Norfolk birding (10 Viewers)

[Dave Appleton]

What's the latest record for Black Tern in Norfolk?

Cheers,

R

The lastest detailed in Birds of Norfolk was 14th November.

 

[Robert S J Smith]

The lastest detailed in Birds of Norfolk was 14th November.

Thanks Dave!

Are there many records from Mid October to the 14tg of November?

 

[Dave Appleton]

Thanks Dave!

Are there many records from Mid October to the 14tg of November?

A few - it doesn't list them all but there are at least 4 November records listed. I've personally not seen Black Tern after mid October.

 

[Viv Connett]

Hi Viv
Can we share your pictures.:t:john

Of course if some one will tell me how to upload them...........otherwise there are some on Birdguides

 

[Tractorboy69]

As alluded to in the previous post, lots of Shags have been darvic ringed further north over the last few years and this has yielded a lot of interesting information. It would be really interesting to know where some of these new Norfolk shags have come from, so please look out for darvic rings and send them in to BTO - thanks!

Andy

Hi Andy

Pic attached of one of the Cromer Shags taken today, rubbish quality but you can see its ring(s).

Regards

Simon

 

[firstreesjohn]

It was showing down to a few feet this evening

James: I suggest you amend your units of measurement of distance, to become ‘wheels’.

One recently Eccles per RBA (previously Horsey but later corrected)

[From the RBA Daily News Summary for yesterday: “Siberian Stonechats were found in . . . , with also late news of a suppressed bird at Eccles, Norfolk recently.”]

I’m glad that ENflk hasn’t completely missed out on the recent run of goodies; I was beginning to feel quite concerned that the birders there would be rather frustrated, seeing nowt of any worth.

The Barred Warbler at Salthouse was being most co-operative; although it was occasionally surrounded by some rather exotic vegetation. Lavender ? ! Tamarisks are slightly more usual.

Deciding to go west, yet again, I saw a Swallow on the eastern outskirts of Wells.

Holkham turned out to be the venue for one of ‘those’ days: traipsing hither and yon, mostly seeing nothing. Twice, I managed to walk past Ring Ousels; the second time, on the way to not see an OBP. It did produce brief views of the Pallas’s- but that was having nothing of being snapped, moving too fast and in poor light.

It also seemed to affect the manners of a couple of birders I attempted to assist. Others noticed this blatant rudeness, too, in relation to them. Was there something in the water, today ?

 

[GYBirder23]

sibe probably supressed to to ID problems?

 

[john miller]

There were at least 30 Snow Bunting some 200yds west of Little Eye at Salthouse late this afternoon. Hpefully they will soon find the seed around the carpark. I eventually succumbed to the lure of the Barred Warbler having passed the crowd looking at it two or three times during the day, put my aversion of looking into gardens aside. Showing down to 15ft or less, it was a right poser.

John

http://kellingnature.zenfolio.com

 

[Bittern2010]

Cley

Hi Andy

Pic attached of one of the Cromer Shags taken today, rubbish quality but you can see its ring(s).

Regards

Simon

Finally managed to get to the coast this afternoon. Saw 2 Shags close in on the sea this afternoon at Cley. Also spotted several Red Throated Divers, Gannets and a flock of Common Scoter flying west. A Purple Sandpiper was on the shoreline mingling with some Turnstones.

Also, got a poor rather dissapointing view of the White Rumped Sandpiper on Pats Pool at Cley. Thankfully, some other birders pointed out the bird to me.

Cheers

Steve

 

[Shaky09]

Cracking pictures of the barred warbler John & John!
On way home this afternoon around 4pm I noticed large flocks of starlings over the fields and roads I was on . Firstly over the fields off mill road near reedham , a couple of flocks that joint together ,at least 2,000 +and then off the south walsham road which joins to the a47 a flock of 1,000+ and finally a huge gathering over the pig farm on the a47 which has been gathering for a while now. Has any one else noticed these starling gatherings beginning to happen and has the reedham area been previously known for good starling gatherings?
Shaky

 

[Penny Clarke]

......I eventually succumbed to the lure of the Barred Warbler having passed the crowd looking at it two or three times during the day, put my aversion of looking into gardens aside. Showing down to 15ft or less, it was a right poser.

