Bodney, Norfolk

Rain in the night cleared early morning to warm sunny spells, however, a few light showers passed through later in the morning.
I like to make several visits to my area in Bodney in the Watton Brook Valley where a variety of habitats converge to give a great location for resting and feeding migrants.
A small area of unused rough grassland provides good breeding grounds for insect species.  A few old Elders are a good source of food for migrant Warblers, whilst the surrounding tall grass is this populated by lots of Ragwort and Nettles.
As soon as I arrived at this location this morning it was evident that Sylvia Warblers were in the largest Elder, whilst the old Hawthorn attracted good numbers of Hirundines, with possibly 100+ Swallows forming the majority species.
The Sylvia Warbler species were dominated by Whitethroats and Blackcap, there was no sign however of Garden Warbler or Lesser Whitethroat on this particular visit.  A couple of Stonechats arrived, I suspect these were the same birds I saw earlier in a weedy ditch to the east.
I saw no evidence on this visit of overhead passage.

My visited location today at Bodney

The above area of rough grassland attracted many species today, for migrant activity I paid a lot of attention to the lovely Elder in the far left middle of this shot.  Migrants, and resident species seen in this single Elder were: Robin, Song Thrush, Stonechat (2), Dunnock, Wren, Blackcaps, Whitethroats, Chiffchaff, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Marsh Tit (1), Greenfinch, and Goldfinch (14 species)
Male, female, and juvenile Blackcaps were seen here today along with a low estimate of 10+ Whitethroats, the now ripened and palatable Elderberries providing a good food source for these birds.
An initial gathering of 30+ Swallows eventually built to over 100+ birds, along with several House Martins.  A large Hawthorn saw gathering of juvenile and adult Swallows preening.

Swallows gathered in a large Hawthorn to preen

Also attracted to the Elders was a couple of Stonechats, one a moulting male, the other a strongly marked juvenile.  This is the first time I have witnessed Stonechats feeding upon Elderberries.

Stonechat feeding upon Elderberry at Bodney 18th August

Stonechat - a strongly marked juvenile at Bodney 18th August

 The wonderful thing about this mornings visit was that activity never stopped, Swallows and House Martins gathering, sometimes close above me, a couple of lovely Stonechats, and passage Warblers often revealing themselves from within Elder Bushes to either preen, sun themselves, and to feed upon fruits.

Whitethroat at Bodney 18th August

The above Whitethroat was seen in one of the Elder bushes, this was one of many seen here taking advantage of the offerings prior to their long journey south.

Species seen/heard: Wood Pigeon, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Green Woodpecker, Coal Tit, Marsh Tit (1), Blue Tit, Great Tit, Long-tailed Tit, Swallow (100+), House Martin, Chiffchaff, Blackcap, Whitethroat (10+), Wren, Song Thrush, Robin, Dunnock, Stonechat (2), Pied Wagtail, Goldfinch, Greenfinch.