Year list. Bird 172. A lump of flint.

First trip this year to the Norfolk Coast, and with both Mike and David. Would we get a special bird for a special day?

First stop was North Point Pools to get our bearing and check Birdguides. Twenty Blackwits, Avocets, Redshank, Shelduck, a couple of Little Ringed Plovers and a Common Sandpiper. A wing-tagged Marsh Harrier and distantly a Cuckoo calling. A decent first stop. 

Titchwell seemed to be our best bet so we headed west. But first we stopped at Choseley Barns for the remaining Dotterel that had been reported that morning. We scanned with no luck but were saved when a birder found it sat down. We could just see a very peachy breast and a darker head but the heat haze made getting more detail difficult, but even in the heat haze I could see it turn its head.

With year tick 172 in the bag we went on to Titchwell. The three 1st year Little Gulls put on a decent display both on the ground and in flight. Our search for more birds was rudely interrupted by Mike who had found a Grey-Headed Wagtail on the bank. This bird had been seen yesterday but not so far today. We managed to get terrific views, even down to the gorget of dark feathers indicating its first year plumage. We managed to get a few others on to telescope views of this before it flew off over the reserve centre.

We got a few more birds - Mediterranean Gulls, Spoonbills, a couple of Little Terns on the tidal lagoon, Sanderlings on the beach, and then sat down on a bench by the reed bed; three old men on a day out, talking nonsense and pulling each others legs, and inbetween whiles we got first class views of Bearded Tit and Reed Warbler. So often birds ticked on sound not sight.

Just time to go back and check on the Dotterel. We decided that if it was still sat in the same place I would have to admit defeat. And there it was. Number 172. A lump of flint.

Phone scope pic of Grey Headed Wagtail

Building The List in North Norfolk.

Arrived 9am ish at Cley Coastguards. A light Northerly wind. We spent a couple of hours scanning and saw Arctic Skua, Gannets (year tick!), Wigeon, Sandwich Tern, Arctic Tern, Common Scoter. And a distant bird, large gull sized, brown above, white below, heavy persistent flight. Hard to avoid the conclusion this was an Osprey. Hard to admit there wasn't enough to put it down definitively in my notebook. I have a hard and fast rule that I only have records in my book I can positively ID. No exceptions. 

A walk along the shingle to East bank. Mike found a couple of Wheatears and a Whinchat, then at East Bank a Pintail, 100+ Curlew, 120+ Golden Plover in a distant flock, and a couple of Yellow Wagtails. Back along the beach and this time 3 Arctic Skuas reasonably close in. A lovely gingery juvenile, all subtle barring, and two dark phase birds. So often a distant silhouette, a real treat to get a proper view of these birds.

Back to the car and check Birdguides. A ringtail Hen Harrier at Holkham (how soon before that becomes a Pallid? I quip to Mike) and a Greenish Warbler at Weybourne Camp. We head east and I make my one and likely only visit to Weybourne. The Muckleburgh Military Collection has fenced off a large area of prime habitat (and mined it too according to signs!).  We add a couple of cracking Mediterranean Gulls (adult and 1st winter) and a Stonechat, but this is unbirdable. Make mental note to never chase a rarity reported here. 

Lunch then back west. We stop at North Point Pools, add 30 Ruff, a Greenshank and an overhead Hobby. Birdguides duly reports a Pallid Harrier gone west through Holkham.

We stop off at Wells Woods. It has been a relatively quiet day, bright sunshine not conducive to dropping migrants in, and we walk through a birdless Dell until we hit The Flock and have a pleasant hour getting 10+ Chiffchaffs, 2 Willow Warblers, a Lesser Whitethroat, and a supporting cast of Treecreeper, Coal tit, Goldcrest, Long-Tailed tit.

Birdguides shows the Pallid Harrier has come back east of Lady Anne Drive! We scan from the Dell. Nothing. We stop off on the way. Buzzard, Marsh Harriers. Stoat. We are blocking a drive so move on to Lady Anne Drive drive itself and join a largeish crowd and wait for an hour and then there it is, quartering the reeds and banks, A vivid orange breasts and head, white rump, and classic harrier shape, then down into a field. Another half hour and it is up heading west at pace, just brief views as it rises over the bank. We head off to the lookout, get a nice Green Sandpiper and two close up Grey Partridges, but hear that as we were driving up it had flown high and west.

Clearly in the brief time I saw it I didn't get chance to tick off the key features. I guess it looked too small for a Hen and too big for a Monty's, but seriously who am I kidding? So what about that rule about hard and fast ID's? No Exceptions? Well, every rule has its exceptions. 

North Norfolk 12th Oct

A free day, and a strong NW wind onto the Norfolk coast. I'd have preferred a N or NE, but this will do. So I pitch up at Cley Coastguards (now pay and display!) and join Mike in a small line, both of us looking to get our year lists up to 200 in this year of limited opportunity.

