Connor's Birding Site

5/12/09 Snettisham RSPB

2009-12-05T19:42:00.010Z

A cracking day at Snettisham today, with the obvious highlight being the female Ferruginous Duck that was on the RSPB pits, having first been found by David Roche yesterday. A much-needed Norfolk tick for yours truly! It put on a reasonable set of cameo displays and gave itself up mid-morning and mid-afternoon from Shore and later Rotary hide. Whilst there it was good to see it wander up onto the bank, thanfully displaying ring-free legs, and give a good flypast with the Wigeon flock, showing it to be fully-ringed and wary. Unfortunately it always seemed to be in thw wrong position with regards to the sun no matter where you were viewing from, so this, along with the elusive and mobile nature of the bird, meant only records shots were obtained.

2 Shorelarks also showed exceptionally well between Rotary hide and Shore hide, as did 18 Snow Buntings, while 2 drake Goosanders flew over and a Purple Sandpiper showed well from Rotary hide early morning.

22/11/09 Holkham Bay

2009-11-22T18:26:00.005Z

An excellent afternoon watch at Holkham bay. The star of the show was a close Black-necked Grebe which Josh kindly pointed out shortly after I had arrived, only the 3rd I have seen in Norfolk. The rest of the bay was also stuffed with other bits and pieces including 4+ Great-northern Divers, a distant Black-throated Diver that flew east, 3 Slavonian Grebes, a Red-necked Grebe, 10 Red-throated Divers, a Velvet Scoter, 2 Goldeneyes, 15 Red-breasted Mergansers and an adult Little Gull west, while a flock of 35 Snow Buntings was on the beach.

On Tues 24th Nov a train journey to a conference in London produced good views of a flock of 250 Bewick's Swans and a Marsh Harrier near Littleport.

29/11/09 Holkham and Roydon

2009-11-29T17:44:00.002Z

In the afternoon dad trundled down to Holkham and had nice views of the 12 Shorelarks east of the gap. The in the evening I visisted the Roydon Common roost again and I was rewarded with 2 Hen Harriers, the same 2nd cy male and a ringtail, both of which showed well.

21/11/09 Holme

2009-11-21T17:56:00.005Z

A pretty productive day at Holme. The sea was surprisingly good, with a watch from 8:15-10:15am produced a Great Skua west, an Arctic Skua west, 11 Little Gulls (10 east, 1 west), 15 Kittiwakes, 4 Long-tailed Ducks (all drakes), 80 Gannets, 26 Red-breasted Mergansers, 13 Red-throated Divers, 4 Fulmars and 2 Goldeneye. A Lapland Bunting flew over east calling, 71 Snow Buntings flew west and a Merlin whizzed west over our heads, while a stunning drake Goosander did a couple of laps of the marsh from the observatory. The reserve and the stream were practically devoid of any birdlife though. A look at the beach by the golf-course produced nice views of a flock of up to 85 Snow Buntings during the afternoon and the day finished with brief views of a Woodcock.

Dad visisted the Roydon roost and recorded 3 Hen Harriers, 2 ringtails and the same 2nd cy male.

15/11/09 Roydon Common

2009-11-15T21:27:00.003Z

A trip to the evening roost produced nice views of a male Hen Harrier, aged as a 2nd cy on account of the dusky brown mantle and inner arm. Little else was noted other than a Common Buzzard, 40 Fieldfares, 450 Starlings and 2500 mixed 'corvids' (mostly Jackdaw/Rook) into roost.

14/11/09 Dersingham Bog

2009-11-14T18:01:00.003Z

An afternoon walk at Dersingham Bog produced nice views of the Great Grey Shrike, while a male Peregrine was buzzing around by the boardwalk until the rain set-in, when it promptly flew NW. As the light faded 140 Fieldfares and 20 Redwings dropped in.

6/11/09 Dersingham Bog

2009-11-06T18:43:00.006Z

Dad went down to Desingham Bog after work today and was rewarded with good views of the Great Grey Shrike in the trees around the Dragonfly pond.

