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.

 

Thompson Water 15 July 2026 (with Caroline Falvey)

At 0600 on 15 July I met my friend Caroline Falvey for some early morning's birding at Thompson Water. We met on the Peddars Way/Redbrick Road junction and walked the short distance to Thompson Water where we spent some time overviewing the water from the raised bank, from here we walked the path through the woodland carr habitat to as far as the bridge crossing the woodland stream. 

An initial overview of the water produced good numbers of Mallard in open water and at least 4 Grey Herons, which when at rest had a rather stately demeanor.  A single Black-headed Gull was present and in nearby woodland a Garden Warbler was alarm calling.  A Sparrowhawk passed low over the water whilst other raptors seen included Kestrel and one Red Kite soaring over woodland.

As we walked the path through the woodland carr we came upon an open area of reedbed and willow scrub, the immediate habitat around us was Hemp Agrimony where it was evident that a number of Reed Warblers were creeping about within the plant frequently uttering a "truk" note.  One Reed Warbler was also in song.

1. Thompson Water 15 July 2026 (Hemp Agrimony in the foreground)

As well as some lovely close encounters with Reed Warblers, the above views of the water produced numerous Mallard and 4 Great Crested Grebes (display seen).

Caroline and I then continued through the woodland where we commented upon the number of Rowans bearing fruit.  The dominant tree species is Oak, Ash, and Beech with much Holly understorey, this woodland was very reliable for Golden Pheasant, however, these have sadly long gone.

We then retraced our steps back through the woodland carr and to the viewing bank for a final overview of the water, but before reaching the bank we again stopped at the location pictured above where several Reed Warblers were present, being a calm day we could see slight movements of the weed as the birds skulked in cover, our patience was rewarded when a juvenile Reed Warbler appeared in front of us for about 30 seconds, this bird showed pale gape flanges and may have been tailless.   At the bank we hoped for Hobby, however, there was no show on this visit, we did see at least two Sand Martins over the water searching for insect prey.

Caroline provided expertise on her plant identification, most notably with Hemp Agrimony and the benefits it provides for butterflies and other insects.   Butterflies seen included Gatekeeper, Red Admiral, and Holly Blue.

This was a lovely visit to Thompson Water with Caroline, it was great seeing you again and I look forward to our next meet. 

Hockham (Hockham Heath) 12 July 2026

The forests at Hockham are dominated by large compartments of commercial Pine crops of varying ages, from mature woodland down to clearings with pine regeneration.  It was one of these regenerating clearings I visited this morning, these habitats hold a greater diversity of life for a number of years until pine trees grow tall enough to become the dominant habitat, the comforting factor here is that these pine compartments are rotational, therefore, there will always be clearings to accommodate important Breckland species.

1. Hockham Heath 12 July 2026

The habitat shown above is at an early regeneration stage and the plentiful scrub seen here this morning typical open country birds, these included two Stonechats, a couple of singing Yellowhammers, Whitethroats (young heard), one Garden Warbler, Chiffchaff, and several Linnets which included a bird with food and a very attractive male Linnet holding territory in an area of scrub.  The mature woodland periphery held Blackbird and a calling Nuthatch

2. Linnet (male) close to nest site 12 July 2026

3. Linnet being very obliging

Linnets were the dominant species within the clearing today, which was not a surprise given the available habitat for breeding.  The male Linnet pictured here was perched quietly above a patch of scrub where a nest is probably located.

Also noted in the clearing was a number of Ruddy Darter dragonflies (male and female), and several butterfly species including Small White, Peacock, Gatekeeper, and Large Skippers.