There are lots of Razorbills(181), Guillemots(182) and Red-Throated Divers(183) close in, with later a few corpses on the shingle, and apparently some movement such as Mandarin W. I set the scope up and pretty soon I'm onto a gull with clear two-tone plumage, dark body, fore wing and leading edge and white primaries and trailing edge. A few others get onto its and yes its a Sabine's Gull(184) Fantastic. It flies W, at its leisure, and we get decent middle-distance views of this impressive bird. 

There are a steady stream of ducks moving West, mainly Teal, Wigeon and Common Scoter), but we manage to add  Great Skua, Pintail, Red-Breasted Merganser(185) to the list, see a female Merlin(186) belting west over the eye field, a Rock Pipit (187) and Purple Sandpiper(188). So we are very happy although we don't pick up the two Grey Phalaropes but no-one gets everything. And on we go.

We call in at Burnham Overy. On our way to the dunes we saw lots of Pink-footed Goose (189), a few Barnacle Geese, etc, and then I set my scope up and Mike wandered into the dunes in a futile search for any passerines (saw no migrating finches or thrushes at all all day). On my own, I scan the sea, and find, unbelievably, a small party of a few Kittiwakes and two more Sabine's Gulls heading west, their contrasting bright white and dark grey plumage almost shining in the scope.

Finally Titchwell where a Rose-Coloured Starling has been coming to join a few hundred Starlings at roost. We head out to the beach and Mike picks up Greenshank on the way out, then on the expanse of beach (it being low-tide) have some great views of Sanderling and Bar-tailed Godwit high up on the beach and amazingly another Purple Sandpiper this one allowing us to get quite close. 

The sun is setting so we head back to the freshwater marsh to join others waiting for the roost. Out on the newly shovelled mud there are a few hundred Golden Plover, 2 Ruff, various other water-related birds, and as the sun descends in the sky some Marsh Harriers cruise over to the roost in the SE corner. 

There are, however, not many Starlings, about a hundred hunched together on the mud. But as the light begins to go others come in, in tens, then hundreds. The numbers soon swell, and the flock keeps flying up in ripples and resettling. They make quite a sight, as groups bathe at the waters edge sending spray everywhere, and the birds are in a range of adult and late-juvenile plumages. Still no Rosy Pastor. As the light dims further and the temperature drops, and the numbers of Starling goes up into the thousands, it is becoming increasingly clear that the star is not going to appear on the stage tonight. It would take a miracle to see it now. People are beginning to drift off. I keep searching through the scope, and miraculously, there on the water's edge for a few second is , well ...

It's not a common Starling in standard plumage. It is quite pale cold grey underneath. It has a solid block of dark wing plumage, and in the brief time I have it is facing quarter-angle towards me so I cannot see the back well. And then it is gone. 

I'd have preferred more time to get a good look. I was expecting something a bit more buffy all over. But I recalled a photo (here) which I checked out afterwards and I think there is nothing to be gained by worrying about some weird plumage aberration in Common Starling. Where's the fun in that? Lists don't fill themselves, so there we are. Rose-Coloured Starling. 190.

Putting the band back together at Hickling.

With jabs done and Lockdown easing it was time to get David out to join me and Mike for a day out. The always excellent and informative Birds of The Heath had reported a veritable smorgasbord of mediterranean rarities at Hickling, so we decided to head there for a change. I'd had a brief visit in 1984 before news of a candyfloss-pink Ross's Gull at Twitchwell had us running for the exit, so this was effectively new territory for me.

A pleasant surprise was how good the roads were until a few miles from Hickling. Apart from the 20 minute wait for road-works, at which inevitably no-one was working. The less pleasant surprise was the bright warm sunshine of Hertfordshire had been replaced with a sea fret of dull, cold, and drizzle.

We got the list rolling with a tick-and-run visit to the Roller at Icklingham. A UK lifer for David, barely a week-old repeat tick for me. Then Hickling and a walk out to Stub's Mill along Brendan's Marsh. This was pristine wader habitat, and delivered with 2 Black-Winged Stilts, 2 Wood Sandpipers, 2 Green Sandpipers, a calling Greenshank and a multi-coloured collection of Ruffs in addition to the resident Avocet, Redshank, and Lapwing. the Swifts and Hirundines swooping over the marsh were joined by a Hobby belting through. We reached Stubb's Mill and had two Chinese Water Deer to add to our list - a lifer for me - and 2 Spoonbill in the waterlogged wood.

Back to the centre and round the reserve path. Slower going here - no sign of the breeding Cranes, and unsurprisingly the Swallowtail butterflies were keeping out of sight too. We had Marsh Harriers food-passing, a male Marshy over our heads, then a Cuckoo working its way through the reeds, and a fly-over Great-White Egret. Back to the View point along the road on the eastern edge of the reed bed overlooking the marsh, and here finally we had the Stilts parading around in the open with those ridiculous outsize kinked red legs. We added Dunlin and Little Ringed Plover to the list, found a further 3 Spoonbill to bring our tally to 5; quite a bit of flapping, flying, and preening from these fantastic birds. A flock of waders over was 5 Curlew and two noticeably smaller birds allowed us to add 2 Whimbrel to the day list. 

