The Suffolk Coast 4th April 2025

A www.blueeyedbirder.com adventure:

It was a wee bit chilly when I met John and Pauline at North Warren at 0830 and John was regretting the shorts within a few minutes. The view from the hide could almost have been scripted as the birds present performed admirably just outside for us with tumbling Lapwings shimmering in petrol hues and Skylarks interacting and singing at eyelevel just a few metres away.

Lapwing

Lapwing

Skylark

The Shoveler, Gadwall, Mallard and Teal gleamed in the pretend sunshine but none of them looked warm and Redshanks ‘doodle oodled’ outside and flashed white underwings upon landing.

Redshank

Cetti’s Warblers shouted from the reeds and Reed Buntings, Wrens and Dunnocks were encountered while a yellow boiled Great Egret stalked the rear of the pool with two Little Egrets.

Great Egret 

A slim young male Marsh Harrier cruised through and was given grief by the Lapwings and shouted at by the Rooks. Back near the car we picked up a couple of Chinese Water Deer and added Greylags and Egyptian Geese.  A brood of the latter were then seen as we drove past Thorpeness Mere on our way to Minsmere.

Once on the reserve in the sunshine we pretended that it had warmed up and headed off through the wakening woods.  They were a little quiet with plenty of Blue Tits, Wrens and Robins but only one Treecreeper.  Green Woodpeckers were noisy but we heard only one Great Spot.  The sunshine was not warm enough to have lured out many Butterflies and we only saw a couple of Peacock and a Brimstone while the Adders refused (as usual) to do anything for me.

Wren

Wren

Wren - what a little poser

Bitterns could be heard booming from the Bittern hide and Marsh Harriers put on a show with several of each sex engaging in tumbles and ‘oi! Come look at my nest!’  A Sedge Warbler was singing well – my first of the year and gave one brief display flight but the reedbeds were not yielding any more secrets so we walked on to the Island Mere Hide seeing gleaming adult Med Gulls overhead and trying not to step on the dozens of small Andrena Bees zipping up and down an inch off the ground.  I never did see one land!  A large Nomad Bee was identified as Nomada fulvicornis and there were several Dark-edged Beeflies.

Dark-edged Beefly

Nomada fulvicornis

Nomada fulvicornis

The hide itself was a little busy so we stayed outside and within five minutes had seen two Bitterns it flight!  We would have loved more prolonged views but we were just lucky to even get an encounter.  Marsh Harriers and Buzzards were constantly on view and Great Crested Grebes displayed out front.

Common Buzzard

Lunch was calling so we retraced our steps, once again failing to find any Adders but getting great views of several semi-tailless Common Lizards. Chiffchaffs were the only warblers and a Swallow zipped through.

Common Lizard

Lunch near the Sand Martin bank saw us amongst the mobile and erratic flight of the said Martins but once again the multitude of writhing Adders prior to our appearance had all slithered away. We carried on down to the watching stunning Marsh Harriers over the reeds and already hearing the Avocets and Oystercatchers before spending some quality time watching the scrapes from the hides.

There were lots of snickering Black-tailed Godwits and two Bar-tailed Godwits – one each in summer and winter plumage.  Many the Blackwits were resplendent in their Icelandic breeding garb.

Black-tailed Godwit

There were breeding Redshanks, Lapwings and the aforementioned Oiks and Avocets and we also picked up a grey Spotted Redshank on elegant pins, two Turnstone, Curlew, Green Sandpiper and two Turnstones.  There were noisy Barnacle Geese but only a few Med Gulls amongst the throng of Black-heads but there was a demure Kittiwake preening on one of the roosting beams.

Avocet

Pintail

Shoveler

Four Sandwich Terns dropped in and stood around looking all punky before a slow fly around the pools erickkking all the way.  Along the beach we found a pair of Stonechat and few some Linnets before looping back towards the centre after a most productive walk.

Stonechat 

Koniks

 Eristalinus sepulchralis

This buck Muntjac had a doe in tow

It was still bright but the breeze was picking up so we headed up to Dunwich Heath and thankfully in short order I found a couple of male Dartford Warblers in the more sheltered valley and both posed long enough to give the crew prolonged scope views.  Smiles all round and a perfect way to round up a very successful day in the field.

Dartford Warbler