Local Patch - December roundup

 

   

 BUZZARDS are very common on site, and I see them pretty much every time I visit the site. This is only quarter of a mile outside Ipswich.

December was a fairly unremarkable month. There were frosty nights at the start of the month, with their accompanying bright sunny days, followed briefly by a flurry of snow midmonth, before ending on a mild note.
As is usual in the festive period I was overloaded with work and was unable to do much birding, the upside being I was able to concentrate more on the local patch, in the brief periods between shifts.

Yellowhammer

There were some decent bird flocks overwintering in the area, and shows how important this seemingly normal site is for birds. A small field recently ploughed attracted a large amount of birds. There was a flock of 30+ YELLOWHAMMERS, which also included a few FINCHES, including a beautiful male BULLFINCH. This is about the normal size of flock for the area and reflects a good breeding season. The flock would commute between the field stubble to roost in the neighbouring hedgerow before drinking from a puddle on the dirt road.
The same field held a flock of 30+ SKY LARKS by far the largest number I have seen in the area, and must be migrants, with a few on territory in Lark Field.
There was a flock, again numbering 30+, of GOLDFINCHES around the entrance of the site, again feeding on a field of set aside left so since the last harvest, which regularly attracts small bird flocks.
On the reservoir, on the 9/12, there was another LITTLE GREBE, my fourth record for the area. Nearby, on the permanent pasture where the cows sometimes graze, there were a few MIPPITS and REDWINGS, feeding amongst the short grass.
Outside the patch, but around where I live, there is a flock of 25 COLLARED DOVES present and several hundred STARLINGS in the area around my house.

 

As is usual for this time of year there were plenty of TIT flocks, their constant energy is uplifting on a dull day.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 A large portion of my local patch is composed of horse pasture. The short, permanent turf is important for birds that feed in the shallow mud like THRUSHES and GREEN WOODPECKERS.

 

 

 This WREN has found a roosting site. it would sit on top of it trilling away, announcing to the world that this was its hole.

 

 

Around Snape, Suffolk - 25/12/2017

One of the EXMOOR PONIES that graze the Warren. They use this breed for their hardiness, useful for grazing heather.

 

 

With Christmas dinner to look forward to we went on an early ramble through the countryside of Snape. The countryside round Snape just happens to have some beautiful reserves, such as the RSPB's Snape Warren and the Suffolk Wildlife Trust's Snape Marshes, plus the estuarine River Alde, which makes for some good birding habitats.
However birds were in short numbers on this day, a mild, rather dull day. Large areas of Snape Warren had been recently cleared of gorse and birch trees and we later found the EXMOOR PONIES, one somehow managing to graze on a spiky gorse bush.
Snape Marshes were quiet and on the river were some AVOCETS amongst the usual waders, as well as some WIGEON and TEAL as well as a LITTLE GREBE going nowhere as it tried to make its way up river against the tide.
As we left the river we still had enough time to have a pint, so we stopped at the Golden Key in Snape, where I went for a nice Adnams GhostShip.
So nothing much really, but a chance to get some air, and to make room for the feast to follow.

Hazelwood Marshes - 24/12/2017

I'd visited Hazelwood a couple of times in the past, before it became inundated by the river. Its hide was the only vantage point overlooking that part of the river Alde. The estuary side was always good, but the wet grassland which made up the reserve, was never very good for birds, the odd LAPWING or REDSHANK, but that was all. Since the inundation, back in 2013, when the river burst through the banks and turned the reserve from wet grassland to mudflats, the number of birds has increased massively.

Overlooking Hazelwood Marshes and what used to be wet grassland. The hide is in the mid foreground.

 



We had a quick walk to the reserve before the Christmas Eve meal, at the time the tide was high on the river but low on the marshes. The hide was new, replacing the rickety structure which used to stand there. On the marshes there were plenty of birds including BRENT GEESE, lots of WIGEON and SHELDUCK, and some LITTLE GREBES. Wader wise there were plenty of REDSHANK and BLACK TAILED GODWITS. A female MARSH HARRIER was around, but didn't seem to affect the birds present.
As we walked away from the hide to the exit of the reserve an immature PEREGRINE FALCON was spotted in flight. As we watched it it suddenly tucked its wings in and diver bombed some unknown prey. It did this several times although it didn't seem to catch anything.