8/11/09 Holme and Lakenheath Fen

2009-11-08T18:58:00.007Z

Another good day at Holme today, although slightly disappointing in terms of grounded migrants considering the reasonably promising conditions. It started on route at Hunstanton, when a Peregrine flew over the car. A seawatch of Gore point produced a cracking Red-necked Grebe close inshore, with a flock of 14 Snow Buntings on the beach and a Kittiwake east. Sewatching of the NOA for several hours was poor in terms of quantity but good in terms of quality, with a Black-throated Diver, first found yesterday, just offshore before it flew east towards the mouth of Thornham harbour and a drake Velvet Scoter west with a group of Common Scoters, as well as 6 Red-breasted Mergansers, 4 Fulmars and 6 Eiders. Grounded migrants were very thin on the ground, with a Firecrest on the NOA reserve, 50 Robins, 80 Blackbirds, 3 Song Thrushes and 4 Redwings, while 3 Lapland Buntings showed well in 'the usual area', amongst a large group of Skylarks, part of 100+ in the recording area. The Short-eared Owl was still hunting over the marsh, again giving excellent views. Overhead passage picked up noticeably in the afternoon, with 20 Siskins, 4 Bramblings, 7 Rock Pipits, 1250 Starlings and 375 Woodpigeons west in the day. 3 Tawny Owls were also recorded during the day.

Meanwhile dad made the trip to Lakenheath Fen RSPB, where the GREAT-WHITE EGRET performed well on the Norfolk side of the river. Unfortunately what was presumed to be the White-rumped Sandpiper reported in the morning was in fact a Curlew Sandpiper.

Holme NOA 3/11/07

2007-11-03T17:37:00.002Z

A very nice day at the patch today. I was kindly given a lift in by Ray Roche. Started off with a viz-mig watch at Gore Point and this produced 3600 Starlings west, 156 Woodpigeons, 43 Greenfinches, 25 Chaffinches, 43 Siskin, 2 Redpolls, 2 Yellowhammers, 1 Grey Wagtail, 13 Pied Wagtails, 55 Skylarks, 1 Brambling, 5 Redwings, 11 Goldfinches, 5 Blackbirds, 5 Fieldfares, 8 Snipes, 5 Rock Pipits, 30 Meadow Pipits, 3 Carrion Crows and 7 Jackdaws.

After this had a look around the Forestry and flushed a Woodcock, although it was generally quiet. 2 Jays were by the entrance gate and 3 Stonechats and a Little Egret were also present.

A sea-watch with from 10:10-11:25 am produced 367 Kittiwakes west, 2 Little Auks (one east picked up by R. Roche, one west picked up by myself), 3 Pomarine Skuas west, 1 skua sp west, 10 Goldeneye, 60 Wigeon, 10 Great-crested Grebes, 16 Common Scoters, 20 Gannets, 11 auk sp., 4 Razorbills, 3 Red-throated Divers, 1 male Eider, 5 Little Gulls, 2 Red-breasted Mergansers west.

Myself and a handful of other Holme regulars then left the reserve to look at a Long-eared Owl at a nearby (and private) site just slightly further around the coast and it showed well (photos in the bird gallery-rare birds 2007).

On returning to Holme NOA a sea-watch from 1:30-3:00pm produced 28 Pomarine Skuas west (2 ads with full tail spoons!), 3 Arctic Skuas west, 1 Great Skua west, 1 Skua sp. west, 240 Kittiwakes, 1 Fulmar west and 1 Little Gull east.

Several other Pomarine Skuas were also seen from various locations, such as Gore Point Dunes and the top coastal path. My final tallies were: 31 Pomarine Skuas, 2 Little Auks, 730+ Kittiwakes, 2 Arctic Skuas, 1 Fulmar and 7 Little Gulls amongst others. The site count for Pomarine Skuas during the day was a massive 60, while the site count for Kittiwakes was 1100+.

