Norfolk birding (47 Viewers)

[Dave_A]

A stunning day at East Hills, produced a fabulous male Peregrine sitting in a pine tree, a Woodcock, Hen Harrier, Great spotted Woodpecker.

Dipped on the Pallas's Warbler again at Holkham:-C

Full update on blog shortly.

Penny:girl:

Can you put a warning out when your heading out the hills Penny, when you go there the birds seem to not be there, I dont want to get involved in your hills bad luck

though the Hen Harrier was probably nice

 

[tperry]

To use a couple of letters that could mean anything is plain daft. BTO codes are meant for computer \ form use not to replace established names.[/QUOTE]

Please yourself - I do and save pages in the notebook and time too - I wonder what Nick Moran thinks.

Tony

 

[Penny Clarke]

Wow Penny you must go birding wih me you seem to find all the goodies well done,

The more time you spend in the field, the more chance you have of seeing a good selection of birds, except Pallas's Warblers in my case this week!

 

[Penny Clarke]

Can you put a warning out when your heading out the hills Penny, when you go there the birds seem to not be there, I dont want to get involved in your hills bad luck

though the Hen Harrier was probably nice

Hi Dave

I didn't really expect birds out there today to be honest, but watching the Peregrine sitting in the pine tree was worth the walk out there and it was a glorious, sunny day and I didn't see any dogs (a massive bonus) or people out there!:t:

 

[postcardcv]

To use a couple of letters that could mean anything is plain daft. BTO codes are meant for computer \ form use not to replace established names.

Please yourself - I do and save pages in the notebook and time too - I wonder what Nick Moran thinks.

Tony

I can see how such shorthand could be useful for making notes when out birding but I don't understand the need to use them when posting on here. surely it wouldn't take too much longer to type full bird names so we can all understand what you've seen.

 

[scary-canary]

I can see how such shorthand could be useful for making notes when out birding but I don't understand the need to use them when posting on here. surely it wouldn't take too much longer to type full bird names so we can all understand what you've seen.

LOL. TTFN

 

[Penny Clarke]

Whilst we are on the subject of abbreviations, the word 'Mippets' REALLY annoys me AND 'Gropper' – its just pure laziness - why would we want to abbreviate 'Grasshopper Warbler' - such a beautiful name to such an ugly name as 'gropper'?!!! There are several more, but I can't think right now, tired.

PAC:gn:

 

[Redbridge]

I dislike 'Bonxie' or 'Bonxies'.

 

[O.Reville1989]

Whilst we are on the subject of abbreviations, the word 'Mippets' REALLY annoys me AND 'Gropper' – its just pure laziness - why would we want to abbreviate 'Grasshopper Warbler' - such a beautiful name to such an ugly name as 'gropper'?!!! There are several more, but I can't think right now, tired.

PAC:gn:

PGTips, Snob, Spaz, Gyppo (Discussed at length on another thread), Griffo, Kes, Spoonie, Lancy, Sards, Montie, Caspo, Comic, Sandy, Guilli......

Just a few I've heard, and on the odd occasion, used...lazyness :-C

OJR

 

[Archie Opteryx]

I dislike 'Bonxie' or 'Bonxies'.

But that isn't an abbreviation or twitcher gibberish, just a local moniker that has stuck, like Tystie, Harnser etc

 

[PYRTLE]

I was kindly shown some photos of the two white rumped sandpipers at Cley yesterday and able to note the plumage differences of each. Also brief views of the GWE (Great White Egret) that FTJ had alerted me to, thanks both.

 

[firstreesjohn]

Long note swallowed (?) – or, ‘a breve I ate’

But that isn't an abbreviation or twitcher gibberish, just a local moniker that has stuck, like Tystie, Harnser etc

‘Bonxie’, as you may know, is originally a Shetland dialect word (as is ‘Tystie’).

A quick online search surprised me with its non-appearance in several Old Norse dictionaries I consulted.

I can see how such shorthand could be useful for making notes when out birding but I don't understand the need to use them when posting on here.

Completely agree, Pete. I suspect some are using these (abbreviations) as a deliberate irritant: they waste our time, by attempting to guess them or locate them in the various code databases. And, as dantheman has pointed out (in his #18297), they are doubly confusing when birders from furrin’ read them, as the letters then apply to rather (!) different species.

As for ‘commic’ tern (please note lower case ‘c’ and double ‘m’): this is a term of convenience I was using at Portland in the 60s- and one they continue to use in their recording system till now.

