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

Norfolk birding (39 Viewers)

Penny Clarke said:
11th June - Thursday, Pensthorpe - last day of Springwatch

I had not been to Pensthorpe for a long time, maybe a year or two, so decided to spend the day here for a change and also joined, as begrudged spending £8.50 for the day! so even though I have paid alot more, at least I can go when ever I want now for a whole year!

Brilliant views of bullfinches at the feeders by the woodland hide along with several marsh tits and it was alive with other birds: great spotted woodpecker, blue tits, great tits, chaffinches, pheasants, greenfinchs, long tailed its etc, squirrels, muntjac. Chatted to a lovely elderly couple in the hide, reminiscing about the old days - they left and then 2 incredibly noisy women came in the hide, talking in very loud voices and hands pointing out of the hide etc etc - the shyest birds departed and so did I!!!!! The Wader Scrape did not produce anything special.

Saw bullfinches again by the lily pond within the Millenium garden. They have extended this reserve alot since I last came - it was fun photographing smew and flamingoes etc even though they are all ringed!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Tried to get Kate Humble's signature in vain, by leaving my Springwatch book (have Bill's and Simon's sig. in it already) in the office for the day - never mind!
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I was at Sculthorpe Moor for a Glow-worm walk last night, and the warden said that Kate wasn't particularly sociable, she didn't go to Thursday evenings end of series party, instead going straight home. I got great views of Bullfinches in the evening, including a male with two white primaries on each wing.

James
 

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James Emerson said:
I got great views of Bullfinches in the evening, including a male with two white primaries on each wing.

James
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James. I've also seen this male at Sculthorpe Moor, quite unusual. Also had great views of a juvenile on that same bird table on Friday evening.

An evening visit to Titchwell today produced 5 Little Gulls and a smashing male Pintail on the freshmarsh, a Little Tern fishing on the Tidal Marsh and large numbers of Knot and Herring Gulls on the beach.

Stopping at Choseley on the way home I had great views of Turtle Dove
 
Penny Clarke said:
11th June - Thursday, Pensthorpe - last day of Springwatch

I had not been to Pensthorpe for a long time, maybe a year or two, so decided to spend the day here for a change and also joined, as begrudged spending £8.50 for the day! so even though I have paid alot more, at least I can go when ever I want now for a whole year!
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Just out of interest how much is the year long pass? I also begrudge paying the day rate, but living in Fakenham i guess i would make use of year long entry.
 
Garden Warbler, m Marsh Harrier, LRP, Turtle Dove and 2 Oyk at Whitlingham Lane new workings/Station Marsh over the weekend.
Cheers,
Jono L
 
Had a great trip to the north Norfolk coast last week - didn't go rarity hunting (not my thing) but saw so much there, was superb! Loads and loads of Marsh Harriers around Cley, Blakeney and Wiveton, lots of Bearded Tits pinging away around me as I sat on a bench near the hides at Cley (and on the east bank), Barn Owls all over the place and hunting in the marshes only about thirty feet away from us as we crouched on the path between Blakeney and Morston, Cetti's Warblers heard quite a bit at Cley and around Holkham, young Reed Buntings and Reed Warblers and Blue Tits, nesting Avocets, Fulmars at Hunstanton (they are so cool!) and we had tonnes of bats flying around us in the evenings on the marshes footpath just outside Blakeney, only a few inches from our heads!
 
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Brown headed cowbird at West Runton on the 3rd June has just come up on RBA website!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Anyone know any more please - presumably the one that was seen at Weybourne? (as in who saw it, why we have only just heard on the 15th June - 12 days later?
 
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From birdguides "probable male just southeast of the railway station at Incleboro Fields Caravan Club pitch 121 briefly on 3rd June "
 
Penny Clarke said:
Brown headed cowbird at West Runton on the 3rd June has just come up on RBA website!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Anyone know any more please - presumably the one that was seen at Weybourne? (as in who saw it, why we have only just heard on the 15th June - 12 days later?
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Report was of a probable from a Caravan Club pitch, so perhaps the most likely scenario is a non-birder taking a photo of a 'funny bird' and then the bird being identified later.

Or it was a young blackbird.
 
