – eleven flew right overhead, out to the saltmarsh

There were more Bearded Tits calling from the reeds on the edge of the Fresmarsh, but there was still no sign from the main path. We decided to have a look from Island Hide, and were immediately rewarded with two feeding down low along the edge of the reeds opposite the hide. We stopped to watch and realised their were several along the edge of the mud. We had good views of several males, with their powder blue-grey heads and black moustaches, and the browner females.

A Common Snipe was feeding further back, on the mud in front of the reeds, and a Water Rail put in a brief appearance before scuttling back into the reeds.

There was a good selection of waders on the Freshmarsh again today, still lots of Ruff and Dunlin. A single juvenile Little Stint was rather mobile, but we had a good look at it through the scope, feeding with a Dunlin at one point for a good comparison, the Little Stint noticeably smaller, shorter billed, cleaner white below. When it flew again, we lost track of it.

Ruff – there were still plenty of the Freshmarsh today

There were quite a few Lapwings and Golden Plover asleep on the islands out in the middle. Two or three Ringed Plovers were running around on the drier mud, over towards the west bank path. A Little Ringed Plover flew in and landed on the mud on the edge of the reeds.

There were lots of gulls loafing on the islands too, mostly Black-headed Gulls but with a few Herring Gulls and Lesser Black-backed Gulls with them. At least four Mediterranean Gulls were initially well hidden in the Black-headed Gulls behind the low brick wall, but eventually came out and one adult even stood up on the bricks at one point which allowed everyone to get a better look at it.

A Great White Egret flew over and disappeared off towards Thornham. There were still two Spoonbills left on the Freshmarsh, and a couple more started to filter back from the saltmarsh. A Yellow Wagtail dropped in right in front of the hide and spent a couple of minutes running back and forth before flying off calling shrilly.

Yellow Wagtail – dropped in right in front of the hide

As we came out of the hide, we could hear a tit flock in the sallows just behind the hide, Long-tailed Tits and Blue Tits. From the ramp up to the west bank path, we had a great view of them feeding in the branches in the sunshine.

Long-tailed Tit – feeding in the sallows behind Island Hide

We decided to head out towards the beach. From up on the bank, we could now see a Spotted Redshank right in the back corner of the Freshmarsh. Continuing on, there were just a few Redshanks and Curlews on Volunteer Marsh and with the tide out now there was nothing on the Tidal Pools.

Scanning from the top of the beach, we could see a few very distant Great Crested Grebes on the sea but not much else. There were lots of waders on the mussel beds, so we walked down for a closer look. We had much better views of Bar-tailed Godwits from here, after the distant ones out on the Wash. One was bathing in a small pool on the beach just behind the mussel beds and we had a good look at it through the scope. At one point, a Black-tailed Godwit was in the same scope view, giving us a good comparison between them.

We realised that time was running out and we had to head back. We had a message to say there was a Wheatear on the Freshmarsh, so we stopped to have a look for it. The vegetation on Avocet Island is quite tall, although it is in the process of being strimmed. The Wheatear was probably feeding on the newly cut area, as it eventually showed itself on one of the fence posts, before it was chased off by a Pied Wagtail.

The Little Stint had reappeared again, so we had another good look at that. Then a single Pink-footed Goose flew in calling, and dropped down with the Greylags loafing on one of the closer islands. It wasn’t made to feel welcome! It found a spot on the edge of the other geese and settled down, possibly fresh in and needing a rest. It was a great view through the scope, the Pink-footed Goose smaller than the Greylags, darker headed, with a more delicate bill, mostly dark with a pink band in the middle.

We had to tear ourselves away, as some of the group had to be back, but still we weren’t finished. As we walked back towards the visitor centre, we glanced across to the sallows and noticed a small pale bird perched in the leaves in the sunshine. It was very plain faced, with a dark eye and pale eye ring, a Redstart. From the right angle, we could see its orange-red tail.

Redstart – sunning itself in the sallows by the main path

Redstart is a migrant here, stopping off on its way south from Scandinavia in autumn, heading for Africa. It looked like this one might be fresh in, tired and enjoying a rest in the sun, as it was unconcerned at first by all the people walking past and us stopping to watch it. It was a great way to end our first day. Back in the car park, as we packed up, a little flock of Swallows flew over, more Autumn migrants on their way.

17th May 2019 – A Spring Stint

A Private Tour today, in North Norfolk, looking for spring migrants. It was rather grey and cloudy for most of the day with the odd brighter interval, and decidedly cool for May in the light-moderate NE wind, but at least it stayed dry all day until after we had finished.

