Beach Life

Sitting on the edge of The Wash at Snettisham as the sun starts to drop down the western horizon and offshore children enjoy a summer sail in the Sailing Clubs Toppers, I am reminded what a wonderful place this is for people to come and relax. Parents are scattered along the beach chilling as their kids are taught to sail. In the distance I can see a large family group walking along the tide line occasionally skimming stones and throwing a stick for the family dog. A older couple walk past hand in hand with cameras round their necks in search of a sunset shot to share on social media. Everyone seems happy and contented in using this special place for quiet recreation and sharing it with others. 

Adult Ringed Plover on guard duty, Snettisham

Yet I am on tenterhooks, I have noticed on the shingle ridge to my left a young Ringed Plover, almost fully grown but not yet able to fly. It has wandered out of the section of beach that the Warden has roped off to protect ground nesting birds like Ringed Plovers and Oystercatchers. Out here on the open beach, it can do under the watchful eyes of its parents what Ringed Plovers have always done, search for its food of small invertebrates amongst the seaweed and shells on the tide line. I'm worried because whilst it can run it can't fly and as I watch it and its two siblings I see a dog coming towards, us its presence even outside the fenced area enough to send two anxious adult Oystercatchers into the air noisily trying to distract the potential predator from their nest. 

Nearly fledged Ringed Plover chick, Snettisham

And this is the challenge that birds like these face, perfectly adapted for nesting on exposed beaches where the land edges into the sea, they are struggling to cope with increased human use of our coastline. Add in the effects of climate change meaning increased flooding in the breeding season and coastal erosion of their nest sites and the population of Ringed Plovers in Norfolk has nosedived by about 80% in recent decades. Suddenly this small trio of baby "Ringo's" are of much more importance. 

Adult Ringed plover and two well grown chicks, Snettisham

I stop and chat with the dogs owner who has got it on a lead and knows all about the Ringed Plovers and shares my concern for them. We have a pleasant conversation and then they continue on their way and I go back to dividing my attention between the Ringed Plovers and my son sailing lesson. 

Children learning to sail [and fall in], Snettisham

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

Quick round up for June and early July

A very quick run through of a few sightings in June and early July.

Sunday 7th June
Painted Lady butterflies, at least six around Hunstanton, perhaps in the vanguard of the invasion predicted for this summer.

Painted Lady

Thursday 11th June
A Hummingbird Hawkmoth in our Hunstanton front garden.

Saturday 13th June
Evening visit to Titchwell at the end of a wet and grey day. Little Gull 12, Spoonbill 1, Cuckoo 2 - 3, Sparrowhawk 1, Black Tailed Godwit c 200, Marsh Harrier 1, Bearded Tits and Cetti's Warblers heard.

Little Gulls at Titchwell

Sunday 14th June
Lady Anne's Drive Holkham with the family.
At least 5 Spoonbills hanging around the pool by the Cormorant colony, also heard Cetti's and saw a couple of Marsh Harriers

Titchwell Spoonbill

Thursday 25th June
A lunch time walk in Ken Hill Woods
Only sighting of note was when I 'phished' a Tit flock and pulled in a couple of Marsh Tits.

Marsh Tit, Ken Hill Wood

Saturday 28th June
Sitting in our tiny back garden in Hunstanton idly looking at the Swifts a Hobby shot through our small window of sky and was gone in a matter of seconds, a nice garden tick. Went for a walk that evening and had a nice Painted Lady down Chapel Bank.Very warm.

Friday 3rd July
A work walk and talk around Snettisham early morning, lovely and warm notable birds were and Eider sitting on the beach, a Turtle Dove that landed briefly in a bush, a nice black summer plumaged Spotted Redshank and several Med Gulls. The shingle flora of Yellow Horned Poppy, Vipers Bugloss and Stonecrop looked great.

Yellow Horned Poppy's Snettisham

Eider, Snettisham

Turtle Dove, Snettisham

Med Gulls, Snettisham

A quick lunchtime stroll the same day in Ken Hill Wood saw me find my first White Admirals of the year. Back in the village good to see House Martins still coming to the muddy puddle we have kept going for them and to hear the constant chirruping of House Sparrows.

