Obfuscation

 

 

Is there a more splendid flag?

Monday March 1

Dydd Gwyl Dewi. David's Celebration Day is the literal translation.

Before starting this entry, .I spent some time pondering how to obfuscate what we really did. It was illegal, morally reprehensible, guilt inspiring - and just as enjoyable as that sounds. Obfuscating does not sit easily, I rejected it. We went birding. For the whole day. We drove to the west of the county and back, seeing very few people and cars, and 75 species of bird. It was wonderful. Very tiring, exhilarating and soul satisfying, all at the same time.

As we approached Holt, I reached for my camera, always beside my right foot. It wasn't.  I'd left my bag at home. Famously unobservant when it comes to anything without feathers, my family would not be surprised by this. I still was. I sat back to enjoy the day. 

At our usual feeding station stop, a Muntjac appeared, actually moving to within a metre of where I was sat. Pam passed me her Canon Bridge to take some photos through the window. How frustrating. I then remembered that I should have an Olympus TG-5 compact, waterproof, point and shoot in the car locker. There it was - and the battery was still functioning after months out of use. This is the result. I continued to use it.

 

Despite setting off in thick mist hampering visibility, espeially of anything flying, we were steadily adding species. Turning into our favourite old road track, a white blob caught the eye. It was a white Pheasant. Not an albino as it had colour on the head. It was in a recently furrowed field, looking very comical as it appeared to hop and skip as it hurdled one, partly disappeared down another and then rose again, as it fled.

 

Coincidentally, we had another in the garden a couple of months ago. Surely too many miles apart to be the same one.

 

Fortunately, the mist lifted, whilst omnipresent, as we drove west. I've never seen as much water everywhere. Many fields had sky mirroring standing pools, roads were partially flooded, streams overflowing, ditches the same.

Snettisham was full of birds, most of them too distant to identify with certainty.. It was great to see waders again. Avocets are returning in numbers, there were over a hundred scattered widely, all avidly sweeping for food from the rich Wash supermarket mud. They always remind me of a Hoover vacuum cleaner advert from much younger days.  ' It beats as it sweeps as it cleans' (1956 !)  No Goldeneye to-day, they've returned north. The usual Snettisham biking watcher was there at the eastern end. It could be Les Bunyan(?) who regularly posts Snettisham sightings on Twitter.

Always reluctant to drag ourselves away, we drove to an almost deserted Hunstanton cliff top for cruising Fulmar.One flying, several others sitting, preening, on the sea far below. 

Gun Hill layby was also empty. Our first flock of Pinkfeet of the day, small numbers of Brent, at least three perched Buzzards, and a Great Egret feeding in a dyke.

The gates to the track down to Meals House at Holkham were open, giving uninterrupted views across the western end of the marsh. A Grey Heron, several Marsh Harriers, including a sky dancing mating pair, and our first Spoonbill of the year, flying into view from a hidden place.

The dreaded diversion sign took us away from Wells quay and the less direct route around town. North Point pools would be very full of water with no mud for waders, was it worth a visit. Might as well try was the answer. As I was scoping the western water from the car park, adding a male Shoveller to the day list, a Barn Owl swept by. It was on a mission and far too fast to even think of raising a camera. Our much anticipated first of the year - despite them nesting in the village and frequently seen by others, missed by us.

To-day was notable for the amount of planting being done, with clouds of gulls following tractors or, replete, resting nearby. We also saw large numbers of Curlew most places we visited. A favourite wader. Pam was delighted to see a number of Brown Hares too, eight in the corner of a field at Holkham. Adding Tree Sparrow to the year list is always an anticipated pleasure. 

Surviving the pretty vicious road humps down to Morston Quay at the end of a long day, was worthwhile. One distant Geeenshank fed in the channel at the western end, another at the eastern end of the parking area. My Olympus managed this.

Pam prefers the first photo, I favour the second.

 

A Great Spotted Woodpecker on the garden feeders brought a lovely day's total to 75, six of them new for the year.

No-one was harmed in the making of this Blog.