• Welcome to BirdForum, the internet's largest birding community with thousands of members from all over the world. The forums are dedicated to wild birds, birding, binoculars and equipment and all that goes with it.

    Please register for an account to take part in the discussions in the forum, post your pictures in the gallery and more.
ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

Norfolk birding (16 Viewers)

black kite 1964 said:
Yes it is! 260 is a very good, particularly given the time limits around work. Are there any obvious gaps that can be made up before the end of the year. Planning to do Shetland late spring. Unst and Fetlar could be good - yet to see Orca's. Might do a couple of days on fair isle - if I can get in!!

Regards.B :)B :)
Click to expand...

Re: obvious gaps: Red Necked grebe, Richard's Pipit, poss. puffin, leach's:-O Snowy Owl and Gyr Falcon:-O

Fair Isle: I have never seen Orca's either - I missed seeing a pod of 5 by a day the last time I was at FIBO!

Best Wishes Penny:girl:
 
Penny have you gone mad, 5 posts on the trot !! Do people think these birds are coming in off the sea ? I was at sheringham for an hour on sunday morning and counted 100+ snipe and 400+ lapwings they were all moving west. It felt more like they had been pushed off the land with the snow and were hunting along the coast for somewhere to feed ? or does in off the sea not always mean a continental bird ?

I wanted 'FU I won't do what you tell me' to be played at my wedding, my wife decided it wouldn't be appropriate for the older folk though !! Slightly embarassing on the news they announced them as a facebook band !!! I was dancing to them at the disco before the interent even existed let alone f*cking facebook !!
 
Penny Clarke said:
Re: obvious gaps: Red Necked grebe, Richard's Pipit, poss. puffin, leach's:-O Snowy Owl and Gyr Falcon:-O

Fair Isle: I have never seen Orca's either - I missed seeing a pod of 5 by a day the last time I was at FIBO!

Best Wishes Penny:girl:
Click to expand...

Have you counted pallas's warbler ? You saw the bird, it was just a bit dark !!
 
Pretty much snowed / iced in here in Dersingham since Friday with the minor roads being fairly 'interesting' and the main roads not much better. So a bit of local slithering on foot produced Barn Owl, several Green Woodpeckers clinging to tree trunks, GS Woodpeckers, a small movement west yesterday of Meadow Pipits and Skylarks, Blackbirds in every unfrozen ditch, several Stonechats.

Jono asked ages ago about highlights for the noughties - I guess my personal highlights were finally catching up with two bogey birds, Bluethroat and RF Bluetail, and having that cracking Black-eared Kite spend a few months on my doorstep. I must have spent days in total watching that bird, often on my own and it was a real treat.

Irene
 
stu_white said:
Do people think these birds are coming in off the sea ? I was at sheringham for an hour on sunday morning and counted 100+ snipe and 400+ lapwings they were all moving west. It felt more like they had been pushed off the land with the snow and were hunting along the coast for somewhere to feed ? or does in off the sea not always mean a continental bird ?
Click to expand...

I haven't been to the coast recently so haven't seen the movement of Snipe or Lapwings, but have had very good numbers of both species on my local patch inland.
I reckon a lot of them could be continental birds, because a lot of places like Germany and the Netherlands are currently a lot colder than here! So the birds normal feeding grounds are freezing up and they need to move to find another food source. It could be similar to that Bittern influx last winter...
 
It's interesting to note which species are on the move up in Norfolk - we're seeing very similar events in London. Lapwing and Snipe are turning up in / going over areas where they're rare and there are some high vis-mig Skylark counts (heading north, oddly).
 
I spent most of the day in the snow at Whitlingham. As well as the normal wildfowl I managed 3 Kingfishers, 1 Goosander, 15 Snipe, 1 Woodcock, 1 Marsh Tit, about 110 Lapwing west and a group of 13 Skylark west. I gave up counting the ducks after they were scattered by Santa on a boat!
 

Attachments

  • Whit santa.jpg
    Whit santa.jpg
    105 KB · Views: 96
  • Whit kingfisher.jpg
    Whit kingfisher.jpg
    88.9 KB · Views: 90
Snipe & Woodcock

On a short drive along the coast road, to the town of Cr---r and back, for some seasonal purchases, I saw a couple of Woodcock and a Snipe fly across the road. This was in broad daylight.

They must be having a bad time, finding somewhere to feed and rest.
 
Titchwell December 21st

Today's highlights

Common buzzard - 1 west over reserve, 1 roosting near dead trees this evening
Hen harrier - ringtail hunting over saltmarsh during the day and roosted in reedbed this evening
Peregrine - 1 hunting over saltmarsh
Water rail - 4 in ditches by bird feeders
Snipe - 20 feeding in ditches by feeders
Woodcock - at least 6 feeding in scrub around the visitor centre
Twite - 8 on brackish marsh
Great Northern diver - 2 offshore

Last post of the year from me for Titchwell as I am on my hols now.