Cheers,

Connor

31/10/09 Holme

2009-10-31T19:23:00.007Z

A superb day of migration at Holme. On getting out of the car in the half-light it was clear there had been a substantial arrival of Blackbirds and the first Woodcocks of the day were soon flushed from around the NOA reserve. Overhead an excellent movement of Lapwings was noticeable and after the rain cleared away Starlings began pouring through. Blackbirds and smaller numbers of the other thrushes were not only flushing from every patch of cover but readily coming in of the sea or falling out of the sky and dropping into the pines. On walking towards Thornham I rounded the corner of the boardwalk just as a Short-eared Owl flopped onto the side of the path, presumably having just come in of the sea. I quickly backed away and called some other guys from the observatory and we were treated to exceptional views as it sat on the path at close range, before it flew of strongly into the dunes. In the afternoon another came in of the sea and both could be sen hunting the marsh in the afternoon. Eventually I did manage to make it towards Thornham and searched through the sueda for more migrants. Blackbirds were present in good numbers, with smaller numbers of Song Thrushes, Robins and a Goldcrest and a single Ring Ouzel came in of the sea with a group of Redwings. As I reached the end of the sueda 3 Bewick's Swans came in of the sea low, calling and they then flew over the observatory and west towards the Wash, while a Shorelark flew east along the beach towards Titchwell. A dog wandering across the saltmarsh out towards Thornham harbour flushed a Jack Snipe that then flew east. As the afternoon went on Starlings began coming through in even greater numbers, overhead passage began to pick up, particularly Skylarks and Chaffinches and thrushes continued to drop in, while a Goosander along the broadwater was unusual. Dusk came all too quickly, but watching the Short-eared Owls in flight and on the deck by the observatory capped of a spectacular day. Unlike the previous day there was no obvious westward movement of thrushes overhead, most birds were simply diving for cover, with some later moving of south or west through cover.

Grounded migrants (inc. birds in/of into cover and birds moving through cover): 916 Blackbirds, 330 Redwings, 2 Jays, 4 Woodcock, 40 Robins (inc. 1 dutch controlled bird - pic below), 2 Cetti's Warblers, 25 Fieldfares, 31 Song Thrushes, 2 Short-eared Owls, 1 Jack Snipe, 1 Shorelark, 2 Stonechats, 11 Goldcrests.

Overhead passage (all west or south in/of): 11724 Starlings, 73 Meadow Pipits, 1650 Lapwings, 20 Reed Buntings, 1 Redpoll sp, 1 Ring Ouzel, 102 Chaffinches, 144 Golden Plovers, 7 Rock Pipits, 66 Skylarks, 3 Bewick's Swans, 11 Snipe, 2 Siskins, 1 Brambling, 2 Grey Wagtails, 1 Goosander.

30/10/09 Holme

2009-10-30T18:01:00.011Z

A solid autumn day at Holme, which started of brightly with a female Ring Ouzel in the area around the toliet block. It was clear from the outset that there had been a fresh arrival of thrushes, with Blackbirds in every patch of cover. Overhead passage was reasonable with a steady movement of Starlings and Skylarks. On reaching the NOA observatory I was delighted to discover that they had just caught a Bearded Tit, a species I have always wanted to see in the hand.

A quiet seawatch produced just 15 Gannets and 10 Wigeon. As the afternoon progressed more Blackbirds dropped in, with smaller numbers of Song Thrushes and Robins, while Redwings and a smaller number of Fieldfares passed overhead. I checked the Gore point plantations and although I couldn't spend as much time out there as I would have liked due to the incoming tide I did flush a Woodcock and there were more common migrants. The highlight of the day came in the afternoon when 3 Shorelarks were discovered on the beach by the golfcourse, one of which had remnents of horns.

