Thursday 10 June 2021

3 Days Birding and Mothing in North Norfolk

Moth trap set on the salt marsh by Stiffkey Campsite


Tuesday and I was off for two nights in North Norfolk camping at High Sand Creek campsite in Stiffkey. En route I stopped off at Snettisham RSPB in the hope of finding a Turtle Dove, but very little was about as the temperatures increased.

I checked out North Point Pools at Wells before buying supplies at the Co-Op and then pitching the tent and getting everything ready for mothing on Warham Greens. Once completed, wandered along the North Norfolk Coastal Footpath to Stiffkey Fen where several birds got on the trip list, most notably, 3 Spoonbill. This site seems to hold them on a regular basis.

Down to the Red Lion, couple of pints and evening meal before back to set up the trap. Once done, settled down with a bottle of Sancerre, had a couple of hours kip before checking the trap and sheet around midnight. Everything potted for id, others released once checked. Then spent a little time with net and headtorch but all there seemed to be were Green carpets.

Day 2:

Woke early at 6.15, so checked, id'd and released the potted moths before it got too hot and they would cook in their pots. Several were retained and now reside in my fridge at home, ready for inspection.

Showered and a coffee at Wells before heading off to Kelling Heath. Notable birds here were Willow warbler and Dartford warbler as well as the only Coal tit for the trip. From here: Kelling Water Meadows which was very quiet with 3 Lesser whitethroat heard and seen along the track here. Kelling Quags offered even less, so back to the car and a check around Gramborough Hill. By now the temps were in the high 20'sC and it was becoming very hot. Photography was tricky due to heat haze so I returned to the tent for a little rest, but the inside of the tent was unbearable, so, leaving the camera at base camp, headed off to Cley East Bank, Cley beach where I got cooked but at least a little breeze. 

Following this, the temps began to drop so I headed off to West Runton cliffs where I got sand martins and 2 fulmar that stiff winged their way west and then out to sea. I had been out enough so back to the camp for a beer and a glass of wine. I set the trap in the campsite woods ready to plug in later and returned to the Red Lion. As I was setting up I checked any birds out on the marsh and in a huge flock of Starlings, a stand out Rose coloured starling. My first of the year. There has been a steady influx of these into the area over the last 5 days or so. An enjoyable pint of Nelson and a curry and I was back at the campsite by 8.45. Another glass of Claret and off mothing. Green carpets again, difficult to get passed them to anything else, but a Yellowshell macro was in good plumage, as was a Spectacle. I eventually checked and emptied the trap at 1am, left it in situ and hit the sack.

Day 3:

Again, up early to id any tricky moths, a couple of pug species were retained but all micros were easy to id and released. Shower and off for a coffee again before returning to camp to pack up, load the car. Once completed, along Beach Road at Wells where another Rose coloured starling was een near the football club and then off to Lady Anne's Drive but little to be seen so I continued along to the path that leads off the A149 to Burnham Overy Dunes and Gun Hill. Highlights were another spoonbill, a flyby and a Great egret, also aerial. However, best part was being mobbed by a pair of avocets. Clearly they had a nest or young somewhere near and fluttered directly over my head. Too close for photos on occasions. One then landed and played the broken wing trick, leading me away from where I was. They calmed down soon after I had passed through the 5 bar gate. 

Stopped off for another coffee at Burnham Deepdale before finishing the trip at Choseley and then a walk to Titchwell beach through the RSPB reserve. Beach and sea were virtually void of birds, but a great egret was in the reeds near Patsy's Pool whilst several species got on to the trip list.

A great 3 days and now home for a good night's sleep.

Wall butterfly

Dunnock

Linnet

Pied wagtail

House sparrow

Oystercatcher

Peacock

Common tern

Dozing hare

Yellowhammer near Stiffkey Fen


3 distant Spoonbills at Stiffkey Fen




 Species: Birds:

  1. Great crested grebe (Titchwell)
  2. Fulmar (West Runton cliffs)
  3. Cormorant
  4. Little egret
  5. Great egret (Burnham Overy & Titchwell)
  6. Grey heron
  7. Spoonbill (Stiffkey Fen & Burnham Overy)
  8. Mute swan
  9. Greylag goose.
  10. Canada goose
  11. Shelduck
  12. Egyptian goose
  13. Mallard
  14. Gadwall
  15. Shoveller
  16. Teal (Titchwell)
  17. Pochard (Titchwell)
  18. Tufted duck
  19. Red kite
  20. Marsh harrier
  21. Common buzzard
  22. Sparrowhawk (Walsey Hills)
  23. Kestrel
  24. Hobby (Cley)
  25. Red legged partridge
  26. Grey partridge (Kelling Water Meadows)
  27. Pheasant
  28. Moorhen
  29. Coot
  30. Oystercatcher
  31. Avocet
  32. Little ringed plover
  33. Ringed plover (Titchwell)
  34. Lapwing
  35. Turnstone
  36. Redshank
  37. Black tailed godwit (Titchwell)
  38. Black headed gull
  39. Herring gull
  40. Lesser black backed gull
  41. Common gull (West Runton)
  42. Sandwich tern (Cley)
  43. Common tern
  44. Stock dove (Salthouse)
  45. Wood pigeon
  46. Collared dove
  47. Cuckoo (heard Stiffkey)
  48. Tawny Owl (heard Stiffkey)
  49. Swift
  50. Green Woodpecker (Stiffkey)
  51. Skylark
  52. Sand martin (West Runton)
  53. Swallow
  54. House martin
  55. Meadow pipit
  56. Pied wagtail
  57. Grey wagtail (Stiffkey Fen)
  58. Wren
  59. Dunnock
  60. Robin
  61. Song Thrush
  62. Blackbird
  63. Garden warbler (Stiffkey)
  64. Blackcap
  65. Lesser Whitethroat (Kelling Water meadows)
  66. Whitethroat
  67. Dartford warbler (Kelling Heath)
  68. Sedge warbler
  69. Cetti's warbler
  70. Reed warbler
  71. Willow warbler (Kelling Heath)
  72. Chiffchaff
  73. Great tit
  74. Blue tit
  75. Long tailed tit
  76. Coal tit (Kelling Heath)
  77. Bearded reedling (heard Cley and Titchwell)
  78. Nuthatch (Kelling Water meadows path)
  79. Magpie
  80. Jay
  81. Jackdaw
  82. Rook
  83. Carrion crow
  84. Starling
  85. Rose coloured starling (Warham Greens and Thornham Marsh)
  86. House sparrow
  87. Chaffinch
  88. Linnet
  89. Goldfinch
  90. Greenfinch
  91. Bullfinch (North Point Pools)
  92. Reed bunting
  93. Yellowhammer (Warham Greens)
Species: Moths:
Macros
  1. Green carpet
  2. Yellowshell
  3. White ermine
  4. Middle barred minor
  5. Tawny marbled minor
  6. Common marbled carpet
  7. Silver Y
  8. Common pug
  9. Treble lines
  10. Vine's rustic
  11. Scorched carpet
  12. Silver ground carpet
  13. Smoky wainscot
  14. Orange footman
  15. Spectacle
  16. Plus 1 pug sp TBC
Micros:
  1. Plutella xylostella
  2. Acentria emphemerella
  3. Aphomia sociella
  4. Evergestis forficalis
  5. Crambus lathoniellus.
  6. Scrobipalpa species x3. Dissection this evening
  7. 1 micro still to be identified, looks to be a worn Anthophila species. Dissection tonight.
Species: Butterflies
  1. Red admiral
  2. Wall
  3. Large white
  4. Small white
  5. Peacock
  6. Orange tip
  7. Small tortoiseshell
  8.  Common blue
  9. Holly blue
Other item of Note:
Red veined darter at Kelling Water Meadows.
Red veined darter. More used to seeing these in The Camargue, a rare dragonfly for the UK.


Trap set on the salt marsh

Willow warbler

Kelling Water Meadows hare

Common buzzard

Rock pool Herring gulls at West Runton

Poppies on the clifftop, West Runton

Redshank

Juvenile redshank

Redshanks having territorial dispute

flyby Cormorant

Ringed plover

Little ringed plover

Whitethroat

Egyptian goose

Egyptian goose

Being mobbed by an Avocet

Avocet in defence of its territory

None too pleased with my presence!

Goldfinch

Inquisitive Reed warbler

Checking for food

Marsh harrier

Sedge warbler

Turnstone

Great egret showing breeding plumage with the dark beak

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Thx for a great review of your trip and some fab photos.

This is me

This is me
At the end of another Norfolk Coastal footpath walk. 47 miles, 3 days 99 species of bird. September 2009

Caley Wood view

Caley Wood view
sunshine through the canopy 29.05.08

A walk along the Warta Valley, Poznan, Poland. Feb 2007

A walk along the Warta Valley, Poznan, Poland. Feb 2007
Best birds on this walk: black and middle spotted woodpecker and short toed treecreeper

About Me

My photo
A primary school teacher for 30 years, I retired from teaching in July 2009 to set up my own science enhancement and communication company. The Primary Works offers science clubs, workshops and staged science shows nationwide. I have always been interested in bird watching since my early years. Apparently my first tick was after inquiring about a chaffinch and then receiving the Observer book of birds. By the age of 9 I had moved on to Tory Peterson's collins guide and was now involved on YOC birding holidays to Northumbria, Essex coast, Slimbridge and Yorkshire. My twitching rule is that I will willingly travel 1km for each gram the bird weighs. However, I have had many rarities just by being in the right place. I have travelled widely throughout Europe and also visited Australia and Sri Lanka. In 2016 I spent time at Portland Bird Obs and two trips to Aviero, Portugal. 2017 found me back in Sri Lanka in Feb/March, then July and back for New Year's Eve celebrations in December. Also returned to The Camargue in May for a 4 day trip. Few plans for 2018, but nothing yet booked apart from a trip to the IOW.

