After an excellent and extremely filling breakfast we checked out of Machrimore and travelled east along the coast to Cley Next the Sea and a visit to Cley Marshes NWT. After paying the £4 entrance fee we walked out to the hides in the middle of the reserve and Ellie got a view, albeit somewhat fleeting, of her first Bearded Tit. From the hide I had hoped to see the long-staying American Golden Plover and Green-winged Teal, but neither could be found much to my frustration...luckily they were only year ticks! We did see a few bits and pieces, Ruff and Black-tailed Godwits were quite numerous and as we returned to the car a Water Pipit flew over. We then got a bit lazy and drove down to the East Bank car park and took a walk out towards the sea in the hope that Ellie could get some better views of Bearded Tits, but despite hearing several we could not actually locate one!So we headed off again, and after an unsuccessful attempt at trying to see some Waxwings at Weybourne we set off south and drove round to Horsey Mill in the hope of seeing some Common Cranes. This turned out to be a complete waste of time as we saw nothing of note at all. So with time getting on, and tension rising in the car, we skipped Filby Broad and the Velvet Scoter and headed straight in to Great Yarmouth. Finally, our luck turned as we parked in the Lidl car park and were greeted by a flock of over one hundred Waxwings!
This was the other bird on Ellie's wish list, so she was thrilled to get up close to these charismatic creatures. This really picked up our moods and so we continued south feeling much happier about things.We took at quick diversion to Covehithe where we parked up and had a cup of tea, after which I took a brief walk behind the church to find a Richard's Pipit, but I only succeeded in getting completely soaked as the heaven's opened! So we completed the final leg of the day's journey and arrived at The Roost, our bed and breakfast accommodation for the night in the village of Middleton.
Breakfast was a 8.30am, so I left Ellie in bed and drove down to Burnham Overy Staithe, arriving at about 7.15am, and narrowly missing four Grey Partridge as they sidled across the road in front of me. I set up my scope and started scanning across the fields just to the south of the dunes. Luck was with me, as within a couple of minutes I picked up the Rough-legged Buzzard as it drifted west before landing out of sight in a field. I turned my attention to the grazing geese and was surprised to find seven Barnacle Geese among the hundreds of Pink-footed Geese. A few Skylarks passed by overhead, and at least five Barn Owls were hunting around the area. Just as I was getting ready to pack up, I spotted a ring-tailed harrier hunting over the fields towards Holkham Pines. My first thoughts were that it was a rather well marked, chestnut-coloured Hen Harrier, but it has since been re-identified as the North American species, Northern Harrier! A real unexpected bonus. I walked back to the car along a hedge-lined path that was packed with Blackbirds, Chaffinches and Goldfinches, and drove back to Wells for a much needed breakfast.
Ellie and I had booked a couple of days of work and decided to head up to East Anglia as Ellie had never been to Norfolk or Suffolk. Leaving home at 8.00am it was just before 1.00pm when we arrived at Titchwell RSPB, and after a couple of bacon rolls (for myself) and a baked potato for Ellie we set off for a walk through the reserve and out on to the beach. There was still a lot of work going on with the new hide being built, and coupled with the strong winds it meant we saw few birds. Out to sea a single Red-throated Diver flew through, a Sanderling and a couple of Turnstones were on the beach, and returning to the visitor center we saw seven Twite on the salt marsh. We also managed to see three Marsh Harriers hunting over the reserve.
It was already starting to get dark as we left Titchwell and headed east, as we left the reserve we saw a flock of over two hundred Pink-footed Geese in a field, with four Egyptian Geese. Further down the road we came across a covey of at least a dozen Grey Partridges and a Barn Owl on the outskirts of Burnham Norton.We stopped off just outside Burnham Overy Staithe to scan across the fields and dunes in the hope of finding the Rough-legged Buzzard that had been present for the past couple of weeks, but in failing light had no joy. However, I did pick up a Merlin. We then continued on to Wells-next-the-Sea and checked in to our Bed & Breakfast, a delightful place called Machrimore.After checking in I left Ellie to have a shower whilst I zoomed up to Warham Greens to see if I could catch the harrier roost, but arriving at 4.45pm the light had almost gone and I saw nothing other than a couple of Hares. All in all a fairly unsuccessful day with regard to the birds, but at least we were not at work!