House Martins, Snettisham

That evening I had my highest Hunstanton Swift count of the Summer with 4- to 45 over Glebe House School.

Saturday 4th July
Another Nightjarring visit to Dersingham Bog, very warm [20+C] and still, hence very bad for Mossies and Midges. Reasonable Nightjar display, plus 3 Woodcock, some Stonechats, a reeling Grasshopper Warbler and a couple of Glow Worms.

Nightjar, Dersingham Bog

Sunday 5th July
A family morning on the beach, involving me having my first sea swim of the year. Offshore good numbers of fishing and calling Sandwich Terns. In the dunes around the beach huts a Common Lizard and a few Small Heath butterflies. Nice to see a Thick Kneed Beetle sitting in a Sea Bindweed flower.

Sandwich Tern, Brancaster

Thick Kneed Beetle on Sea Bindweed, Brancaster

End of one year list and the start of the next

Last year my UK year list ended on 179, poor by the standards of most folk who keep year lists but judged against my last few years birding pretty good and evidence that the boys although still small are slightly less demanding, that and the time saving benefits of internet grocery shopping that I have become a big fan of over the past few months.

Blue Tit, Rosary Cemetery Norwich

That 179 also includes some great birding moments that I can look back on last year. Below are some that with no reference to my notebook stand out in my memory.

Half a day at Bempton in the spring, good company, nice weather, spectacular seabirds and a great peregrine.

Five minutes in the company of some ring necked parakeets feeding on the seed pods of an Indian Bean tree in St James's park a real biological mash up in the heart of London.

This winter finally getting some birds into our pocket handkerchief Hunstanton Garden the highlight being an autumn Coal Tit. Like I said all things are relative.

A morning a Holme in the spring with our then two year old boy, lovely weather and summer migrants  in force and singing away.

A spring lunchtime in the Rosary cemetery in Norwich, it just felt perfect, warm and sunny with singing Chiff-Chaffs, Blackcaps and a Stock Dove.

Roydon Common before Christmas with no1 son and locating the Great Grey Shrike. It was just lovely to share the moment with him.

Another Shrike moment a mad after work dash in the autumn to Burnham Norton taking advantage of the new flexitime rules to see the Steppe Great Grey Shrike.

A morning at Burnham Overy Staithe in the midst of a autumn fall, with my personal tally including a Yellow Browed Warbler and two Red Breasted Flycatchers.

And finally that New Years Eve Waxwing in my late father in laws Brancaster garden, this was rather wonderful.

So for 2015 well, it will still be a full on year at work and at home and it includes a big birthday for me to mull on. But I've set myself a modest personal goal of seeing 200 plus species in the UK this year. Having made this resolution I decided to focus my efforts early in the new year on getting a few of the less reliable winter birds under my belt and so far as you'll read below I've done ok in the limited time I have had available, with Twite, Rough Legged Buzzard, Great Grey Shrike, Red Kite and Black Necked Grebe all seen.

Thursday 1st January 2015
A brief visit to a grey, overcast and cold Titchwell Marsh where I spent an hour in Island hide. There were high water levels, but I saw most of the freshwater ducks and four marsh harriers. Earlier in teh day I'd popped into Brancaster Staithe and seen a few of the common waders. A bonus was a Tree Sparrow in a friends garden in Brancaster on his bird feeders.

Brancaster Staithe, New Years Day 2015

Sunday 4th
A 149 East on Burnham Overy Staithe overlooking Holkham freshes. Saw maybe three Common Buzzard and a single distant Rough Legged Buzzard, also year ticked White Fronted Goose from here.

Monday 5
The day before the kids went back to school so I took the morning off work to look after them and we headed to a bitterly cold Thornham Harbour. On the drive down to the harbour a pair of Bullfinch flew across the road between tall hedgerows. We walked a little way out towards Holme and soon found the flock of Twite and I eventually counted 58 on the ground together at one point. Aldso added Rock Pipit and Linnet to the year list.