And that was it. Any disappointment we may have had from the weather and consequent lack of insects was outweighed by the sheer relief of being out with great company enjoying good birds. The time spent at the view point with mediterranean birds visible amongst a wealth of waders and associated waterbirds was just exceptional birding. Will take quite something to beat that.

My year-list now stands at 148. I find, given constraints and ambition, that a target of 200 works for me. Much more than that and I would need to be out much more and much further afield. A look through the list and I think with a decent second half I can still make 200. A great start today. Can't wait for the follow up maybe next week. 

Zugzwang in Norfolk

Thursday in Norfolk. It had to be done. There was the Rufous-tailed Bush Chat Scrub Robin thing, which surely any serious birdwatcher should go for, then at the other end of the North Norfolk Coast there was a sprinkling of Red-Flanked Bluetails and a Dusky Warbler. But as David and I, with Mike in Covid-secure separate car, made our way north, there was a feeling that this could all end in disaster. Rare migrants seem to have a distinctive behaviour pattern: Arrive, zoom around calling frequently all excited at their new surroundings out in the open taking it all in, slowly realise they are on their own, and quickly either leave or spend their remaining time time hiding silently in thick undergrowth. We have clearly reached that last stage with two of the three, and the third, Dusky Warbler, generally bypasses the zooming around stage and goes straight to the hiding bit.

Hence we found ourselves in a large crowd in a field at Stiffkey watching the clock and in that familiar position. Not to have come? Well, they might show and that Bush Robin thing might never appear again on British soil in our lifetimes. Stay a while and leave? Well, it might appear. Stay until it appears? Well that could be all day for nothing. We were in birding Zugzwang, which as you will all know is a Chess term for a position where it is your move and every available move makes your position much worse.

We clocked a few typical birds from the field and adjacent coastal path; lots of Pink-footed Geese and Brent Geese, a Marsh Harrier, two Red Kites, Wigeon, Little Egrets, Redwings, and some passing Chaffinches with the occasional Redpoll. We even had very distant Gannet. But we took the plunge and headed for Holme, with David adding a Cattle Egret from the car at Holkham.

Holme Beach car park, currently Bluetail central, was jam-packed so we went to the Observatory. We wandered round, getting Razorbill, Red-Throated Diver, Common Scoter and Great-Crested Grebe on the sea, a fly-by Pintail, 500 Golden Plover, a Merlin carrying prey flying past (again!) and a few Redwings, then back at the obs the Warden went to the Heligoland Trap setting the Dusky Warbler off chuck-chucking and flying around. I got 'typical' views of it darting between bushes, and Mike went one better seeing it briefly on the ground under a bush.

We left to go to the Beach Car park and on the way out Mike stopped his car and leapt out - a Ring Ouzel had been in a bush besides his car and flown into a dip. We looked over this area for a while, seeing lots of Redwings and both David and Mike had subsequent views of one or more Ouzels. just fleeting views.

We finished up at the beach car park and briefly joined a small crowd staring at Bluetail-free bushes. But we were done.

Not much for a list, but it was fun. We were prepared for disappointment, so the hunt for Ouzels was a bonus, and the essence of birding.

And that felt like the end of Autumn. List-wise, its been mixed, but experience-wise its been great. The fun of being out with good company witnessing migration on a grand scale and seeking a few exotic waifs and strays amongst it all is unbeatable. The excitement of the unexpected. We've cheered, we've kicked a few grass tussocks in frustration, we've gone 'No not that bush the next one - oh its gone' quite a lot. We've said 'at least its not raining' as its started to rain, and we've ticked a few good birds and found some decent ones

But most of all we've witnessed bird migration. the older I get, the more I go birdwatching and the more birds I see, the more amazing the whole thing seems. To look at a Rabbit or Fox and think if those arms were a bit different the creature could rise up into the air and travel huge distances - just a bonkers notion. Our ornithologist forebears thought summer visitors hibernated. Flying thousands of miles away for winter and then flying thousands of miles back, seems far less likely, but is the amazing reality. And those grubs eating the cabbages in your gardens? You won't believe what happens to them. I could tell you, but you wouldn't begin to be able to imagine it. 

Anyway, the next chapter beckons, which will probably be more local with fewer rarities. Bring it on.

Norfolk Thursday 15th

NE winds onto the Norfolk coast in mid-October. Who could ask for more? so David and I pitched up at Cley at 9:30 to join what would undoubtedly be a large number of sea watchers.

Actually there was just two other people, everyone else having gone off bush-bashing. But we were playing a long game - let everyone else find the birds and trot round letter cleaning up. Well that was the plan.

