Spring out of the traps

Blurry, distant male & female Garganey at Titchwell Common Buzzard & Crow near Fring I had a splendid walk at Titchwell Marsh this morning, a reasonable amount of time available between family commitments, a warm south west breeze at might back and a warming spring sun in the sky. Marvellous its been a long protracted winter. Even better than the weather were the birds, a real sense of the season having properly turned now and spring is in the ascendant. Most obvious were the singing Chiff-Chaffs in the woodland around the car park and visitor centre. Also by the VC was a male Blackcap in full exuberant song. Looking west across the cow pasture at the start of the West Bank path I could see a single Wheatear and as the Fen woodland thinned into reedbed I saw and heard Willow Warbler. Overhead the odd Swallow slipped past heading west and in the hour and half I had on site I saw 10 - 20 Sand Martins also heading west. On the dried out mud of the Brackish Marsh was a mixed flock of Pied and White Wagtails and in amongst these a glowing Yellow Wagtail. All this plus the 'usual suspects' of Avocets and Marsh Harriers. After Titchwell I had time for a slow drive home, I had hoped to have a go at Photographing Hares but although I found some good fields with lots of Hares none were close enough to the road to make photography viable. I did though stumble across a couple of Common Buzzards including the one pictured above, These are becoming an increasing frequent and welcome sight in the county as they recolonise their former range. Even better on Thursday I had a Red Kite near Guist a species which has been absent from the east for even longer than the Buzzard. Apologies for the formatting being wonky, can't work out how to fix it.

Spring Squirrels'

Grey Squirrel, Rosary Cemetery, Norwich

Found time for a quick lunchtime walk in the Rosary Cemetery, Norwich. Amazing how the season is picking up momentum, the Snowdrops are now a memory and the Crocuses which carpeted the rides in the cemetery a couple of weeks ago are nearly all gone and replaced by the yellow blooms of Primroses and Daffodils. High in the trees I could hear the song of my first Chiff - Chaff of the spring.

Approaching the small pond I heard the purr of mating Common Frogs and looking into the water I could make out the swish of Smooth Newts tail.

In the picture is one of the local Grey Squirrels that spent a lot of time on the ground foraging for last autumns acorns.

Mealy and Lesser Redpolls side by side

PicaHD's Mealy and Lesser Redpoll footage

It has been a pretty full on couple of weeks with little time for birding, however I have recently managed a lunchtime session in the hide on the heath at the RSPB's Lodge nature reserve in Bedfordshire. This is always a good spot to watch a wide range of woodland birds come in close to the hide to bathe, drink and feed.

This winter it has offered a great opportunity to watch the two commoner forms of Repoll [Mealy and Lesser] at close range and alongside. The attached YouTube footage by PicaHD nicely illustrates the differing plumage's of the two birds. Certainly during my stint in the hide the odd Mealy that put in an appearance stood out with their appreciable colder, whiter plumage.

Also present were some stunning Siskins drinking from the pool within a few feet of the hide and always fun to see Nuthatch and GS Woodpecker.

Male Teal at Titchwell Marsh

Little Owl, near Ringstead, Norfolk

A cold grey day. Spent the morning looking after our toddler and in the afternoon a family visit took me along the coast road and meant that I could spend an hour at Titchwell. En route I found this Little Owl sitting amongst the Ivy cladding a roadside Oak Tree, my first of the calendar year.

It was bitterly cold at Titchwell with a north east wind and drizzle. So I prioritised my time and spent a pleasant 30 minutes on my own in Island Hide photographing Teal. Leaving aside the terrible light this was a really nice treat, usually the hides at Titchwell are pretty busy places and even when you can get onto a bird to do some photography you run the risk of someone disturbing it just enough to make photography more of a challenge. It was also great because its easy to forget what cracking little ducks Teal are, especially the males and in the flat light their feathers seem to glow.

My walk back to the car was delayed by a number of the ridiculously tame Robins that live at Titchwell and I amused myself photographing them.

Snow Buntings and Shorelarks

Snow Bunting, Salthouse Beach Car Park

At last a day that more resembled early Spring than the depths of Winter, an air temperature of 13 - 14 C and some sunshine, made it a pleasure to be out and about today.

Started out at Salthouse Beach car park with a very pleasant 45 minute session photographing Snow Buntings and Turnstones at the baited spot at the east end of the car park.

Spent the late morning at Cley Marshes NWT reserve, hadn't been here for a while and today was relatively quiet bird wise with the highlight being a single Shorelark on the shingle bank.
Next to Holkham Park where a walk in the woods in the hope of connecting with a Lesser Spotted Woodpecker ended in disappointment.

Finished the day at Holme Marsh a favourite spot for just sitting and watching, seeing what pops out of the woodwork, today that included a Sparrowhawk flying fast past the hide carrying prey, single Barn Owl, Marsh Harrier and Green Woodpecker and slightly incongruously Long Tailed Tits impersonating Penduline Tits by feeding on the Typha heads.

In the rain at the Sealife Centre & Titchwell

Wolf-fish Hunstanton Sealife Centre


Twite at Titchwell Marsh


Bewicks Swan at Titchwell Marsh

Hunstanton Sealife Centre
Spent just over an hour this morning at the Hunstanton Sealife Centre, my first visit for many years. First impressions were how expensive it was [£12.80ish for adults] and bemusement that they had their admission price in bold and then 2 columns for the VAT on this and then the price you had to pay, a touch of the Ryanair approach to advertising costs I thought.

The place was busy which was not surprising on a wet half term morning in Hunstanton, but I don't think there were vast numbers of people present and as it was it felt uncomfortably crowded in places. The exhibits were fine and on a quieter day I think we would have got more out of the live interpreters, touch pools etc.

The seal feed at 11 o'clock was very popular and as a consequence for children difficult to see.

Having said all this our toddler, once he had got used to this new and exciting place, enjoyed himself and had a fun morning. On balance I'd go again, but not often and not in school holidays. It would be good value at half the admission price.

Titchwell Marsh
Afternoon visit on my own to Titchwell in the wet. Highlights were the wintering Twite flock and a single Bewick's Swan feeding in the company of ferla Greylag, Canada and Egyptian Geese in a roadside field at the east end of the reserve,

Shorelarks in the Bay

Shorelarks in Holkham Bay today


Bullfinch in Wells Woods today

A real treat today, just me and the wife out for a walk together whilst our little lad enjoyed playing with his friends at nursery. We walked from Lady Anne's Drive east to Wells on the south side of the conifer belt and then back west on the landward side of the dunes.

The walk along the edge of the conifers was very quiet but at Wells the soft piping calls and then flashing white rumps got us onto five Bullfinches. Even though they didn't cooperate with having their picture taken these are great birds to spend time watching.

Holkham Bay was wonderfully empty of the usual mix of dog walkers, horse riders, kite flyer's and birders. We found the small flock of seven Shorelarks feeding at the eastern edge of the low saltmarsh vegetation that covers the area landward of the dune system. There were also Skylarks and Rock Pipits feeding here.

After our two and a bit hour walk we stopped off at the White Horse in Brancaster Staithe for some lunch. This was very nice although in common with many of the gastro pubs that litter the north Norfolk coast the plate of food was a little lacking in carbohydrates.

A nice morning.