Target bird nailed amongst other things

A week punctuated by the sight and sound of day-flying Pink Footed Geese skeins...over Norwich! Couldn't get one on the Surlingham list though.

Surlingham Saturday afternoon.

Managed to tick off one of my target birds for the year a little earlier than expected; a flyover Little Egret, which I waved towards the marsh but eventually it was lost to sight, probably landing at Wheatfen. Across at Wood's End, a number of Fieldfare were feeding amongst a mixed group of Greylags, Magpies and Crows, an odd assortment. A closer inspection revealed at least 2 Redwing, new for the year!

Whilst the scrub it still quiet, save for a couple of Blue Tits, the lagoon finally gave me something to shout about. A pair of Shelduck were presumably checking out some potential breeding sites, and I approached with caution. The problem with the open-fronted bus shelter hide is that it is not really a hide at all, and unsuprisingly the birds saw me, quacked a bit, and then flew off towards Wheatfen. However, this was also a new bird for my reserve list! Further round the track, a Grey Heron was new for the year list and a few Wigeon and Teal are still holed in up the large back garden.

A trip back to see the folks allowed me a chance to see the female Ferruginous Duck at Bosmere Lake, Needham Market. I had stupidly written off females as crap after seeing a stonking male at Barton last winter; on close inspection this was actually one smart duck. Lovely round brown head, beady eye and white backside. If I kept a 'home with the folks' list, this would be a good bird to have on it.

Driving home I made what has become an annual stop at farmland near Great Moulton, managed a flock of at least 7 Bullfinch. Following on from the crap theme mentioned earlier, I went a bit Chris Packham over this well placed turd:

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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 the ho

Claxton-on-sea!

Although it was not quite the Christmas we wanted here in the valley, the rain has bought its own gift. A grim vision of the future, perhaps. But right now, the patch is peaking and is alive with birds, and for that I am thankful. On Christmas eve, it was a job to navigate away from the village due to standing water that had left abandoned cars and undelivered presents in its wake. The rain had been persistent and unforgiving, the ground, saturated. Over on the marsh, where there had once been a muddy puddle amongst the pasture, a city had sprung from the leak, with a plethora of new occupants noisily laying claim to a patch of sodden marsh. Wigeon and Black-headed Gulls in their thousands now wheeled and whistled over and amongst the newly formed pools, accompanied by smaller numbers of Teal and Shoveler. A flock of two hundred-strong Lapwing enjoyed feeding on the less damp spots where green grass was still exposed, and thrown in for good measure have been a couple of Ruff, the firs

A change is as good as a rest

Casting my mind back to February 14th, survival rather than love was in the air for the birds of the Yare Valley. Tramping across the Surlingham corner of the patch, I recorded 8 Woodcock within 2 hours. These Cryptic Waders had been forced out of hiding, and even amongst the woodland floor they were easier than usual to spot against a backdrop of snow. The small pine wood opposite the church and adjacent to the parking area held at least 2 birds, creeping around and huddled up low to the ground. A further investigation of likely habitat around Church Marsh and I was presented with 6 more, a record count for me in a single day. I hope they made it through the trial sent from the north in the form of ice and snow. A Great Egret exploring a dyke at Postwick must've been thinking twice about the whole range expansion thing. However, a small Squadron of Bewick's Swan and a single Goosander over Claxton fitted the mise en scene nicely during this period. That image and that day fee

Notes from the valley

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