 

[GYBirder23]

15 Snow Buntings mainly males remain Great Yarmouth North Denes c400m north west of Brittania Pier

 

[GYBirder23]

I go out for up to eight hours a day but see hardly anything, some birders like Penny and Corton seem to have the knack or the luck daily.

 

[Tideliner]

Quote " I wonder what Nick Moran thinks."

Tony , quite frankly who gives a monkeys what Nick Moran ( who ever he is ) thinks. people post on this forum is to impart information to others and if most cannot understand the codes or have to waste time looking them up it defeats its purpose.

I use codes\abbreviations in my own note taking. Thats fine I know what I mean and nobody else is ever likely to see my field notes. But if i submitted a report to Norfolk planning department or Natural England saying there were 20 SBs and a couple of XYZs breeding on site the report would be rapidly binned.

 

[jimbob]

Quote " I wonder what Nick Moran thinks."

Tony , quite frankly who gives a monkeys what Nick Moran ( who ever he is ) thinks. people post on this forum is to impart information to others and if most cannot understand the codes or have to waste time looking them up it defeats its purpose.

I use codes\abbreviations in my own note taking. Thats fine I know what I mean and nobody else is ever likely to see my field notes. But if i submitted a report to Norfolk planning department or Natural England saying there were 20 SBs and a couple of XYZs breeding on site the report would be rapidly binned.

Luckily for everyone concerned, Birdforum is not used to submit reports.

No sign of any inland Waxwings round Surlingham way this afternoon, although I did encounter the escaped Harris Hawk at Surlingham Marsh, where it was harassed by a pair of Rooks before heading towards Brundall. A probable Water Pipit over at Church Marsh needs pinning down, and I counted 60 Golden Plover over the village. Love this time of year.

Cheers,
Jim.

 

[Tideliner]

Gybirder, you need to think more like a hunter. have a target bird or habitat in mind. Find the right habitat , spend some time learning the site and more important the habitat requirements of the species and if they are resident look for them. If they are a migrant look at the European weather charts , wind directions , temperatures weather fronts ect and try and guess what’s likely to appear and go for it. I get a lot more fun from finding my own birds this way than blindly following the pagers. In fact I avoid pager birds like the plague.

On Monday I found 4 short eared owls hunting together within a few miles of Gt Yarmouth. Short eared owls ( gosh that’s a long name perhaps SEO would save some effort ) are arriving at this time of year and their preferred habitat is vole rich grassland which you have plenty of near you. We had a lot of rain at the weekend so a fair bit of the grassland marsh will be flooded or at least very soggy driving the voles onto higher ground , i.e. the raised areas where spoil from dyke dredging has been dumped . I settled myself down well before dusk and kept well down out of sight along a reedy ditch. Sure enough just before sunset a short eared owl comes along followed by 3 more and started to hunt the bank. By keeping out of sight I could squeak the owls to within a few feet getting great views without the need for bins let alone a scope ( opps abbreviations creeping in , but I think 99% of bird watchers will know those ones ). Once it got dark I quietly moved next to a marsh gate post between me and the rising moon. Sure enough shortly afterwards an owl came and sat on it eating its supper.

I have not been on this marsh for the past year , but the time of year was right , we have just had a big fall of autumn migrants , the habitat was right and fine tuning my watchpoint to take into account the flooding and the rising moon I got great views. I do not get right every time but it shorts cuts a lot of searching and puts the odds of seeing the birds you want to see in your favour. But once you have found the spot broadcast it to the world and you will find its likely to be ruined as has happened to my local Short eared owl roost , disturbed and abandoned by birders going to see migrant passerines.

 

[Tideliner]

Jim , you would be surprised the trawling that goes on through forums like this by the powers that be.

 

[Paul Woolnough]

Yarmouth birds

Extract from Tideliner's post

Gybirder, you need to think more like a hunter. have a target bird or habitat in mind.

On Monday I found 4 short eared owls hunting together within a few miles of Gt Yarmouth.

I prefer Breydon to other locations in Yarmouth such as the cemetery.

Short-eared owls are regular on the marshes between the Breydon Bridge and Burgh Castle. Rock pipit can also be seen.

Take a note of the tides. Waders can be seen well on both sides of the channel according to the tidal conditions. I looked for a grey phalarope beyond the rugby club, without success - until the tide came up and the bird stopped on the south side before the mud there was covered by the incoming tide. Did not see the bird after the tide pushed it off.

 

[Paul Eele]

Titchwell October 31st

Today’s highlights

Med gull – adult on fresh marsh
Red necked grebe – 1 offshore
Long tailed duck – 5 offshore
Brambling – 3 on feeders
Snow bunting – 22 on beach

Paul