- White Wings

 Thursday January 13

Although we come across singles throughout the year, visiting the beach behind the Sealife Centre in Yarmouth is a January tradition. It was a lovely sunny day with hardly any wind. Bag of home made seeded bread pieces at the ready, we pulled up at an open area from which we could see the beach. Sure enough, there were about ten Mediterranean Gulls huddled down in small groups, mixed in with Black-headed and Herring Gulls.I often wonder why they choose this particular spot in the winter. One bird had the speckled head of approaching summer plumage.

The others were all in winter piratical head garb.

 One gull had a leg ring which I found readable on my photograph.

Returning home via Martham and the coast road, Pam saw a Great Egret in a West Somerton roadside field. We sat looking at it for at least five minutes, waiting for it to move into a better position. We then indulged in all sorts of non ethical persuasions, such as whistling and hand clapping. No reponse at all, not even a flicker. We were beginning to think that it was a plastic bird when it turned the other way, freezing again.

 

We left it there. I really wanted it to fly, but once it had proved that it was not plastic, it seemed very wrong to offer more persuasion.

Thanks to David B, I know that the helicopter photograph in my last entry is that of a Chinook. A transport helicopter in use by the military and others since the 1960s. A reliable workhorse still going strong. Still vaguely menacing, but not as much as the Bell Huey used in Apocalypse Now, the film version of Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness, which was a set book in a degree course I completed. The book was set in 19C Congo. Coppola's film, starring Marlon Brando and Martin Sheen, was set in Vietnam. The film did not bear much resemblance to the book, I remember it for the awesome helicopter shots. It was nominated for 14 Oscars and won 2.

Halvergate

Wednesday January 12 

A domestic chore morning, on a lovely sunny day, encouraged an afternoon trip out. We both love Halvergate marsh but rarely visit. At the most, once a year. Turning right off the Acle Straight at what is now a Hindu Temple - latterly the Flamingo Nightclub (!) - over the humpback bridge, onto the very straight, extremely undulating, and badly cambered road across the marsh. At the end, and before the houses, there is a lane on the left which leads to a muddy parking area.There we sat, enjoying the views, with enough bird action to keep us happy.

Most numerous were the large flocks of Starlings, and Corvids, constantly moving from feeding spots on the ground to tree perches and fly rounds. A few Fieldfare did likewise, none near enough for satisfactory photos.

One Grey Heron in splendid spring plumage, a distant Great Egret, one Buzzard, 

 

Marsh Harrier and Kestrel.

 

This military helicopter appeared, flying rather low, but the birds were not unduly perturbed. That was odd.

 

Pam counted four Chinese Water Deer, pale brown rumps visible at a distance. We left after a tranquil hour,  as the sun was beginning to set.

Two moths around the traps this morning. One Mottled Umber and

 

one Pale Brindled Beauty.

 

We added a Caspian Gull off Salthouse Road yesterday, as we drove home from NS.

Waxwing Haunting

Sunday January 10

Seeing twelve Buzzards in Norfolk during one morning, was unthinkable, even a couple of years ago. Most of them were perched in roadside trees, about four more flying nearby. We also saw five Kestrels, three Marsh Harriers, and two Red Kites whilst driving inland to Snettisham and along the coast road home. It was a clear, blue sky, cold winter's day, not warm enough yet for the flight thermals needed. Yesterday's almost incessant, heavy rain, must have made feeding nigh on impossible for them.

With Waxwing haunting and obsessing my mind, our first call was Sculthorpe Moor Reserve  where one has been reported for the last two days. Was it still here? It hasn't been a Waxwing winter, very few are being seen. This bird turns up at the back of the Centre and in the trees near the blue badge parking area - which is where we waited. For an hour. A warden told us that it had been seen shortly before we arrived at 9.35 (!!!). By now, there were birders milling about everywhere. The car park was full, one gate closed, the other one manned  I've never before seen the entry road lined with parked cars. We left. It wasn't reported again until after one o'clock.

Snettisham was well peopled too. High tide on a fine Sunday will do that. Sculthorpe's were all birders. These were a mixture of family walkers, dog walkers, pebble collectors, photographers and joggers. We were again asked for our permit to drive, whilst everyone else seemed to roam free. It rankles a bit.  It was a fairly low high tide, the birds present were well scattered over the newly vacated mud. It did make scanning easier.

Shelduck Central, as usual, hundreds of Dunlin, with Redshank, Bar and Black-tailed Godwits, Grey Plover, Turnstone, Sanderling and Ringed Plover scattered widely. The Oystercatchers, Teal and Wigeon have their own ghettos. Probably a thousand Oystercatchers in a dense line nearer to the Yacht Club. The Teal cluster around what we know as the Cut, a deep channel which always has water. Two male Pintail fed amongst the waders. They can just about be identified in the photo above.

