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

Norfolk birding (6 Viewers)

Hi all.

We were travelling through salthouse earlier, so decided to have a crack at the Glaucous Gull. We had no luck but saw some cracking snow buntings and 1 lapland.

On the beach we come across a starfish with 12 arms. We think it is called a sunstar? Can anyone confirm this and does anybody know how common they are?

Many thanks.
Fox.
Hi Firefox,

yes it is a sunstar, there were at least two of them on the beach, the ones we saw had thirteen legs which is the correct number, they looked like medieval illustrations of red and orange suns. Considering there were about 1000 common starfish and 2 sunstars im guessing they are pretty rare.
 
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Went out to look for the Red Kite around Swanton Novers with no luck.
However, a group of 5 Common Buzzard, quickly followed by 4 elsewhere, then another 4 again in a different place, that with individual birds showing well, I estimated anything upto 15 birds in the area (with another at Guist).
Can't be long befor buzzards are officially the commonest raptor in Norfolk!
Looks like you and me had the same idea. I went out scanning for raptors in the area around kelling triangle . I had 14-17 asnd some friends had a party of 8. Some were displaying early on but then had party of 4 and 5 circling then gliding west then SW down the corner of the ridge. Fact you had them as well indicates they weren't just local birds, Had a look in recent bird reoprts and seems quite an impressive passage. Also 1 marshie, 2 sparrowhawks and 4 kestrels.

Supporting cast for the day were 3 barn owls , shrike, lesser red, brambling and sylvia sp.
 
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Saw a white goose from the coasthopper bus this morning, approx 1/3 mile west of Lady Anns Drive...couldn't get anything like a decent view through the bins but looked 'interesting'!! maybe one of the locals might care to check it out if it's still in the area tomorrow...

Pretty enjoyable day perusing around Titchwell, the feeders were brimming with House Sparrows, one Tree Sparrow and a couple of Brambling among the Greenies, Chaffs etc..also woodpigeons making pigs of themselves on the feeders like no ones business!

Matt
i got white goose sp on my chopper list the other day when ross's was coming up on the pager in that area, but if you can't conclusively ID it you can't tick it, it would help if they wiped the windows once in a while so you could see out! (but i'm not knocking a brilliant service)
 
I hope that Barnacles keep their stock healthy, and pure. :h?:

They don't! There are several Barnacle Goose hybrids knocking around the county at the moment. A Barnacle Goose bred successfully with a White-fronted Goose at Raynham Lake a few years back and at least two of what I presume are its offspring are still knocking around the area - one often seen at Flitcham and others I've seen at Coxford and at Raynham Lake.

There's been what I believe is most likely a Barnacle x Greylag hybrid at Holkham Park for several years and in 2005 it appeared to be paired with a Greylag and was looking after goslings.

I've also seen what I suspect was a Barnacle Goose x Lesser White-fronted Goose at Swanton Morley last autumn and another probable Barnacle hybrid flying through Sparham Pools recently.

Some photos of these hybrids on my website here (and also the pure Barnacles with goslings here).
 
They don't! There are several Barnacle Goose hybrids knocking around the county at the moment. A Barnacle Goose bred successfully with a White-fronted Goose at Raynham Lake a few years back and at least two of what I presume are its offspring are still knocking around the area - one often seen at Flitcham and others I've seen at Coxford and at Raynham Lake.

There's been what I believe is most likely a Barnacle x Greylag hybrid at Holkham Park for several years and in 2005 it appeared to be paired with a Greylag and was looking after goslings.

I've also seen what I suspect was a Barnacle Goose x Lesser White-fronted Goose at Swanton Morley last autumn and another probable Barnacle hybrid flying through Sparham Pools recently.

Some photos of these hybrids on my website
here (and also the pure Barnacles with goslings here).

Hi Dave

Sorry for the slow reply - got waylaid.

Thank you for your information on the link and the link connected to your website. I never realised that geese do not seen to stay with their own kind a times. What a mix up of the species.

So next time a visit to Holkham is on the cards, I will look out for the mixtures of birds also - not to let my eyes deceive me :t:

Do Swans ever get mixed up like this? :eek!:

It is like looking at a whole new species all together. So now I know if someone was to mention Feral/Hybrid *Barnacle* whatever, it means simply a mixed individual of 2 types

I see that Bedford Pond had it oddities too, so I assume this applies to ducks too. :eek!:

The things that we find out o:)

I have saved your link to keep as a reference
 
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Do Swans ever get mixed up like this?