Our first destination for the morning was Kelling. As we got out of the minibus in the village, we could hear Greenfinches singing in the trees and saw two perched in the top of a pine tree. Walking down the lane, a Tawny Owl hooted once, a bit of a surprise, but some birds will hoot in the daytime. We didn’t hear it again, but a distant Lesser Whitethroat was rattling away on the hillside, and Blackcap and Common Whitethroat were singing from the hedge beside the track. Down at the copse, a Chiffchaff was chiffing and chaffing.

We stopped at the gate overlooking the Water Meadow and scanned the fields. A pair of Grey Partridges were hiding in the grass. We could see the male’s orange face and just see the back of the female, which was keeping well tucked down amongst the tussocks where the cows had been grazing.

Grey Partridges – hiding in the grass on the Water Meadow

There were lots of Brown Hares feeding on the grassy hillside beyond the Water Meadow and a couple more very skittish individuals kept running in and out of view just in front of us. We couldn’t see the Ring Ouzel though – it had apparently been disturbed and flown back into the rushes out in the middle.

Brown Hare – running around on the Water Meadow

Continuing on, we had a nice view of a Common Whitethroat which perched up in the brambles beside the track, singing. From the cross-track, we stopped to scan the Water Meadow. There were lots of Sand Martins hawking low over the water, with one or two landing on the barbed wire fence from time to time. A Common Sandpiper was bobbing along the muddy margin of the pool towards the back, and a pair of Lapwings were feeding in the grass nearby, with the resident pair of Egyptian Geese.

Down past the Quags. a Sedge Warbler was half singing from the reeds in the ditch but refused to show itself. There were several Linnets in the brambles and we stopped to admire one smart red-breasted male in the scope. As we walked up the hillside beyond, we could hear Meadow Pipits and Skylarks singing, and watched one of the former doing its parachute display flight. A male Stonechat was perched on the fence further up.

We walked up to the top of the hill and looked back down to the back of the Water Meadow, but all it produced was a pair of Red-legged Partridges. It was a bit fresh in the breeze up here, so we turned to walk back. A female Wheatear appeared now on the concrete wall around the gun emplacements, before dropping down out of view.

Back at the Water Meadow, we watched some of the local Rooks feeding their recently fledged young around the edge of the pool. An Avocet flew in straight past us and landed in the shallow water. As we walked back up the lane, the Lesser Whitethroat was still singing from somewhere off in the hedge to the east, just audible from where we were. It was asked if we could get closer to try to hear it better, but typically by the time we had walked round it had gone quiet.

We made our way round to the Visitor Centre at Cley to warm up over a hot drink next. Four Whimbrel flew over calling as we got out of the minibus. From the cafe, we could see lots of Swifts and House Martins hawking low over the reeds. One or two Marsh Harriers circled up out of the reedbed.

Afterwards, we headed out to the hides. As we walked along the path, we could hear Reed Warblers singing from the reeds along the edge of the ditch. The first remained stubbornly hidden, but the second was perched up nicely on a bent reed, in full view, where we could get a really good look at it.

Reed Warbler – singing from the reeds by the ditch

Out at boardwalk, the Swifts were zooming back and forth very low over the hides, just above our heads. A Sedge Warbler was singing from just outside Teal Hide, and we could just see it perched briefly on the fence in between the bushes before it dropped down out of view.

We went into Dauke’s Hide first. The Temminck’s Stints have been on Simmond’s Scrape and sure enough we found two of them straight away, on the near edge of the nearest island. We had a really good view of them creeping around on the edge of the mud. There had been five earlier, but we couldn’t find any sign of the other three at the moment, but two was plenty for us!

Temminck’s Stint – two were showing very well this morning

Temminck’s Stints are scarce migrants here, passing through in small numbers in early May from their wintering grounds in Africa to Scandinavia for the breeding season, so they are always good birds to catch up with. There were also several Black-tailed Godwits on Simmond’s Scrape, but they were mostly asleep, roosting on one of the islands, and a few Redshanks. A Ringed Plover was bathing in the shallow water by one of the islands towards the back, and there was a Little Ringed Plover too but it was rather mobile today. Several Avocets were hunkered down, nesting on the back of Whitwell Scrape.

There was a nice variety of ducks here too, with several lingering Wigeon and Teal of note. They are both common here in the winter, but most have long since departed now for their breeding grounds further east on the continent. A pair of Common Pochard on Whitwell Scrape may well be breeding somewhere here, as we watched the male shepherding the female while she fed, before flying off together. The drake then returned alone and, after a quick preen, went to sleep.

