FRIDAY 30TH JANUARY – Overcast day with light drizzle
Our final day of the tour saw us venture south into the Brecks to have a look for some woodland birds, the main genre that we were missing for the list so far. It was forecast to be a grey day but basically dry – what we actually got was pretty much continuous light drizzle all day so this did hamper our chances with some species somewhat. We start at Lynford, where the main target was Hawfinch. We’d seen them on a recent visit perching up in the tops of the trees in the arboretum viewed distantly from the roost area, so wondered if they might be feeding in there at the moment and hence a better bet than the traditional location of the paddocks. We wandered slowly in to that area and almost right away heard the distinctive sharp, penetrating call of a Hawfinch and saw a small group fly through the canopy. They perched and we were able to get some binocular views and a quick glimpse in the scope before they melted away. Thankfully they were favouring this area as suspected and with patience we soon found them again, this time enjoying long scope views of this most spectacular of British finches.
Down at the paddocks, the ‘chip-chip’ calls of Crossbills were predictably a constant backdrop – after several very poor years they are everywhere at the moment. Perched views were harder to come by but we did have a pair stripping bark in the paddocks and another male perched briefly in the conifers, plus lots of flight views. The drizzle hampered us from seeing much else but elsewhere around the arboretum we did have excellent views of Marsh Tits and Nuthatches.
Yellowhammer by David Carlsson
We lunched at a spot back up towards Swaffham, hoping the rain might clear and give us a chance at Goshawk or Woodlark, but it didn’t. With a King’s Lynn drop off to do we opted to roll the dice and head straight there, to check the fisher fleet area for gulls and have a quick look down Lynn Point. The quay was fairly quiet for gulls but we did find a Shag sitting out on the mud bank. Down the point, we saw huge numbers of Lapwing in the air and had close views of a dozen nice Yellowhammers to round things off. It had been a vintage week both in terms of quantity and quality!
THURSDAY 29TH JANUARY – Overcast and cold day in fresh east winds, 3C
Today felt the coldest day of the trip so far and it was quite grey and gloomy too as we drove across towards Titchwell. A massive flock of Pink-footed Geese took flight at Choseley, in a similar spot to where we’d seen them a few days ago. Reaching the reserve we set about looking for the ‘’Meadow Trail Trio’ of Water Rail, Woodcock and Tawny Owl. The first was straightforward as the Water Rail was pottering about in its usual ditch by the west bank path behind the feeders. The second took a bit more work though! Eventually with some searching we managed to find a sleeping Woodcock deep inside a dense tangle, and by carefully positioning the scope we were able to get everyone a view that showed its laterally barred crown and beady eye. Thankfully the Tawny Owl was the most obliging of all and was actually sitting well in the open today – a second bird was also present but almost entirely hidden among the ivy. Heading out as far as Island Hide we spent some time enjoying the wildfowl at close quarters, including a large flock of Dark-bellied Brent Geese and several dapper Pintail. Golden Plover and Ruff were both new for the list too, plus we noted Avocet and large numbers of Lapwing.
Tawny Owl roosting at Titchwell
Inland, we headed to a cover crop where a mixed finch flock had been reliable in recent weeks and had good views of a dozen Brambling, along with most of the other common finches. Given the sea of farmland with so few birds in it, small oases like this show how important these crops are for birds in winter and are always worth checking for something unusual. Brancaster next and a very bracing walk east along the beach to view the harbour entrance gave us our main target in the form of excellent views of the regular wintering Black-necked Grebe. It was really too cold to hang around here long though but we did get good views of Red-breasted Merganser as well, plus Goldeneye.
After lunch back at the van we continued eastwards, to Burnham Overy Staithe. Another cold and breezy walk was in order, to head along the seawall and look for another scarce grebe – this time a Red-necked Grebe which has been wintering on the freshwater pool by the sluice on overy marsh. The harbour area held an assortment of waders – including close Black-tailed Godwit and Grey Plover – and the grazing marshes hosted lots of Brent Geese and Pink-footed Geese. Overlooking pool we found the Red-necked Grebe but it was mostly asleep and not giving the best of views – still about half the group saw it with its head up so the yellow-based bill could be seen.
With such gloomy conditions we knew it would get dark early today and sure enough once the clock ticked past 3pm it started to feel like dusk. We headed back via another huge feeding flock of Pink-footed Geese and eventually stopped at a field where a few Yellowhammers had been hanging out. We had distant views of a dozen in a hedgerow in the fading light, plus a couple of Reed Buntings. Back to base then at the end of day four!