View from the hide of what was wet grassland before it was inundated. It is now a species rich habitat so there was a balance to nature, natural forces sculpting the countryside

Unseasonal HOBBY at Barham Pits - 4/12/2017

 

An unseasonal HOBBY, put in the briefest of cameos today at Barham Pit B, for maybe two seconds. I had at the time put my bins aside and was preparing my camera for another shot when it appeared.  A small falcon with dark grey upper parts and a creamy under with red around the legs. It really couldn't be anything else. I guess this is a bird who just left it too late to migrate to Africa, maybe fooled by the warm weather. Anyway it is my only winter record in the UK.

 

 

Meadlands Pit

 

Wildfowl were few and far between with Meadlands Pit holding eleven GADWALL, nine COOT and four MUTE SWANS. There were one each of GREAT CRESTED GREBES on the three pits.

Family party of SWANS on the river

 

KINGFISHERS were present as usual, but all were seen in flight, no chance of photos.

A SPARROWHAWK was disturbed from a branch along the river, and was later seen in flight over the pits.

So the pleasures of local patch birding, most of the time I see nothing, but just on the odd occasion something interesting turns up, and it makes bird watching that much more rewarding.

Early Winter at Minsmere - 19/11/2017

A cracking male BEARDED TIT in front of East Hide

 

Due to the exceptionally warm and sunny November winter migrants seem to be thin on the ground at the moment. So with the sun shining on us we made our way over to Minsmere, because there is always something to see at Minsmere.
On the approach from Westleton, there was a dead STOAT on the road. We arrived around half ten, and the car park wasn't too busy, but with the day as nice as it is, the hordes were going to arrive soon.
Having bought a nice cup of hot coffee from the café we started on the Scrape path. North Hide had restricted viewing due to the low intense light that faced it. There were the usual species of DUCK in small numbers and in low densitites across the Scrape.

A female TEAL, probably the commonest duck species on the Scrape

 



We did have distant views of the BEWICK'S SWANS on East Scrape, two adults and a juvenile. These birds have come straight from Europe, with very few of this species reported in this country so far. Alas we weren't to get good views from the East Hide either as they spent all their time asleep at the back of the scrape. It also seems that no PINTAIL have turned up for the winter yet.

WADERS were present in small numbers, but the Autumn migration is now a distant memory.13 AVOCETS, a couple of TURNSTONE, a flock of 50 DUNLIN, and some GODWITS and REDSHANKS were all around. A pair of RED LEGGED PARTRIDGE were quite unusual for Minsmere, found on the heath by the North wall.

 

View over West Scape towards Sizewell B

 



Small birds were not particularly well represented, with around five STONECHATS present around the Scrape paths. Four BEARDED TITS flew into the thin reeds immediately in front of East Hide, offering some cracking views, allowing me to get some good pictures. On the visitors centre bird feeders there were COAL TITS amongst the more commoner birds, as well as one MARSH TIT. A CETTI'S WARBLER was heard briefly in song.
As the Scrape was fairly empty, we seemed to circuit it in record time, about an hour and a half. After that we headed towards the two reedbed hides, to see what we could see.
Bittern Hide was as usual fairly quiet providing views over an empty reedbed. Island Mere had more to offer, with a large group of CORMARANTS on the rocky islands, and a herd of MUTE SWANS on the water. A KINGFISHER did a couple of flybys, at one point briefly resting on a reed frond in front of the hide.

CORMARANTS at Island Mere

 



Over the reedbeds at least four MARSH HARRIERS were quartering, all females.

So not massive amounts of birds present, but for a late November day it was alright. Once the colder temperatures hit us, more of the winter species will arrive from the continent.

Late afternoon we had a walk along to Snape Warren, where there were a pair of STONECHATS, down to the river Alde. The tide was high and there were flocks of waders swirling in the air as they went to roost on the saltmarsh islands. There were large numbers of AVOCET present among the more common WADERS. At least two MARSH HARRIERS were seen over the tidal reedbeds.

