Bittern in flight

No wonder Bitterns died out; just look at the drumsticks on that!

Wizard of a bird

The second trip to Scillies this Autumn meant a bit of a rejigging of sailing days to beat Storm ‘Callum’. Boats and planes after our revised sailing were being cancelled. We made it before the bad weather hit … by half a day. While the sun was still out on our first evening we were treated to an absolute stunner of a bird. A Merlin sitting on a wall having just fed. It showed well. Probably better than any perched Merlin I’ve seen in half a century of watching birds.

The next day, long after the Merlin had left, the prey item was examined. I suspected it to be a Meadow Pipit. There were a lot about. How wrong could I have been. It was a Jack Snipe!

Southern Scotland

Over the past few years we’ve been doing tours to see the geese and wild swans of southern Scotland during February. The long weekend tour has been successful. We would normally set off on a Friday and return here to Norfolk on the Sunday. It seems such a shame to get to the area and miss out on some prime birding so in 2019 we will be setting off on Thursday (28th February) and returning on the Monday (4th March) giving us ample time to soak in the avian delights of the area.

I have two places left Full details in an itinerary here

This is an ideal tour for photographers and birders alike. If you have any questions give me a call.

Spoonies

After the first breeding a few years ago spoonbills are now very much a part of the Norfolk bird-scape. On tours last week it didn’t matter where we went, east , west, coast, Brecks or Broads there they were. These two, an adult and a rather vocal begging youngster, were at Holme.

How cute is he?

A very young Eider Duck. How cute is he?

Blackred

This Black Redstart graced the local National Trust building at Felbrigg for a few weeks in March. Always good to see but not always easy to find, it could sometimes be elusive as it went high on, and often behind, the building.

Garganey

“Where is it?” was the question.

“The Garganey?” I replied.

“Yes!” which was said in a slightly incredulous tone; as though he couldn’t have possibly meant anything else.

“It’s way at the back of the scrape … among those Teal” I volunteered.

“Ah! I see it. The one doing an Anne Boleyn?”

This was no doubt a reference to the ducks amazing propensity for losing its head. For the main part tucking it beneath what would be a snug warm wing. Indeed, this bird spent so much time sleeping you would be forgiven for thinking it may well have been hibernating; and who would blame it? The whistling north easterly wind here on the Norfolk marshes was a little sharp. Not the sort of weather you would expect an early spring migrant to use as a returning vehicle to its breeding grounds. The earliest date for returning Garganey in Norfolk last year was 18^th March so maybe this bird has overwintered among a seclude flock of teal somewhere in an undetected backwater. Several others splattered through the UK have over wintered this year.

A record shot of a very distant bird in a rare moment of consciousness.

Refuelling

Most of the Alba type Wagtails moving through western Britain onto Scillies at the moment will be White Wagtails. The beaches and areas of short turf such as the airfield and golf course are at times seemingly brimming with them.  Several entertained us on the tideline last week as they refuelled on insects before they moved off on their journey south.