Stopping at the Yacht Club to look for Snow Buntings, Pam walked up the ramp and disappeared for a while. She returned to say that she'd seen a Black Redstart, had walked to the shore and there were so many dogs off leads runninbg around that the Buntings were unlikely to be present. We drove up the concrete ramp for the first time ever, to find a large flat area of rough grass scattered with half buried tyres as mooring stations. No sign of the Redstart.

Snettisham is a fair distance to travel, BUT, it's the only place where we can enjoy a good variety of water birds from the car. A visit every couple of weeks is very pleasurable. Especially as all the other coastal birding spots are so busy. We drove through Hunstanton, seeing our first Fulmar of the year gliding along the cliff top. 

Waxwings go to bed early. I was fretting that the one reported from Cley would have done so if we delayed along the coast. With only a short visit to Brancaster Staithe, we bypassed Stiffkey and Wells North Pools, arriving at Sea Lawns, Cley before 2.30. Permission was given to stand in the garden of Thrums,next door and look over the wall into the garden of Sea Lawn or view from the road. I used my rollator to join the small group in the unoccupied Thrums - S Gantlett looks after it, as Richard the Hat told Pam. The beautiful, adult Waxwing was feeding on guelder rose berries. Waw, a bird that always takes my breath away. Viewing was not the best. Through bare branches into a tree where the Waxwing was perched towards the back, obscured by more branches. I did take some photographs, none of which are suitable for publishing, even here. Very heavily edited in order to show some of the colour as the garden was in the shade and the bird was back lit.

 

After fifteen minutes of admiration by all, the bird flew away to roost.

Buckenham

Tuesday December 4 

Birding every day? What could be better. Being successful every time would be wonderful, yet unrealistic. Three out of four isn't bad. Early January's visit to Buckenham is with the hope of adding the ever diminishing Taiga Bean Geese to the year list. A maximum of five have returned this winter and are not always on the marsh. Last year, warden Ben Lewis (now departed) wondered if they'd ever return. None were seen yesterday, off we went.

We thought we'd seen Grey Partridges. Pam turned to check. A group of Red-legged Partridges.

We spent two enjoyable hours scanning this wild, undulating, dyke crossed and very thickly sedged marsh which is Buckenham. So many Canada geese, and probably 60 Russian White-fronted Geese (why Russian, Birdguides, they were always Eurasian) . The latter were spread in small groups intermingling with the Canadas and Greylag. No sign of any Taiga Bean geese during the first half an hour. A familiar blue car stopped , Dave Holman hadn't seen any either  reporting that four had been seen between 9 and 9.30, he was half an hour too late and was giving up.

We continued to scan. new birds keep appearing out of the unseen, three flew in from the Cantley area. Was this them? No, more Whitefronts. A group of Whitefronts flew about in the damp murk.

 

A few Barnacle Geese were amongst the Canadas.

We moved on to the centre gate. Then to the fishermen's car park. Different views of the same birds. Lapwing scattered all over, at least five Mash Harriers paid a visit. Two of them were on the ground for much of the time. Half a dozen teddy bear-eared Chinese Water Deer munched the grass between the sedge, fewer than usual Wigeon whistled their way through the air and along the dykes.They too were enjoying the lush green grass.

A post topping Dunnock was new for the list.

After two hours, we drove home for a very late lunch.

The moth traps are back indoors for the next few days at least. The temperature has dropped considerably, down to 2C at 4 o'clock. Two species of macro for the year, Mottled Umber, and Dark Chestnut.The chestnut was much darker than it appears to be in the photo.

 

One micro, a Light Brown Apple - camera shy.

 

A Sortie

Monday January 3 

Not a lot of time available to-day, Pam needed to pick up her new spectacles from Specsavers in North Walsham at 11.30. Plans were changed. 

Ludham first, for the flock of swans. Not on the airfield, their usual haunt, but on a field to the north west, viewable distantly from a back lane.

 

 

Using my scope, I was able to count at least 70 birds, mostly Whoopers, some of them were hidden by trees. A later message on WhatsApp estimated 18 Bewicks and 73 Whoopers.

After a birdless visit to St Benet's Abbey, we drove to Thurne. No Cranes for us today. Nor Cattle Egrets in Martham, it would have been good to see five. Good views of a male Marsh Harrier and a Grey Heron at West Somerton. Parking in front of one other car in the Horsey layby, we recognised it as being Peter and Pauline. A well clad Pauline hopped out for a chat.They'd not found any Cranes nor Cattle Egrets either, but had enjoyed views of the swans.Whilst we were talking, a Sparrowhawk caused havoc amongst the large flock of Lapwing. There are thousands of Lapwing in Norfolk at the moment.