Hickling Broad - 12/11/2017

This day was probably the worst of the winter so far with a bitter north-westerly wind, torrential rain and some hail thrown in as well.
But we didn't know this when we started off on a sunny morning to Hickling Broad. Hickling is a good reserve that I enjoy going to, but I don't really go to that often. Most of my trips to Norfolk often head up to the north coast or elsewhere, and the county really does suffer from having too many good bird reserves. So I was looking forward to this trip as one I don't take too often.
We made good time, going up the A12 through the outskirts of Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth, arriving at Hickling around half ten. And the moment we got there it started raining. Hard.
The Visitor's Centre had closed up shop for the winter, so it was a mad dash for the first hide, called Cadbury. It looked over an area of fenland, with a small pool, and we didn't see much in the rain. Basically every bird we saw was  worth noting, a CORMARANT, a CROW, some flying SHOVELLER, all became special ticks. Despite there not being many birds about we stayed there for about half an hour, just because of the rain. Eventually we tried our luck and moved on to the next hide called Secker's. Again it was a mad dash, and I didn't get much of a chance to take in a place I seldom get a chance to see.
The hide gave a view pretty much the same view as the last one. We got a few distant views of MARSH HARRIER, some SNIPE in flight. Then as the rain eased up a BITTERN performed an amazing fly-past, towards the hide, and off just to the side, providing a great view of the bird's subtle brown features. That pretty much made the lousy weather bearable.
Again as we left the hide, it was another slog through to the next hide, not really stopping at the viewpoint on the Broad, as glasses and binoculars were impenetrable through the wetness. We arrived at the observation tower, like a double decker hide, but there really wasn't much to see, just a place to keep dry.
The next hide, the Bittern Hide, didn't provide much except some closer views of MARSH HARRIERS, but the rain had lessened. On the way back to the car park, a pair of BEARDED TITS, followed us along the path, keeping to the reedbeds beside.
We still had a couple of hours before the raptor roosting event, what we had come to specifically see, so we went to have a look at both Horsey Mere and Martham Broad. Again there was such a strong wind and not much was seen at either place, so we headed back to Hickling for the raptor roost.
One of the wildlife events Hickling is famous for is the raptor roost, where large numbers of BIRDS OF PREY and CRANES go to roost. It basically is just a mound overlooking an area of grazed rough grassland. There were lots of WINTER THRUSHES about, something not unusual, except I haven't seen that many this Autumn. A RED DEER HIND was disturbed from an area in front of the mound and ran off into the landscape.
Alas no CRANES were seen but around twenty MARSH HARRIERS were present, and there was a small murmaration of STARLINGS over the marshes, of several hundred, with small flocks flying in to join it.
On the walk back to the car park, in the fading light, two CHINESE WATER DEER were seen feeding in a farm field, along with two BROWN HARES, a nice little sighting to end the day.
On the drive back home the sat nav took a different route this time, making us take the ferry across the river at Reedham. In the darkness a BARN OWL was illuminated by the car lights.
So a good day all told, if it just wasn't so damned cold and wet. Hickling is a good reserve and can produce good sightings whatever the weather. It is a place I enjoy going to, and hope not to leave it so long before I go back there again.

Local Patch Roundup - Sept & Oct

The Pond

 

Places like Minsmere will always have birds, but the barometer of how well the countryside is doing is through areas like my local patch, places not managed for birds. This is mainly an area of arable and pasture fields, with a few hedges, that just happens to be right by my house, and I visit several times a week.

 

September brought in CHIFFCHAFFS, with SWALLOWS over the cow fields. Two LITTLE GREBES were present on the reservoir on the 13th, only my second record for the area. There was an influx of GEESE to the pond, that stayed for a couple of weeks. There were flocks of FINCHES, mainly GOLDFINCHES, but with smaller numbers of LINNETS, GREENFINCHES and YELLOWHAMMERS.

 

 

At 8:30 everyday the farmer would come down to feed the cows.

 

 

October was fairly quiet with more GOLDFINCH flocks. JAYS were common, mainly in singles. Several SKYLARKS had been fooled by the warm October sun into thinking it was spring and had started singing. Lark Field (imaginatively named by me because of its breeding and wintering LARK population) lived up to its name with seven birds present.

Late October brought in more BLACKBIRDS, but winter THRUSHES were few and far between. Fifty MALLARDS turned up on the pond, but left after a couple of weeks.

 

So nothing exciting, as like most places in the countryside. To me this is an area to ease my mind an accessible area of country, away from the trappings of modern life.

Barham Pits - 31/10/2017

These pictures of a GREY WAGTAIL were taken from the river by Great Blakenham weir. This species is common on the river, nesting in several areas, mainly by weirs and bridges. October is the main migration time for this species.

There were not many birds out on the lakes, but on Meadowlands Pit there were three COOT, three SWANS and one GREAT CRESTED GREBE.

There were plenty of bird flocks, mainly of common TITS, with some TREECREEPERS, and a pair of BULLFINCHES.

And of course there were loads of KINGFISHERS.