Unfortunately, Ellie was not feeling too well, so I ended up driving up to Chew Valley Lake on my own. It was about 2.30pm when I arrived and I made straight for Woodford Lodge to get a day permit so that I could visit the hides, the permit was only £2.50.Having got my permit I stopped off at Heron's Green Bay and took a look about. The water level was surprisingly low, but it did mean that there was a fair bit of mud exposed, and this had attracted a few waders, with a pair of Ruff, four Dunlin and a total of four Green Sandpipers seen, a Snipe was also seen in flight.There were loads of birds on the water, and a 1st winter Little Gull was feeding over the lake. I was surprised to see three Ruddy Ducks on the lake after DEFRA had been culling this delightful bird over the last several years. I hope this remaining birds avoid the hunters.I was trying to find a Ring-necked Duck and Ferruginous Duck that had been around for a while, but after a hot air balloon passed over and flushed all the birds I figured my chances were now slim. I left Heron's Green and drove down to Stratford Hide. From the hide I had no luck with either of the rare ducks, and I was also aware of the time. About a dozen Meadow Pipits were feeding on the shoreline, and again there were loads of ducks on the water. As well as the large numbers of Wigeon, Teal, Shoveler, Tufted Duck, and Pochard, I picked out a few Pintail. The light was starting to go so I headed back home just after 4.00pm.UK list for 2010 now at 219 species.
After dropping Ellie off at church, I popped up to Sutton Bingham for an hour to see what was about. I had a quick look over West Pool, but there was nothing about so I headed down to the south of the reservoir and spent the rest of my available time exploring the area around the river. As I walked through the small copse I saw a pair of Mandarin and a female Teal.A small flock of about a dozen Redwings were feeding on a berry bush, and a Kingfisher showed really well in the river channel. A flock of some twenty or so Siskin were feeding in the alders, and a few Goldfinches flew over.Before I realised it was time to collect Ellie so I headed off just before 11.00am.
As the weather forecast for south Dorset was pretty good, Ellie and I set off to Arne for an afternoon in what turned out to be a really pleasant afternoon. A quick toilet stop when we first arrived proved pretty productive as I spotted a Firecrest feeding in a holly tree whilst waiting for Ellie. Unfortunately, we could not relocate it.We then set off on the walk out to Shipstal Point, along the way we failed to much in the way of birds, thought when we reached the point the tide was well in and there were three Pintail out on the water, as well as loads of Teal and Wigeon and at least a hundred Curlew.Returning to the car park we stopped off to take a look at a few stalls that had been set up for a fundraiser for the RSPB, and if I had not been stuffed after a large breakfast I would have tucked in to some of the produce on offer.A quick cup of tea back at the car and then a walk out over Combe Heath. Again, we saw very little in the way of birds until we looked out over Middlebeare channel where there were a couple of hundred Black-tailed Godwits and plenty of Redshanks and Lapwings, and when a young Peregrine flew over it was quite a sight seeing the flocks take to the air. Grey clouds started to gather so we returned to the car and headed home, and just in time as the heaven's opened.
Another pleasant evening, so I took the opportunity of visiting the reservoir and headed straight for the southern end. Between the hide and the canoe club there was a Mute Swan, a new arrival, and ten Canada Geese. A pair of Wigeon and a Little Grebe were at the extreme end.Back to West Pool where there were ten Tufted Duck and two more Little Grebes. A flock of half a dozen or so Fieldfares flew over during the next thirty minutes at least ten Pied Wagtails flew over heading south, as did a dozen Goldfinches.In the gull roost there were seven Common Gulls, and just as I was getting ready to leave a pair of Mandarin flew up from the south and but kept on going rather than land on West Pool.