The last stop was at the swan flock between Sea Palling and Ingham.Most of them were Mute Swans with a group  of Bewicks, numbering in  in the early teens, amongst them. 

 

 

Good to see a healthy number of juveniles in both flocks seen to-day.

 

Three Bird Twitch

Sunday January 2 2022

Pentney Gravel Pits used to be a favoured springtime destination. The pit viewable from the lane has been host to three good birds for the last week or so.I didn't want to miss them. They may well move on when the cold spell hits mid week.. 

Having keyed 'short route' into the SatNav, we avoided the A47, driving via Aylsham and Bawdeswell on a lovely sunny morning. 

The first grebe we saw was a Great Crested.

 

The second, a distant and very active Black-necked Grebe.

                                                                     

Goodbye

Then, the Great Northern Diver, which was on its way towards the far end of the pool, soon disappearing. The female Goosander was out on the far bank of the water in a narrow channel behind the reeds, busy preening. She made her way to the edge of the water, still preening.

 

It was a very enjoyable session with only four other birders present. One of them was Dave Holman who posted the addition of a Peregrine on the Norfolk Birds app. Not whilst we were there. One of the birders - who we know well by sight - came over to tell us that he'd had a few Grey Partridges in a nearby field. But...... they'd flown.

We also added Canada Goose and  Tufted Duck to the year list. There is a paddock plus horses beween the road and the water, viewing is quite distant and dependent on where the animals are grazing.

 

New Year's Day Birding

Saturday January 1 2022 

In 1994, I produced a month by month year record of birds on my PC. In 2007, I had to add a second page, which ended in 2021. I thought that I was being unrealistic and rather optimistic when I typed in those dates. Here we are, a new sheet needed for 2022 onwards. Brilliant. 

Come rain or shine, we have always birded on January 1st, adding as many birds as we can. We've never made a 100, 97 is our record count. Today was definitely not going to come any where near that number. Good weather, unseasonably warm at 14C, and a lot of sun had encouraged staycationers out in force. 

Selbrigg was the first stop. Food scattered, we waited. And waited. For half an hour. The only bird we saw was a Blue Tit . We were kept interested and amused by the blink and you've missed it visits of a minute mouse.All my photos are of blurred movement. Time to go, we turned to face Holt to see two Jays on the gate opposite and a Nuthatch on the post. We had heard the latter earlier.

 

Mute Swan family on the water and one Coot. Two Moorhens scuttled into the undergrowth. Not a complete disaster.

The weedy field and hedgerow at the start of the back lane to Abbey Farm held over a hundred Fieldfare and Redwing, mostly the former. Leaving them to feed in peace, nothing more was added until we got to The Wash.

We were lulled by Snettisham's initial lack of both birders and walker. We were probably too early for them, as it built up as we were leaving. A reasonable variety of waders on the list, the biggest surprise being three Avocets, usually long gone south. Goldeneyes on the last pit, plus the ever growing mass of Greylag.

As soon as we joined the main coast road, we had to crawl into a queue of still or slow-moving cars. This queue lasted all the way into Hunstanton - which was teeming. The only other birding stops we made before giving up and driving home were: 

at Brancaster Staithe which was beautifully empty of cars and people. The tide was at it's nadir. We added Grey Plover, Turnstone and Ringed Plover, Wigeon, Teal and Black-tailed Godwit.

and Holkham Park A149 gateway. From here - a car pulled out as we arrived - we saw a Great Egret fly by, Eurasian White-fronted Geese, Egyptian Geese and dozens of Shoveller.

Lady Anne's drive was cordoned off, a gatekeeper opening and shutting the gate as he thought fit. Titchwell  also had full signs in place. Pam took one look at the cars parked along the approach road down to Stiffkey Marsh, before turning round and driving to Cley. We'd seen Red Kite, Kestrel and Buzzard but no Marsh Harrier. Maybe Cley would oblige.

We managed to park opposite the pool on Eye Field in order to scrutinise the Brent Geese flock. No luck. The car park was chokka, even down the centre. Back to the geese. This time, Pam found a possible Black Brant, but we were not convinced. The sides were white enough, other distinguishing features were not convincing enough. We didn't see a Marsh Harrier either.

Our main January aim is to see as many birds difficult to see in other months as possible, with numbers of commoner birds a bonus. The list of common birds not seen today is ludicrous, including Great Tit, Wren, Dunnock and Pied Wagtail. Pam's first bird of the day was a calling Tawny Owl heard when she was dealing with the moth traps. It didn't call again. A singing Robin was mine.

We still had a lovely day, despite the list total of 63 - it was 73 last year. All the more to see in the rest of the month.