HarassedDad said:
90% of wildlife goes unobserved, 99% goes unrecorded.
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Sorry if the thread's moved on, but I totally agree with this comment by HarrassedDad - NOWHERE is well-watched. Take Port Meadow for example - Adam Hartley watches it every day (often twice a day) with several other birders about. I only make it down there once every two weeks at best, yet almost every time I find something good that the others missed. Port Meadow is a migrant stop-off point, so the situation is analagous to Norfolk coast birding: get out there and get watching, whatever the weather, time of day or year!

ps. I also had my sights on that house, but have decided to go for the two-story lookout post on Thornham Point. How much do you want for it Paul?!
 
Titchwell June 16th

Today's highlights

Spoonbill - 3 on fresh marsh
Little gull - 3 on fresh marsh
Common sandpiper - 1 on fresh marsh
Hobby - 1 hunting over reedbed
Red crested pochard - female with 5 young on grazing marsh pool

Paul
 
Just wondered if anybody knows what happened to the pair of swans that were nesting on the side of the A149 in May.

Did the eggs hatch and the chicks survive?

Regards

Dave
 

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DJW said:
Just wondered if anybody knows what happened to the pair of swans that were nesting on the side of the A149 in May.

Did the eggs hatch and the chicks survive?

Regards

Dave
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I saw them in the dyke on the opposite side of the road shortly after they left the nest, although I can't remember how many cygnets there were.
 
Titchwell June 17th

Today's highlights

Spoonbill - 2 on fresh marsh
Redstart - 1 in bushes near beach boardwalk
Hobby - 1 west over reserve
Eider - 3 offshore
Wigeon - 2 on fresh marsh
Pintail - drake on fresh marsh
Common sandpiper - 3 on fresh marsh
Little gull - 1 on fresh marsh

Paul
 
DJW said:
Just wondered if anybody knows what happened to the pair of swans that were nesting on the side of the A149 in May.

Did the eggs hatch and the chicks survive?

Regards

Dave
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Hi,

I heard that they had 4 cygnets and they moved off the nest site and into the dyke. Apparently there is another pair of swans at Salhouse that have 9 cygnets! Talking with someone today they thought that another female may have laid her eggs in the pair's nest to produce so many! :eek!:
 
Lost Bird?

I was driving back from the norfolk coast last week and just outside Hilborough on the A1065 I thought I saw a turkey vulture walking along a grass verge. :eek!: No I had not been drinking and I couldnt stop straight away as a car was tail gating me. When I did manage to stop and turn round and went back i couldnt find it. The verge had quite long grass, and it looked pretty bedraggled as it had been raining - but I have seen turkey vultures in the states so was pretty sure it was one. If anyone knows of anyone who has lost one please get them to PM me and I will give them the exact location.
 
Tuesday 16th June

Spent a lovely evening walking from Holkham, Lady Anne's Drive and west through the pines, Burnham Overy Dunes and back through 'Bone's Drift'. I was hoping to bump into the Red Backed Shrike but no luck. Had a very unusual sighting of 3 Cuckoos flying together near end of the dunes (Gunhill side) and flew east back up to Holkham pines - all 3 were calling. A couple of marsh harriers floating about and several little egrets all going east to roost at Holkham. The highlight of the evening was Natterjack toads all croaking away in the middle of the marsh!!! Also one crossed the path and I got some decent photos too! There were several chiffchaffs about and a few common whitethroats in the bushes just before Washington Hide and meadow pipits and linnets along the way.

Best Wishes Penny:girl:
 
Sounds good Penny, there do seem to be quite a few Cuckoos around there - when I was walking through the west side of the wood there last week one was calling very close by. Quite a few Tawny Owls in that part of the wood too.

We visited a hide there (not sure what it's called, it's raised quite high up and looks out over a marsh on one side and the wood on the rear side and has a switch-back boardwalk ramp going up to it) and there were Whitethroat and Cetti's Warblers there and lots of bat signs in the hide, the rafters at the end were peppered with poo!

Natterjacks are a good find! :t:
 
Daffyduck said:
I was driving back from the norfolk coast last week and just outside Hilborough on the A1065 I thought I saw a turkey vulture walking along a grass verge. :eek!: No I had not been drinking and I couldnt stop straight away as a car was tail gating me. When I did manage to stop and turn round and went back i couldnt find it. The verge had quite long grass, and it looked pretty bedraggled as it had been raining - but I have seen turkey vultures in the states so was pretty sure it was one. If anyone knows of anyone who has lost one please get them to PM me and I will give them the exact location.
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I know the birds of prey centre at Stonham Barns in Suffolk lost a Turkey Vulture last month, no idea if they recovered it or not. Might be worth giving them a call to check.
Cheers,
Jim
 

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