Common Pochard – the drake flew back in to Whitwell Scrape

We went round to Teal Hide next to have a closer look at Pat’s Pool. A Little Ringed Plover flew past as we got inside and opened the flaps. There were several Black-tailed Godwits, these ones awake and feeding in front of the hide. They included one or two in breeding plumage, with rusty head, neck and breast. A single Common Sandpiper was feeding around the edge of the more distant island over towards Bishop Hide.

Black-tailed Godwit – one or two are in full breeding plumage now

It was time for lunch now, so we made our way back towards the Visitor Centre. A Sedge Warbler was singing in the top of a bush in the reeds by the boardwalk now and seemed completely unphased by us stopping to watch it just a few feet away. We had a great view, very different from the Reed Warbler we had seen on the way out. As well as the different song, much less rhythmical, the Sedge Warbler had a bold pale supercilium. bordered with dark above, and more patterned upperparts.

Sedge Warbler – singing from a bush by the boardwalk

It was a bit too chilly to use the picnic tables at the Visitor Centre today, so we made our way round to the beach for lunch in the shelter. Afterwards, we had a quick look out at the sea. Two Little Terns flew past just offshore and a Sandwich Tern was perched on the post of the old wreck. Through the scope, we could see its shaggy crest and yellow-tipped black bill. It was a bit cold out on the beach, so beat a quick retreat.

We drove back round to Walsey Hills. A female Common Pochard was diving with two ducklings on the pool as we got out, a rare breeder here so always good to see them with young. As we walked in through the bushes, there were lots of Chaffinches, and tits including a Coal Tit, coming in to the feeders. Just beyond, a bird shot across the path ahead of us, flashing a red tail, a Redstart, a migrant presumably having just dropped in. It flicked back again the other way, but then disappeared into the bushes. Otherwise, there were a few birds singing in here, including Chiffchaff and Cetti’s Warbler, and a Song Thrush was an addition to the day’s list.

There had apparently been two Spoonbills asleep from Babcock Hide earlier, but we were not sure if they would still be there. We set off to walk over that way, but we hadn’t even got as far as the start of the East Bank when we saw them flying over. They turned and headed out over the reserve, disappearing off west.

We decided to continue on up the East Bank instead. The cloud had thickened this afternoon and it seemed to be threatening rain now away to the east. It was exposed here and cooler now in the wind, so the reeds were rather quiet today. There were not many birds around the Serpentine either, just a few ducks, and several Lapwings around the pools.

We headed straight on to Arnold’s Marsh, where we hoped to find a few different waders on the brackish pools. The first bird we got the scope on was a smart Grey Plover in breeding plumage, with a black face and belly, very different to the grey ones we see through the winter here. There were several Bar-tailed Godwits here, including one male moulting into breeding plumage, with the rusty feathering extending right down under its tail. A few Turnstones were picking around the shingle islands, also starting to moult into their brighter breeding plumage too.

After a brisk walk back to the minibus, we drove back west and stopped again at Stiffkey. As we got out, we could see a flock of Greylag Geese feeding in the field by the road, seemingly unconcerned by the scarecrow or the bird scarer! A single Brent Goose was in with them. Across the other side of the road, a Stock Dove was tucked down in the ploughed strip beyond the grass.

Diamond-back Moth – one of many along the path, here with a weevil

As we walked down the sheltered path between the hedges, lots of small moths came up out of the vegetation as we passed. We stopped to look at one and realised they were Diamond-back Moths, migrants from continent, presumably just arrived on the NE winds. There must have been at least 50 along this small stretch of path, a significant arrival. It was only later we discovered that there had been a big movement of them in recent days, with big numbers in Finland a week ago, arriving into Sweden just yesterday. Amazing to think of the huge distances these tiny moths had covered.

Back to birds, and a smart grey male Marsh Harrier circled up over the field beyond the path, before perching in the top of a hedge where we could get a good look at it through the scope. A second male then drifted in over the valley too.

Marsh Harrier – one of the two males landed in the hedge

A Lesser Whitethroat was singing just across the road, and it was good to get a better chance to hear its distinctive rattling song than the one we had looked for this morning. It was sheltered here and there were a few other birds singing. A bright male Yellowhammer perched in the top of a pine tree singing and a Chiffchaff was singing from the trees further along.

Yellowhammer – singing from the top of a pine tree

The bushes down alongside the river were quieter this afternoon – it seemed like most of the birds were round on the more sheltered side of the trees. A Cetti’s Warbler shouted at us from deep in cover. A pair of Marsh Harriers circled up from the near corner of the Fen, and we watched the male fly out across the middle of the pool, stirring up all the Avocets which flew up to mob it.

From up on the seawall, we had a better view of the Fen. A Common Sandpiper was working its way around the muddy edges of the islands and over twenty Black-tailed Godwits were gathered down in the water in the near corner, feeding.