Grey heron

Grey heron
Over the allotment 28.09.08

Southern Hawker

Southern Hawker
Ridge footpath 27.08.08

Juvenile green woodpecker (17.08.08)

Juvenile green woodpecker (17.08.08)
Note the stripes, denoting a bird fledged this year.

common blue

common blue
Ash Valley G.C. 15.08.08

Indian balsam (impatiens glandulifera)

Indian balsam (impatiens glandulifera)
River Ash

azure damselfly

azure damselfly
River Ash 28.07.08

marbled white

marbled white
Discovered at Westland Green 22.07.08

ruddy darter

ruddy darter
Bush Wood 21.07.08

honeysuckle 19.07.08

honeysuckle 19.07.08
growing in hedgerow in Chapel Lane

cinnabar moth caterpillar

cinnabar moth caterpillar
Photographed on ragwort 19.07.08

Bittersweet

Bittersweet
Study of petals 11.06.08

male yellowhammer

male yellowhammer
08.06.08

common blue butterfly

common blue butterfly
06.06.08

River Ash

River Ash
looking south from the bridge at Hadham Ford

Common poppy (papaver rhoeas)

Common poppy (papaver rhoeas)
in rape field 29.05.08

Caley Wood sunshine

Caley Wood sunshine
29.05.08

Millenium Wood fox

Millenium Wood fox
24.05.08

common comfrey (symphytum officinale)

common comfrey (symphytum officinale)
06.05.08 banks of the River Ash

Garlic Mustard or Jack by the Hedge,(Alliara petiolata)

Garlic Mustard or Jack by the Hedge,(Alliara petiolata)
flowers, leaves and fruit edible . Good in salad and pesto

April showers

April showers
Double rainbow 30.04.08

Caley Wood bluebells

Caley Wood bluebells
22.04.08

Yellow Archangel

Yellow Archangel
Chapel Lane (20.04.08)

sunlight 16.04.08

sunlight 16.04.08
looking south west from Bush Wood

snowy buds

snowy buds
06.04.08 in Bush Wood

Looking north west

Looking north west
05.04.08 evening shower approaching

Back Garden

Back Garden
Easter Sunday (23.03.08)

Brick Kiln Hill

Brick Kiln Hill
Looking east (23.03.08)

No play today

No play today
The 2nd hole at Ash Valley golf course

Teasel head

Teasel head
Bush Wood (21.03.08)

Reflections

Reflections
daffodils at Bush Wood pond (21.03.08)

Swollen River Ash

Swollen River Ash
The river at the bottom of Winding Hill 16.03.08

Daybreak over the chapel

Daybreak over the chapel
Thursday 13th March

Wild daffodils (narcissus pseudonarcissus)

Wild daffodils (narcissus pseudonarcissus)
growing in Bush Wood

January snowdrops

January snowdrops
Banks of River Ash, north of Much Hadham

Good Moon

Good Moon
From garden 24.01.08

Village Green

Village Green
Looking east towards Acremore Street

Looking south before Hadham Ford

Looking south before Hadham Ford
rare January blue sky

Useful sites

The following are some useful websites that may interest readers of this blog.
Firstly, Bishop's Stortford Natural History Society http://bsnhs.webplus.net/

Fellow birder, Gary Whelan's blog. Gives reports from our trips out together plus reports from his trips abroad. http://hairybirders.blogspot.co.uk
http://www.hertsbirdclub.org.uk/ The official herts bird club website. Frequently updated, listing bird sightings around the county. Offers links to many other websites. Both of these sites also offer links to yahoo discussion groups.
http://www.birdforum.net/ An international site. You can enter as a guest but become a member( free) to post comments, bird sightings and just about anything to do with wild birds. Good news updates, classified section for binoculars, cameras etc.
http://www.guidedbirdwatching.com/ A new site set up where you can contact people worldwide who will help you find good birds in their country. UK section being set up presently.
http://www.britainsbirder.co.uk/
Fellow birders blog. Strtford resident, Graeme Smith regulary birds the area south of Stortford as well as around Spellbrook and the River Stort from Spellbrook to Twyford Locks. Some superb bird photography: Graeme uses a digital camera attached to his powerful telescope to get detailled images of the birds he sees. Well worth a browse.
Two local sites that may be of interest can be found at
http://www.thehadhams.com/ www.thepelhams.net/content/section/12/139/

South Easterly walk

South Easterly walk
black, normal, red extended walk

South Westerly route.

South Westerly route.
Black usual, red extended

North Easterly walk

North Easterly walk
black short, walk. Red, extended

North West Patch

North West Patch
black route regular. Red route the extended wander