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ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

Norfolk birding (20 Viewers)

Make that a Lesser Grey Shrike :p Woops. Saw it today though (dont know how I could have missed that :eek:) Also saw the Yellow Browed Warbler at Titchwell. It flew into willows just off the main path, near the fen path. It appeared to be with the tit flock. Very nice, bright bird.

Jason

Was it definitely yesterdays great grey that's been re-ID'd as lesser grey or might there be two birds. Given the number of great grey's around in the last few days I was assuming there was one there yesterday and that the lesser today was a new bird.

Either way it's a very nice bird, I'm hoping it hangs around as I could only spend 15 minutes watching it today and would like to spend some more time with it.
 
99% certain. It was in exactly the same place today as it was last night. Would like to say that I would have noticed the difference if it was a different bird today, but I probably wouldn't lol.
 
respeck to you for that... not sure many will be as conscientious though.

amazing how few people bothered to look for stuff at the weekend, instead just relying on their pagers and going from bird to bird.

Sabs, 2 Y-br, Red-backed, Great Grey and a Radde's in a small stretch of coast makes you wonder what might have been about had more people been looking

Respeck? How old are you? ;)

I'm not bothered what anyone else does - my rules are just my own. I don't tick anything I don't think I could have id-ed. Hence the Richard's from Holkham and Leach's from Cley earlier in the week are not on my list either though I did see them.

To be fair I think there were a lot of people out looking too - plenty have posted on here. Will and I started out at Holkham (Will found the Richard's Pipit) and there were quite a few different groups of birders in the morning looking for their own birds. We didn't go on a pager dash till we got news of the Blyth's and I suspect many of the people there had been doing some proper looking in other places. We reckoned there were 4 or 5 different YBW's at Holkham but I think people stopped putting them out after a while.
 
Titchwell

Another pleasent autumn day with a quality selection of birds around the reserve.
The yellow browed warbler from the weekend still present although very elusive and upto 3 bramblings around the feeders. A full count of the lagoons today produced (not all the figures are in yet) 540+ golden plover, 200+ teal, 100+ wigeon, 11 little stints and 93 ruff.
There were 2 purple sands still present at Thornham Point along with 2 flyover lap bunts and 5 snow bunts near the beach platform. The sea was fairly quiet but a sooty shear and 2 more juv sabs gulls provided the quality.
Also managed to get along to Holkham after work for the LG shrike as it was a UK tick for me. Although distant, it showed well on the fence around the cattle field.

Paul
 
Thanks Sue.
I did manage to see it today. A Merlin came through harrassing the waders at one point but the Phalarope managed to hide up. Thanks again.
Best wishes and happy birding
Alan
 
Thanks Sue.
I did manage to see it today. A Merlin came through harrassing the waders at one point but the Phalarope managed to hide up. Thanks again.
Best wishes and happy birding
Alan

Glad you saw it, it would have been a shame to miss such a lovely bird! I was hoping to photograph it but it was always distant. I even tried the Bishop Hide but it got wind of my arrival and scooted off to the back of the scrape!

I watched the Lesser Grey Shrike and Ross's Goose late this afternoon. The wind in my back was cold but very definitely coming from the East. More Eastern migrants on the way.:t:

Sue :-O:-O:-O
 
I decided not to chase after found birds and look for my own this afternoon- beautiful sunny day at Winterton produced the following:

1 Firecrest (stunning, singing male)
5 brambling
1 jack snipe
1 filedfare (gave me a scare when it did a good GG Shrike impersonation on top of a bush!)
40+ swallows
1-2 wheatear

Still more birds out there to be found i reckon!!
 
Cheers Penny

bugger all this morning though!

trying to organise a curry night at the moment...

I'll look forward to curry night then Tim:t:

Had a VERY amusing incident this evening. When I left work dressed in normal office attire, picture the scene: black skirt, boots, black jacket, blonde hair..... on route to where my car is parked, I stopped at the Millfleet with my 'car bins' to see if there was anything interesting, I sometimes see kingfisher there and grey wagtail. I passed a police car on route that sat just on the corner by Boal Quay carpark about 50 yards from where I stopped to scan the small reed bed and river below the bank. Suddenly I realised a policeman is approaching me and asked me what I was doing:-O. I explained that although I didn't look like one, that I was a birder and that I often came here to birdwatch before and after work. 'Ahhhh he said you are a twitcher.... its just that you don't look like one and there are residential houses over there'. I then preceeded to show him a kingfisher (on cue!) and just after he left a nice grey wagtail flitted about in the water! I am still laughing now, I have never been approached by the police before for birdwatching!!!!!! (or anything else for that matter). I explained that I dressed appropriately at weekends for birding!!!!!!:-O

Best Wishes Penny:girl:
 
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...I am still laughing now, I have never been approached by the police before for birdwatching!!!!!! ...