WEDNESDAY 28TH JANUARY – Fine and dry day after early mist clearing, 5C
We set off in icy and foggy conditions this morning, but by the time we reached the Wells area we could already see blue sky and hazy sunshine was burning through. We stopped at a huge harvested beet field and enjoyed the sound of around 4000 Pink-footed Geese feeding on the leftover fodder. The light was quite harsh but we managed to pick out two Tundra Bean Geese lolloping along in typical fashion, their orange legs very visible even at great distance. Dropping down to the coast we drove to the beach car park, and walked over to the Lifeboat station to check the outer harbour and channel area. The tide was extremely low – like the plug had been pulled out! But the tide was already starting to flow and fill the small marina and hence push birds from the distal part of the channel towards us. This included a female Red-breasted Mergansers, and better still a lovely Great Northern Diver which gave super views. Out on the flats, there were hundreds of Dunlin, Ringed Plover and Grey Plover and amongst them we saw our first Knot of the trip. Distantly over East Hills, a Peregrine appeared briefly to mob a Marsh Harrier. To wrap up here we had a quick look around The Dell, noting a nice party of three Bullfinches which perched up for us.
Eastern Black Redstart by David Carlsson
We now headed east, with Sheringham’s celebrity Eastern Black Redstart firmly in mind. First though we passed a couple of nice flocks of Brent Geese, near Morston and at Salthouse. Each held an adult Pale-bellied Brent Goose though one was a more strikingly marked bird than the other – no sign of any Red-breasted Geese today! Reaching Sheringham, we arrived to find a few people milling about not watching the bird but it almost immediately flew in across the road from the old RNLI car park and perched on a shed right in front of us. We had great views as it sat there for several minutes before dropping onto a fence and then down into the bushes in the front garden. We never saw it again after that, so we had timed it well. Lunch was had at nearby Weybourne beach car park where we wanted to check for the scoter flock, but it had disappeared presumably due to some work going on with some mooring buoys offshore. A drake Eider and a couple of Guillemots were compensation.
Merlin on Stiffkey saltmarsh, 28th Jan
Along to Stiffkey next and at about the fourth attempt we finally saw one of the Glossy Ibises, though it was only in flight heading off to the saltmarsh with two Shelducks as we drove past. We drove down Greenway and the light here was stunning for looking over the marsh. Some other birders were watching a Merlin as we pulled up, and it gave magnificent views perched on a suaeda bush not too far out. A rare opportunity to see one well as sightings of the species are so often dashing and distant. After a quick check of North Point Pools we finished the day at Garden Drove. Lots of Marsh Harriers came into roost and we saw a single adult male Hen Harrier, though sadly it dropped immediately onto the marsh and didn’t fly again before we left. We could hear Grey Partridges calling loudly as dusk fell but they took some spotting – eventually we got a pair in the scope, in the tilled field behind the copse with a Brown Hare. A classic Norfolk sight and sound to end the day!
TUESDAY 27TH JANUARY – Very wet and windy day, 5C
Today was one of those classic examples of a day that promised very little, but delivered big! We set off towards Cley first thing in the pouring rain and strong south-easterly wind, starting off at the VC and walking down to Bishop’s Hide. A Jack Snipe had been seen recently from the hide but we could only find Common Snipe today – though one of them gave terrific views. A young Peregrine came in over the pool and proceeded to flush all the ducks up into our corner before singling out a Teal and trying to drown it. A Marsh Harrier then joined in before both seemed to get fed up and the Teal escaped, looking rather perplexed that it had got away with it! All the while a flock of 20 Avocets were wheeling around looking very dapper against the grey sky. Even on a wet day, there’s always something to see!
Adult Red-breasted Goose with Brent and Barnacles, Morston, 27th Jan
Red-breasted Goose by David Carlsson
After a coffee in the VC, we headed off west planning to check some spots that we could easily manage from or close to the vehicle. First up was Morston Quay where a Greenshank is sometimes seen in winter. As we drove along the track we could see a nice flock of Brent Geese in the grass field and so pulled up to the gate to scan them. There were 7 Barnacle Geese in amongst them and there sat with them as bold as brass was a stonking adult Red-breasted Goose!! The rain was lashing from that side so seeing out of the rear windows was hard – we fired off some record shots and once everyone had at least seen the bird we moved to the car park in order to walk back with the scopes. We now had tremendous views and put the news out – though it turns out a visiting couple had also seen in and put the news on Birdguides, so local birders were already arriving. Great views were had by all and we returned soggy but elated to the van!