Looking out across the harbour, the tide was coming in. There were lots more Brent Geese out on the saltmarsh and we could see the seals on Blakeney Point beyond. Scanning the edge of the harbour from the seawall, we could see a few waders gathering around the edge – mostly Oystercatchers, but a little group of Dunlin were new for the day, we could see their black belly patches in the scope.

It was cool out here, exposed to the wind which wasn’t especially strong but had a distinct chill to it. We decided not to walk out to the edge of the harbour – it was time to head back now anyway. Back at the minibus, the Brent Geese were now gathering in the field with the scarecrow and the bird scarer, several hundred of them with more flying in as we packed up.

12th May 2019 – Spring Migration, Day 3

Day 3 of a three day long weekend of Spring Migration tours on the North Norfolk coast, our last day. It was a lovely bright, sunny day today, still slightly cool in the light NE breeze but warming up nicely out of it.

Our destination for the morning was Burnham Overy Dunes. When we parked and got out of the minibus, we could hear Skylark and Common Whitethroat singing, and a Yellowhammer calling from the hedge behind us.

As we walked down the lane, we could see a small group of Common Swifts hawking low over the trees. They are just arriving back here now from Africa and these would be birds on the move, just pausing briefly to feed. There were more warblers singing along here – a couple of Common Whitethroats with their scratchy songs, a Lesser Whitethroat rattling in the hedge across the field before appearing in the top of an ivy-covered oak tree, plus Blackcap and Chiffchaff too. Crossing the stile, we heard our first Sedge Warblers of the day and a Cetti’s Warbler shouted at us from the bushes.

Common Whitethroat – singing from the top of the hedge

As we were walking along the path, we saw a brown shape in the bushes right beside us. It wasn’t a bird, but a mouse, more precisely a Wood Mouse. It was completely unconcerned by our presence, standing just a couple of metres away watching it, while it fed on the young leaves and buds.

Wood Mouse – feeding in the bushes right by the path

Most of the pools on the grazing marshes along here are very dry, so there are not many nesting waders here this year. There were still a few Oystercatchers and one or two Lapwings in the grass. There was a bit more water on the edge of the reedbed, where the cows were making a nice muddy edge. A Common Sandpiper was enjoying the fruits of their labours, but was hard to see. A Yellow Wagtail flew over calling.

Looking out across the grazing marsh towards Holkham, we could see a large white bird flying towards us. Its long bowed wings with leisurely flight action and long black legs identified it as a Great White Egret, even before we could see its long dagger-shaped yellow bill as it passed by low overhead. There were several Little Egrets flying back and forth too, and a very distant Spoonbill. We had hoped to find the Purple Heron which had been feeding in the ditches here for the last week or so, but there was no sign of it today. With the improvement in the weather, perhaps it had finally decided to move on.

Great White Egret – flew low overhead as we crossed the grazing marshes

There were more Sedge Warblers singing in the bushes and ditches either side of the path and a Reed Warbler started up down in the reeds. It was good to hear the songs of both species – the metronomic Reed Warbler very different from the mad buzzing unstructured song of the Sedge Warbler.

Sedge Warbler – one of several singing from the bushes by the track

From up on the seawall, we could see the tide was still out in the harbour. There were a few Avocets, Redshanks and Shelducks feeding on the mud, and a Curlew roosting in the vegetation beyond, but no other waders here today. A couple of Little Terns were hovering over the harbour channel further back. A large flock of Brent Geese flew up from the saltmarsh out in the middle – they should be leaving soon now, on their way back to Siberia for the breeding season.

The pool out in the reedbed had a selection of ducks on it. As well as the usual Tufted Ducks and a pair of Common Pochard, we could see a single drake Wigeon, a lingering bird after most of the Wigeon which spent the winter here have already departed. A Little Grebe was out in the middle of the pool too, and another laughed at us from the reeds. A Bearded Tit called and flew out of the reedbed, up over the bank right past us, before disappearing down into the reedy ditch round the corner of the path.

The grazing marshes beyond the reedbed are still wetter, with more breeding waders as a conseuqence, Lapwings, Avocets and Redshanks around the small pools. There were lots of Greylag Geese out on the marshes, including at least one pair with goslings. A single Pink-footed Goose was sitting down in the grass further back, presumably a sick or injured individual which couldn’t make the journey back to Iceland for the breeding season. When two Muntjac walked out of the reeds and across the grazing marsh it caused pandemonium, the geese with their necks up honking and all the waders alarm calling.

On the way out to the dunes, there were a few Linnets and Reed Buntings in the suaeda below the bank on the harbour side, which we stopped to admire. A Lesser Whitethroat in the bushes by the boardwalk was most likely a migrant, just stopping off here on its way further north.

