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

Norfolk birding (10 Viewers)

Finally made the drive from south Cambs to Cley to catch up with the Collared Pratincole and had good views of it at 9am sitting all by itself out in open by a grassy mound near North Scrape(view from the beach looking back over to the visitor centre). :t: In the distance good views also of a Spoonbill. But then sadly I had to rush off to a meeting.... but looked like it would have been a good day birding - if only....
Tina
 
Lovely evening at Strumpshaw, yesterday. Good views of Blackcap, Chiffchaff and Sedge Warblers, heard Reed and Garden but no Gropper.
Finished with a Barn Owl poking its head out of the box from the meadow trail, and stonking views of a water vole, presumably using reeds as nesting material. Totally unaware of our presence as we watched it go about its business, great stuff. I have been to the reserve before, but I forgot how close it was to Norwich,and will no doubt be making more after work trips this year.
Its half term! Time to get back out east.
Cheers,
Jim.
 
Hi there

Enjoy your trip to Norfolk and ask other birders when you arrive here about seeing Montague's Harriers and I am sure someone will be able to point you in the right direction, but no one is going to answer on an open forum about the whereabouts of any rare breeding bird, nor should they.

Best Wishes Penny:girl:

Thanks, i see now. thats fine and i understand.
On an other note only two days to go!!
 
Sandringham

Took my sister, her partner and my son to Sandringham woods last evening. We had great views of Woodcock and Nightjar, and my sis and her partner were amazed with the 'churring'. My son remained indifferent, no doubt wishing he was at home on his computer 3:)
 
Went for a quick bike ride and a walk around my local common this morning. Recently almost all of the gorse bushes have been cut down, so I wasn't expecting to see much. Certainly not the pair of Nightingales that have been breeding there for three years now! But there they were, a lot more skulky than usual, with the male singing only occasionally and very brief bursts of song. I'm thinking this means they might already be nesting! Very good news! :t: Also heard a Bullfinch and saw a Jay.
 
Just had good views of a Sotted Flycatcher in the driveway. Hopefully it wil breed again this year. Its been a good day so far and I haven't really been out much!
Does anyone know anything about the possible Alpine Swift at Tottenhill GPs today?
Cheers
 
Decided to do a Titchwell daylist on Friday (12 hours in the end) and ended up with a respectable total of 98 species. I am sure it would have been higher a few weeks ago when there were more waders around.
Highlights included the 2 spoonbills, 1st summer med gull, hobby, turtle dove and a couple of lesser redpolls. Missed a few things but goldfinch was probably the standout.

Looks like I have set myself a challenge for next year...

Paul
 
Hi.

Managed to get some good time birding today. I started at my house, drove to Sparham Pools, moving on to Guist Bridge, Swanton Novers, Salthouse, Cley, Burnham Market, Choseley and Titchwell. We managed 108 species, so not too bad overall. We managed to dip on some birds you would expect to see but that is part of the unpredictability of birdwatching.

The best (scarcest) birds seen today were Tree sparrow, Honey Buzzard, Spoonbill, Hen Harrier, Monties(not where expected though) and Corn Bunting. The highlights for me were seeing Turtle Dove and Tree Sparrow close to home, seeing a cracking Grey plover at Titchwell, Yellow Wag at choseley and decent views of a perched Hobby. I was suprised at the amount of GC Grebes on the sea at Titchwell and quite happy to drop on a RB Merganser there too.

All in all a very nice day out, birds or no birds. I really do appreciate Norfolk, my home county and a great birdwatching destination.

Regards.
Billy.
 
Took my sister, her partner and my son to Sandringham woods last evening. We had great views of Woodcock and Nightjar, and my sis and her partner were amazed with the 'churring'. My son remained indifferent, no doubt wishing he was at home on his computer 3:)

Hi Norfolk Coot

Was it your sister waving the white hankies around? I was there yesterday evening and may have spoken to you on my way down the path. I had fantastic views of 3 Nightjars (and 2 Woodcock).

Today at Sculthorpe Mill 2 Spotted Flycatchers. Great Ryburgh 3 Hobbies (and a presumed escaped Harris Hawk). A Turtle Dove was at a farm in Fulmodstone.

For those of you that are interested I have posted a trip report of my recent visit to the Western Sahara and Morocco on my website at

http://www.freewebs.com/suebryan/morocco2009.htm

Sue
 
Was it your sister waving the white hankies around?

Hi Sue

HaHa no that wasn't her, but if you heard someone swearing at a pair of bins THAT would have been her. Not being a bird watcher she was struggling with the bins but desperately wanted to see the Nightjars closer. Which in the end she did. :D

Colin
 
Some photos of yesterday's Ttichwell bird originally identified as an Iceland Gull linked from this thread. I'd initially favoured the leucistic Herring Gull ID but I've still got some niggling doubts about whether Kumlien's could look like this.
 
