It was a calmer but grey morning and Chaffinches were on the
move west at first light with a few Bramblings in amongst them while the Pinkies
once again pre-empted our breakfast with their high flight overhead. Even higher still were a skein of hundreds of
Golden Plover that I lost to view when the turned.
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| Pinkies |
I needn’t have worried as almost as soon as we reached Titchwell
after breakfast we could hear them out on the marsh and were soon immersing
ourselves in the susurration of over 1000 Golden Plover murmuring quietly to themselves
both on the deck and spiralling in from above.
Everyone was mesmerised.
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| Golden Plover |
New trip birds came thick and fast from the humble Coot and
Little Grebe to our first Great Egret while other waders on the pools Ruff, Avocets,
Dunlin, two Curlew Sandpipers and four Little Stints. Snipe were popping up all over the place and
all the dabbling duck were present and correct.
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| Arty Great Egret |
Several flock of Brent Geese came in to the freshwater marsh
for a drink and bath while Sparrowhawk, Buzzard and Marsh Harriers were noted
on a scan round but oddly at that stage no Kites.
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| Brent Geese |
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| Brent Geese |
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| Greylag Geese |
Rock and Meadow Pipits, Skylarks and Reed Buntings represented
the visible small birds while Cetti’s Warblers continued to elude our eyes but
not our ears. Further on we found a few
finches and a pair of Stonechats and then a 1w Ringed Plover on the last pool.
Unlike my last trip the tide was mid-range and perfect and
we set about adding more wadery things with Knot, Bar-tailed Godwits, Oystercatchers,
Turnstones and distant scurrying clockwork Sanderlings as well as two adult
Spoonbills with some Little Egrets on a tidal pool that had obviously trapped
lots of prey and the Gulls and Curlews were joining in too.
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| Spoonbills and friends |
A lady who had walked down with her dog on the lead
proceeded to let it off and then walk all the way across in front us along the tideline
sending the birds temporarily but unnecessarily on the move. I sounded like a
flock of Brent Geese…
The sea was very disappointing with just a couple of Scoter blobs
and six Great Crested Grebes. I seem to be more disappointed than otherwise
when watching the sea up her nowadays.
Our return leg gave better views of now 13 Ruff including a
fine white male and some good Barwit – Blackwit comparisons while a summer
plumaged Golden Plover was found amongst the masses of spangley brethren.
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| Golden Plover |
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| Ruff |
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| Lapwing |
 |
Ruff & Black-tailed Godwit
|
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| Blackbird |
Lunch back at the car park and then back east to Garden Drove
where we were lucky to get a gap for the van.
A Hume’s Warbler had joined the Crest and Yellow-browed Warbler flock
and we would spend the next hour with a small crowd staring into the Sycamores. Most of the crew got a very good look at the
YBWs and several got something on the Hume’s but it was basically silent and
mobile – not an easy bird. The YBW’s
were occasionally very vocal and would stridently call around us and a
Chiffchaff was also noted and found repeatedly.
The wet and soggy Long-eared Owl that we saw on Tuesday had
survived and had been seen hunting of an evening and was back on his favoured
perch looking fully fluffed up, warm and hopefully well fed. Once again a delight to be able to watch a
LEO and so good to see it looking so recovered.
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| Long-eared Owl - feet all nicely hidden away and snug now! |
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| Long-eared Owl |
Linnets were up in the Oaks with some Goldfinches and a Brambling
and noisy flocks of Egyptian Geese moved from the fields to new feeding grounds. They may be noisy but I do love that striking
wing pattern.
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| Egyptian Geese |
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| Stonechat |
We spent some time scanning the saltmarsh for non-existent
raptors but did pick the Glossy Ibis once again in flight and lots of cool Brent
Geese before giving the Hume’s one more go with no additional joy so we ambled
back up the lane to the van and notionally headed back to base although with a
couple of diversions.
The first was to the Burnham Overy Dunes lay-by on the A149
(you can still get there although the road is closed further on and then turn
up Burnham Thorpe Road to get back on the diversion). There were no Grey Partridges but we did find
five Cattle Egrets, Buzzards, some vibrant Yellowhammers, two glowing Green
Woodpeckers, Jays and a selection of mammals with both the non-native deer and
four plump Brown Hares which was good.
From here the lanes gave us fields dotted with more Brown
Hares (I counted 32) and we poodled along searching for Barn Owls and Partidges
with no joy before a final stop at Burnham Norton for a short walk out onto the
marsh. Despite perfect conditions there were again no Barn Owls but it was a
pleasant end to the day and we did see Marsh Harriers congregating before
roost, 11 Cattle Egrets heading off to theirs, a Great Egret, Stonechats, heaps
of Greylags and two Grey Wagtails before giving up and having an interesting
discussion about Reedmace not being Bulrush and the internet lying…
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| A Harey field |
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| BOS Mill |
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| Cattle Egrets |
As for dinner; well it degenerated into a lively debate about
ET being an Asogian and Admiral Ackbar not being one and that both are in Star
Wars and no, that is not the one with Captain Kirk.
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