I spent many years birding in the Mundesley/Paston/Bacton (of gas site fame...) area. Being stopped by the police was part of birding there! They once approached me, full on 'blues & twos', flashing headlights, as they'd had a report of someone with a sub-machine gun over their shoulder! :eek!: It was only little ol' me with my 'scope and tripod... :-O

James
 
I spent many years birding in the Mundesley/Paston/Bacton (of gas site fame...) area. Being stopped by the police was part of birding there! They once approached me, full on 'blues & twos', flashing headlights, as they'd had a report of someone with a sub-machine gun over their shoulder! :eek!: It was only little ol' me with my 'scope and tripod... :-O

James

How funny:-O:-O:-O
 
Birding Tales

Lovely story Penny, you must lokk very suspicious.
Sounds like the birding's been great down there.
By way of contrast being pulled up and asked to hand over your camera to a Greek army captain, at Ipsilu, Lesvos - was not so amusing.
Best
Mick
 
Today reminded me what birding's all about! Absolutely top draw day today with that kind of Autumn feel that makes it feel like you can smell the rare birds coming in. 1 Lifer, two Norfolk ticks, 5 year ticks and my biggest self-found blocker unblocked!

Parked the car at Wells and walked towards Holkham birding all the way. A bit quite at first, but then stumbled across a large flock of long-tailed tits and goldcrests. Heard what I was sure was a Yellow-browed Warbler, but couldn't find it at first. Eventually I got on a small phyllosc, but although it had a wing war, the bar wasn't nearly strong enough and it turned out to be a Greenish Warbler! Slightly confused (by the call), I continued searching and stumbled across not one, but two Yellow-browed Warblers. On to Holkham were I twitched a Lesser Grey Shrike and then a Great Grey Shrike and found two more Yellow-browed Warblers before twitching the Subalpine Warbler, a lifer for me! Looking quite good for being the Balearic race too. After that I decided to follow-up on an early morning sighting of 2 Great White Egrets which had flown over the fresh marsh. En-route over the dunes, I stumbled across a large pipit, which flushed giving a House Sparrow like chirp. Richard's Pipit, the first I've found at last! It flew a medium distance, but after patient hunting I was able to find it and get some detailed field notes, before it flew off high and east. Had almost given up on the egrets and was on my way back, when they both flew out of a creek in the Salmarsh and headed west. Walked back to Burnham Overy Straithe, were I topped off the day with cracking views of a Barred Warbler, making a nice change from two false alarms, which turned out to be Garden Warblers earlier. Shortly after that I bumped into fellow Norfolk patcher Matt Green (hope you got the bus back OK - amused you said you recognised be by my Avater! I presume you meant you've seen photos of me on the punkbirder website or something) and caught the bus back to pick up my car.

p.s. Tim - up for coming out east on Sat or Sun. Fancy a few beers out your way Saturday night?
 
Well what and evening. Got hame from school just after 5:00pm, had dinner very quicky and was at Holkham by about 6:15pm to look for the Lesser Grey. By 6:40pm it didnt look good and I assumed it had gone to roost and the light was also fading fast. Gutted, I walked back towards the car, when one of the two other birders looking shouted that they had it on a fence-post. And there it was... a superb Lesser Grey Shrike on a post in the middle of a bramble bush o:) hoorah! It showed until 6:55pm when it dropped down into the reeds, presumably to roost.

