Blue Eyed Birder: Norfolk Autumn Migration Tour for Oriole Birding

Our final morning dawned crisp and chilly but without a frost. There was even a proper sun peering over the trees before breakfast. A few little birds were moving around and I was delighted to have two Hawfinches fly over high calling while Grey Partridges called from the field across the road but I could not find them although hundreds of Red-legs were scattered around the margins further up. The sound of early Pink-feet filled the sky.

A final breakfast and then we checked out and set off on a walk down the private lane that access the back of the Titchwell reserve and in fact managed to spend a glorious six hours walking from there to the sea and back.

Country Chickens keeping out of the way of the the guns out along the coast

There were Robins, Dunnocks and Blackcaps in the hedge and we could look across to Titchwell church which I had never noticed in forty years of visiting this coast.

Titchwell church

You could look right into the tidal channel and five Harbour Seals were hauled out on the saltmarsh while skeins of Brents and Wigeon moved towards the fresh marsh of the reserve.

Harbour Seals

Dark-bellied Brents

Egyptian Geese

Cetti’s Warblers were singing in the sunshine and a Yellow-browed Warbler called from Willow Wood behind us where a Kingfisher was being invisibly vocal. Bearded Tits were pinging in all directions and at last we managed good views of several flocks as they bounded over our heads between the reedbeds. A couple even perched up long enough for the crew to watch for a short while. Water Rails squealed and kipped and a Great White Egret stood on a stump as if deciding which pool to drop down into.

Great White Egret

A flock of roosting Black-tailed Godwits contained a few Avocets and two Spoonbills which I am sure as the adult and very young juvenile I keep bumping into. Marsh Harriers and Red Kites were visible in any direction.

Spoonbills

Pink-feet were still arriving from the sea and given their height and direction I think that they may well have actually been making landfall and in fact one large flock looked like they saw the beach and dropped in on Thornham Point.

Pink-feet

The Alders and Willow beyond the Fen Trail screen held a chattering party of Siskins and jingly Goldfinches and plenty of Robins. One chased out a bird which thankfully stopped on the top of a Hawthorn. I had my suspicions but was pleased to call out ‘Barred Warbler!’ and manage to get everyone onto it before it flew back around us and into the Brambles somewhere. A real bonus bird but we have worked hard this week so it was good to find a scarce bird even if it was only briefly.

Back on the trail a second Yellow-browed Warbler was audible and even popped up in the Willows alongside us briefly before zipping off. Chiffchaff, Blackcap and Goldcrests were heard but the we did not even hear a pesky Treecreeper this time!

The light was wonderful across the reserve and there were a few more birds this time (although it still feels quite empty) and there were a few Golden Plover to look through and seven Ruff this time but only one Snipe and Greenshank.

The tide had not long turned and the last brackish pool held some Turnstones and a single Dunlin and Barwit along with a few dozy Blackwits and a Curlew. The Kingfisher was once again seen fishing from the Sueda.

I had noticed Colletes halophilus feeding on Perennial and Smooth Sow Thistle on the walk down and we were pleased to find a colony of about 30 holes in the sand just past the RSPB bee sign. A Miltogramma species of Satellite Fly was loitering around their burrows and was seen sneaking into a hole to do the dirty deed.

Sea Aster Mining Bee - Colletes halophilus

Miltogramma sp

Roesel's Bush-Cricket

Ruby Tiger

Down at the beach the tide was a way beyond the fort but only a few waders had returned but it was warm and still and the sand was actually on the beach rather than in the air so we sat and had lunch while I scanned the calm sea picking up three Great Crested Grebes, a juvenile Red-throated Diver, a few Scoter and a single juvenile Gannet.

The shimmery Pink-feet heads could be seen way to the west over the crown of the beach and Brents were drifting into the beach in front of us. Simon had just got me onto a very distant raptor way over Brancaster with a white belly and I was about to call ‘rubbish Osprey’ when I heard a Snow Bunting call and it flew right past us and joined three others that had been feeding unseen at the base of the dune just 20m away. A sneeze from a passer by spooked them and they flew closer and spent the next ten minutes around one of the peaty lumps washed up from the lower beach giving the best views we could have hoped for.

Snow Buntings

With time creeping on we ambled back, stopping to scan through as much of the visible flock of 400 Golden Plovers that had dribbled in in our absence but I could not find the American Golden Plover with them.

Golden Plovers

Time for a coffee (and some serious optics expenditure for two of the group) and the back into the Fen trail to retrace our step back to Briarfields for one last time. Both Yellow-browed Warblers were heard again but remained hidden and a couple more Blackcaps, Redwings and Song Thrushes came out of the long hedge and while scanning the paddocks we found our first example of the rare Norfolk Sausage Horse…

Norfolk Sausage Horse

There were no hirundines at all today! A Great White Egret put on a superb stalking display from the screen and another was perched on a different stump to first thing. I love that these are now a common sight.

Great White Egret

The Ivy on the hedge back to the hotel was now alive with Ivy Bees and a few Bumbles, Hovers and grateful Red Admirals and was a lovely way to round up the tour which had seen us encounter the best part of 130 species of bird, ten mammals, three Dragons and Damsels, nine late Butterflies and some rare Bees and other excellent insects. It may have been a tough start with the weather but it ended with glorious autumnal Norfolk skies.