We'd missed 3 Poms but there was still stuff moving; Kittiwakes, Eiders, a few Scoters, Wigeon, Brent Geese and Auks, and a couple of Red Throated Divers on the sea. And a male Mallard. There was a shout of Peregrine? And we saw a falcon with prey going across the sky. It looked very brown for a Peregrine. It was, of course, a Merlin, but the flight with prey and the bulk of the female did throw me I must admit. That dashing hunting Merlin flight? Well, it wasn't that.

We kept going for a couple of hours, at the end of which we were the only ones there. Two Little Auks sped through mid-range, and at the end of our session a party of Scoters heading east had a bird out front with a broad white trailing wing patch; nice to get Velvet Scoter on the list. We ended with a list of probables was well: a couple of very distant skuas were large and heavy (I believe the technical term for these views is 'definite Pom'), a distant party of gulls looked like Little Gulls as they were light and buoyant with a mix of all pale wings and black W but too far to clinch the dark underwing, and a female duck whizzing through was almost certainly a Long-Tailed Duck, with that distinctive pointed-wing look, but I just couldn't clinch it. But that uncertainty is one of the joys of sea-watching. 

For some reason David was mad keen to see Cattle Egret. We stopped at North Point Pools where some had been reported but with no cattle in sight we headed on. 

Holkham was our next and final stop. We soon came across a group at a bush contains a reported Blyth's Reed Warbler. The bird showed well displaying a massive bill. Nice. We went on, stared blankly at a space where a Red-flanked Bluetail had been, and ended up at the end of the wood on the dunes where a juvenile Barred Warbler was giving very decent views. Ten Cattle Egret flew distantly past giving David his target tick.

Here we heard that the Blyths had been downgraded to plain Reed. Really? Despite the tuc-tuc call reported first thing? As we turned to head back for the car the Cattle Egrets suddenly appeared flying in formation near us, before settling in the adjacent field where they gave fantastic views, perching on a cows, back, catching frogs, whilst a Great White Egret wandered serenely around. David had got his wish fulfilled in spectacular fashion..

We retraced our steps towards Lady Anne's Drive. There were birds all over, particularly Redwings and Blackbirds. Siskins called over, and once a Brambling. Goldcrests were everywhere, so much that stopping to look at birds simply because there was a movement was a waste of time, and calls were the key. We went past the Not Blyth's, gave it another look, Christ that's a hell of a bill, then as we were discussing the lack of any Chiff-Chaffs we came across a group looking at one with some Goldcrests. A quick double-note call and yes! Yellow-Browed Warbler giving excellent view for this species.

And that was our lot. There were Pallas' Warblers at Stiffkey, but it was 4:15, there was parking, ages waiting for them to appear possibly, then the two-and-a-half hour trip back. It wasn't as though we were going to accidentally stumble across a Rufous Bush-Robin was it? So we called it a day and left for home. An excellent day in Norfolk.

End of Autumn at Cley

I thought Autumn was done. I spent 31st October morning at Canvey Point in a SE wind with a number of local stalwarts in anticipation of a host of sea birds being blown into the Thames and ... nothing. I was resigned to a year without a skua, or any notable sea movement. But the forecast for Tuesday 5th November showed a strong onshore wind in north Norfolk for the afternoon, so perhaps the chance for some fireworks? (sorry).

Dave was unavailable so just myself and Mike pitched up at Cley around 10. There was already a big crowd at the coastguards. We took the opportunity of light winds in the morning to walk up to and beyond the East Bank with a view to concentrating on the sea alter when the wind was forecast to rise.

Mike saw a Woodcock flying strongly over Arthur's Marsh, and we watched it hurtle into the fence along the beach, Tumble over and land in the beach. It seemed to be stunned, possibly injured, so we went towards it taking some time to observe this gem of a bird, nestling into the pebbles and observing us with its large eye. Surely one of my favourite birds. As we got closer it took off and flew out to sea and along the beach, so presumably all well.

The Long-Tailed Duck was still on the pool near the shelter on the east bank, and also Pintail, Brent Goose, Wigeon, Shoveler, Teal, and a Marsh Harrier spooking them all. We carried on beyond the path at East Hide and had some tantalising small birds but they were Goldfinches and a Linnet. I spotted some Grey Plover, Dunlin, Redshank and Curlew out on the marsh and Mike pointed out a pristine winter Spotted Redshank much closer in - a splendid sight.

So, back to the coastguards and the sea. Our totals for occasional watches on our walk and then a concentrated with in the afternoon was as follows:

All 3 Divers in flight, 2 Black-throated and one Great Northern

Gannet over a hundred. A flock of 70 or so moved slowly west, repeatedly diving into the sea from height. surely one of the great sights of watching sea birds. All stages of plumage were seen well and close in as the wind developed.

