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.
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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.
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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.
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Harbour Seals |
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Dark-bellied Brents |
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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.
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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.
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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.
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Pink-feet |
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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.
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Sea Aster Mining Bee - Colletes halophilus |
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Sea Aster Mining Bee - Colletes halophilus |
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Miltogramma sp |
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Roesel's Bush-Cricket |
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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.
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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.
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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…
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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.
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Great White Egret |
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Great White Egret |
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Great White Egret |
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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.
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Eristalis pertinax |
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Calliphora vicina |
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Ivy Bee - Colletes hederae |
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Buff-tailed Bumblebee - Bombus terrestris |
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Ivy Bee - Colletes hederae |
Sounds like a great week Howard. Fantastic shots of the snow bunting
ReplyDeleteLoved the snow buntings. Not common over here and not annual either, but a cracking bird to watch.
ReplyDelete