Into the dunes, and there were lots more Linnets and Meadow Pipits feeding in the short grass. Then over the first ridge we found several Wheatears too, including a couple of smart males, with black bandit masks. Interestingly they appeared to be rather pale southern birds, with silvery grey backs and creamy throats, rather than the darker birds with more rufous underparts which often predominate as the season progresses, and which are presumably heading further north.

Wheatear – one of two rather pale males in the dunes

There were lots more butterflies out in the dunes now in the warmer weather, including our first Brown Argus, Common Blue and Small Heath of the year, as well as Small Copper and several Wall Browns.

Brown Argus – our first of the year, out in the dunes

We found a couple of pairs of Stonechats in the dunes, both with fledged young already. Good to see they are doing well here this year. We could hear a Cuckoo calling further up, and looked over just in time to see it fly up out of the bushes and up into the pines. A Willow Warbler was singing in the willows beyond the fence too. The walk out here had taken quite some time and we had one eye on the clock, as we didn’t want to be too late back for lunch. We didn’t have much time, but we wanted to have a quick look in the bushes over by the pines, so we pressed on quickly.

As we walked up over the dunes, a female Common Redstart flicked across and disappeared into the thicker bushes on the stop. We stood and waited to see if it might reappear but when someone appeared round the back of the bushes we saw a male Redstart briefly under the bushes before it was spooked and disappeared deeper in. We gave it another minute, but there was no sign of either of them reappearing, so we moved on.

There had been a Wryneck here yesterday and at this point we were informed it was still around today. It had been seen earlier on the short grass beyond the fence but hadn’t been seen for some time. We had a quick look, but we were out of time now and had to start heading back. As we turned to go, someone called over to say the Wryneck was now in the bushes in the dunes. Thankfully it wasn’t long before it appeared, feeding on a bare area at the base of a large privet clump. We had a nice view of it through the scope, before it flew back into the bushes and disappeared.

Wryneck – still in the dunes this morning

We had thought with the clear weather last night that the Wryneck might have moved on, so it was great to catch up with it. They bred more widely in the UK historically but are now just scarce migrants here, passing through in small numbers on their way up to Scandinavia.

On the walk back, we stopped for a better look at one of the male Wheatears in the dunes. Then we stopped again at the boardwalk, where a Whimbrel was feeding round the pools on the edge of the saltmarsh. We could see its short bill and pale crown stripe through the scope. Another migrant stopping off here on its way north.

Whimbrel – feeding on the edge of the saltmarsh

When we got back to the path across the grazing marsh, a Spoonbill was feeding on one of the pools close to the path. We could see it sweeping its bill from side to side in the shallow water as it walked round with its head down. It disappeared behind a bank, but then walked out onto the front edge where we could see its yellow-tipped black bill and shaggy nuchal crest, a smart breeding adult.

Spoonbill – feeding on the pools on the grazing marsh on the way back

While we were watching the Spoonbill, we heard the shrill call of a Yellow Wagtail and looked over to see it dropping down behind one of the cows right beside path. We walked back and could see it in the long grass. It was a female and rather a dark grey one too, with a rather limited pale supercilium just in front of the eye, but unfortunately it was off again almost immediately.  It appeared to be a female of the thunbergi subspecies, known as Grey-headed Wagtail, which breeds in the north of Scandinavia.

Grey-headed Wagtail – a female Yellow Wagtail of the thunbergi race

When we got back to the minibus, we stopped for a rest and scanned back over the marshes towards the dunes. There were some distant raptors circling over the middle of the grazing marshes, a kettle of Common Buzzards, and when we looked more closely we could see a very distant Hobby in the same view, hawking for insects. A Marsh Harrier was much closer, a male hunting over the field on the other side of road.

Driving round to Holkham, we were not expecting to be able to get in to Lady Anne’s Drive on a sunny Sunday, but it was not too busy today and, even better, the Lookout cafe was surprisingly quiet. We stopped here for lunch.

After lunch, we had a quick walk west along the path on the inland side of the pines. There were more warblers singing, despite it being the early afternoon lull and warm here today – Blackcap, Chiffchaff and a single Willow Warbler still singing its sweet descending scale. There were a few Long-tailed Tits in the trees by the path and more butterflies out in the sunshine, including Speckled Wood and Orange Tip here.

We made our way straight out to Joe Jordan Hide and when we opened the flaps we could see three Spoonbills out on the edge of the pool below the wood. One was noticeably smaller and whiter, with a short bill. It was one of the first fledged juveniles of 2019, a ‘teaspoon-bill’, and speaking to one of the wardens was the first time one had been seen outside the breeding colony. It was begging for food, nodding its head vigorously up and down and chasing after one of the adults.