Twite, Thornham

Tuesday 6th

A real surprise on the morning commute into Norwich was a Merlin bombing across the rod just south of Guist. A brief but distinctive barrel chested arrow shaped falcon.

6th and 7th

Lunchtime walks in Norwich's Rosary cemetery were quiet but added Nuthatch, Long tailed tit, Redwing and Great Spotted Woodpecker to my year list.

Thursday 8th
Train south from King's Lynn to London added Bewicks and Whooper swans to the year list plus the usual smattering of Roe Deer in the Fens.

Friday 9th
Lunchtime and a quick in and out visit to look at the southernmost pit at Snettisham RSPB where I quickly scored the Black Necked Grebe I was after. First reaction on seeing it was, what a cutie with its fluffed up feathers and ruby red eye.

Black Necked Grebe, Snettisham

Sunday 11th
I needed to visit the municipal dump in Heacham and took the opportunity to carry on down the road and pop into Roydon Common to see if I could see the wintering Great Grey Shrike. On arrival the rutted, muddy car park was surprisingly full and one old boy with an east midlands accent said that there were lots of folk looking for the Shrike but that it wasn't showing.

Roydon Common

Heading out and following the path along the southern edge of the Common I quickly located the silhouetted Shrike alternately perched and hunting the top of the rise to my south. It then flew down out onto the heath perching at the top of a lone birch tree from where it was flushed by a couple of dog walkers and disappeared from view.

After this I headed back to the car stopping for a few scans which turned up two to three Common Buzzards, a Red Kite, male Stonechat, a handful of Fieldfares and the distant yaffling call of a Green Woodpecker. All in all a productive half hours birding.

Spring gathers pace

April has been a really busy month with nights away for work, a short family holiday and a family bereavement. Below is a bit of a wrap up of some bird and butterfly sightings this month. I've posted two short separate blogs about visits to the Peak District and Bempton Cliffs.

Friday 4th April, Snettisham
A work visit in between discussing the storm damage it was nice to see a male Red Breasted Merganser, a Black Brant and three Mediterranean Gulls. At the Coastal Park I heard my first Willow Warbler of the year.

Monday 7th April
On the way home from Norwich I saw my first Swallow of the Spring whilst waiting for the traffic lights at Heacham to change colour.

Wednesday 9th April
A sunny lunchtime walk in the Rosary Cemetery in Norwich gave me nice views of my fist Orangetip Butterflies of the year plus Holly Blue and Small Tortoiseshell and singing Blackcap and Chiff Chaff.

Rosary Chiff Chaff

Rosary Primroses

Friday 11th April
Durng a work visit to York University it was nice to see a male Goosander on the University lake and a early Swallow hunting for food. Two Great Crested Grebe nests close to the edge of the lake were a real treat.

York Uni Great Crested Grebes

Saturday 18th April
I took no 1 son for short walk down the West Bank path at Titchwell, from Parrinder Hide we saw Little Ringed Plover and Yellow Wagtail and elsewhere we heard Cetti's and Sedge Warblers. A kindly old lady offered to lend my 5 year old her bird book so that he could find out what the Black and White bird was only to be told he knew that it was an Avocet.

Titchwell Avocet

Monday 21st
A walk with the kids around Wharton's Belt at Courtyard Farm was great for lots of early Spring Butterflies including some wonderfully fresh looking Speckled Woods and Peacocks and more Green Hairstreaks than I can ever remember seeing here, in the short time I had with them I saw at least six insects quite easily.

Green Hairstreak

Wednesday 23rd April

A walk with no2 son along the top of the Dunes at Holme NWT this morning was wonderful with seen and / or heard: Cuckoo, Whitethroat, Lesser Whitethroat, Chiff Chaff, Sedge Warbler, Grasshopper Warbler, Whimbrel, Sandwich tern and 8 Wheatears.