Boyton & Hollesley Marshes - 22/10/2017

With a pub lunch on the cards we only had a limited amount of time for birding today, so we decided to do the smaller reserves over at Boyton Marshes and Hollesley Marshes. With my brother we have done so many reserves this Autumn, and yet there are still so many more to see. The Suffolk coast must have the highest number of RSPB reserves of anywhere in the country.

Boyton Marshes.
So we started at the little reserve at Boyton, a small, overlooked reserve. It is an area of rough and wet grassland, managed as a farm, heavily grazed by cows,with a few pools.
The field behind the farm buildings and car park had a flock of  SWALLOWS also held a HOUSE MARTIN, which may be my latest ever record for this species. At the first pool from the car park, amongst the usual DUCKS and WADERS there was an AVOCET.
Upon getting up to the river wall we were hit by a gale of south westerly's from some storm over in the west coast of the country. We headed north along the river before heading back south, along Butley Creek to where it entered the River Ore near Havergate Island, covering most of the reserve.
It was around mid tide with mud exposed on the creek and the main river estuary, just not many birds beyond the usual GODWITS and REDSHANK.
The reserve was fairly empty nothing much was on the grasslands except some cows lazily chomping away.
Along the dyke reedbeds that run parallel to the river wall was a small group of BEARDED TITS. A KINGFISHER flew along the river on the north edge of the reserve at the ferry.
A very late WHEATEAR was on one of the concrete tank traps, the huge second world war era buildings that standout amongst the grassland of the reserve, and more SWALLOWS flew down Butley Creek.
Best bird of the day was a MERLIN seen flying low across the agricultural fields on the edge of the reserve and there was also a MARSH HARRIER quartering the fields.
So although we saw a couple of good sightings here, there wasn't that much on the reserve. To be honest, an area of grassland isn't really going to attract many birds, not the flocks of birds you associate with wet grassland especially as there is only one pool on the reserve. However though, which ever way the RSPB manage this reserve, I'm sure they know what they're doing and its all for the best.

Hollesley Marshes
With time on our hands we decided to take a quick look at Hollesley Marshes, another small reserve just down the river from Boyton. Hollesley Marshes is basically a scrape surrounded by an electric fence with some area of grassland.
There were two viewpoints overlooking the scrape, and on looking from the first point, it was noticeable how dried out the scrape was. There were large areas of dried mud, and there wasn't any birds in those areas. Closer to the river there was more water and as a consequence more birds.
It was the usual estuarine WADERS and DUCKS, as is usual for this time of year, the TEAL and SHOVELLER feeding on the water and flocks of WIGEON feeding on the grass nearby. Two male PINTAIL were also present.
By the first viewpoint were a pair of STONECHAT, with small flocks of GOLDFINCHES everywhere.
What was probably the same MERLIN as at Boyton flew over the reserve, and there was also another MARSH HARIER.
So like Boyton, Hollesley is solid, with some birds in a small, easily accessed setting. Without anything special, really, sometimes its hard to fit all these reserves in. Its a good way to kill a couple of hours out in this area of the world though, especially combining with the nearby heaths.

GOLDEN EAGLE in Suffolk - 22/10/2017

 

We were on our way to Boyton Marshes today, when travelling past Tunstall Common, saw a group of birdwatchers, some with really hefty equipment gathered in what looked like a twitch. Thanking our good luck we pulled over to the side of the road (the carpark was full) and raced to where the birders were gathered.

It then came as quite a surprise to us that the birders were taking photos of a GOLDEN EAGLE, puffed up and posing on a branch. What are the chances of coming across an EAGLE in the midst of the gentle, heathy, Suffolk countryside!

However, it quickly dawned on us that the bird wasn't wild, in fact it was tied by a rope to its handler.

We talked to one of the birders, and they said they had paid for the eagle to photograph, so there were around twenty people all twitching a captive bird.

I was able to collect this record shot, of one of the strangest bird sightings I have ever experienced.

Benacre Broad - 15/10/2017

Living everyone's fantasy

Its been years since I've been to Benacre, maybe decade or more, which considering its not that far from where I live, is a long time. I don't know maybe because its just easily over looked, its a very humble reserve which never advertises itself at all, but its never on my birding schedule.
My brother was still with us in Suffolk, and we've been exploring reserves in the county, and eventually with most of them visited there was really only really Benacre left, selected by default.