Hope you all have a good Christmas and a bird-filled 2010.

Paul
 
Happy Winter Solstice!

Today at 5:47pm the Earth's tilt reached 23° 26' at which point it began moving back the other way. This point marked our furthest distance from the Sun during the year which means that... SPRING IS COMING!!! :-O

There are Snipe in good numbers over my way too and a Woodcock was flying out to fields about an hour before dusk at Lessingham today. I've also seen 2 Jack Snipe in with a wisp of Snipe here recently but haven't had a proper chance to seek them out since. I was rather surprised as I thought they were mostly solitary birds and when flushed never fly far; these were actually flying around as part of the Snipe flock. Has anyone else noted them in flight with a flock of Snipe?

James
 
Gadzooks

Frootshoot said:
Today at 5:47pm the Earth's tilt reached 23° 26' at which point it began moving back the other way. This point marked our furthest distance from the Sun during the year which means that... SPRING IS COMING!!! :-O
James
Click to expand...

Oh no, they'll be dancing with no kit on around a fire near Ringstead Downs tonight, wailing gobbledeegook to the spirits of the wood and quaffing cheap red wine. Hope they don't frighten the owls.
 
James Emerson said:
I spent most of the day in the snow at Whitlingham. As well as the normal wildfowl I managed 3 Kingfishers, 1 Goosander, 15 Snipe, 1 Woodcock, 1 Marsh Tit, about 110 Lapwing west and a group of 13 Skylark west. I gave up counting the ducks after they were scattered by Santa on a boat!
Click to expand...

Ah, that's where you were when I brought your hat around James! Much better than a Santa hat I hope you'd agree...

Cheers

Andy
 
PYRTLE said:
Oh no, they'll be dancing with no kit on around a fire near Ringstead Downs tonight, wailing gobbledeegook to the spirits of the wood and quaffing cheap red wine. Hope they don't frighten the owls.
Click to expand...

Marvellous you can book me in for that.

POP
 
PYRTLE said:
Oh no, they'll be dancing with no kit on around a fire near Ringstead Downs tonight, wailing gobbledeegook to the spirits of the wood and quaffing cheap red wine. Hope they don't frighten the owls.
Click to expand...

Red wine sounds good - chilian merlot recommended! Also a a selection of cheese and things helps! sod the owls - unless there a hawk owl of course!Spring might be on the way- but its bloody cold outside!B :)B :)

better go for that second glass of red!
 
Last edited:
Paul Eele said:
Today's highlights

Common buzzard - 1 west over reserve, 1 roosting near dead trees this evening
Hen harrier - ringtail hunting over saltmarsh during the day and roosted in reedbed this evening
Peregrine - 1 hunting over saltmarsh
Water rail - 4 in ditches by bird feeders
Snipe - 20 feeding in ditches by feeders
Woodcock - at least 6 feeding in scrub around the visitor centre
Twite - 8 on brackish marsh
Great Northern diver - 2 offshore

Last post of the year from me for Titchwell as I am on my hols now.

Hope you all have a good Christmas and a bird-filled 2010.

Paul
Click to expand...


thanks Paul for keeping us updated throughout the year,

cracking day at Titchwell today, the area around the visitors centre was really busy with Water Rail constantly on view, Woodock crunching about it in the snow and Snipe trying to get to the ditches which seemed to be one of the few sources of open water + the LEO may still be about - was in Ivy just off the main footpath yest. Lots of Skylark, Lapwing and Snipe on the move over the beach. The Hen Harrier was really beautiful against the snowy saltmarsh, underwing gleaming in the afternoon light. Lots of starfish on the beach including quite a few sunstars and an unIDed 11 starred one. Probably one of the view days of the year could walk the entire boardwalk without seeing a single other person.

Missed the bus home so currently on the voddie and orange howling like a Red Indian on Ringwood Downs in my Speedos, no Owls yet but getting a bit scared of the sheep.
 
Last edited:

Similar threads

B
Birding in Portugal, Spain May june 2024
Replies
4
Views
436
brooke65
B
B
May - June birding in Europe. Guides?
Replies
1
Views
290
Fritz73
Fritz73
R
Red grouse near Buxton and anything else . Advise please
Replies
3
Views
306
simmojunior
S
T
30/03, Devon. Another (un)Common Buzzard?
Replies
10
Views
647
The Kerreran
T
SueO
Stories Behind Birds You've Photographed
Replies
18
Views
818
Joe H
Joe H

Users who are viewing this thread

Total: 17 (members: 0, guests: 17)
Back
Top