John

http://kellingnature.zenfolio.com

Stunning pictures John - especially with the rain and poor light that you had when I saw you:t:

 

[postcardcv]

There were at least 30 Snow Bunting some 200yds west of Little Eye at Salthouse late this afternoon. Hpefully they will soon find the seed around the carpark. I eventually succumbed to the lure of the Barred Warbler having passed the crowd looking at it two or three times during the day, put my aversion of looking into gardens aside. Showing down to 15ft or less, it was a right poser.

John

http://kellingnature.zenfolio.com

Gripping shots John. Will have to head over there in the next couple of days if it hangs around.

 

[paul1127]

I was most surprised to see around 8 Swallows adjacent to Rockland Broad today. How unusually late is this?

Regards Paul

 

[firstreesjohn]

8 Swallows adjacent to Rockland Broad today. How unusually late?

In, I think, 2006, there were several Swallows and House Martins in Cromer, around the parish church, into mid-December.

Cracking pictures of the barred warbler John & John! Has any one else noticed these starling gatherings beginning to happen

My Barred Warbler was only included to illustrate the ‘exotic’ vegetation it was frequenting and is but a pale imitation of a photograph, in comparison with the other John’s images.

BTW, what I would regard as the definitive pix of The Stiffkey Bluetail are on John Miller’s website: http://kellingnature.zenfolio.com/

I agree: many, many thousands of Starlings in huge curtains in various places at the mo towards dusk.

 

[The sniper]

Still plenty down in essex too,some don't seem in a hurry to get back while there is plenty of food still available for them

 

[O.Reville1989]

2 pictures of Starlings taken at Dusk at Holkham on Thursday.
Hard to gauge numbers really but many hundreds.
Cheers

 

[GYBirder23]

15 Snow Buntings Great Yarmouth North Beach just North of Brittania Pier

 

[Songkhran]

Having now left Norfolk and returned to Brighton, I've had a bit of time to muse on the events of the previous week. The first thing to say was that was the best weeks bird in Norfolk I have ever had! The fall of thrushes was probably the most incredible birding spectacle I have ever witnessed and on top of this self-found Hornemann's Arctic Redpoll (albeit a tad messily), YBW, (unsatisfactorally brief) RBFly, Pied Fly, LTS, Poms, Sooty Shear, LTD, RNGrebes, Little Auks, Black Red, Ring Ouzels galore and not forgetting Badgers! - this list goes on and on!
A note on the fall - Tideliner does make a valid point backed up by a recent article by the RSPB, http://www.birdguides.com/webzine/article.asp?a=3505 there were undoubtedly masses of casualties caused by the conditions encountered in the North sea. I always find there is an air of melancholy about these falls, remember talking to James McCallum after a previous fall, he recalls walking along of strandline observing the devestation - Thrush corpses, a Woodcock wing, passerines fallen by the wayside. There also seems to be something quite perverse in birders delighting in an event that must be akin to natural disaster for these birds. At the same time though this is nature at its cruelist and most intense - evolution in action - really the point we are all here.
Has been fantastic to catch up with so many old faces and to have made new friends too. I possibly lost my way a bit on my previous patch, determined to find my own birds, shunning twitching at all costs, but seeing so many familiar faces has really me realise this is a very communal hobby and I do genuinely believe the scene on the North coast is in a very healthy current state. To those who are diligently checking their patches whenever time permits - keep at it! The rewards will ineventably come - just sometimes can take years to happen!
I know quite a few of you are aware I went for a work trial when I was up here, well I didn't get the chef de partie role but they've just got back to me about another role in Hotel, I'm in for another trial next week so best foot forward, this could mean I get a rather cushdie new patch!
http://www.friendsofart.net/en/art/piet-mondrian/dune-landscape_duinlandschap-

 

[Paul Eele]

Titchwell October 29th

Today’s highlights

Spotted redshank – 9 on saltmarsh
Red necked grebe – 1 offshore
Long tailed duck – 2 offshore
Snow bunting – 29 west along beach towards Thornham Point
Bittern – 1 in flight over reedbed
Ring ouzel – 1 on East Trail
Velvet scoter – 8 offshore
Med gull – 2 (ad+2nd winter) on fresh marsh

Paul

 

[Dave_A]

Between dipping birds at Holkham today took a short stroll along the tideline (half in hope for some dessert) . In a couple of hundred yard stretch we counted double figures of blackbird carcasses, half a dozen each of fieldfare, redwing, song thrushes, plus a few unidentified passerines, kittiwake, guilly etc. this is a week after the mass arrival, wonder what was there at the start of the week and along the length of the east coast of uk, how many deaths... Tens of thousands!