Covehithe Church where we parked, with it's ruined nave

 



When we arrived at Covehithe the omens weren't great, it was so busy with people. Strong southerly winds had created a beautiful sunny day, making it closer to August than October. As a result everybody understandably wanted a part of it. However as is often the way, the further you get from a car park, the less people there are, and we soon left the people behind.
So we took the footpath to the beach and Covehithe Broad. There was nothing on that body of water, simply because of the large number of people there. I don't think it would be bad to put up a fence to keep people out, I mean it wouldn't do any harm, wildlife needs some room as well. Sometimes birdwatching clashes with holiday makers, but its simply the majority of people don't know about it, there are few signs about notifying people this is a nature reserve.

One of the fun things at Benacre is to see what's fallen off the cliff onto the beach

 



We walked north along the beach to Benacre, following the sandy cliffs. The broad had actually barely changed since I last came, it was pretty much an estuary with a large area of wet mud. Its good to see the old hide is still there despite been twenty plus years old.
On the broad was a smattering of ESTUARINE WADERS: 20+ RINGED PLOVERS, GREY PLOVERS, KNOTS, CURLEW, DUNLIN, REDSHANKS and OYSTERCATCHER. There were only a few DUCKS, some TEAL and MALLARD.
So we wound our way back to Covehithe, where we saw a STONECHAT, a species that is having a great Autumn. There were also four PIPIT SP., monosyllabic, and a dark brown/green colour with a distinctive white elbow, your typical LBJ.

To be honest not many birds to photograph today, so lots of pictures of the beach

 



As made our way down to Easton Broad, out at sea large flocks of BRENT GEESE were flying south, low over the water.
The broad was like Covehithe and fairly quiet. In the reedbeds there were several small flocks of BEARDED TITS, which we were to see all across the extensive reedbed, along with REED BUNTINGS and a quatering MARSH HARRIER.
To the south of Easton Broad we took a track inland that skirted the huge area of reedbeds. In the area of set aside in the framlands, there were SKY LARKS, YELLOWHAMMERS and MIPPITS, quite good as we hadn't seen many small birds up till then.
We took the track on to a road and then we hit the footpath to the west of Easton Broad. This footpath had been closed due to a broken boardwalk. We decided to give it a go, I mean how wet can it get? The path was overgrown and we had to watch everystep, as though the boardwalk was still present it tended to be missing in places, in others the wood broke under step and I nearly fell into the mud. In the end we decided to take a path where the reedbed met the farmland.

The day's weather was more akin to August

 



After that the footpath just went thorugh uninteresting farmland and we saw few other birds. A large flock of several hundred STARLINGS were feeding amongst the pig fields, but that was about it.
So it wasn't a particularly great day, or even one that was memorable, but that's what you expect when you get away from the main reserves. Okay so it may be less time than a decade before I come back here, but to be honest I don't rate Benacre, as important a reserve as it is, as a top birding destination, and there are more places that deserve my attention.

Christchurch Park, Ipswich - 11/10/2017

A family of BROWN RATS lives in burrows around the Wilderness Pond

 

Christchurch Park is one of the best urban parks around. Its a mix of parkland with some very old trees, woodland and ponds. I often visit this park when I'm in Ipswich town centre, its a very peaceful area, a place to escape the rush of modern life.

 

 GREEN WOODPECKER

 

The parkland attracts good numbers of birds associated with this habitat, including GREEN WOODPECKERS, STOCK DOVES, JACKDAWS and MISTLE THRUSHES.

 

 

 MANDARIN DUCKS

 

The Wilderness Pond  is a small tree lined pond, tucked away in an area of woodland. Its gross, the water's a kind of green colour, but is attractive to wildfowl. Aside from the gangs of CANADA GEESE and mongrel MALLARDS, are a small number of MANDARIN DUCKS. For the first time since I've been coming here, two chicks were successfully reared to adulthood. 

 

 

 

 DUNNOCK

 

Being an urban park, the birds are very tame, and allow you to approach very closely.
However, the most famous bird, perhaps the most famous owl in the world was absent. MABEL the TAWNY OWL was missing, but someone had carved this statue of her.