3 Velvet Scoter, hundreds of Common Scoter, 1 Merganser, plus a few Goldeneye. All going west.

9 Pomarine Skua, 3 Arctic Skua, 3 Great Skua . All well out at sea apart form a Great Skua along the beach, and all going west.

Kittiwake in their hundreds heading east.

Little Auk 2 flying west.

Personally the highlight was the skua passage. Like most birders, I love Skuas and don't see enough of them. In particular, I don't see many Poms, so this was a chance to get to grips with them. If you haven't seen me at sea watches, I'm the guy at the end going 'what was that?' every time a skua flies past. But today my diagnosis of what I was watching chimed in with what others were saying. A heavy, consistent flight with big powerful wing beats and a substantial frame seem to fit the bill for Pom, whereas something dashing around looking for prey seems more likely to be Arctic. Crikey, next I'll be self-identifying Caspian Gulls!

And those ID books in my shelf. 'Skuas and Jaegers' by Klaus Malling Olsen and Hans Larsson. Quite the book in its time. Now rendered completely useless by the internet. So much better to go onto Youtube and see the birds flying rather than just reading up about it.

Year listing in Norfolk

Mike and Dave were in the car by not long after seven, and the Last of the Summer Wine Year-Listing trip to Norfolk was on.

We pitched up at Wells around 9;30ish and parked in a lay-by opposite the holiday camp just beyond the railway and walked down to a likely-looking wetland. We soon found the Wood Sandpipers (168), as always the epitome of avian elegance, People soon started to arrive and a couple pointed out  Whinchat (169), freshly arrived and working their way along a fence. Lesser Whitethroat - the first of many - sang, Swallows swopped around, and distantly a Spoonbill (170) flew east although David failed to pick this one up. also lots of Avocets and a Wigeon.

Then on to Burnham Overy for the Purple Heron. As we were walking down to the crowd all looking determinedly into the marsh, David interrupted a long spiel about how he doesn't seem to pick up or see birds these days to point out a Bittern (171) on a reed. We duly watched this for a while until it flew off and dropped into the reeds. We arrived at the crowd to find them annoyingly and frustratingly blasé about the Purple Heron. Yes over there somewhere, been showing well, not showing at the moment, will no doubt be out soon. We scanned for a while, got distracted by a couple of Spoonbills very distantly circling, two Marsh Harriers and a Red Kite, and then it was out (172). Literally it climbed out of the ditch and wandered around. What a bird, even at a couple of hundred yards. All neck, and an enormous bill. Check out the photo at the top - yes its in there. David said it was like an Anhinga, and it was.

Duly relaxed we started looking around and had 3 Whimbrels in a field, a Little Egret and a Great White Egret, a Grey Heron making 6 heron species including the Spoonbills. The mewing/cawing of Mediterranean Gulls drew our attention, and then on the way out a pair of Grey Partridges (173). We bumped into some birders determinedly heading down to the Heron. Was it around?  Yes. Over there somewhere, been showing well, not showing at the moment, will no doubt be out soon.

On to Titchwell for some lunch. Mike thought he heard Turtle Dove purring briefly round the car park. We went on to the reserve proper - a few Bearded Tits, lots more Avocets, a few (hundred) Brent Geese still, a single Little Ringed Plover, another Whimbrel, 19 Blackwits, a couple of Grey Plovers, a few Barwits and Sanderling on the beach and then on the Tidal Pool two feeding Spoonbills and nine Turnstone. Med Gulls everywhere, calling all the time. We walked through the fen trail and got our first dragon of the year - a single Large Red Damselfly, then 3 male Red Crested Pochard (174) in very fine plumage pursuing a single female, and another Lesser Whitethroat flying around, Mike thought he herd that Dove again,  and then in the centre someone saying they'd had Turtle Dove walking round the car park at 6am.

To finish, Snettisham. We parked at the beach car park and walked north toward Heacham. My first trip to this open scrub and reed habitat - impressive. There were lots of warblers, many Whitethroat and several Lesser Whitethroat including one doing a song flight - we had no idea this species did this. A coupe of Willow Warblers and a Sedge Warbler. Also my first Speckled Wood and Small Copper of the year. Then Mike found a single female Wheatear, and a pair of Stonechats clearly feeding young. We got to the end, scanned the field north - there more Whimbrel and two more Grey Partridge, then walked back along the dyke - hunting Marsh Harrier being harried by Lapwings and a Red Kite, another Spoonbill, our sixth for the day at four sites, and two more Whimbrel bring the total to 9. Finally another pair of Grey Partridge and we were done for the day, heading back home via our regular stop at Sainsbury's cafe in King's Lynn to go through the list.

Final total just over 90. Another splendid day in Norfolk - good weather, great birds, great company.

More Norfolk early November.

Note - login problems mean this is somewhat overdue, but here it is anyway.

A couple more visits to Norfolk, this time in the excellent company of local birder and outstanding photographer David.

