And so, my first trip outside of Yorkshire this year
commences. And where better for the year-list than the home of bird-watching
itself, Norfolk. So it began. The weather was absolutely smashing, almost clear
blue sky for the whole way day, not necessarily great for the drive but it did
mean I could see some great stuff on the way down. We set off with me on 109
species for the year, but I would have loved to make it to 110 species before
we made it to sea.
I managed better than that. On the way down we saw plenty
of game birds in southern Lincolnshire, Pheasants and Red-Legged Partridges,
but on only one occasion I identified a pair of Grey Partridges feeding by the
side of the road. The view was brief, but it was enough to tell that were
definitely Greys, and that was my 110th bird. It was also only the
second time I have properly seen this species, the other times usually been
flushed, or in hindsight overruled my identification. I was well pleased with
them, and even let out a little cheer from the back of the car.
And then, a little
further on in Norfolk itself, though still not at the sea, my dad said that
there was a Buzzard ahead. But as soon as I set eyes on it I could tell that
its wings were too long for buzzard, the bird banked and revealed a forked
tail, Red Kite, my 7th raptor from the Easter break. I was very
excited having been checking for them all the way down. Earlier I had even
wondered if I had found one circling among some gulls, but it was also a gull.
It prompted the question of if they even had red kites in this part of the
country. Answer: they do indeed.
So we arrived at the sea on a stunning 111 species for
the year, with 2 very impressive ticks simply from driving down. We were
staying in West Runton, as before though never at this time of year. From our
brief tour of the site looking for a pitch we picked up Linnet, Woodpigeon and
rabbits, of which there were plenty.
By the time we were set up it was already half 3, but my
dad decided that they would go for a walk at Saltholme, so I decided to go
since the bus service, I had discovered, was not quite what it was. At
Saltholme no sooner did we arrive than did the year-ticks start to flood in.
Even as we pulled in to the remains of the car park I watched a Little Egret
rise from the neighboring marsh and fly over the road. It was not a great
view, but it was clear as day for what it was, 112.
We pulled up on the roadside, and I immediately got out
to have a look. I set my eyes on a pool next to us and spotted a number of
small waders foraging along its shoreline. I was able to get great views
through the scope, and then as they got closer, even without the scope. They
were Turnstones, a surprise to say the least, and a very pleasant one. They
were very bold, wandering right up to me and allowing me to get some decent
photos. I was well happy by this point.
-Turnstones
I had lost my family by this point; they had gone on
ahead, due to my wanderings. I managed Redshank, Curlew, Oystercatcher and many
other goodies through my exploration of the pools. I had almost caught up when
a stunning male Wheatear landed right in front of me. I was so close, such a
good view.
I then caught up with my parents, and the first question
I was asked ‘have you seen the avocets’. No, I had not, but I began the
exploration of the pools where my dad said they were and soon found them. There
was a pair of them, but the view was poor as they were some way away. Either
way, it was another year-tick, and all within about a half and hours walk. Also
on the pool was a pair of Shelduck, Wigeon and a small group of Teal
We had not even traveled that far from the car, but we
decided to head back. However, we decided to head back via the sea, and on the
way I was able to watch my 4th year-tick of the day; Sandwich Terns,
which kept drifting past in 2’s and 3’s. They were excellent to watch, as they
often drifted quite close to the coast. Besides them there was also decent
numbers of gulls, adults and juveniles resting on the water’s surface.
-Sandwich Terns
After quite a while watching the sea and the various
birds drift past we decided to head to Cley visitor center for a coffee. Since
it was quite late I had assumed it would not be open, and that was indeed the
case. However, it did give me a chance to look at the sightings board, though
there was nothing much outstanding on it. On the way between the visitor center
we drove past some areas where birds were grazing, including black swan (not
tick-able) and Egyptian goose, another year-tick. Since we were driving I was unable
to get a great view. Add that to the fact that the birds were asleep and I may
as well have not seen them for what it’s worth.
We decided to go and see if there was some form of café
van up on Blakeney point car park, but were swiftly disappointed. However, on
the way up we past a nice group of Brent Geese feeding on the marshes. I was
pretty pleased to find these, though my view was sadly too short as my family
wanted to get off. I was able to take some photos though and enjoy watching
them for 2 or 3 mins. Hopefully they will stick around later in the week,
because they really are smashing birds.
-Brent Geese
So that was our brief visit to Blakeney over and done
with, though even that had produced something special. Moving on we decided to
head back to the caravan site for a cuppa, since nowhere else seemed keen to
provide.
After that my flying start to the holiday started to slow
down, with no new year-ticks for the day. In the evening we went into Cromer
for a walk along the front. Birdwise it provided very little, only a handful of
gulls out to sea from the pier. But it has been quite a start and hopefully we
will be able to keep up this good form…
Daily Sightings:
Journey: Grey
Partridge, Red-Legged Partridge, Red Kite, Common Buzzard, Pheasant, Woodpigeon,
Pied Wagtail, Robin, Chaffinch, Common Gull, Black-Headed Gull, Magpie,
Jackdaw, Mallard, Grey Heron, Feral Pigeon,
Saltholme: Little
Egret, Redshank, Turnstone, Rook, Jackdaw, Black-Headed Gull, Skylark, Mallard,
Greater Black-Backed Gull, Swallow, Mute Swan, Oystercatcher, Curlew, Lapwing,
Shelduck, Woodpigeon, Wheatear, Avocet, Wigeon, Teal, Herring Gull, Sandwich
Tern, Cormorant, Coot, Graylag Goose, Egyptian Goose, Starling, Lesser
Black-Backed Gull,
Blakeney: Starlings,
Shelduck, Graylag Goose, Redshank, Canada Goose, Lapwing, Brent Geese, Common
Buzzard
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