Saham (Meadow and Marsh in the Watton Brook Valley in TF8900) 12 August 2026

 Today was to be sunn and hot again with wall to wall sunshine. The site visited early morning on 12 August is private land in the Watton Brook Valley close to the western limits of Watton. The habitat here comprises marsh and grazing meadow, a couple of good lengths of fruit bearing hedgerows, a large game strip, and Watton Brook.

12 August - searching for migrants

Habitats visited was the Watton Brook valley where I expected acrocephalus Warblers, and a long and well-stocked hedgerow and game strip.

As I walked north along a scrub lined ditch I first of all saw a single male Stonechat on fencing and bushes and as I reached Watton Brook the dominant species was Goldfinch, but as I walked alongside the brook I could see something different on fencing which was perched alongside a Goldfinch, the Goldfinch had an upright posture, however, the other had a horizontal carriage, I had a pretty good idea what this bird was  and checking with optics it was indeed a migrant Reed Warbler, this bird was seen a few times on the fence but also went to cover in thick herbage and reeds. 

Watton Brook at Saham 12 August (check herbage and fences for migrant birds)

The above picture was looking west along Watton Brook, it was here where I saw a Goshawk circling low over trees and farmland, also, 3 Red Kites were seen.

My return walk took me along a long and well-stocked hedgerow and gamestrip where Linnets dominated.  Also here was another Stonechat and at least two Whitethroats, one of which was a juvenile bird which picked at a blackberry.  A bit further along the hedgerow a single Chiffchaff was present.
  

Bodney Camp and Watton Brook valley 8 August 2026

Not only do I have favoured sites to visit at this time of year, I also have specific habitats within those sites I like to watch. On the morning of 8 August I visited an area of rough grassland by Bodney camp which included Watton Brook and some old Elder bushes I always check for migrant birds, especially Warblers which feed on fruits in order to build energy for their passage south. 

The most obvious birds seen overhead at first was several House Martins and Swallows, with some House Martins feeding at a considerable height.

A large Hawthorn held a preening Chiffchaff whilst other presumed early migrants included a single Willow Warbler and a couple of Blackcaps, one of which was seen to pick at an elderberry. Later, a Willow Warbler, possibly the one I saw earlier flew off strongly and low to the south-west.

At least 3 Stonechats were present, the rough grassland habitat here provides a good habitat for invertebates which Stonechats hunt for.  The 3 Stonechats seen included a male, female, and a young juvenile bird, the female was watched flying to the ground where a small inverebrate was collected and fed to the juvenile bird.

Stonechat (female) at Bodney. This bird was seen to feed a juvenile.

 Also seen on this visit was many Goldfinches (adults and juveniles) which wandered the area feeding from thistles.  Also noted was a single Stock Dove, two Grey Herons, Coal Tit, an alarm calling Whitethroat, Robin, Wren (including juveniles), and Linnets.  Raptor species were represented by one Red Kite and two Buzzards.

Houghton-on-the-Hill 3 August 2026

August through to November is my favourite time of year for birding and Houghton-on-the-Hill is a place I love to visit most during this period to watch migratory birds, either as overhead raptor passage, or newly arrived passerines feeding in the well stocked hedgerows and woodland. Houghton is on an elevated ridge of land which has commanding views to both north and south, and with the beautiful St. Mary's Church, which has stood here for over 1000 years coupled with its elevation of the surrounding land, I am sure this has served as a focal point for migrant birds for millennia. 

1. St. Mary's Church at Houghton-on-the-Hill.

Next to the churchyard is the site of the former village of Houghton, nothing exists here now other than the impression of a road which passed between houses.  I made a point of checking here first for birds given the wealth of habitat here which mostly comprises Hawthorn, Blackthorn, Dog Rose, Elder, and Bramble, I looked intially at a large Hawthorn patch which has Elder and Dog Rose growing within and with the naked eye I spotted something bright white in the Hawthorn, I checked using optics and my suspicions were confirmed, this was a stunning Lesser Whitethroat, this beautiful Sylvia Warbler was seen to preen, also, it picked at blackberries.  Also present here was Treecreeper, Blackbird, a couple of Chiffchaffs, and a single Whitethroat. I would later return to check this site before leaving.

