Long Day in Norfolk 18.08.22

 Up at 4.45am to check the moth trap, record the contents before off with Rick to North Norfolk at 6am. Traditional coffee at Wells Next The Sea Co-Op before first stop at Wells Woods. After a quick check around Wells Meals we headed into the wood where the trees were dripping with migrants: Pied Flycatcher, Lesser whitethroat, Willow warbler, Goldcrest, Blackcap and loads of Chiffchaff, all very busy and moving rapidly through the birches.

On to a very dry North Point Pools but little to record here apart from some hares and Common buzzards along with customary waders and geese so off to Cley for another coffee before checking Snipes Marsh and a wander down the East Bank. A Water rail on Snipes was good and several glimpses of Bearded reedling from the East Bank. A Pectoral sandpiper on The Serpentine and terns and waders on Arnold's Marsh.

Off to Salthouse beach and Gramborough Hill where Wheatear, Meadow pipits and another Pied flycatcher were seen along with a very fresh and vibrant Willow warbler feeding in flowering tamarisk. A Stonechat popped up and 5 curlew flew overhead. A strangely marked wader had me thinking, found in the pool near the beach. Juvenile Sanderling, showing a light buff breast, dark legs and beak as well as a black blotch on the wings.

Final stop, after an unsuccessful check for Grey partridge at Choseley was Titchwell. Very quiet here, as it frequently is in mid August but added Coot, marsh harrier, whimbrel and pochard to the day list whilst also recording plenty of ruff in a wide variety of plumages.

A pint of Wherry in the lovely Gin Trap Inn at Ringstead before heading home, arriving back at 10pm. Been a long day. 

Species list:

1. Little grebe
2. Cormorant
3. Little egret
4. Great egret
5. Grey heron
6. Mute swan
7. Greylag goose
8. Canada goose
9. Shelduck
10. Mallard
11. Teal
12. Pochard
13. Red kite
14. Marsh harrier
15. Common buzzard
16. Kestrel
17. Red legged partridge
18. Pheasant
19. Water rail
20. Moorhen
21. Coot
22. Oystercatcher
23. Avocet
24. Little ringed plover
25. Ringed plover
26. Golden plover
27. Lapwing
28. Sanderling
29. Dunlin
30. Redshank
31. Black tailed godwit
32. Curlew
33. Whimbrel
34. Snipe
35. Ruff
36. Pectoral sandpiper
37. Black headed gull
38. Herring gull
39. Lesser black backed gull
40. Greater black backed gull
41. Sandwich tern
42. Common tern
43. Wood pigeon
44. Collared dove
45. Great spotted woodpecker (heard)
46. Sand martin
47. Swallow
48. Meadow pipit
49. Pied wagtail
50. Yellow wagtail
51. Wren
52. Dunnock
53. Robin
54. Wheatear
55. Stonechat
56. Blackbird
57. Blackcap
58. Lesser whitethroat
59. Whitethroat
60. Willow warbler
61. Chiffchaff
62. Goldcrest
63. Pied flycatcher
64. Great tit
65. Blue tit
66. Long tailed tit
67. Coal tit (heard)
68. Bearded reedling
69. Magpie
70. Rook
71. Jackdaw
72. Carrion crow
73. Jay
74. Starling
75. House sparrow
76. Linnet
77. Goldfinch
78. Bullfinch.

Not too bad for mid August. Few more weeks and there will be plenty more.

Little grebe

Checking settings in Wells Wood on a Wood pigeon

Little ringed plover

Water rail

Male ruff

Juvenile ruff

Male ruff

Flycatching Pied flycatcher in tamarisk

Pied flycatcher

Juvenile Sanderling

Avocet

Teal

Juvenile Shelduck

Golden plover still sporting breeding plumage

Pair of ruff

Juvenile Black headed gull

Curlew

Little ringed plover

Ruff at the end of the day.