Grounded migrants: 1 Ring Ouzel, 1 Woodcock, 3 Shorelarks, 250 Blackbirds, 2 Bearded Tits, 3 Cetti's Warblers, 1 Chiffchaff, 9 Stonechats, 3 Mistle Thrushes, 37 Song Thrushes, 3 Goldcrests.

Viz-mig (all west): 2100 Starlings, 155 Chaffinches, 450 Redwings, 75 Fieldfares, 3 Snipe, 80 Skylarks, 1 Tree Sparrow, 65 Meadow Pipits, 4 Rock Pipits, 2 Brambling, 20 Reed Buntings. 60 Lapwings, 1 Crossbill, 5 Siskins, 40 Greenfinch, 30 Goldfinch.

28/10/09 Holme

2009-10-28T18:21:00.004Z

A better day at Holme today. The highlight was a vocal Siberian Chiffchaff that was in the willows along the river Hun just east of the standing caravan, west of the NWT payhut and the Redwell Marsh footbridge. Although it was mobile and elusive reasonable views were obtained, with the bird showing all the characters consistent with tristis with the typical Dunnock-like 'hiiiiip' call. In the afternoon a Lapland Bunting flew east over the dunes in front of the observatory and R.R. and me located what was perhaps the same individual at Thornham Harbour in the evening before it carried on east. Overhead passage was pretty good although I missed the best of it by oversleeping. From 08:30hrs onwards totals (all west) were 153 Skylarks, 320 Chaffinches, 4 Bramblings, 1200 Starlings, 2 Siskins, 1 Redpoll sp, 75 Meadow Pipits, 5 Rock Pipits, 15 Reed Buntings, 30 Jackdaws and 6 Snipe. Thrushes were arriving and then leaving to the west, with day totals of 150 Blackbirds, 80 Fieldfares, 50 Redwings and 10 Song Thrushes. Other grounded migrants included 35 Robins, 1 Great-spotted Woodpecker and 1 Jay. An afternoon seawatch produced 3 Goosanders west, as well as 9 Red-breasted Mergansers west. Also of note was a Clouded Yellow that showed well in front of the observatory.

Dad had a walk around Wells Wood during th afternoon, where he saw a Mealy Redpoll and a male Bullfinch.

27/10/09 Denver and Witcham, Cambs

2009-10-28T17:34:00.003Z

A sleepover at a friends near the Cambs border meant I was able to nip over and see the RED-RUMPED SWALLOW at Witcham, near Ely. The bird was hawking insects over Silver Street in the village, showing it's diagnostic jet-black undertail coverts, unmarked white underparts and throat and pale orange rump. A smart bird and another British tick, my fourth in 17 days! A group of 100+ Fieldfares flew over.

Before this a walk at Denver produced 2 Redpolls, 450 Redwings, 20 Fieldfares and a Grey Wagtail.

25/10/09 Holme

2009-10-25T17:22:00.005Z

After yesterdays exploits I wandered leisurely into Holme mid-morning. On my circuit around the west end of the recording area I heard the Yellow-browed Warbler a couple of times in the row of Sycamores by the standing caravan along the main track as it moved through west, presumably back towards the beach carpark, where it has been present since at least Thursday. Otherwise it was very quiet, with a Siskin and a Rock Pipit west the best of it! I left dad to walk up to the NOA reserve and he went to do the orchards at the back of the village, where he promptly found a Yellow-browed Warbler, although it was elusive and there was no sign of it later. Numbers of grounded migrants generally were extremely low, with 2 Blackcaps, 30 Blackbirds, 4 Redwings, 3 Goldcrests, 1 Stonechat, 8 Robins and 1 Song Thrush. Overhead passage was little better, with 15 Skylarks, 20 Meadow Pipits and 4 Pied Wagtails west. The day was concluded at Thornham Harbour, where a cracking sunset was the only thing of note apart from 3 Rock Pipits. Also, 4 Redwings flew over Dersingham village on the way back home. Good to see the forecast for next week looks so promising, not!