I then walked between the hedgerows east of the church, a habitat which has a wide variety of fruiting bushes which supports migrant Warblers as they stop to feed and rest at this staging post.  On morning visits I like to start at the far end of this hedgerow corridor as the sun is then directly behind me, therefore, the initial walk out on a particularly bright early morning requires one to use listening skills to identify birds by their calls.  This morning the outbound walk east through the hedgerow corridor produced a couple of alarm calling Blackcaps and Whitethroats.

2. Looking west along the hedgerow corridor towards the church.

Once at the eastern end of the hedgerow corridor the early morning light gives great views looking west, here it is possible to watch many birds, especially Warblers, either flying between the hedgerows of picking at fruit.

A slow walk back along the hedgerow corridor produced both Whitethroats and Blackcaps, and on the grass path, a Painted Lady and Small Heath butterflies were seen.

3. Small Heath butterfly at Houghton-on-the-Hill 3 August 2026 

Upon my arrival back at the church and former village site it was clear there was an increase in activity. A single Spotted Flycatcher flew onto an outer limb of a dead tree where it remained for a few minutes, such a scarce bird sadly now.

Also present was a single juvenile Great Spotted Woodpecker which arrived to search the limbs of a dead tree.  You can see in photograph 5 the red cap which ages the bird as a juvenile, however, it is possible to see black feathers of the adult plumage beginning to show.

4. Spotted Flycatcher at Houghton 3 August 2026

5. Great Spotted Woodpecker (juvenile) at Houghton 3 August 2026

A final check of the site of the former village area, specifically, the largest patch of Hawthorn, produced 6+ Whitethroats, this was clearly a family party with adults feeding juvenile birds.  A nearby pond hosted Whitethroats, Blue Tits, and Great Tits where the birds visited to bathe.  A single Marsh Tit was also seen.  A single Red Kite drifted overhead and Raven was heard calling in the distance.

Seamere Marsh 2 August 2026 (1055-1155)

A late morning visit to Seamere Marsh where I overviewed from the Deopham road.  I arrived to the song of a Stock Dove, this was followed by 3 birds in flight.  Stock Doves are smaller than Wood Pigeons and have nicely proportioned appearance and lack any white in their plumage, they have beautiful grey upper wings with black tips and black trailing bar. 

A single Chiffchaff passed through a broken hedgerow calling as it went, and a single Swallow and 2 Swifts over.

I had prolonged views of a single Hobby overhead as it circled and made occasional short chases for winged insects which were caught and then consumed on the wing.  Other raptors included a single Kestrel, one Red Kite, and two Buzzards.  At least 3 calling Green Woodpeckers were heard.

A small flock of 9 Cormorants directly overhead climbed to a good height before descending towards Seamere.

Little Cressingham (Watton Brook) 30 July 2026

This mornings birding was on private land which lies within the army training area and my route took me along Watton Brook which runs between meadows and grassland on either side.

0710 As soon as I arrived I could see there was a wealth of activity in the immediate area, several Goldfinches were seen in the valley and in tall willows, at the same time a party of Long-tailed Tits moved along the valley, a few Whitethroats were present (including juveniles), two Carrion Crows were calling in the top of a tall dead Oak, and a Raven was heard briefly.  Looking further west along the valley using the scope I could see Stonechats and Wrens on fencing, and when I eventually reached the area, a number of juvenile Wrens were moving about waterside herbage where one bird reached for a small invertebrate.

It soon became apparent that there was several Stonechats in the valley with at least 6 being juveniles, these youngsters were readily identifiable by their spotted crowns and cream mottling on their mantles. Some young Stonechats had variable amounts of red appearing on the underparts.  

Stonechat

As I continued along the valley I was conscious of the possible early migratory, or post breeding dispersal, by acrocephalus Warblers.  It really didn't take long to hear a familiar, harsh "trrr" note coming from within cover on the river bank, this was a juvenile Reed Warbler, soon afterwards, a second Reed Warbler flew low over open country and onto fencing near where the first call was heard, very brief but lovely views of this smart bird.

A number of House Martins were watched circling above the valley and occasionally they would fly down to the water to drink.  Alarm calling House Martins alerted me to a possible raptor, Hobby maybe, this was shortly followed by movement heard out of sight in the river valley, careful inspection revealed a Sparrowhawk flying out of reeds with a small prey item.