Southen Country Park, Bishop's Stortford

 Yesterday was warm and intermittently sunny so I went off in search of an uncommon micro moth, Nemophora metallica. Fairly easy to find if present, as invariably found on their larval foodplant, Field Scabious. There is a whole bank of this plant in the park and it wasn't long before I recorded 2 of them present. 

Other insects also there along with a Common tern over the lake. A good couple of hours and pleasant chat with a chap on the bridge at the northern end of the lake.

Nemophora metallica

N. metallica on Field scabious

The 2nd specimen, more worn than the first.

Syrphus ribesii, hoverfly, a female

7 spot ladybird

Rhagonycha fulva, one of the soldier beetles

Oedemera nobilis, Swollen thighed beetle, a male

Bombus lucorum, White tailed bumblebee

Large white

Mallard duckling

Common tern

Wrong settings to record the only time it dived for fish.

Species List from Weeting Heath and Lakenheath 01.06.22

 Just a quick list as a reminder from today's trip:

1. Cormorant x3
2. Bittern x 5 sightings, all very brief flybys. Year lister.
3. Little egret x2
4. Grey heron x2
5. Mute swan
6. Greylag goose
7. Shelduck
8. Mallard
9. Red kite
10. Marsh harrier
11. Common buzzard
12. Sparrowhawk
13. Kestrel
14. Hobby x4
15. Pheasant
16. Water rail 1 Year lister
17. Moorhen
18. Coot
19. Common crane Year lister
20. Oystercatcher
21. Avocet
22. Stone curlew Year lister
23. Lapwing
24. Redshank
25. Curlew
26. Black headed gull
27. Herring gull
28. Stock dove
29. Wood pigeon
30. Collared dove
31. Cuckoo x2 sightings Year lister
32. Barn owl x1
33. Swift
34. House martin 
35. Swallow
36. Kingfisher x3 flybys
37. Great spotted woodpecker x2
38. Skylark
39. Pied wagtail
40. Wren
41. Dunnock
42. Robin
43. Song thrush
44. Blackbird
45. Garden warbler x1
46. Blackcap x4+
47. Whitethroat, plenty
48. Sedge warbler x3
49. Cetti's warbler x5+
50. Reed warbler, plenty
51. Chiffchaff
52. Spotted flycatcher x4
53. Great tit
54. Blue tit
55. Long tailed tit
56. Magpie
57. Jackdaw
58. Carrion crow
59. Rook
60. Starling
61. House sparrow
62. Chaffinch
63. Goldfinch
64. Greenfinch
65. Reed bunting

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Couple of days in Dorset

 

Rock pipit in amongst Thrift

Set off Wednesday 18th at 6.30am for Weymouth with a plan to spend time birdwatching around the Island of Portland, particularly The Bill for sea watching.

After a few hold ups I was birding by 10am and straight into a few year listers. Some good birds before back to Weymouth to visit the two local reserves, RSPB Radipole Lake in the centre of Weymouth and RSPB Lodmoor, a few miles east of the town centre.

Finally finished the day and checked into my hotel, processed over 300 photos and headed out for a Thai curry.  Glass of rum and bed as I planned to be back at The Bill for a long sea watch by 6.30am

Thursday dawned bright with a promise of sun and warm temps. Great for photos but not good weather for bringing in any migrants from the sea and this proved to be the case. Few swallows and martins along with a solitary wheatear on the rocks at The Bill. Out to sea a Great northern diver flew east and a Balearic shearwater hung around,  both too far out for a photo. A solitary Arctic skua headed west. Birding at The Bill can be very good but today appeared not to be a day for large passage. 80+ gannets west and a constant flurry of Guillemots and razorbills coming to and from the West cliffs where they are breeding. Mixed in, Kittiwakes and Fulmars.

A wander along the West cliffs, Thumb Lane, The Grove, Culverwell and Sweet Hill didn't give up anything unexpected, so back to The Bill for more photos of the residents.

