Skip to main content

Something rare in Surlingham? And weekends away.

On the 5th of June, I was down at Church Marsh in the evening doing some light maintenance of the bushes and scrub. It was my better half who first signalled to me that something of interest was in the sky, so I dropped my saw and headed to the river bend where she was standing. A large dark Raptor, having just been harassed by a Kestrel, was heading away from us towards the pub. Although overall plumage was dark I could make out a pale head and a hint of a fork in the tail. Could this have been a Black Kite? It certainly had the jizz of a Kite species, but unfortunately with the bird heading away I was never able to get the clinching views I needed.

Struggling to shake off the thought of the one that got away, we were treated to fantastic views of 2 Fox cubs near the gun club- just the antidote after a near miss. The 2 played and cavorted unaware of our presence not too far from the earth.

Both here and on the Ellis Marshes nearer to home, Marsh Harriers and Barn Owls are now both regular day hunters with mouths to feed no doubt. Cuckoos continue to sing, although a poor flight view at Church Marsh is all I have actually seen of them this year. The expected Warblers also continue to sing, but our reedbed specialists appear to be quietening down now as they tend to nests.

I was away in the Peak District the weekend of 13th and 14th, during which time I clocked up a good few miles on foot and a good few pints of ale too. I have grown very fond of Derbyshire, and I enjoyed watching Raven, Curlew and Common Buzzard amongst the peaks. Other birds of note over the weekend included Common Crossbill, Lesser Redpoll, Grey Wagtail, Kingfisher and Mandarin Duck. Red Kite were more common on the way home; I encountered one bird in the middle of a housing estate in Oundle!

Finally a weekend at home coming up, although even that was not intended. I wish you a successful recovery Mr. Grohl and hope to see you back on stage soon!

Comments

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

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 ...
4 comments
Read more