24/10/09 Trow Quarry, County Durham

2009-10-24T18:51:00.010+01:00

Now normally I try and make a point of sticking to Norfolk, or at a stretch East Anglia. However, the discovery of Britain's first Eastern Crowned Warbler in County Durham seriously weakened my resolve - a stripy warbler sheltering from a blustery wind on a drizzly October morning on the east coast sounded so ideal, especially being such a dream vagrant! Although I did not really expect it to still be there today I knew I would kick myself if it was and so, having secured a lift, it was with some trepidation that I set off north with Andy Wilkinson, Penny Clarke and Ray Roche at 03:30 hrs. On arrival at Trow Quarry and indeed throughout the morning the rain wasn't as heavy as expected, but after 20 minutes from first light with no sign I was getting just a little edgy. Thankfully the shout soon went up that the bird was still present in this small patch of Sycamore, Ash and Elder trees just 50 yards from the coast, and soon I had clapped eyes on Britain's first EASTERN CROWNED WARBLER. Quickly I had managed several decent looks at it through bins but it took longer to get it in the scope. After a couple of hours however I managed superb scope views as it perched out in the open in the bare twigs of one of the elders and then in top of one of the smaller Sycamores, before even more views were obtained as it flew into a smaller patch of cover even closer to the coast. The birds appearance would change remarkably in the light, although undoubtedly the most striking features were the 'capped' appearance and striking supercilium, the rather faded wing bars, the crown-stripe, the ivy-green upperparts and the clean white underparts with a yellowish wash to the undertail coverts. Also, the structure of the bird was notably robust. It really was a cracker, a very smart bird indeed. A single, rather vocal, Yellow-browed Warbler was also present in the quarry and it regularly and rather aggressively chased the Easter Crowned Warbler around until it moved to the other patch of scrub. With the weather worsening the decision was made to head straight back to Norfolk. A fantastic day, a particular thanks to Andy for driving and for the excellent company provided by Andy, Penny and Ray.

The site where the Eastern Crowned Warbler roosted overnight and showed well during the morning.

The lower part of the crowd looking into this small patch of trees.

The small group of trees the bird frequented during the afternoon, with the assembled crowd.

Their have been 4 previous Western Paleartic records:

GERMANY (Heligoland on 4 October 1843)

NORWAY (trapped and ringed at Jaeren, Rogaland, on 30 September 2002)

FINLAND (at Harrbada, Kokkola, on 23 October 2004

THE NETHERLANDS (at Katwijk aan Zee, Zuid-Holland, on 5 October 2007)

16/10/09 and 17/10/09 Holme and north coast

2009-10-17T18:12:00.005+01:00

On the afternoon of the 16th dad did a seawatch off Holme. From 15:00-17:00hrs he recorded 2 Pomarine Skuas (including one with full tail spoons), 29 Great Skuas, 5 Arctic Skuas, 5 Little Gulls, 40 Kittiwakes, 3 Arctic Terns and 1 Fulmar.

Today we seawatched together with some other regulars from 07:15-10:45hrs. Totals were as follows: 3 Pomarine Skuas west, 25 Great Skuas (24 west, 1 east), 43 Kittiwakes (24 west, 19 east), 6 Little Gulls (4 west, 2 east), 24 Red-breasted Mergansers (3 west, 21 east), 1 Velvet Scoter east, 24 Razorbills, 4 Arctic Skuas west, 300 Gannets, 6 Red-throated Divers (3 west, 3 east), 2 Manx Shearwaters west, 2 shearwater sps. west, 1 summer-plumaged Great-northern Diver east, 3 Goldeneye west, 3 skua sps. west, 4 auk sps. west, 2 Pintail west, 3 Great-crested Grebes, 2 Sandwich Terns, 4 Shelduck, 80 Brent Geese, 100 Common Scoters, 8 Wigeon and 2 Eider east. The Great-northern Diver in particular was a cracker, flying east through the surf just offshore and being in stunning full summer plumage.

