Friday July 6
After watching Murray win the first set and realising that the sun was out, after a very rainy morning, we went to Cley. This was a favourite Friday evening trip during our working days. Calming and relaxing - it still is.
One other birder/photographer shared Daukes with us, the scrapes looked lovely in the warm, golden evening light. A Reed Warbler sang outside the hide, its family flitting about the bushes. A good variety of birds on the two scrapes visible. Two Green, one Wood Sandpiper, one Little Ringed Plover and three young Pied Wagtails on Pat's Pool. I attempted some digiscoping on the birds which are always distant at Cley.
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| A very distant and heavily cropped Wood Sandpiper |
Daukes held a mass of Avocet, good to see a fair number of young birds amongst them, there's always a lot of predation on this open expanse.
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| Young Avocet |
Two Common Sandpipers pottered about on the nearest island, eight Ruff and three Redshank on the most distant.
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| Common Sandpiper |
We also added Wigeon, Teal, Gadwall and a Pintail to the wildfowl month list.
Young Shelduck are so charming; I thoroughly enjoyed watching them busily dabbling about, ever watchful parents in attendance. The youngsters looked as though they belonged in an impressionist painting, the adult's sharp colouration a good contrast.
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| Shelduck and a few of the young |
Two Marsh Harriers drifted around, two Grey Herons caused a flurry of chaos and a Lesser Black-backed gull flew in - as did a pair of Sandwich Terns. The 14 Spoonbills seen earlier until spooked by a plane, did not re-appear from distant reeds, we left for Beach Road - just in case........
As soon as we arrived in the car park, a single Spoonbill rose from the vicinity of North Hide and flew west towards Holkham. The end of a beautiful late birding session - and Murray beat Tsonga to meet Federer in the final on Sunday. Will he do it?
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