RED DEER rut at Minsmere - 8/10/2017

Okay, so this time we knew the RED DEER rut was happening and today was a great opportunity to witness it. The heaths around Minsmere and Dunwich were the best location for finding them, one of the largest lowland herds in England. However over the years culls have taken their toll on the herd, and there are a barely a fraction of the 400+ found five or so years ago.
We started the search at the lookout point on Westleton Heath, a small hillock on the edge of an old quarry. We were quite surprised to actually see a deer up close, a young stag, sprinting across the grasslands. We later found out that this animal was scared away from another herd by a larger male, and he just kept running and not looked back.
With nothing else much to see we headed off west, taking the path around the grasslands before hitting the Minsmere road. We didn't see any more deer and neither did anyone we met. We saw three deer safari 4x4s, those belonging to the RSPB, and apparently they were scaring away all the deer, so whenever one of them turned up it was always a bad sign.
On joining the Minsmere road we finally found a herd of deer, a decent number of hinds with a massive male. Annoyingly they were so far away, in a kind of haze, my camera had difficulty in focusing on them. So here is a record shot:

 

 

We took the Minsmere road until we met the bridleway, which winds its way through Minsmere's back woods to Dunwich Heath. Its a great path with heathland as far as the eye can see, with a mix of oak, birch and pine trees. From time to time a stag deer would bellow out, quite a haunting sound.

We came to another area of grassland as we entered the outskirts of Dunwich Heath. Here we found another herd, this time quite a bit smaller, with a smaller stag guarding them. They kept to a kind of depression so even though we walked around this field, we could only see them from one spot. Here are a few record shots.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The path took us from Dunwich Heath to Mount Pleasant Farm, an area of heathland restoration, bought back around fifteen years ago. Its amazing how an area of intensively managed farmland can be turned back to heath in such a short time. A short sward of heather mixed in with areas of acid grassland dominated the landscape. The path then led back to Westleton Heath, and we didn't see any more deer, but there were more people about.

The eventual route we took was a square that skirted the area of mainly grassy habitat favoured by the deer. The deer seemed to be mainly fenced in here, where they were mostly kept away from humans. It meant there were few places to observe them, despite the large number of people who tried, but also created a safe haven for the deer, and helped preserve this place as one of the last areas of wilderness in lowland England.

 

 



Minsmere -1/10/2017

We headed out to the Westleton/Dunwich Heath complex, with my brother, in the hope of witnessing the RED DEER rut. This is one of those wildlife spectaculars that happens in Suffolk, one that just has to be seen. However after scoring a blank from the viewing mound at Westleton Heath, we went to Dunwich Heath where the woman at the information centre told us we were rather too early in the season. The stags were only just starting to flex their muscles, just starting to gather the females. So with that information we decided to spend the rest of the day at Minsmere, and it was a fairly decent day.
At the Visitors Centre we were told that the PEC SAND had moved on, a species which has so far eluded me, although I have had many close calls where I haven't had the courage to fully identify the bird species.
However the Scrape still held a decent number of WADERS, with passage still going strong. Highlights were three LITTLE STINTS, a new bird for my brother, which would often associate with the four RINGED PLOVERS present, giving a good comparison of their size. Two RUFF, small flocks of DUNLIN, some remnant AVOCETS, a CURLEW, a BAR TAILED GODWIT and the usual common WADERS were also present.
DUCKS were emerging from their dull eclipse plumage, with the males starting to look a lot more colourful, with all the usual suspects about, mainly tucked up asleep on the Scrape.
The day was quite windy, so all the small birds were keeping low in the vegetation, but there were three STONECHATS in the dunes and a KINGFISHER flew in front of the South Hide. There was also a MARSH TIT on the feeders in the North Bushes, and some SWALLOWS were still about.
In the reeds immediately in front of West Hide we found a WARBLER SPECIES, with yellow legs, an olive green colour and some barring near the wing. It was like no species I have seen before, and looking through the bird guides in the shop, still couldn't identify it.
Over and around the reedbed hides, nothing much was present except the usual HARRIERS. A HOBBY was seen behind Island Mere Hide, probably the last one of the summer, and a BEARDED TIT right beside the path to the hide.
A CHINESE WATER DEER was present in the same place we saw it last visit, grazing on the reedbed edge in the Konik fields.
So it was good birding and at the end of the day we had encountered most of the birds present today, which is no small feat. Here's hoping October is a good one and lots of rarities end up in this corner of the world, I think we deserve that.

Red Throated Pipit at Languard Point - 28/9/2017

Not sure about this  one - maybe a MIPPIT?

 



Its not usual that I go to twitches, I don't really like crowds - hence why I took up birdwatching - but a RED THROATED PIPIT on one of my local patches was too good to miss. The day started off cloudy but soon cleared up and it became quite sunny, and with the bird reported yesterday took a trip to Felixstowe.
The bird was located at the point - the furthest part of Languard - and was keeping itself to the roped off areas and was being seen on and off. A group of around ten people had gathered and it was fairly easy to locate the bird.
When the bird was in flight it gave off a monosyllabic call much different to the MEADOW PIPITS around. It also had distinct white wing bars and heavy black stripes on its chest. It also seemed to have burgundy red spots on the side of its throat.