Off to Ferrybridge where the Little Tern colony continues to expand but devoid of waders save for an Oystercatcher and Little egret so a return to Radipole Lake. The previous day it had been grey and drizzly, so today offered better photo opportunities and several species made the trip list.

On the Friday I was back at The Bill by 6.30am but it was grey and drizzling. The forecast was for continual rain until the afternoon, so after a brief wander, I headed home. Jams at Southampton to Winchester and an accident on the M11 meant the home journey took well over 5 hours.

Wonderful few days, always worth a visit.

Day 1 photos: Many of the sea bird photos were taken over a long distance. Nothing flies close to the coast apart from the gulls.

Herring gulls

Herring gull in good light

Rock pipit

Kittiwake

Cormorant

Tufted duck, drake

Greenfinch

Common tern with sand eel

Common tern

Chiffchaff

Shelduck

Blackbird in full voice

Great black backed gull

Guillemots

3 Razorbills and a Guillemot

Fulmar

Yet another Rock pipit

Raven

Raven with his packed lunch

Oystercatcher

Female tufted duck

Species List:

1. Great Northern Diver
2. Great crested grebe
3. Fulmar
4. Balearic shearwater
5. Gannet
6. Cormorant
7. Shag
8. Little egret
9. Cattle egret
10. Grey heron
11. Mute swan
12. Canada goose
13. Shelduck
14. Mallard
15. Gadwall
16. Pochard
17. Tufted duck
18. Kestrel
19. Red kite
20. Pheasant
21. Moorhen
22. Coot
23. Oystercatcher
24. Ringed plover
25. Black tailed godwit
26. Lapwing
27. Arctic skua
28. Black headed gull
29. Herring gull
30. Lesser black backed gull
31. Great black backed gull
32. Kittiwake
33. Little tern
34. Common tern
35. Guillemot
36. Razorbill
37. Wood pigeon
38. Collared dove
39. Swift
40. Swallow
41. House martin
42. Sand martin
43. Skylark
44. Rock pipit
45. Meadow pipit
46. Pied wagtail
47. Wren
48. Dunnock
49. Robin
50. Wheatear
51. Stonechat
52. Song thrush
53. Mistle thrush
54. Blackbird
55. Garden warbler
56. Blackcap
57. Whitethroat
58. Sedge warbler
59. Reed warbler
60. Cetti's warbler
61. Chiffchaff
62. Spotted flycatcher
63. Great tit
64. Blue tit
65. Bearded reedling
66. Magpie
67. Carrion crow
68. Raven
69. Rook
70. Jackdaw
71. Starling
72. House sparrow
73. Chaffinch
74. Goldfinch
75. Linnet
76. Greenfinch
77. Reed bunting.

Photos Day 2: More distant auks etc and by 12pm, heat haze was a problem as the temperatures reached 20C+

Fulmar

Rock pipit

Guillemots

A Razorbill disagreement

Razorbill

Seabird colony

Clifftop Thrift

The Bill

Post breeding moult Raven

Raven

Herring gull

West Cliffs

Ringed Goldfinch. Unable to read the ring

Distant Stonechat

Skylark with lunch

Male Linnet

The Bill looking from Sweet Hill direction

Whitethroat

Same bird

Linnet

Guillemot

Cormorant

Cormorant

Gannet

Gannet

Shag

Little terns

Little egret

Wheatear

Evening Reed bunting

Great crested grebe

Herring gull flock

Butterfly species:

1. Common blue
2. Adonis blue
3. Small blue
4. Holly Blue
5. Small tortoiseshell
6. Red Admiral
7. Brimstone
8. Speckled Wood
9. Painted Lady
10. Small heath
11. Large white
12. Green veined white
13. Small white

Adonis blue

Small blue

Adonis blue

Small blue

Adonis blue

Painted lady

Red admiral

Painted lady

Small Heath

Brimstone

Speckled wood

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