Light

December is a month of short dark days, weeks that compete for gloominess and a month that seems to shudder to a halt with the indoor excesses of Christmas. Yet just a week or two later as the days  start to draw out in the new year there is a also a subtle change to the quality of the light. Now on sunny days it has a vibrancy that was missing in December and comes with a gentle hint of the Spring to come. 

Ken Hill Woods last Friday, I quite liked the light

Last Friday was just such a day of promise, a clear night left a heavy morning frost that coated the cars windscreen with a thin layer of ice. In the local woods at lunchtime a bumblebee sat in a stupor on the ground woken to early from its winter sleep, the vibrant yellow flowers of a Gorse bush were out a little early for pollinators like the unfortunate bee. As I enjoyed my walk snatches of Great Tit and Nuthatch song cut through the trees, whilst a large mixed flock of Long Tailed Tits, Goldcrests and Coal Tits reminded me that this was still January.

But it was something about the light on a woodland ride and how it brought out the colours of the bare trees that made me stop in my tracks and pull out my little compact camera. To the left of the ride sunlight streamed through a gap in the trees, creating a natural spotlight at 45 degrees. This light hit the bronze leaf litter on the forest floor and reflected back up onto the white bark of the silver birches that edged the ride. Behind all this a belt of conifers suffused with the same winter light gave a soft green background to the scene.

This viewpoint is one that I have passed many times before, it is on one of my favourite walks through these woods, a walk I do probably at least once a week throughout the year. It is pleasant but it doesn't normally having me pausing and reaching for my camera. But today what for me briefly lifted the scene was the light helping me see a different view and bringing this bend in a path in the woods to life.

As I stood and tried to capture an image that would go someway to capture the spirit of the scene in front of me, I was acutely aware of the transient nature of what I was enjoying. All it would take for the magic to fade would be a change in the position of the sun as the afternoon wore on, or a light breeze pushing in some cloud and with it turning off the magical soft winter light.

I carefully composed my image and pressed the shutter button, then after taking one last look at the scene in front of me continued my walk around the wood and eventually back to my office and a full afternoons work at my computer.

July - birds and butterflies

Although it seemed to start slowly as its gone on July hasn't been a bad month for birding and wildlife watching.

As ever at this time of year I am mindful that the Swifts that in so many ways are synonymous with summer will be on the verge of leaving us for another year shortly after the schools round here break for the summer holidays. So during my regular evening walks around the block I have tried to count the local Swifts, always a tricky proposition but by standing on Hunstanton's Recreation Ground I have managed a couple of counts on Wednesday 15th July I counted c 47 Swifts and the following evening 35 from here. Last night [the 23rd] there seemed to be fewer Swifts and I detected a certain indefinable urgency about the packs that remained as they careered through the air above Hunstantons' residential streets.

Peacock butterfly, Ken Hill Wood

Lunchtime walks in Ken Hill Woods near Snettisham are always a bit hit and miss, if the weather is too nice the and the dog walkers are out there is a noticeable drop in the amount of wildlife on view as the dogs and their owners sanitise an area either side of the path of snakes, deer etc. Still on the 17th I saw a Silver Washed Fritillary patrolling a ride and occasionally settling although never long enough for me to take a picture and it disappeared the moment the sun went behind a cloud. Also flying were some White Admirals and a few wonderfully fresh looking Peacocks. The highlight though were two Grass Snakes my first of the year on the ride that skirts the woods southern boundary I even managed to catch one for a closer [and smellier look]. The walk was topped off with nice views of Muntjac and Green Woodpecker.

Black Tailed Godwits, Snettisham

Brown Hare Snettisham

On Saturday 18th I got a call in the morning about a Broad Billed Sandpiper in the wader roost at Snettisham, family commitments meant I couldn't go and look for the bird until the evening tide. I spent a pleasant hour in the hide looking through the large flock of Black Tailed Godwits bit the Broad Billed Sandpiper didn't show. Nonetheless I had a great time photographing terns against the pink twilight sky on the old jetty and had the place to myself.

Oystercatcher at dusk, Snettisham

Terns at dusk, Snettisham

The next morning I had another phone call letting me know the bird was back and this time i could make a mad dash to the southern pit where I joined a few folk, the bird was hidden behind a Black Tailed Godwit and a Knot, eventually it moved and I enjoyed great views for all of about five seconds before the whole roost spooked and it disappeared, at this stage the hide was begining to creak at the seams as more and more birders arrived and I left. On both visits I saw and heard Med Gulls.

The "Gallery" for the Snettisham Broad Billed Sandpiper

Adult Med Gull, Snettisham

A rare treat on the evening of Wednesday 22nd July a week day evening at Titchwell, I got no further than Island Hide where I must have spent an hour and a half. The Marsh was stiff with birds with several hundred Avocets present and good numbers of Black Tailed Godwits plus Ruff and Dunlin, single Greenshank, Whimbrel, Common Sandpiper and a couple of Curlew Sandpipers. Overcast when I arrived the sun broke through and for a short while I had a wonderful combination of great light and close birds including some stunning summer plumaged Black Tailed Godwits. The birds on the Fresh Marsh were quite jumpy and eventually the cause a large female Sparrowhawk showed itself and then later a Hobby shot though. Other birds  included juvenile Bearded tits on the edge of the reedbed and a couple of juvenile Marsh Harrier. But the best bird was a wonderful summer plumaged Little Gull that came really close to the hide.