Cheers
 
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Had to work today so didn't get chance to see the Lesser grey shrike. Off work tomorrow but it's my non birding wife's birthday and duty calls. Doubt if it will stay until my next day off but I will try and sweet talk my S/O. Trying to negitiate a compromise with my good lady but so far no luck. Marriage and children, what a sacrifice. It doesn't half interfere with your birdwatching. Would I do it again?.. Probably. Anyway enough tales of woe. Those of you who are out and about tomorrow...
Happy birding
Alan
 
I decided not to chase after found birds and look for my own this afternoon- beautiful sunny day at Winterton produced the following:

1 Firecrest (stunning, singing male)
5 brambling
1 jack snipe
1 filedfare (gave me a scare when it did a good GG Shrike impersonation on top of a bush!)
40+ swallows
1-2 wheatear

Still more birds out there to be found i reckon!!
Was your Jack Snipe in the North Dunes by the double pools with the little causeway between them? I saw one there on Sunday.
 
Well what and evening. Got hame from school just after 5:00pm, had dinner very quicky and was at Holkham by about 6:15pm to look for the Lesser Grey. By 6:40pm it didnt look good and I assumed it had gone to roost and the light was also fading fast. Gutted, I walked back towards the car, when one of the two other birders looking shouted that they had it on a fence-post. And there it was... a superb Lesser Grey Shrike on a post in the middle of a bramble bush o:) hoorah! It showed until 6:55pm when it dropped down into the reeds, presumably to roost.

Cheers

Connor - you are turning into a TWITCHER!!!!;););) but, well done:t:

I hope you are not going to race off to see a 'little brown job' in Yorkshire????!!!!!!

I am hoping everything at Holkham will stay around for Saturday - PLEEEAAASSSEEE!!!!!!!

Best Wishes Penny:girl:
 
Today reminded me what birding's all about! Absolutely top draw day today with that kind of Autumn feel that makes it feel like you can smell the rare birds coming in. 1 Lifer, two Norfolk ticks, 5 year ticks and my biggest self-found blocker unblocked!

Parked the car at Wells and walked towards Holkham birding all the way. A bit quite at first, but then stumbled across a large flock of long-tailed tits and goldcrests. Heard what I was sure was a Yellow-browed Warbler, but couldn't find it at first. Eventually I got on a small phyllosc, but although it had a wing war, the bar wasn't nearly strong enough and it turned out to be a Greenish Warbler! Slightly confused (by the call), I continued searching and stumbled across not one, but two Yellow-browed Warblers. On to Holkham were I twitched a Lesser Grey Shrike and then a Great Grey Shrike and found two more Yellow-browed Warblers before twitching the Subalpine Warbler, a lifer for me! Looking quite good for being the Balearic race too. After that I decided to follow-up on an early morning sighting of 2 Great White Egrets which had flown over the fresh marsh. En-route over the dunes, I stumbled across a large pipit, which flushed giving a House Sparrow like chirp. Richard's Pipit, the first I've found at last! It flew a medium distance, but after patient hunting I was able to find it and get some detailed field notes, before it flew off high and east. Had almost given up on the egrets and was on my way back, when they both flew out of a creek in the Salmarsh and headed west. Walked back to Burnham Overy Straithe, were I topped off the day with cracking views of a Barred Warbler, making a nice change from two false alarms, which turned out to be Garden Warblers earlier. Shortly after that I bumped into fellow Norfolk patcher Matt Green (hope you got the bus back OK - amused you said you recognised be by my Avater! I presume you meant you've seen photos of me on the punkbirder website or something) and caught the bus back to pick up my car.

p.s. Tim - up for coming out east on Sat or Sun. Fancy a few beers out your way Saturday night?
Wow Ilya!!!! that sounds like a perfect day!!!!!:t:

Best Wishes Penny:girl:
 
Was your Jack Snipe in the North Dunes by the double pools with the little causeway between them? I saw one there on Sunday.

Hi,
Yes , that sounds like the place - i flushed it and it landed a short distance away in drier part. Bit amazed i couldn't find any yellow brows considering how many have turned up! Should be a great week to be on the east coast with Brown Fly further north, who knows what else will turn up in Norfolk.
Glad i'm not going to Scillies this year ;)
 
Shortly after that I bumped into fellow Norfolk patcher Matt Green (hope you got the bus back OK - amused you said you recognised be by my Avater! I presume you meant you've seen photos of me on the punkbirder website or something) and caught the bus back to pick up my car.

Certainly did, but not before going back to those bushes for your Barred Warbler, didn't find it unfortunately, would have ended the day nicely!

Maybe next time ..nice meeting you btw

Matt

ps, oh and yes, it was the punkbirder site were I recognized you from!
 

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