First was Titchwell on 3rd. We got out the car and immediately had a flock of Starlings going through the car park with a high pitched trilling - Waxwings! We had a look around but could not relocate them. Next stop was the feeders and my first Brambling for the winter, a sombre female. then out on the freshmarsh and plenty of Ruff, a few Avocets, and assorted waders and ducks. David picked out a Merlin flying over the marsh and disappearing westwards - first for this year (and a few more) for me. The beach had been productive for some but we saw only standard stuff - Common Scoter, Goldeneye, Merganser, Red-Throated Diver.

Back to the centre and we were tipped off that the Waxwings had gathered round the entrance, so we joined a small crowd and had a fantastic half an hour surrounded by birds voraciously feeding. They ignored us to settle just a few feet away in bushes picking off berries and trilling to each other. Fantastic!

Then Monday 7th and the winds were strong from the North East. We pitched up at Cley beach car park later than ideal due to my family commitments but still in time to see some movement. It was high tide and the waves were pounding the beach. Ducks were moving steadily westwards. Several flocks of Eiders moved west confusing me initially with the contrasting white and black of the drakes. A few hundred must have moved through during the day. We quickly had success with a Little Auk belting west close to the shoreline. I had seen Little Auk briefly once many years before, although in all honestly it might have been a Starling, so it was nice to get a proper view of this enigmatic northern bird whizzing along. There were a few more at different distances during the watch, and we soon had 3 distant Little Gulls and then 2 even more distant Pomarine Skuas going west. One of the watchers was pointing out the pale rump indicated Pom, although to be honest I thought I was doing well just to see them at all.

More ducks went west - Common Scoter, Wigeon, Brent Geese, a male Pintail and a Red-Breasted Merganser. For a moment I thought a horse was swimming through the surf, but it was an enormous bull Grey Seal.

A quick stop at the reserve centre for coffee and lone Waxwing, then Holkham Gap for a flock of Shore Larks. They were flighty but often ended up nearer us than when they took up, and on one occasion flew round our heads calling away. Fantastic views of about 80 birds against a dramatic but darkening autumn sky.

At this point I normally post some distant grainy shots, but no need today. I can just send you to David's blog for some excellent photos of the Waxwing and Shore Larks. A couple of days seeing some fantastic birds with good company - who could want for more.

Back to the Dell of Broken Dreams

The period of easterlies appears to be drawing to a close, so I headed off to Norfolk once more to try and get a rare siberian vagrant. A quick check of birdguides, and I found myself back at the Dell of Broken Dreams.

About thirty of us scoured the area, peering under every hollybush in the vicinity of the beach huts for the Olive-Backed Pipit that had been seen earlier that morning, but only one person saw it, the extremely capable Howard who did his level best to get everyone onto it but the bird just wouldn't co-operate.

I gave up after two hours with nothing to show for it but some Goldcrests and Robins and went to Burnham Overy Staithe intending to walk out to Gun Hill and search for migrants. I met a birder coming back who'd had just four Redwings. At this point, dear reader, I had something of an epiphany. I thought "sod it. I'm not going to spend five hours in the car and several hours bashing round dunes with nothing to show for it. I'm off to Titchwell." I think something in my birding psych died there and then. It was as though I'd decided to stop cooking my own food and simply order takeaways from now on.

So I joined the queue of fellow geriatrics at Titchwell and marvelled at the exhibits. Yellow-Browed Warbler by the feeders. And there it is! flitting around a nearby bush. Jack Snipes (plural!) in the marsh by your feet. And there they were, bobbing away. Little Stint on the scrape! Two sparkly birds whizzing around being chased by Golden Plover, their juvenile plumage interspersed with new grey feathers. the bonanza continued with a Curlew Sandpiper going into dark brown/white plumage but just a hint of buff on the breast. From the beach two female Velvet Scoter with their twin face spots just visible. And on the return trip two Spoonbill in the far corner, not asleep, although there may have been more. And lots of Ruff.

Perhaps its a question of balance. If you spend all your time hunting Siberian vagrants you won't see much. It you go to well-marked out reserves you will see more but they won't be your personal achievements. Its up to the individual to find the balance that suits them best. I think I just about managed that today.

The Dell. Where birding dreams go to die.

Easterly wind, Norfolk rammed with rarities, Holkham pines, stretching about 4km from Burnham Overy dunes in the west to Wells in the east is probably the pre-eminent woodland in the UK for rare birds in Autumn. Lady Ann Drive is smack in the middle and its here I pitch up at around 10 am.

For the morning I head west to look for a Radde's Warbler. It appears to have gone, but never mind I see four Yellow Browed Warblers, a cracking Firecrest, and out on the dunes a distant but clearly visible Great Grey Shrike, a Redstart, a Great White Egret in an adjacent ditch, and oodles of Thrushes and Starlings including my first Fieldfare of the winter and sufficient Song Thrush and Blackbird to mean they are clearly migrants.