We then continued west, struggling to do much birding at all in the biblical conditions. We made an unsuccessful stop for some Glossy Ibis, and tried to view a large field of Pinkfeet but the rain was driving at us too much. We ended up in Thornham harbour for lunch, and then a quick check from one of the shelters at Hunstanton cliffs – Red-breasted Merganser and Fulmar being noted. Eventually, we got news that a nice flock of Pinks were feeding near Choseley so made a beeline for those. Single Barnacle Goose and three Russian White-fronted Geese were seen but nothing else. At Brancaster Staithe harbour the weather finally relented and we were able to scope some waders – Dunlin, Ringed Plover, Grey Plover, and both Bar-tailed and Black-tailed Godwits. A Greenshank was also a nice find and made up for not seeing one at Morston earlier!!
Black-bellied Dipper in the gathering gloom at Bintree Mill
We now had time to roll the dice at dusk and try for the wintering Black-bellied Dipper at Bintree Mill, which was more or less en route back to base. However the poor weather meant it was getting dark much earlier than expected and we arrived in the gathering gloom wondering if we might have already missed it going to roost. Thankfully we timed it perfectly, and the Dipper appeared under the bridge within five minutes, showing well for ten minutes before disappearing under the mill! A super end to a strange and at times exhilarating day!
MONDAY 26TH JANUARY – Overcast and calm day, 5C
The first day of our third consecutive Norfolk winter week of the month saw us head straight into East Norfolk to try and pack in a whistle-stop of rare and scarce birds residing in the county’s Broadland region. This saw us drive first for about one hour to the Trinity Broads – Rollesby, Ormesby and Filby. Just recently large numbers of diving ducks were being seen here including a Ring-necked Duck, but unfortunately these all seemed to have disappeared leaving only Coot and a few Goldeneye and Great Crested Grebe! We therefore didn’t hang around here longer than necessary and headed straight off towards Oby in search of Cranes. This was more successful as we enjoyed good views from the roadside of a group of 19 Cranes feeding along the edge of woodland fairly distantly. Only one of the birds was a juvenile, perhaps indicative of a poor breeding season in the broads. Nearby we came across a roadside flock of Pink-footed Geese and a handy lay-by allowed us to pull up fairly close. The birds soon settled to our presence so we were able to get out and set a scope up at the back of the van. We picked out four different Tundra Bean Geese and everyone enjoyed good views, noting their darker chocolate brown back, bright orange legs and narrower white tail-tip compared to the lavender-backed Pinkfeet. At least six Russian White-fronted Geese were also present, including one smart gander with massive black belly bars. A good result, as despite large numbers of geese in the county at present, getting close views like this is never easy.
Tundra Bean Geese near Martham, 26th January
Onwards next to Ludham airfield, where we managed another close encounter, this time by staying in the vehicle, with a herd of wild swans. We were delighted to count 20 Bewick’s Swans including one juvenile, among similar numbers of Whooper Swans behind the FloGas plant.
Whooper and Bewick’s Swans at Ludham
As is always the case out east at this time of year, the day races on quickly and it was already nearly lunchtime! We drove over to the coast at Sea Palling, and on the beach here at high tide enjoyed some excellent birding as thousands of gulls were feeding on the strandline. A beautiful juv Iceland Gull was the pick of the bunch and performed well for us, though we also saw at least four Caspian Gulls (2 x 1st winter, 1 x second winter, 1 x fourth winter). At least two adult Mediterranean Gulls were also present and four Purple Sandpipers were balanced on the rocky breakwater at the top of the beach.
Iceland Gull in the melee at Sea Palling beach, 26th Jan
After lunch and the chance to warm up in the van, we headed off for Hickling and a crack at the wintering Black-winged Kite. This once mythical mega looks set to become a Norfolk regular but even so, the bird was a new British bird for everyone in the group and so we were really keen to try and get good views. We made the long walk to Stubbs Mill and then took the track north to view the grazing marshes where thankfully a small group of birders were on the bird, perched fairly distantly but in good light at the edge of some birches. We subsequently saw it in flight and watched it hovering too, so all round excellent views. This left us just enough time to try St Benet’s Level at last knockings, in case any owls were about. Four Cattle Egrets were seen (we’d seen Great White today too, but not Little!) and then just as dusk fell we picked up a very distant Short-eared Owl quartering. The bird was hard to see as it kept very low to the ground, but most of the group managed some sort of view. Not a bad haul for the day!
Black-winged Kite by David Carlsson