Spoonbills – the first juvenile of 2019 to leave the breeding colony!

There were a couple of Mistle Thrushes down in the grass in front of the hide. They were  collecting food, and flew up into the trees behind the hide, where presumably they had nestlings. An Egyptian Goose was down on the edge of the nearest pool and a Marsh Harrier was hunting up and down one of the reedy ditches further back. We could see all the Cormorants in their big stick nests in the taller trees.

It was lovely sitting in the hide watching the comings and goings out on the marshes here, not least because the hide was out of the wind and warmed nicely by the sunshine, but we had one other thing we wanted to do this afternoon, so we had to tear ourselves away and walk back. On the way, we stopped to look at a recently emerged Hairy Dragonfly basking on the branch of a holm oak, where it was very well camouflaged and impossible to see until you knew where it was. Back almost to Lady Anne’s Drive, we head a Chaffinch alarm calling and looked up to see a Jay in the poplar trees.

Round at Wells, we stopped to scan the flooded fields which were full of waders and wildfowl. We quickly found a couple of Wood Sandpipers, down on the edge of the water, feeding in and out of the vegetation. We could see their white-spangled upperparts and well-marked pale supercilium. There were several larger Redshanks with them, and in the grass nearby were several Lapwings with small fluffy juveniles running around.

On the pool the other side of the track, a Greenshank stood out from the Redshanks with its bright white underparts catching the sun and paler grey upperparts. A couple of Common Snipe were sleeping on the edge of the vegetation out in the middle and we found a Common Sandpiper right over the far side, bobbing its way along the muddy bank.

Red Kite – drifted over the track behind us

A Red Kite drifted over lazily behind us, and someone further along the track shouted and pointed up to alert us to a Peregrine circling over. As we watched the Peregrine disappearing over towards Wells, we could see a big flock of around 30 Common Swifts hawking high in the sky on the edge of town.

It was a nice way to end the day, standing here in the afternoon sunshine. It had been a very enjoyable three days, with lots of interesting spring migrants, but it was time to pack up and head for home.

11th May 2019 – Spring Migration, Day 2

Day 2 of a three day long weekend of Spring Migration tours on the North Norfolk coast. It was forecast to be cloudy in the morning with only a 10% chance of rain, but the weather had not looked at the forecast and it was raining early on. Thankfully it had cleared through by the time we got out. It was still rather grey and cloudy this morning, and cool in the light NE wind, but then it all changed in the afternoon and we had blue skies and sunshine by the end of the afternoon. That’s more like it!

It was still raining as we drove west along the coast road, but it had stopped by the time we arrived at Choseley. There was no sign of the five Dotterel in the field where they had been for the last few days when we got there, and apparently they had not been seen since early morning. A Corn Bunting was singing in the hedge behind us, and perched up nicely in the top, so we could get it in the scope. From time to time over the next hour, we could hear its song – sounding not entirely unlike the bunch of jangling keys it is supposed to resemble.

Corn Bunting – perched up in the top of the hedge behind us

While we were watching the Corn Bunting, we heard Dotterel calling and looked up to see a small tight flock flying in from the east. There were clearly more than the five which had been here for the last few days, and when they eventually landed we could see there were now ten Dotterel accompanied by a single Golden Plover. They landed at the top of the field, stood there for a short time looking round, then started walking quickly down the field towards us.

We had a great view of the Dotterel in the scope, with a mixture of brighter females and duller males, the other way round in this species from many other birds as the males undertake most of the chick-rearing duties. They would take several quick steps and then freeze, at which point they were remarkably hard to see against the bare earth and stones of the field. We stood and watched them for a while, as they gradually came closer. We had a nice view of the Golden Plover too with them, another smart ‘northern’ male with a black face and belly, like the one we had seen yesterday.

Dotterel – two of the sixteen with a Golden Plover behind

The Dotterel stopped to preen half way down the field and the next time we looked back at them there were now sixteen. We didn’t see the other six fly in so we were not sure if they had walked across the field to join the bigger group. Either way, there were obviously a lot of fresh arrivals this morning. A small number of Dotterel breed in Scotland, high in the mountains, but these are Scandinavian birds on their way north from their wintering grounds in North Africa. They stop off at traditional sites each spring and this is one of their favourite fields.

There were lots of Brown Hares in the fields here too, and we watched several pairs chasing each other round. We were even treated to a brief bout of boxing from two of them.