The Road to the Dell is paved with good intentions.

But rarity-central is The Dell, at the other end of the pines. Yesterday it held Arctic Warbler, Radde's Warbler, and Olive Backed Pipit. the OBP has been seen today so off I yomp, ignoring calling YBWs on the way. I arrive to find a lot of morose and downcast birders standing gloomily around, and a huddle of people staring forlornly at a small grassy thicket. The pipit was seen just here, briefly, hours ago. And so it continues, with masses of Robins and Goldcrests, some Blackcaps and Chiffchaffs and a constant stream of thrushes overhead, but compared to the morning there is nothing.

This is not the first time I've struggled in the Dell. I wonder seriously what the ratio of birds reported to birds seen is, i.e. of the fifty or so birders who pass through the Dell on a day in October, how many actually see whatever the star bird is? Its a Bermuda triangle for rarities. It was so much easier in my student days bashing the Yorkshire coast. Far fewer bushes to bash for about the same number of rarities.

The Olive-Backed Pipit was here. And may still be here. Who knows?

Perhaps I'll just do the reserves next time. Clearly signposted easy-to-see birds. Or stick to the dunes.

Norfolk - Monday 9th May

What could be better than a hot sunny Monday in May on the Norfolk coast? Well the previous day would have been better, but such is birding.

Early doors at Pat'sPool. A distant Temminck's Stint, but well lit and good views, then a selection of waders - Greenshank, Ruff, Little Ringed Plover, Black Tailed Godwit, Dunlin, Common Sandpiper, and of course Avocet and Redshank but those pass unnoticed now. A White Wagtail in the corner, and a spectacular Marsh Harrier over. Then everything went up, or off, as a Peregrine came over. Later a Hobby had a similar effect.

On to Titchwell and a packed Parinder Hide. Both stints are here today hidden on the far bank of the near island. One emerges, but which is it? We almost take a vote, but the consensus is Little Stint; black legs, rufous in the back, slightly tatty breast patterning. Then someone points out that the Temminck's Stints are sat in front of us, and indeed they are; like mini Common Sandpipers, dull grey-green. Fantastic views. Less than fantastic photos below.

Just time for Red Crested Pochard from the screen by the Fen hide, and then onto Cholesely Drying Barns. There are some other birders, and we peer through the hedge. A Dotterel, barely visible in the dip of a ploughed field. Then another, and as our eye gets in we get to 13 Dotterel. Great views, less than great photos.

The stand out birds of the day were the Ruff. About 6 males in total plus one Reeve. The males all in spectacular breeding plumage. On return I dug out my copy of "The Ruff" by Johan G Van Rhijn, one of the Poyser series. I recall something about the colours of the ruffs signifying social status; that the black ruffs are dominant at leks, that the white ones are pages to the dominant males, and the more pages a dominant male has the more successful it is at breeding, and there are a third group of males who go from lek to lek challenging the dominant males. However on re-reading it is not as clear as this. The colour combinations of ruff and ear coverts are not fixed or limited, and social position is not fixed. Some pages can step up to be dominant if the dominant male disappears, for instance. This seems to be a current theme of sociology; that we had a phase when we were able to identify rules of behaviour for certain species, but now we find increasingly that, as in humans, social rules of the animal kingdom are there to be broken. Nevertheless, whatever the actual details of the lek, to see the males in that brief period when they have the full mating regalia is really something special.

Norfolk coast in Feb

A beautiful crisp sunny day on the Norfolk coast. First up Blakeney Freshmarsh; my first visit, and I had concerns about finding it, but the invariable Norfolk rule of following the pack worked well. I joined the crowd by the NW corner. A male Hen Harrier flew high over the marsh, a stunning sight against the clear blue sky. The Lapland Buntings were on show by the pools. Taking a slow wander round some churned up mud, or sitting on the wires of the fence. They are just coming into summer plumage, and I got a cracking view of a female in full summer plumage. A couple of males were developing the full black band across the chest. The bunts were joined by seven Twite briefly - on a wire, then hidden in the undergrowth.

On to Burnham Overy Staithes, but a quick stop for an intriguing buzzard. A pale bird came over the road on flat wings. It looked long-winged, and seemed to have a longer head than usual. Just the plumage details to check and I was in with Rough-Legged Buzzard,  and that's when it all went wrong. No clear black belly patch, no clear black terminal band, and the upper side was all brown - no white on the tail. A salutary lesson in buzzard variability.

A walk down to the western edge of Holkham Marsh, then on to the beach and round Gun Hill. Male Bullfinch in the hedge, Egyptian Geese and a few Pink-Footed Geese on the marsh, a Red Kite over the marsh itself, then some common waders on the beach and that was it. The searched-for Shore Larks had flown off after being chased by a dog and were nowhere to be seen. The most interesting sight was a Typhoon looping the loop overhead. Oh well ... 