 

This one more like the RED THROATED PIPIT - see the red throat

 



Apart from the PIPIT not much else about, with the usual WHEATEARS, GOLDFINCHES and LINNETS.

Warbleswick - 25/9/2017

With my brother spending some time in Suffolk I wanted to show him some of the birding highlights that the Suffolk coast has to offer, and where better than the often overlooked Warbleswick. Despite being one of the most biological rich reserves in the country its often overlooked compared to the nearby reserve of Minsmere, which is geared up for birding, rather then the more low key Warbleswick. Its a wilderness of coast, reedbed and heathland that stretches over a huge area.
We started from the Dunwich car park which was unusually quiet, and from then on saw barely a soul. A pair of STONECHATS were present in some gorse bushes by the car park, but apart from that the area was quiet. Walking up by Dingle Marshes, the pools there were fairly quiet with the usual estuarine waders, and the first couple of BRENT GEESE of the Autumn.
We turned off from the coast at the entrance to the Warbleswick reserve, and in the reedbeds there were three MARSH HARRIERS. By the abandoned wind pump there was a party of 'pinging' BEARDED TITS. These birds were to become a feature of the day as dispersing parties of birds were seen across the area. A WHINCHAT was found perched on a bush in the reedbeds, with its eye stripe and white patches on its tail, when it flew, making it a nice find.
As the land rose, the habitat turned from reedbed to woodland and eventually to heathland. A lot of the heathland at Warbleswick is more kind of grassy, with stunted heath plants dotted about. I hadn't been to this area for quite a while and a lot of the farming practice had changed since then.
We followed the footpath to Tinker's  Marsh an area of grazing marsh bordering the Blyth Estuary. Most of the grassland had dried out, and the estuary was quiet. However there were two COMMON SEALS resting on some exposed mud, a good sighting for this area. There were several parties of BEARDED TITS seen along the ditchside reeds, it really has seemed to be a good year locally for this species.
We connected with the old train line that used to run to Warbleswick village, and on a cow grazed area of grassland were four WHEATEARS. On the marshes north of Warbleswick were a huge number of BARNACLE GEESE. We walked through Warbleswick Common, an area of more overgrown heath, of gorse and scrub.
We traced our way through some farmland and came across a huge flock of birds. Seeing the number we guessed them to be STARLINGS but on further observation found them to be RED LEGGED PARTRIDGE, in a flock numbering several hundred! There were loads of PHEASANTS about, on Tinker's Marsh one kept running into my leg, in a vain attempt to get some food off me!
We returned to Warbleswick reedbed, where we saw a pair of STONECHAT, a REED BUNTING and more BEARDED TITS, before diverting off around Dunwich Forest. On a pool on the edge of the Warbleswick reedbed, viewed from  a small hill, were a large number of commoner DUCKS and GEESE, and also a GREAT EGRET, standing as tall as a HERON next to it, with its large yellow bill.
Further along the track on the edge of Dunwich Forest we saw a MARSH TIT, always good to see. The path took us back to Dunwich and a drink at the beachside café.
So we covered pretty much all of the Warbleswick reserve, which is a huge area, it took a long time, about five hours. I haven't been to this area for a long time, nearly a couple of years, as I tend to go to the reserves further south, which are so much easier to birdwatch. But its a good reserve, and by putting in the effort it can be richly rewarding.

Wader Spectacular - Snettisham -19/9/2017

 

The real reason I came out to this area of the country was to take advantage of the Spring tides that were occurring on the Wash. Spring tides are the highest tides of the year which results in more mud being covered by water leading to the huge numbers of birds present being pushed closer to land. And boy were there a lot of birds.



 

 

We arrived here from Holme at about half three, with high tide not due until eight passed seven, which we hoped would give us plenty time to appreciate the forces at work here. The tide was well out, with only small  numbers of waders on the vast area of mud. There was a small flock of SANDWHICH  TERNS and COMMON TERNS on the mud and there was also a SPOONBILL which would later relocate to the gravel pits.

 



 

The wader spectacular is the rock concert of the birding world with lots of people truning up to view the natural wonder, with much more people than you would expect at a nature reserve. Everyone was expecting a big show.

