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Norfolk birding (14 Viewers)

was anyone at holkham today, amazing counts of divers ? I think most people struggle to see one black throated diver in norfolk a year, how about 5 and 6 great northern's
Clearly I was at the wrong place, titchwell only had one of each
 
SueBryan said:
At your age Josh I certainly did cycle/walk a lot more. However some of us are now old and wrinkly and I for one would certainly be 'out of puff' if I cycled from Roydon to Holkham and back. You are lucky to be on the coasthopper bus route but some of us are miles away from it! However I still walk from home to my local patch on days when I have only a few hours to spare. We all admired Chris Mills who did a cycling yearlist a couple of years ago and got a good total but I don't think he will be rushing too quickly to repeat it!

Sue
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Hi, nice to see people talking birds & bikes, just for the record!:-

My Norfolk Totals were
Species Total 2005 : 251
Cumulative distance: 4072 Km
Cumulative road time: 160.4 hrs

Inclusive of 132 species in one day, which involved 100 mile ride over a 1.5 days & sleeping on the Obs floor at Holme! I still believe both of the above stand as current UK records -well the word according to Lee!

Simon Woolley's Hampshire total whom I competed against

Species total 2005: 217
Cumulative distance: 4868 km
Cumulative road time: 208.7 hours

No I would not do it again! But I wish I had a pound for each time I get asked!
I got an email earlier this year from a chap earlier this year who was going to have a crack at the record, but I haven't heard from him since so maybe not.

I had 5000 Common Scoter, Velvet Scoter, Richards Pipit & Red-necked Grebe at Holkham bay a week or so ago, so well worth a look for the Divers etc.

Ta Chris
 
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Lightthiscandle said:
While we're on the theme of accipiters: there's been a female Goshawk terrorising the local avifauna around Blofield Heath / Hemblington for the past few weeks.
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Where exactly have you been seeing this bird, as I wouldn't mind popping over for a look.
Cheers

Peregrine at Buckenham this morning on a gate near the pump. Green Sand, Ruff and a lot of geese too.

Enjoyable visit to Horsey to check out the grey seal colony late morning. Fab with c30 pups. Marred only by the idiotic couple who ignored all signs and walked straight down the beach with two dogs off leads right among the seals. Shocking. When challenged they responded that they were local and did this all the time. That's all right then.
 
stu_white said:
was anyone at holkham today, amazing counts of divers ? I think most people struggle to see one black throated diver in norfolk a year, how about 5 and 6 great northern's
Clearly I was at the wrong place, titchwell only had one of each
Click to expand...

yes its great to see Holkham pulling in seabirds it seems it used to be one of the best spots in the county for winter ducks but has gone quietish for quite a few years, in the last few years the Scoter flock has always been a distant blur on the horizon. Even though the winds are coming from the SW maybe the pure ferocity around the coast has pushed birds further inshore. If you are about Stu i'll be twitching it tmo.

BTW what with a receding hairline, couple of greys and creaking bones its great to be referred to as 'a youngster', but won't be going for the cycling record ever since a fellow resident rode my bike into the Quay. B :)
 
firstreesjohn said:
Even more, Rob.

#1 “send” should be “sent”

#2 “pictures” instead of the gobbledygook

#3 “Peregrine”, obviously

#4 and “Kings” should be “King’s”

This is without mentioning the poor punctuation.

Not bad for a 3-line caption.
Click to expand...

John and Robert - I worked at the Lynn News for 7 years - very sadly alot of things have changed - apart from the ladies in the town office front desk (4 ladies) there are only 4 other (approx) people left who were originally there. The local people have no idea whats been going on - the Lynn News is owned by Johnston Press and they have made most people redundant (I got out before it happened - we had been warned) including people who have been there most of their working life - very sad:-C All of the editorial team have gone, some of whom have been there 30+ years! When I first worked there in 2001 there were 120 people. There are now about 30ish left and most of those are temps! Most of the paper is now produced at Peterborough and Northampton. The paper is now rubbish. Another example is my father's NATURE NOTES which is a monthly article he has been doing for over 40 years - when Frank Edmonds was there (long time employee) he always made the pictures look good and choose creative captions and titles - now its just chucked together - pictures small, boring titles and captions, wrong captions, mispellings and more often than not the whole paper is out of register meaning most of the pictures look naff!!!! In my days there as a typesetter/designer (been in the print trade over 20 years) people used to care and have a pride in their work - its all changed now!

The editor Malcolm Powell (also now gone) would have gone mad if he had seen King's Lynn spelt Kings Lynn!!!!! Local paper produced by people that don't even know King's Lynn!!!!!