Interesting gull Dave, for what its worth I agree on a leucistic herring gull. To me the structure of the bird and especially the size and thickness of the bill looks wrong for iceland/Kumliens. If anything the bill colouration and size would point more to a glaucus gull. I do however agree that this bird looks very much like the BBend individual, which seems to have been called Kumleins by many.
 
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Saturday 24th May

Lakenheath RSPB - arrived at 5am, 2 cars in the carpark already! Lovely sunny morning. Unusually we did not hear any golden orioles singng until 6.15am. A couple of bitterns landed in the farthest reedbed beyond 2nd plantation, also barn owl hunting. Cracking views of a male Golden Oriole at 7am which Paul spotted in the 2nd plantation sitting high up in the sunshine! Garden warbler singing, but not seen. The reedbeds were alive with sedge and reed warblers singing and good numbers of reed bunting, also cuckcoo heard. A couple of female green woodpeckers also seen in first plantation. A couple of hobbies were seen in the carpark.

Weeting Heath - fabulous views of a spotted flycatcher and a very brief view of a stone curlew.

Swanton Novers - Common buzzard, but nothing else of note!

After leaving Swanton Novers, from the A148 I took the road through Little Snoring and after going through Little Walsingham I turned left at a crossroads and followed a fascinating road which came out between South Creake and North Creake. A VERY interesting bird sat on a telegraph wire towards the end of the road, but I was looking straight into the sun, I can even say what I was thinking it was!!!!! I did an emergency stop as it bounded down from the wire and over an embankment, not to be found again! This road was alive with birds, so will have to go down there again!

Scolthead Island - evening - a few linnets, skylarks, ringed plovers, oystercatchers.

Best Wishes Penny:girl:
 
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Sculthorpe Moor this afternoon

Had a nice little walk round Sculthorpe Moor this afternoon. It looks like the young Great Spotted Woodys are about ready to leave the nest. At one point the female was in a tree opposite and calling, I thought she was trying to tempt them out but after 5 mins gave up and flew off.

Great views were had of a pair of Bullfinches at the bird table and a rather friendly rabbit !

Colin
 

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24th May - Sunday

Worked this morning - leisurely afternoon with cat in garden.

Scolthead Island - 7pm

A few linnets, skylarks, oystercatchers, ringed plovers, lots of common and little terns, brent geese, a kestrel, 2 cormorants, turnstones. LOTS of Painted Lady Butterflies coming in off the sea! Tea on the beach with not a dog in sight - magic!;)

Best Wishes Penny:girl:
 
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24th May - Sunday

Worked this morning - leisurely afternoon with cat in garden.

Scolthead Island - 7pm

A few linnets, skylarks, oystercatchers, ringed plovers, lots of common and little terns, brent geese, a kestrel, 2 cormorants, turnstones. LOTS of Painted Lady Butterflies coming in off the sea! Tea on the beach with not a dog in sight - magic!;)

Best Wishes Penny:girl:

Penny I take it you did not take the cat.

POP
 
leucistic crow

Hi,
I had this crow at Horsey gap on 7th May, I was just wondering if anyone else picked this bird up as it moved through our area? It had subtle hints of a hooded appearence which made it look even more odd, any thoughts?
 

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I did an all-day birdwatch on Sunday, which was very good fun. We saw 113 species, well short of our target of 130. This was partly down a lack of waders, and also in retrospect we should probably have started with a woodland dawn chorus. We still saw some cracking birds, picking up a late Rough-legged Buzzard over Roydon, and following it up with a Black Kite at Flitcham! Our Common Buzzard count was well above 20 for the day.

Other good stuff,a Golden Oriole perched high at Lakenheath (possible the one Penny saw, but viewed from the other side of the Plantation!), Honey Buzzard, Montagu's Harrier, 3 Turtle Doves, Bittern, Woodlark, Little Gull, Short-eared Owl, Guillemot, Nightjar & Tawny Owl.

A full account is on my blog: http://jamesbirdsandbeer.blogspot.com, but it's quite long, I recommend grabbing a cup of tea beforehand! :-O

regards,
James
 
Two flycatchers spotted at East Hills

A trek out to the magical location today with Ian P started with promise. 3 Cranes came on to the pager, heading in our direction, soon after we began the long trudge. Try as we might, however, we just could not pick them up. Would this be the tenor of the whole trip ?

It certainly seemed so, as we got out there. It was almost unnaturally quiet- no migrants at all. The first glade of sycamores gave us Chiffchaff, or possibly two- but only heard. By then, the sky had gone very murky, the wind picked up, temperature dropped by, it seemed, about 20 degrees and it started to rain.

A Barn Owl seen several times was, possibly, an unusual sighting.

It wasn't until the very end that the quality showed through, as did the sun again. 2 Spotted Flycatchers sallying forth, with a few good photo opps. And another Chiffy.

That was it, except for many fewer Painted Ladies going through than yesterday and a Small Copper.

***SAFETY ADVISORY***
Do not go out here without good local knowledge, the timings of tides etc explained and, preferably, having been shown the way by someone who knows- at least once!
 

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