The tide gradually came in and we noticed sights like a boat stuck on the mud becoming floating on water and other areas becoming submerged. The main bird flocks were always on the water's edge and they were gradually coming closer and closer. We were able to start identifying birds. KNOTS in massive flocks, some still slightly pink from their summer plumage. Loads of OYSTERCATCHERS, forming a great black mass, a few GREY PLOVERS, RINGED PLOVERS, GODWITS. The birds would form huge murmarations twisting about as if trying to create giant knots from rope in the sky. Offshore there was a flotilla of SHELDUCK with a few AVOCET amongst them.

We positioned ourselves by the last hides, and then gradually the tide met the start of the reserve and along the way the jetty where we were standing before became submereged. The mud turned into a mass of bird, different flocks formed of single species creating a strata of different colours.

In the end the sea didn't quite cover the entire mudflats leaving a small amount of bird covered dry mud. When it became obvious the tide had reached its peak and the birds had stopped flying and had gone to sleep it was time to leave whilst there was still some light left.

 

 

So even though it was an amazing spectacle and a wonder of the natural world we were slightly short changed. What was supposed to happen was the tide was to cover up all the mud and the remaining waders were to fly inland and roost on the gravel pits positioned behind the sea wall. This didn't happen, even on this the highest of tides, so it seems a rare event even though it is advertised as something that happens a lot by the RSPB.



 

 

Out on the gravel pits some young COMMON TERNS were present with adults flying in to feed them from the sea. There were a few SPOTTED REDSHANK and GREENSHANK present preferring here to the mudflats.

So a good day of sorts. I was able to witness a great wildlife experience, probably the greatest in lowland England, and another tick from my bucket list, I came away thinking I kind of missed the full experience, that if only the sea had come in a fraction higher I would have witnessed something truly spectacular. Oh well, such is life.  

Holme Dunes - 19/9/2017

View from one of the hides

 

 

Today I went on a trip to North-West Norfolk, specifically to Holme Dunes, to catch migrant birds, and to Snettisham for the wader spectacular of a spring tide. However on both counts I was fairly unlucky and got neither of what I wanted.

I arrived at Holme around midday and the weather was absolutely gorgeous, with a cloudless sunny sky. However the southerlies which led to this were also the worst winds for birdwatching and resulted in there being few birds about.

Holme is a large dune system behind which lies an area of grazing marsh. It is a large reserve managed by the local wildlife trust, within which is a bird observatory, managed by someone else. This is only the fifth time I've visited here, over a period stretching twenty years, so its not a place I know well.

The hides produced few birds, just a handful of DUCKS on the pools. Likewise the dunes produced only a couple of STONECHAT and a large flock of several hundred STARLINGS, which could be heard from some distance away. I think these birds were more locally produced birds rather than migrants.

The pine trees contained the bird observatory

 



Onto the bird observatory, the tiny little reserve within the big Holme Dunes reserve (yes it is a bit of a strange arrangement). This little reserve is based in a pine forest, and consists of bushes which supposedly attracts migrants. I don't know if they do because I've never seen anything there. The guy at the observatory brought my attention to a large gathering of birds of prey. Around 15 BUZZARDS were high in the air in the distance, with some MARSH HARRIERS closer to the ground. This was a nice record for a fairly bird less day.

After I left the reserve it came to me why I have only ever been to Holme five times. I've always concentrated on Titchwell and Cley, which I have visited many times, and with the distance I have to travel to get to North Norfolk always went to those reserves which were more reliable and could guarantee good sightings.

However with a trip to Snettisham to see the waders it gave me a chance to experience this reserve as part of a trip when I normally wouldn't.



KINGFISHERS Galore at Lackford Lakes - 14/9/2017

 

 

 

What ever else you say about Lackford Lakes, one thing undisputable is that this reserve is the best in the country for viewing KINGFISHERS. The sheer amount of photographic opportunities presented is absolutely amazing and its almost impossible to not get a good shot. These photos were all taken from the hides overlooking the Slough, which is the best bit of water for birdwatching on the reserve.

 

 

This bird posed for a long time on a branch

 

With its piping call this bird dashed across the water

 

This bird was hovering in flight over the water

 

 

Elsewhere on the reserve there was a small influx of TUFTED DUCK across the lakes and some GADWALL and TEAL on the Slough.

On the Long Reach lake there was still a GREAT CRESTED GREBE family present. However in general the lakes were fairly empty with not much birdlife really present.

 

 

Probably because of the KINGFISHERS this is a very popular reserve, maybe the most popular for the Suffolk Wildlife Trust. Being inland it is always going to suffer from a lack of birds when compared to the coast, but it is still one of the best in west Suffolk and I always enjoy visiting here.