I've never seen a swan hybrid but they do occur - I've seen photos of Mute x Whooper for example. Pretty unusual though.

So now I know if someone was to mention Feral/Hybrid *Barnacle* whatever, it means simply a mixed individual of 2 types

Yes and no: hybrid does simply mean the offspring of more than one species but feral means something different - basically it means a population that originated from escaped birds but are now breeding in the wild. So there are feral Barnacle Geese that aren't hybrids, but if they breed with other species the offspring are hybrids. Note: some people call things hybrids when they're not - especially domestic ducks.
 
I've never seen a swan hybrid but they do occur - I've seen photos of Mute x Whooper for example. Pretty unusual though

Yes and no: hybrid does simply mean the offspring of more than one species but feral means something different - basically it means a population that originated from escaped birds but are now breeding in the wild. So there are feral Barnacle Geese that aren't hybrids, but if they breed with other species the offspring are hybrids. Note: some people call things hybrids when they're not - especially domestic ducks.

Hi Dave

That has resolved the issue about the Swans. More clearer to me now.

So the differences between Hybrid, and Feral species is very apparent here.

I have heard of the term Feral Wild Cats, and they are considered domestic cats that have gone wild.

The offspring of a species of a naturally wild goose, would give me a glue as to what I am seeing pure bred offspring or not. So the species can change itself, breeding with a non related species as it goes along in life. Hybrid is then the final result at the end if the day. Or the other ways that are mentioned to add all the different situations together.

Confusing to say the least. Quite a science behind it. :t:

Thank you for that information, as it has opened another new world up here. :t:
 
Hi all. Had the first Chiffchaff out here today. Heard it call then watched it feeding in a sheltered, sunny privet hedge. Such a nice feeling watching your first 'summer visitor'. It didn't hang about though; it soon headed northward along the hedgerow. Also Marsh Harrier south over the garden this afternoon...

James
 
Hi all. Had the first Chiffchaff out here today. Heard it call then watched it feeding in a sheltered, sunny privet hedge. Such a nice feeling watching your first 'summer visitor'. It didn't hang about though; it soon headed northward along the hedgerow. Also Marsh Harrier south over the garden this afternoon...

James
James,

Can i ask a potentially stupid question? Are you sure it was not an overwintering bird? There are now quite a few that overwinter every year, indeed i saw chiffchaff at Holkham Pines in December and February this year.
 
James,

Can i ask a potentially stupid question? Are you sure it was not an overwintering bird? There are now quite a few that overwinter every year, indeed i saw chiffchaff at Holkham Pines in December and February this year.

Nothing stupid about your question Ian... There is a possibility that the Chiffy was a bird that had been here all winter which is why I wrote 'summer visitor' a bit tongue in cheek in apostrophes. We're almost mid-March now and it's prime time for the fore-runners to be hitting our shores. I can't prove either way whether this one was newly arrived but it did have the 'feel' (there I go again!) of a migrant bird. It was only 1 mile inland, had it been on the clifftop I would've had little doubt that it was freshly arrived. Also, the deep low that tracked through the southern UK a few hours ago battered us here with gale force SE'lies, so it's a possibility that it was carried from the near continent on those. I see too that Sand Martins are arriving throughout the country with Wheatear, House Martin and Sandwich Tern reported as well.

James
 
Nothing stupid about your question Ian... There is a possibility that the Chiffy was a bird that had been here all winter which is why I wrote 'summer visitor' a bit tongue in cheek in apostrophes. We're almost mid-March now and it's prime time for the fore-runners to be hitting our shores. I can't prove either way whether this one was newly arrived but it did have the 'feel' (there I go again!) of a migrant bird. It was only 1 mile inland, had it been on the clifftop I would've had little doubt that it was freshly arrived. Also, the deep low that tracked through the southern UK a few hours ago battered us here with gale force SE'lies, so it's a possibility that it was carried from the near continent on those. I see too that Sand Martins are arriving throughout the country with Wheatear, House Martin and Sandwich Tern reported as well.

James
agree that you can never be sure, but the first ones should be arriving, also fact it was calling (esp the 'chiff chaff call) would enhance chances of it being a migrant,

we had a chiffchaff briefly in very early march, not calling however it did appear to have pollen deposits around its bill which could still indicate it was a very early migrant
 
Not sure if I agree as we have had four Chiffchaffs overwintering on one small site in Worcestershire and one of those was calling on Saturday. Mind you I suppose a migrant could have arrived and joined them but I wouldn't have thought so.