Best Wishes Penny:girl:
 
Very sadly I did not get very far today - would have liked black throated diver on my year list - STUPID courtesy car would not start - then I flooded the engine - had to wait for AGES for it to eventually start - arrived at Titchwell just in time to buy Norfolk Bird and Mammal Report before they closed!

Norfolk Bird & Mammal Report 2008

Lovely report as usual BUT do not like new larger size - will not sit nicely alongside old ones! AWESOME picture in the report of a Long Eared Owl at Stiffkey taken by Ashley McElwee.:t:

Best Wishes Penny:girl:
 
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Jono L said:
Where exactly have you been seeing this bird, as I wouldn't mind popping over for a look.
Cheers
Click to expand...


As is frequently the way with raptors, you don't find it , it finds you! I've seen a female three times this past week: once over the fields between BH and Pedham, twice over Shack Lane. I saw a male in the summer two or three times as well. Several people who know a Goshawk when they see one have seen both birds around the Woodbastwick Road / Bonds Lane region.
 
Happisburgh yesterday. Gannets were flying closer to the shore allowing good scope views, and a distant diver was probably either Black or Red Throated. 3 Turnstone were on the beach...and that was about it!
Cheers,
Jim.
 
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Cantley this morning, fem Hen Harrier, 33+ White-fronts, 10 Pink feet, 2 Stonechat.
Earlier on Hickling WeBS count c1,600 Teal, c50 Tufties, 6 Whooper Swans. Little else of note.
(Reg Land, Jono Leadley)
 
The sea was quality today at Holkham the highlight was a pretty close Black-necked Grebe simultaneously picked up by three of us sitting a little way apart then Connor turned up and saw it too, there was also a second slightly more distant bird. First Black-necked Ive ever seen on the sea and can't remember the last one i saw in Norfolk.

Also
3 Slavonian Grebe
2 Red-necked Grebe
4-5 Great Northern Diver
Long-tailed Duck
Little Gull
c12 Red-throated Diver
2-3 Goldeneye
c15 Red-breasted Meganser
c10 Eider
there were Velvets there although the Scoter flock declined to fly about

also constantly accompanied by a flock of around 35 Snow Bunting

Popped into the Warham roost on the way back 2 Ringtails, 2 Marsh Harrier and around 35 Little Egrets flying towards Holkham
 
Titchwell RSPB

Worked this morning but got over to Titchwell by mid afternoon.

3 Greenfinches on the Alders on the way down the path. Pouring with rain at this point, but turned to drizzle by the time I got to the sea. Between 3pm and 4pm I had brilliant views of a Black Throated Diver sitting on the sea, probably no more than a third distance out and also a Slavonian Grebe even closer!!! Also 15+ Goldeneye sitting on sea, 2 Great Crested Grebes and 2 Red Breasted Mergansers also sitting close in on sea. Usual waders on the mudflats: sanderling, grey plover, oystercatchers, knot, dunlin, turnstones, curlew and godwits etc.

Best Wishes Penny:girl:

P.S. Sounds like Connor had a good birthday today!;)

258 for Norfolk for year - 260 for Britain - will I make 260 for Norfolk by end of year for my first and last county year list!!!?? I can think of 2 more I should definately see, so its looking promising!
 
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Hybrid Ferruginous x Pochard today on Martham Broad - interesting bird, with head shape as Fudge duck, bright yellow eye, head and breast ferruginous colour, but grey flanks and grey/brown back. Also white on bill.

Was looking for White-fronts on Heigham Holmes but no sign. One possible Bean with the Greylags on there, but difficult to confirm due to distance, strong wind, and the fact that I was viewing from half-way up a tree...

Cheers

Andy
 
Titchwell November 23rd

Today's highlights

Hen harrier - 2 ringtails over reedbed
Spotted redshank - 7 on saltmarsh pool behind Island Hide
Slavonian grebe - 1 offshore
Eider - 9 offshore
Goosander - drake west over fresh marsh
Water rail - 3 showing well from Fen Hide
Brambling - male feeding with chaffinches along main path

Paul
 
Perhaps somebody could persuade some of the Holkham Bay stuff to come this way; there's loads of open water and no competition for food! Saw Jimbob's 3 Turnstones this afternoon as well as a single Red-throated Diver and Gannet but little else...

James
 
2008 Bird Report

Has anyone who's a member of the Norfolk and Norwich Naturalists' Society had their copy of the 2008 Bird Report through the post yet? Just wondering if mine has gone the scenic postal route....

Irene
 
No bird report...

I live in Norwich not Peterborough post code area unlike West Norfolk birders. No copy received yet either. :-C

Presumably not because our surnames start with W, Rob W / Irene B!

At lunch time today, I did finally catch up with the Wroxham Broad ring-necked duck. Year tick. B :) Very distant though.
 
Change in the wind...change in the birds?

Early days yet but at last a chance for The North.

Dave
 

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