After this solid start the day continued to improve! First of all I located a Firecrest in with a mixed tit flock on the NOA reserve which briefly showed well. Chris Mills then found a well-marked Yellow-browed Warbler in the corner of the NWT carpark which eventually showed well despite being generally very elusive, partly because it was calling frequently, meaning it was possible to pin it down. While standing in the carpark chatting to Chris and Simeon a flock of Starlings moved through. Loosely associating with these was a small bird, roughly following the broadwater, which we initially took as a wader before it became apparant it was a Little Auk! Thankfully it doubled back and circled over the carpark (!) before carrying on west, giving the most incredible views to those lucky enough to be in the carpark - a great bonus! Visible migration was solid throughout the morning and I logged 6 Bramblings west then in the pines, 3 Siskins west, 1 Yellowhammer west, 20 Skylarks west, 65 Meadow Pipits west, 200+ Greenfinches, 35 Goldfinches, 20 Chaffinches and 9000+ Starlings west. Other grounded bits and pieces included 25 Blackbirds, 1 Redwing, 1 Song Thrush and 1 Cetti's Warbler.

By early afternoon it had become quiet so we headed round to West Runton. Here good flight views were obtained of the SHORT-TOED LARK. We were actually very lucky as fairly quickly we managed to pin down the bird on the deck and obtained good views of it running across a couple of furrows and feeding. Another British tick! An adult Mediterranean Gull was floating around the fields as well. Muckleburgh Hill produced very little, with just 2 Chiffchaffs, 2 Song Thrushes, 3 Jays and 2 Goldcrests, as did a seawatch at Cley NWT, with just 3 Red-throated Divers and 10 Gannets.

13/10/09 Holme dunes

2009-10-13T20:32:00.003+01:00

A walk along towards Gore point in the evening produced nice views of the Great Grey Shrike found by Ray R. mid-afternoon, this being only the second Great Grey Shrike I have seen at Holme. Also 15+ Song Thrushes, 10+ Robins, 2 Skylarks west and 10 Redwings west were noted, while 1500+ Starlings roosted.

11/10/09 Choseley Drying Barns

2009-10-11T18:46:00.005+01:00

After finishing my homework in the morning the plan was to do a nice local walk, but this was quickly scuppered with a report of a Rose-coloured Starling at Choseley. We quickly dashed there but unfortunately it had flown. After a short wait with the crowd I decided to spread my wings and search further afield. About halfway down the road towards Titchwell I kept on thinking I should probably turn back and then I realised I didn't have any phone signal! However, I kept on going as I could see a small flock of Starlings wheeling around. It was fortunate that at this moment David and a friend drove past and told me it had been seen again up at the barns and they kindly said I could jump in. On getting to the barns (with everyone I had left behind celebrating) there was further frustration as it had skilfully hidden itself behind the dish on the ariel mast. Eventually dad manged to get the right angle and on looking through his scope, there it was, the juvenile ROSE-COLOURED STARLING and a (perhaps a little shockingly) tick for yours truly. It showed well for a rather short while before it flew east with a group of Starlings. I found it quite surprising how easy it was, even in flight, to pick up and although I would hardly call it a smart bird it was pleasantly distinctive and so the weekend was salvaged! A Grey Wagtail and 10 Skylarks flew west, as did a Common Buzzard. A particularly big thanks to David!

