Broads Tours, 25/04/11

The Broads looked great yesterday, a pleasure to be out and about, even with a few holidaymakers!

We began at Barton, hoping to catch more than just the tail end of the Black Tern passage. I had a feeling we had left it too late, and that was the case. We did however enjoy watching the now resident Common Terns here, and looked very hard at a few incase an Arctic was amongst them. 2 Common Sandpiper were seen, but not by us. The scrub around the boardwalk offered good views of Treecreeper and Blackcap.

Ranworth Broad was a first time visit for us, which again was heaving with Common Terns, and this time the scrub allowed us a close up of both a Cettis Warbler and a Willow Warbler. More was heard than seen, the trees and vegetation thickening by the day.

Upton Fen was not as hard to find as we expected, and is somewhere that will keep me coming back, this is a great reserve. It reminded me of a mini Hickling Broad, and as at Hickling there is potential for rare, with a vast reedbed surrounded by grazing marshes. A Savi's Warbler apparantly took up residence in 2000 (fast becoming a bird that I am setting my sights on to 'find' in the broads), and Red-footed Falcons have been seen in the last 5 years. We had great views of a hunting Barn Owl around midday, a pair of Marsh Harrier and 2 Hobby- my first of the year. Always a buzz seeing that first Hobby. Great variety of insects and Butterflies here too, not all we could put a name to, but will try to one day. No rush though, this is a great reserve to soak up. With so many good pubs located around and between, I think the odd evening visit here will be in order during midsummer. Bloody love The Broads.

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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

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

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

Notes from the valley

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