Catch up - Wednesday 1st to Sunday 5th January 2014

A new year and if I have one resolution it's to try and keep life, whether at home or at work, simple. This is in the belief that I will achieve my personal targets for the year [and if I wish add to and build on them] rather than setting myself up to fail. What's that got to do with this blog? well I'm not entirely sure but I think it will mean less messing about drafting and then not getting around to posting short essays and more short summary's of what I have been up to. This I hope will act as a celebration of life, of what it is possible to see, feel and and think in the midst of a busy life with little bespoke time for birding and photography, but with a mind and eyes accustomed to seeing and taking plenty of incidental opportunities and sharing some of these with you.

Brancaster saltmarsh

My last bird of 2013 was a invisible Robin singing its' plaintive winter song from a bush in a Hunstanton front garden, my first birds of 2014 were Feral Pigeons wheeling in the wind over our street in Hunstanton. New Year's Day was manky [cold, grey and wet] and I spent it with the family visiting relatives in Brancaster, a short walk along the edge of the Marsh followed by an interrogation of my father in law's bird feeders produced 28 species. My favourite birds of the day were the smart little Coal Tits on the feeders.

The 2nd saw me back at work in Norwich and taking a boot around what is in effect my 'lunchtime patch' of the Rosary Cemetery, Lion Wood and part of the River Yare, good for 50+ species in 2014 I reckon. A relatively quiet walk did produce two sightings of Sparrowhawk, a Nuthatch, Great Spotted Woodpecker and a brace of Coal Tits. But perhaps the best bird of the day was on the drive into work when I had a drive by sighting of a Barn Owl just outside Docking.

Lion Wood, Norwich

On Friday the 3rd I had a work related walk and talk at Snettisham and Titchwell, a lovely day with some cracking black and white male Goldeneye at Snettisham and a nice flock of Avocet's at Titchwell, where a female Marsh Harrier spooked the waders and wildfowl and where I photographed the splendid male Pintail below. The day ended with an unseasonal Hedgehog in Snettisham village.

Male Pintail, Titchwell Marsh

Saturday was another wet day, whem the rain cleared mid afternoon I took no 1 son [age 4] 'shell hunting' under the cliffs in Hunstanton, not much bird activity but good to see Fulmar's hanging around the cliffs in some numbers.

Fulmar's Hunstanton Cliffs

Today [Sunday 5th] I was again back in Brancaster with the family, a drive along the coast to get no 2 son [age 2] to sleep gave me a chance to pop into Burnham Overy Staithe Harbour which was very quiet and Brancaster Staithe Harbour where I picked up Rock Pipit for the year. But the most fun was when I stopped to look at some bird feeders and noticed the finches and sparrows bathing in a puddle on the opposite side of the road.

Chaffinch & Goldfinch bathing

At last some Butterflies



Painted Lady, Hunstanton Sensory Park, June 2013

Its felt like a long  time since there were lots of butterflies about, last summer was a cold wash out and this summer was late to arrive. So a double whammy for butterfly watching of depressed butterfly numbers after a few bad years and then a longer than normal wait in what could be an OK year.

I've not had a chance to venture very far in search of butterflies this year, lunchtime walks in the week and countryside strolls with the family at weekends have been my window into this butterfly summer.

Back in June whilst recuperating from a bad back my regular walk around Hunstanton [part of walking myself back to fitness] was enlivened by passing through the rather wonderful Sensory Garden. Here I saw a single Painted Lady and a couple of Red Admirals.

In Norwich lunchtime walks around the Rosary Cemetery have been poor for butterflies but a single Large Skipper was a Cemetery tick for me and last week the place was humming with bees and a couple of Comma's were hanging around a little sun trap I always check for butterflies.

Ringlet, Courtyard Farm, Norfolk, July 2013

Ringlets and Meadow Brown's are now on the wing and the picture above was taken this morning at Courtyard Farm of a 'chilled' insect waiting to warm up.

White Admiral, Ken Hill Wood, Norfolk, July 2013

A personal favourite is the White Admiral and I am lucky to have a copy close to an office I work out of in Snettisham. These have started to emerge over the last week and I am looking forward to another week or two in their company.