An Afternoon's birding

Wednesday February 1

Coffee 'morning' finished late, we weren't home until gone 1 p.m. A change of clothes before leaving for Winterton via Walcott front. A very high tide, deeply troughed sea and......no birds apart from the usual gulls.

Such a lovely day again, blue sky and sun - but 3C without taking the wind chill into account. We picked up several flocks of Golden Plover numbering up to  500 +  and 3 Marsh Harriers. Last visit's Pinks flock has moved on.

Just as well that watching a heaving sea with white-topped, higgledy piggledy rollers gives me great pleasure, there weren't even any Cormorants at Winterton Beach. A lone Kittiwake hugging the shore was the bonus.

Buckenham Marshes

Plenty of Canada, Barnacle and two Brent Geese, more Golden Plover, masses of handsome Wigeon, at least 30 Shoveller and a scattering of Teal were the only wildfowl present. The others must have been out of sight the other side of the railway line or, across the river. An imperious Peregrine perched on a raised mound, distantly, in front of Cantley Beet Factory was a heart warmer. More Black-tailed Godwits than we've seen here before, at least 50, probably more. About 30 Ruff too. Difficult to count accurately when they're scattered across such a vast area.

A flock of 130 Linnets doing their skittish, restless flock swooping, landing and taking off again had us going for a while. Until they landed in a tree near us that is, it was educated guess before that.

It was tempting to call in at Strumpshaw for the Red-crested Pochard until we saw the full car parks. And ......we'd have to get out of the warm car. Call ourselves birders. After yesterday's penance, we took the soft option and drove home.

44 species seen.