10/10/09 Holme Dunes

2009-10-10T17:25:00.004+01:00

An fairly eventful morning at Holme, with enough bits and pieces to keep everyone occupied. From first light thrushes were particularly obvious and during the day I recorded 143 Redwings, 42 Song Thrushes and 30 Blackbirds. Other grounded bits and pieces included 2 Cetti's Warblers, 3 Jays and 30 Robins. Overhead passage included 2580 Starlings (including 2000 in paddocks then west) 185 Meadow Pipits, 9 Rock Pipits, 1 Redpoll, 3 Siskins, 36 Skylarks, 2 Pied Wagtails, 4 Reed Buntings, 40 Goldfinches, 20 Greenfinches, 3 Swallows, 2 House Martins and 2 Snipe. Seawatching 7:10-9:10am produced a good wildfowl movement, with 387 Wigeon, 68 Teal, 4 Pintail, 1 Shoveler, 88 Shelducks, 4 Eider, 8 Common Scoter and 1 Red-breasted Merganser west, as well as 1 Arctic Tern west, 1 Razorbill east, 1 auk sp. east, 2 Red-throated Divers east, 46 Gannets and 14 Brent Geese east. Unfortunately I had to leave around midday due to a prior appointment at Titchwell RSPB, meaning I missed the Yellow-browed Warbler found by M. Br and later trapped and ringed, although at Titchwell I had a Brambling west, as well as 5 Redwings and 4 Song Thrushes.

27/9/09 Holme

2009-09-27T18:56:00.002+01:00

A full day in the Holme area was unsurprisingly a bit quiet given the wind direction but a few bits and pieces were noted. Overhead passage early morning in particular was fairly productive. All day totals included 4 Bearded Tits west, 1 Tree Pipit west, 2 Rock Pipits west, 3 Tree Sparrows, 2 Crossbills east, 3 Siskins east, 10 Skylarks west, 5 House Martins west, 3 Swallows west, 3 Snipe west, 5 Pied Wagtails west, 26 Jackdaws west, 6 Carrion Crows west, 200+ Starlings west and 80 Meadow Pipits west. Grounded migrants included 1 Blackcap, 5 Chiffchaff, 6 Song Thrush and 6 Mistle Thrush. Seawatching yielded 2 Great Skuas west, 1 Arctic Skua west, 7 Guillemots (5 on sea, 2 west), 2 Fulmars (1 east, 1 west), 7 Red-throated Divers (1 east, 6 west), 2 Diver sp. west, 42 Gannets, 3 Great-crested Grebes and 133 Common Scoters. Pink-footed Geese numbers were well up, with at least 400 noted, 2 Cetti's Warblers were on the NOA reserve and a Greenshank flew west. Greenfinches, Goldfinches and Chaffinches were also more prominent than usual, with 20, 40 and 37 respectively.

20/9/09 Holme and north of Wells

2009-09-20T21:59:00.002+01:00

A dawn start at Holme produced quite a bit of overhead passage, with 4 Grey Wagtails, 3 Crossbills, 40 Meadow Pipits and a Rock Pipit (my first of the autumn) west, as well as 6 Siskins east, while grounded migrants included 2 Bullfinches, 15 Robins, 4 Chiffchaffs and 5 Song Thrushes. The sea was reasonable as well, with 2 Arctic Skuas, 1 Great Skua, 1 skua sp, 1 Greylag Goose (first time I can recall seeing one on a seawatch here!) and 1 Red-breasted Merganser west, as well as a Brent Goose east (my first of the autumn), 10 Red-throated Divers (6 west, 4 east) and 20 Gannets. With it feeling quite good an emergency plan was made to head out to East Hills. A Spotted Flycatcher at the end of the Warham track was a good sign. Song Thrushes darted out of bushes and Robins ticked away from the denser patches of cover, while Greenshanks seemed to be constantly flying overhead, calling loudly. A few other species were added to the growing tally of migrants as we headed deeper into the cover, with the highlight being a Yellow-browed Warbler in the sycamores. A decent tally of stuff without being too exceptional. Grounded migrants: 1 Yellow-browed Warbler, 2 Redstarts, 2 Spotted Flycatchers, 3 Wheatears, 12 Song Thrushes, 20 Robins, 5 Chiffchaffs, 2 Lesser Whitethroats, 1 Common Whitethroat. Other sightings included 15 Greenshanks and a Kestrel. A chance stop at Snettisham RSPB as we neared home came good, as we arrived to find people watching the previously elusive Wryneck. It showed well in the side of a dead elder before flying deep into cover, an excellent end to a solid September day.