Finally Titchwell. There were Siskins close enough to touch in the Alders, a few Water Pipits on a cleared area of the marsh, some Frisky Marsh Harriers, Avocets in number, then from the beach a Shoveler on the sea, some Wigeon, RB Merganser, Goldeneye, and a large raft of Common Scoter. Walking back a Water Rail was out in the open by the path, and 4 Bearded Reedlings showed well but distantly. I had joined up with a birder on a daylist quest, and as we approached the exit he expressed surprise we had not seen a Cetti's warbler; two chased each other through the reeds. He wondered where he could get Barn Owl; one flew across the adjacent field. We called out various other birds but to no avail. Not bad for a reserve with "nothing special".

Finally, I note that in a previous post I said I hadn't been to Titchwell since the mid 1980's. Flipping through my notes I see I went in Jan 1991 and saw Bewick's Swans and Long-Tailed Duck. I have no recollection of this visit and absolutely none of seeing those birds. Memory is an incomplete and selective thing!

Holkham Wildlife Park - 19th Oct

With a fantastic set of birds in North Norfolk and a change of weather looming it was a no-brainer to have a second visit to Holkham Wildlife Park aka Holkham Pines.

I paid my entrance fee at the Queen Anne Drive car park and headed off to the first exhibit - Isabelline Shrike. I spent a half hour watching the bird work the hedgerow, dropping down frequently and once impaling a worm on a thorn. There was one other birder there; as I fiddled with my adapter and camera finally ending up with the horror below as my best effort he calmly clamped his iPhone to his scope eyepiece, stood back and calmly took a video. I think I'm wasting my time with this adapter lark.

That's the Isabelline Shrike. You can clearly see the distinctive reddish tail and dark eye patch. Honest.

He introduced himself as G and we paired up for the day, luckily for me G turned out to be a former twitcher, full of skills and knowledge but relaxed enough to approach this as a fun day out. G was less lucky as he got me. My only material contribution came next as I took us to the bush that had previously held the Red Flanked Bluetail. Last week I had stood in a crowd and had 5 seconds of view; today the pair of us had the bird to ourselves, quietly working its way through the undergrowth, even flitting through the branches above our heads at one point. Blue tail, red flanks, white chin, the lot. fantastic.

We worked the area a bit and G had a Pallas's Warbler stick its head out at one point, but we couldn't refind it, only masses of Goldcrests. On the way back to the car park we found our only group of birders of the morning at our next exhibit, a Firecrest. It gave typical Firecrest views, i.e. a fleeting glimpse of the head and shoulders but nothing else before it dived deep into the middle of a Holly Tree. One of these days I will see an entire Firecrest in full view.

Next we headed toward Wells Wood. Again the groups of birders were our guide; a large group stood under a group of spindly oaks watching a Hume's Leaf Warbler. It was earning its keep today, consistently calling and at intervals perching in the open to allow the crowd to admire its slightly faded look.

Next the Blyths Reed Warbler exhibit. the bird had not been seen for two hours and with only a few people looking for it out prospects were dim. G brought his experience to bear, and also his iPhone. A few "chuck-chuck"s from the bird call app were soon met with a response in kind from deep in the brambles. We then followed the line of gently moving flower heads until we began to see the bird working its way though the undergrowth. Larger than I had expected, it was washed out grey. It gave the characteristic "inverted banana" posture a few times, and was constantly flicking its tail. How to definitively tell it from Reed? No idea, but the affirmation of the crowd is good enough for my list! A smart little bird and thanks to G for finding this lifer.

Ideal Blythe's habitat. Less than ideal birding habitat.

It was mid afternoon and my permit to birdwatch was due to expire so I left G searching for more birds, in particular a skulking bird with a soft "tack" we had seen flit across our path earlier. The final exhibit was a crowd by the Car Park looking into a holly tree - Pallas's Warbler! Like the Hume's it flicked its way round suitably exposed twigs giving the admiring crowd full value - another outstanding bird. The only thing it could have done to please the crowd more was to sit in the open and sing, which I mention as the last time I saw this species 30 years ago that is what it was doing.

Supporting birds included an obliging and colourful Brambling under some pines, a couple of Chiffchaffs, a pair of Stonechat, a few Common Buzzards and Marsh Harriers, Redwings and Skylarks overhead.

I was left with some intriguing questions. Birders have a choice of visiting the exhibits or finding their own; how long does it take to find your own? Our experience from the Blyths was you could spend all day and not find one. How many other skulkers are there out there? A late Olive-Backed Pipit was reported after I left, and a second Bluetail was found over the weekend, so I suspect there may be quite a few other undiscovered skulkers in the 3-mile stretch of thick woodland. By contrast, I suspect most Shrikes have been found as they sit on the top of bushes out in the open.

Thanks to G for excellent company and expertise. Another smashing day in Norfolk