John

agree that you can never be sure, but the first ones should be arriving, also fact it was calling (esp the 'chiff chaff call) would enhance chances of it being a migrant,
 
Today at Bawsey Pits between 1.15pm and 1.50pm:

Extremely windy!!! I could barely walk:-O but I had some brilliant birds. 3 mistle thrushes sitting altogether in an oak tree, 2 pied wagtails feeding close to the water, huge numbers again of siskens, goldfinches, greenfinches and chaffinches feeding from pine cones, also 6 redwings in the birches by the water's edge which was a nice surprise, robins, 1 green woodpecker bounded out of a sunny dip, 2 carrion crows and on the pits, loads of greylag geese, canada geese, common gulls and 1 herring gull.

Not bad for 35 minutes!:-O

Best Wishes Penny:girl:
 
Speaking of Chiffchaffs, I had a really pale 'eastern' one on the UEA campus on Sunday (details on website). Had me going as a tristis (Siberian), but come to the conclusion it was more likely to have been an abietinus (Scandinavian). I'm still not certain and worth looking out for if you're in the area.

I get the impression most of the Chiffs we're seeing at the moment are over-wintering, although it feels like there's a bit of a Spring passage going on with birds moving away from the UK, perhaps to the continent or Scandinavia as I've seen several mixed in with flocks of Redpolls and Siskins. I'm yet to hear one sing and they usually set up territory and start singing straight away upon arrival. Give it a day or two and that will probably change!

Edit: p.s. been having a quick look at the weather. Sunday looks very interesting, with force nine Northerly gales preceeded by strong easterlies and lots of rain. Predicting a big fall of Thrushes on Blakeney if you're brave enough to brave the weather. That said, Ireland's probably the place to be with 200 mph westerlies earlier today. Probably more American birds there than in America. Flights to Kerry go for about 30 quid;-)
 
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Edit: p.s. been having a quick look at the weather. Sunday looks very interesting, with force nine Northerly gales preceeded by strong easterlies and lots of rain. Predicting a big fall of Thrushes on Blakeney if you're brave enough to brave the weather. That said, Ireland's probably the place to be with 200 mph westerlies earlier today. Probably more American birds there than in America. Flights to Kerry go for about 30 quid;-)

Hi there Ilya, I have to say I thought Saturday morning looked quite promising for viz-mig as well, with the winds switching round from west to south-east overnight and fairly light at that time.

re chiffchaffs, I know BF Norfolkbirder recently had one in coastal scrub at Holme and thought it was one moving to the continent I think...

Cheers,

Connor
 
re chiffchaffs, I know BF Norfolkbirder recently had one in coastal scrub at Holme and thought it was one moving to the continent I think...

Cheers,

Connor

Myself and a couple of friends had one at Minsmere on sunday, also thought we heard at least two or three others on the reserve but couldn't confirm...

Matt
 
Clearly a bit going on today. Red Kites seem to have started moving with 3 in the county. One SE over Waxham, one over Great Bircham and one over Syderstone.

Connor
 
Clearly a bit going on today. Red Kites seem to have started moving with 3 in the county. One SE over Waxham, one over Great Bircham and one over Syderstone.

Connor
Where do you think these birds originate from, are they coming off the continent or are they local birds moving, been trying to work out the origins of the buzzrds i saw on sunday, not able to age them but one or two seemed to have darker bands to the tail and pale areas around the uppertail coverts - possible juv/ 2nd cal yr birds.

My theory is that birds are not yet moving off the continent but young birds that have spent the winter near their parents breeding area are now on the move looking for territories/mates of their own.

Also can anyone suggest the best wind conditions to go out looking for raptors, i'll concentrate most on sunny breezy days, with thermals but i've heard that NW are good for migrants from the continent because they come in low off the sea,
 
Where do you think these birds originate from, are they coming off the continent or are they local birds moving, been trying to work out the origins of the buzzrds i saw on sunday, not able to age them but one or two seemed to have darker bands to the tail and pale areas around the uppertail coverts - possible juv/ 2nd cal yr birds.

My theory is that birds are not yet moving off the continent but young birds that have spent the winter near their parents breeding area are now on the move looking for territories/mates of their own.

Also can anyone suggest the best wind conditions to go out looking for raptors, i'll concentrate most on sunny breezy days, with thermals but i've heard that NW are good for migrants from the continent because they come in low off the sea,

Probably coming off the continent in my opinion, or at least the ones ar Waxham and Great Bircham! This is about the right time for Red Kite passage anyhow, with the first migrants generally arriving late March (I had one in off the sea at Holme late March last year).
 

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