Also of note in the valley area was a single Curlew striding over grassland, a pair of Yellowhammers, and a single Reed Bunting. 

Watton

Later in the morning I visited a friend in Watton, and in her garden I found this rather attractive Rufous Grasshopper.

Rufous Grasshopper in Watton 30 July 2026

Breckles 29 July 2026

Another hot day with a temperature high of 92° fahrenheit. We are now officially in drought conditions with a hosepipe ban in place and with no rain for the foreseeable future.  Everywhere is bone dry, grassed areas are yellow and the fire risk is extremely high.

This morning I visited private land in Breckles with specific habitat types targeted, these included mixed woodland and ground covering scrub.  Waterside willows held a number of Linnets chattering away, also, Whitethroats were noted with a frequent "churr" agitated note given.  I sat for some time looking into scrub and a couple of nearby tall Ash trees, where the latter held a constant coming and going of birds, these included one Great Spotted Woodpecker (red capped juvenile bird), Linnets, singing Greenfinch, one Nuthatch, Chiffchaff, 2+ Willow Warblers (song heard), Blackbird, Wren, Blackcap (giving alarm call), one juvenile Song Thrush, two Yellowhammer (including singing male), a foraging Marsh Tit, and at least 4 Siskins (including 2 juveniles).  Nearby Willows held an alarm calling Reed Warbler giving a repeated "trrt" note, I eventually managed to glimpse the bird in cover, this was a adult bird carrying food for young, which were also seen and appeared tail-less. 

Mimic Hornet Hoverfly at Breckles 29 July 2026 (The largest Hoverfly species in Europe).

This was also a very good morning for finding and watching insects, I concentrated my efforts in scrub habitat and was rewarded with watching 2 Mimic Hornet Hoverflies, this is the largest European Hoverfly species and has the appearance and behaviour of a Hornet.

Also seen was a wonderful male Clouded Yellow butterfly, he was an absolute beauty, two Painted Lady butterflies, Peacock, and Gatekeepers. Emperor dragonflies were also present and showing well.

Thompson Wood 25 July 2026

With todays obsession with destroying our wonderful countryside with unprecedented house building, road building, loss of valuable land to solar farms, and the use of pesticides and insecticides, it is refreshing to see the creation of habitats for the benefit of wildlife and of course for our mental health. 

Thompson Wood is owned by the Woodland Trust and was purchased by the trust in 2021, it covers 279 acres and is one of the largest sites in Norfolk owned by the trust.  Once arable farmland, Thompson Wood will see a variety of important habitats being created, these include woodland, wood pasture, open grassland, and wetland.  The Thompson area holds some of the most important reserves in the country, the creation of this new habitat will significantly add to the area with its species richness.

Visit 25 July

My visit began at the village church, here was at least two singing Wood Pigeons, a singing Stock Dove, House Martins and a couple of Swifts overhead.

1. 'Putlog' or 'putlock' on Thompson Church.

Picture 1. This shows a feature known as a 'putlog' or 'putlock' on the side of Thompson Church, these features can also be seen at intervals going up church towers.  When the church was constructed many centuries ago, logs were inserted into the buildings walls creating a type of scaffold, as the men finished constructing the church the logs were removed and infilled with flint or other building materials.  Check some of these features because sometimes the logs could not be removed and were cut away so that the remaining logs were left flush with the surrounding wall.  

The path from the church to Griston Road saw a single Little Owl between a couple of Oaks, and in an adjacent meadow 30+ Goldfinches wandered between patches of Creeping Thistle to feed, many of these birds were juveniles.  In a Hawthorn on the path at least 3 Linnets were seen including a stunning male which had bright crimson breast sides.

2. An information board explaining the  recovery of 'ghost' Pingos.

Pingos were formed 10,000 years ago at the end of the Ice Age.  The word ‘pingo’ is of Inuit origin and means ‘little hill’. As temperatures dropped, freezing groundwater caused the earth to heave upwards into ice-cored mounds. When the ice melted, the earth collapsed, leaving depressions behind. 

'Ghost Pingos' are those features which were infilled by humans to facilitate increased agricultural production, these ancient features are being restored, as they have been at this site.

A walk around the large grassland here was fairly quiet for birds, but was a good morning for butterflies which included many Gatekeepers and the stunning Painted Lady. 

3. Painted Lady - a good showing of this species this year.