Skip to main content

Sunday stroll

Fairly lazy weekend on the birding front, but good reason for that as I will explain. Popped to Wheatfen after lunch today and the resident birds were making themselves heard, including Great-spotted Woodpecker, Nuthatch, Goldcrest and Treecreeper. I almost walked into a Water Deer, who was grazing on the track near the small lagoons. In the woodland, Bullfinch called but remained elusive. A female Reed Bunting showed herself nicely through a gap in the scrub.
A scan from Claxton Marshes allowed me to add to species to the list that were entirely absent last year. 3 Ruff could be seen on the marsh, as well as 3+ Dunlin! 17 Shelduck were new in, and 2 Peregrine were assuming the usual fence post vigil. On the Claxton side, female Marsh Harrier and Kestrel surveyed the marsh. Heading to the car, the breeze had encouraged a Buzzard to take to the skies.
I finished up at Church Marsh in the hope of the ringtail. Again no luck there, but I did enjoy Song Thrush in song and the over-wintering Wigeon on the small lake.
So, although not much birding done I have been busy. For a while now Debs and I have been looking to move out of Norwich, and we have been patient in our search for a new property. Yesterday we finally found the right place for us, and it is in Surlingham! This has not really sunk in yet, and the next few weeks will be pretty hectic. Living on the patch, I'll take that.

Comments

  1. James Appleton2 February 2014 at 12:15

    Great news Jim, I'm pleased for you both. Hope it all runs smoothly...

    ReplyDelete
  2. Jim3 February 2014 at 09:31

    Thanks James. Smoothly would be ideal, but I will have to focus on those pre-breakfast walks on the marsh whilst packing!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Everything is about edge

Hardley, where it is often confusing to define where the garden ends and the marsh begins. Tumble-down houses and rickety shacks, away from any bus route and Team Sky sorts wrapped in lycra, this is a village that by choice is cut off. The secret is out, and pre-storm Ciara as many as 10 large lenses littered the river bank firing at will. Their target- Winter ghosts. First, the classic Scooby-Doo type, as a Barn Owl responds to an ill-advised squeak in the grass and heads towards the onlookers. Another quickly joins the hunt, their formation a picture of double-edged stealth. But these year-round residents are not the key objective today, that honour is given to the Short-eared Owl. 3/4 of these can be seen from the staithe at the minute, floating like giant moths over the tussocks and edges.  In a recent article in The New Yorker, Jake Fiennes states "Everything is about edge". Hedges, ditches, scrub, forgotten tracts of land that link nothing and no-one. Fiennes, now ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Grey Phalarope- a new patch bird

The 7th of April was another bitterly cold Spring day, hats and gloves in prime position on pegs and in bags ready to be deployed. A few brave Garganey have been reported north of the river, but it was a bird from the north itself that had me rushing for the thermals and the telescope late in the day.  I was thankful for the local Whatsapp group who were quick to report that a Grey Phalarope had been seen on Rockland Broad. This tiny Wader would have come in on the northerlies over the last few days, although to grace one of the broads is a real surprise, since most stick pretty close to the coast before moving on. Indeed, my experience of the birds has usually been on a sea watch in the Autumn, waves crashing and foam flying, my eyes straining to pick them out as they fly low just above the surf. They are fantastic birds, and now one was here on the patch. I had a brief panic when I realised my scope was in my car at the garage (thankfully I do have a much older spare) but once th...
Post a Comment
Read more

Wood's End and Surlingham, 13/03/11

Decided it was time to search for a Lesser Pecker within and around the patch, ideal habitat alongside the Yare and plenty of deadwood. I should say now that the search was fruitless, but did throw up some good habo and a few decent birds for the area. Wood's End had a large flock of Siskin in a small conifer plantation, and a Nuthatch called from within. A Common Buzzard called overhead, and was seen again from the pub- I will keep an eye on this a potential breeding site. Great Spotted Pecker showed well, and my second Brimstone Butterfly in 2 days passed through- stealing a march, or so I thought! My first was seen from the staffroom yesterday, not all bad on the Western Front then. Surlingham was looking pristine in the sunshine, and approaching the lagoon I could hear Lapwing- usually across river at Wood's End- and then a familiar call which I almost ignored, but then realised where I was.....Redshank! Never actually saw it, but still a new bird for the patch. A pair of S...
3 comments
Read more