After watching the Dotterel for a while, we moved on, down to Holme. It was still rather grey but at least it wasn’t raining now and there were still warblers singing. We could hear a Blackcap and several Common Whitethroats and we stopped to watch a Sedge Warbler performing in the top of a tall hawthorn. A Cuckoo was singing away in the distance, and we realised we could see it perched on the top of a dead tree off in the dunes.

From up on the seawall, we could see a grey-brown Lesser Whitethroat feeding low in the buckthorn by the entrance track. As we walked down to the old paddocks, we could hear a Cuckoo closer and looked across to see a pair out over the saltmarsh on the top of the dunes behind the beach. Through the scope, we could see them being mobbed by a couple of Meadow Pipits, worried about the safety of their nests.

Looking over to the bushes in the paddocks behind us, we spotted a smart male Common Redstart which flew out and landed on a sandy area in the middle of the short grass. Unfortunately it didn’t stop long and flew straight back into the bushes before everyone could get onto it. Some walkers came along the path the other way at that point and it was probably no surprise that when we walked further up to try to find it, there was no sign. We figured we would leave it in peace for a bit and try again on the way back.

As we carried on along the path, a lovely pink male Bullfinch appeared briefly in the bushes ahead of us calling softly, before flying across and disappeared back into the paddocks. There were three Cuckoos now, all together out across the saltmarsh, two males chasing each other and round after a female. A steady passage of Swallows passed west overhead in twos and threes, and we could see a single Common Swift distantly out over the grazing marshes.

When we walked back the Redstart had duly reappeared, just as we had hoped. It was perched on the fence at first, but then dropped down to the ground and flew back up to a large hawthorn bush. It was chased by a Robin, but thankfully settled, and we had a great view through the scope of it perched in the bush. A stunning bird!

Common Redstart – a stunning male, feeding in the old paddocks

While Common Redstarts breed in the UK, this was probably another migrant on its way further north, most likely to Scandinavia. Eventually some more people came along the path behind us, and the Redstart flew back across the paddocks and disappeared into the bushes again.

Past where we had parked, we continued on east through the dunes. There were lots of Meadow Pipits and Linnets and plenty of Common Whitethroats singing. A couple of Marsh Harriers were quartering over the grazing marshes inland and two Common Buzzards were perched on some gates. We were hoping to find two Ring Ouzels which had been seen in the dunes here earlier, but there was no sign. There were lots of people walking about now, lots of disturbance, so they had probably gone somewhere quieter. As we walked back, a Cuckoo perched up nicely in a bush singing, so we could get a good look at it in the scope.

Cuckoo – singing in a bush in the dunes on our way back

It was starting to brighten up now, so we made our way round to Titchwell for lunch. We could even make use of the picnic tables by the Visitor Centre. There had been three Black Terns out over the reedbed pool this morning, so after lunch we walked straight out to try to see them. It was bright and sunny now, and we had thought they might move off as the weather cleared, but thankfully they were still there.

We stopped to watch the Black Terns, hawking over the pool. They are very smart birds in breeding plumage, grey above with a jet black head and body. They used to breed in the UK, up until the middle of the 19th century, before widespread draining of marshes probably wiped them out. Now they breed from the Netherlands eastwards from here, wintering in Africa. These had probably drifted across to the UK on the easterly winds and been brought down by the rain this morning.

We could hear Bearded Tits calling around the pools below the bank too – we didn’t know which way to look. We saw one fly in and land at the base of the reeds at the back of one of the pools, a smart male with a powder blue-grey head and black moustache. It was immediately followed by a recently fledged juvenile, tawny-coloured and with a short, only partly-grown tail. We watched the two of them working their way round the edge of the pools, low down in the reeds. The male was looking for food and would periodically stop to feed the youngster. Great to watch and fantastic views of this often very secretive species.

Bearded Tit – we watched this male feeding a newly fledged juvenile

We stood and watched the Bearded Tits and Black Terns for a while, and eventually had to tear ourselves away and move on to explore the rest of the reserve. As we continued on towards the Freshmarsh, we could see a Grey Plover on Lavender Pool, mostly in breeding plumage with a black face and belly. We stopped to admire a pair of Gadwall on the near corner of the Freshmarsh. They were closer enough that we could get a really good look at the intricate plumage of the drake. Not just a boring grey duck after all!

There were several Common Terns back on the Freshmarsh now, hopefully returned to breed. One landed on the measuring post in front of Island Hide, while another flew round just above our heads calling. There were more on the closest island in amongst the gulls.

Common Tern – there are more back on the Freshmarsh now

The Freshmarsh has been rather taken over by gulls these days. There were lots of Black-headed Gulls covering most of the islands, but we did manage to find a few Sandwich Terns still in with them, further back towards the fenced off island. There were not many different waders on here today. Aside from plenty of Avocets, a Whimbrel dropped in briefly but flew straight out again, chased by one of the Oystercatchers.