East Hills: - ***SAFETY ADVISORY*** Do not go out here without good local knowledge, the timings of tides etc. explained and, preferably, having been shown the way by someone who knows- at least once!

16/9/09 Holme Dunes

2009-09-16T20:49:00.002+01:00

Another afternoon seawatch from Gore point 5:55-7:05pm produced a small grebe sp. (Black-necked/Slavonian) on the sea but a firm identification wasn't possible in the choppy conditions and it soon drifted east. Otherwise it was a little quiet with 26 Arctic Skuas west, 6 Manx Shearwaters west, 1 Great Skua west and 27 Wigeon west.

14/9/09 Holme Dunes

2009-09-14T20:35:00.003+01:00

After some excellent seawatching from the coast over the past few days I grabbed some time at Holme after school. The following was recorded from Gore point 6:15-7:00pm: 2 Sooty Shearwaters (1 east 6:39pm, 1 west 6:53pm), 2 Great Skuas west, 14 Arctic Skuas (10 west, 4 east), 4 Kittiwakes west, 25 Teal west, 4 Eiders west and 50 Gannets (10 west, 4o east).

8/9/09 Holme NOA

2009-09-10T22:04:00.005+01:00

With northerly winds during the day I felt an evening seawatch at Holme NOA might prove productive. Myself and dad joined Ray who was already in position. Unfortunately it was quiet, with 10 Arctic Skuas west and an auk sp. (almost certainly a Puffin but a little distant) east the best until 7:05pm. At this time myself and dad simultaneously picked up a large bird flying west just over the horizon at some distance offshore and quite a way round to the east. Ray R. quickly got onto it but as it continued round it dropped height until it was low over the water. It quickly became obvious that it had to be a raptor, and a massive one at that, being noticeably larger and heavier than the Gannets that had been passing at the same distance and I have seen Marsh Harriers several times offshore here before. The wingbeats were shallow and as a consequence mostly downwards, but they were obviously very powerful. At this stage it was possible to pick up some colour. The mantle was obviously light brown and briefly appeared flecked. As the bird approached the turbines it gained in height and began gliding. At one stage it briefly backed round and looked like it might head towards us but all too quickly it veered of towards the Lincolnshire coast. This did at least allow us a better look at the bird’s profile. The three of us felt confident that the bird was a near-certain Eagle sp. and I felt White-tailed Eagle was most likely based on the structure of the bird and the tone of the mantle colour. I quickly put it on the pager as such to alert those on the Lincolnshire coast. Obviously the difficulty of seperating this from an aquila eagle species, for example, at this distance and with my lack of experience with most eagle species would be very difficult and hence a certain identification is not attainable - a very interesting bird though.

12/9/09 north Norfolk coast

2009-09-12T20:14:00.002+01:00

A thrash around Burnham Overy Dunes, from the A149 to Gun hill and then across to Holkham Pines and back to the main road, from dawn, was pretty unproductive. 4 Grey Wagtails flew west during the morning, as did a Yellow Wagtail, while a single Wheatear was in the dunes. The west end of Holkham pines was more productive, with 2 Pied Flycatchers of particular note. At least 15 Chiffchaffs, 4 Blackcaps and 8 Lesser Whitethroats were scattered through the area, while a quick look at the sea produced 25 Gannets, 3 Kittiwakes east and 2 Arctic Skuas west. Out on the freshmarsh at least 150 Pink-footed Geese were present, my first of the year, with a single White-fronted Goose. Moving on to Warham Greens another 7 Chiffchaffs, 2 Blackcaps and 5 Lesser Whitethroats were noted. At least 11 Common Buzzards were seen (3 Holkham freshmarsh, 2 Wells, 6 over Wells East Hills), suggesting some movement. The final stop was at Titchwell RSPB where 2 Little Stints and a Curlew Sandpiper were present on the freshmarsh.