Adult Little Gull, Titchwell

Black Tailed Godwit, Titchwell

A Shrike and the return of the wild geese

Tuesday 23rd September
Early evening and stopped at the traffic lights by Norfolk Lavender in Heacham when a Barn Owl carrying prey flew over Docking Road presumably to a late brood.

Wednesday 24th
Lunchtime walk around Ken Hill Woods was enlivened by a Kettle of 6 Common Buzzards over the top of hill in the middle of the woods.

Grey Squirrel, Ken Hill

Friday 26th
Another lunchtime walk through Ken Hill Woods and good to bump into a mixed flock with Treecreeper, Nuthatch, Goldcrest, Blue, Great, Coal, Marsh and Long Tailed Tits.

Sunday 5th October
A quiet walk along the Brancaster to Brancaster Staithe boardwalk, had 4 Buzzards circling overhead, a single male kestrel, the biggest flock of newly returned Brent Geese contained 80 birds, also several Little Egrets, a Cetti's Warbler 1 calling by NT Branodunum in reed saltings, several Bearded Tits heard calling above the reeds by Brancaster Staithe, two Goldcrest in garden by the National Trust Branodunum field and a Red Admiral.

Wednesday 8th October
A night time walk around the block in Hunstanton turned up sighting of a Tawny Owl when one flew across the A149 by the recreation ground.

Thursday 9th October
Managed to use a little flexitime to leave work early and got to Burnham Norton for 5 pm to look for the Steppe Great Grey Shrike. This duly disappeared for a couple of minutes when I arrived before working its way down the side of a ditch by perching on fence posts, eventually it flew into a Hawthorn by the side of the path only to be flushed back into the middle of the grazing marsh as a 'surge' of birders and photographers spooked it. Was still able to watch it through the scope feeding, presumably of insects. Good to get a Norfolk and UK tick.

Steppe Great Grey Shrike, Burnham Norton

Friday 10th October
Another lunchtime boot around Ken Hill Woods and another nice mixed flock with Goldcrest, Blue, Great, Coal, Long Tailed and Marsh tits. In the late autumn sunshine Peacock, Red Admiral, Comma and a White sp.

Sunday 12th October
Hunstanton
Walking through the cold thick fog across the car park to the Oasis swimming pool in Hunstanton for my early morning swim there was a cacophony of bird calls coming from the roof of the pool where there were perched a couple of hundred starlings, presumably enjoying the heat rising from the pool underneath.

Brancaster Boardwalk
A single Cetti's Warbler in tidal reeds, a kingfisher flew calling over the big tidal creek, and a female Blackcap fed in an overgrown orchard in one of the gardens backing onto NT Branodunum.

Brancaster Staithe and Thornham Harbours

Pink Feet

Driving home with no1 son we stopped for ten minutes in the harbour to watch a couple of Cormorants feeding in the channel at low tide whilst Pinkies & Brents flew overhead. Then we had a quick explore of Thornham Harbour where I managed to see another Kingfisher, three Marsh Harriers, and up to four Rock Pipits.

Rock Pipit

Hunstanton Beach
Managed to get half an hour on the beach late afternoon it was relatively quiet with lots of Herring and Black Headed Gulls and the odd Great Black Backed and Common Gulls, Oystercatchers and Bar Tailed Godwits were the commonest waders. I rather like this picture of a juvenile Herring Gull with people walking on the beach in the background mirroring the Gulls own purposeful stride.

Juvenile Herring Gull

Muntjac & Shag

Muntjac, Ken Hill Wood

A very quiet week with little time for lunchtime walks and a weekend dominated by children's parties on Saturday and a sick child on Sunday. Having said that I did manage a couple of 20 minute walks around Ken Hill Wood on Thursday and Friday lunchtimes. These walks started with the song of a Mistle Thrush singing from the top of an old Oak in some horse paddocks by the office. The wood's themselves were pretty quiet bird wise but on both occasions I saw the tell tale rear end of a Muntjac disappearing into cover and this one turned to stare at me.

Hunstanton Beach on a 'small' high tide

This afternoon I managed a 90 minute walk under the cliffs and back up Chapel Bank, the shot above was taken at high tide. It was disappointing not to see any waders perhaps they had taken shelter from the strong wind or been flushed by Sunday afternoon walkers.  However a pleasant surprise was a single shag roosting on the cliffs and it's always nice to see the Fulmar's gliding around the cliffs and over the sea in between bouts of chattering away to each other. 

Fulmar, Hunstanton

Shag, Hunstanton Cliffs

Chapel Bank was pleasantly sheltered form the wind but again pretty unexciting with the best birds being a pair of Grey Partridge.

All pictures above taken with my compact camera a Panasonic Lumix TZ30.