There are still a few ducks – mostly Shelduck and Shoveler, plus a few lingering Teal – but the majority which spent the winter here have left for their breeding grounds further north and east. There are still quite a few lingering Brent Geese, which flew in and out from feeding out on the saltmarsh. They should be leaving soon too, on their way back to Siberia for the summer.

Brent Geese – should be leaving for their Siberian breeding grounds soon

We walked round to Parrinder Hide next for a closer look at the gulls. From here, it was easier to pick out all the Mediterranean Gulls in the large colony with all the nesting Black-headed Gulls which have taken over ‘Avocet Island’ (perhaps it should be renamed ‘Gull Island’?). We had a good look at a smart adult Mediterranean Gull through the scope, admiring its bright red bill, jet black hood with white eyelids and pure white wingtips. We had a much closer view of the one remaining Sandwich Tern on the island from here too – getting a better look at its yellow-tipped black bill and shaggy black crest.

We had a quick look in the other side of Parrinder Hide, out over Volunteer Marsh. There were several more Grey Plovers, including one or two very smart black and white males in full breeding plumage now. There were a few Curlew too. A single Whimbrel was feeding in the vegetation on the edge of the reeds in the middle, smaller, darker, with a shorter bill, and a pale central crown stripe. We had a particularly good comparison with one of the Curlew which walked across in front of it at one point.

Continuing on out towards the beach, we stopped at the now non-tidal ‘Tidal Pools’. There were still a few waders roosting on the island in the middle. A little group of Turnstones included several birds with more chestnut in their upperparts and white faces now, moulting into breeding plumage. A single Bar-tailed Godwit was asleep on the front edge, but we could see its barred tail, as well as its streaked upperparts, and three black-bellied summer Dunlin were nearby.

Out at the beach, the tide was still not fully out and the mussel beds were only partly exposed. There were a few Oystercatchers feeding where the mussels were already poking out above the water, and several smaller waders with them. They were Sanderling, most already moulting into darker breeding plumage, with just one or two still in their silvery grey winter attire.

There were a few more Bar-tailed Godwits along the beach further to the west, and we could now see their slightly upturned bills. A few distant Sandwich Terns were flying back and forth offshore, but otherwise the sea itself looked quite quiet. It was lovely out on the beach, but we had more to do yet so it was time to start walking back.

Back at the reedbed pool, the three Black Terns were still hawking up and down over the water. They had been mostly keeping low, but now one started to fly higher up. It was chasing a dragonfly and we watched it twisting and turning, trying to keep up with it, an epic duel. The tern eventually prevailed – looking at the photos afterwards we could see that it had caught a Hairy Dragonfly, the first we have seen this year!

Black Tern – with a Hairy Dragonfly it has just caught

When we asked in the Visitor Centre earlier, we were told that the Turtle Doves had not been seen this morning, but now someone let us know they had been seen again this afternoon, so we walked straight round to the Tank Road to try to see them. When we got there, we found they had apparently been scared off by a stoat about half an hour earlier.

We thought we would have a quick look at Patsy’s Reedbed instead, but just as we arrived at the screen, one of the group who had lingered behind came up to say he could hear a Turtle Dove which had started purring back behind us. We walked straight back, and could hear it and, with a bit of triangulation, we worked out where it was. But it was very deep in the bushes and we could just see some movement behind the leaves. Then suddenly it flew out and landed on a dead branch on the front of the bush. We all had a great view of it through the scope, before it disappeared back in again as quickly as it had appeared.

Turtle Dove – purring in the bushes by the Tank Road

The Turtle Dove population in the UK has crashed and it is very possible we could lose this beautiful bird as a breeding species in the next few years. Emergency measures are called for and it is now necessary to provide supplementary seed for them, as they are doing at Titchwell. Hopefully they might stay to breed here again this year. It really is a privilege to see them and hear them purring, while we still can.

When the Turtle Dove disappeared, we went back over to Patsy’s. There were three smart male Red-crested Pochards out on the water, striking birds with their orange punk haircuts and bright coral red bills. A couple of Marsh Harriers were flying round over the reeds beyond.

Red-crested Pochard – a very striking duck

It was a lovely afternoon now, but unfortunately it was time to call it a day. We were still not quite finished and as we walked back along Fen Trail, we spotted a Water Vole just below the boardwalk. It was obviously very used to people, as it seemed completely unconcerned by us standing just a few feet from it, as it stood there munching on a piece of reed.

Water Vole – munching on reeds right next to the boardwalk

It was a nice finish to the day which kept on giving. Then it really was time to get back.