Falcon, Finches, and Buntings

 A stunningly beautiful day today with both superb light and visibility.  A cool 7 degrees Celsius with a fresh northerly wind.  Other than a few moderate to severe morning frosts there has been little winter to talk of so far this year.  There is still time for wintry conditions, however, as we approach March, any such conditions should be short lived.

This morning I walked private land within a part of the army training area. The topography here is not what I expect many who do not know Norfolk perceive, this part of my patch is very undulating with some decent climbs away from low lying areas, but one thing Norfolk is famous for are the vast skyscapes which exist here in abundance.

Brambling. Note the contrasting orange and white underparts

Walking along hedgerows and game cover produced many Brambling, Chaffinches, Yellowhammers, and Reed Buntings.  When at rest in a tree one beautiful Brambling showed distinct differences from its close cousin, the Chaffinch.  Even without optics, a Brambling was seen perched in a tree next to a Chaffinch, the Brambling has an orange breast contrasting strongly with pure white underparts, the female Chaffinch has mousey brown underparts whilst the male bird is pinkish, both sexes lack the bright white seen on Brambling.  Both Finch species were seen around game cover which is a good source of cover and food for these birds.

A very respectable count of 1000+ Starlings were seen on heathland along with around 30 Lapwings. The Starlings occasionally rose up in unison from the ground and settle again, however, my attention was then drawn when the birds rose high in a tight murmuration, at the same time, the Lapwings rose in a panic, and Pigeons went everywhere, straight away I knew a raptor was the cause of this panic.  I immediately began a search with binoculars through the panicking birds and eventually located a raptor, its stiff-winged flight pointing straight away to a Falcon species, this was a Peregrine, its stiff wings looking quite different from all other birds in the sky.  The upperparts were grey and as the bird turned towards me the bright sunshine showed the conspicuous white facial pattern.

Two Goshawks were seen this morning, one being a juvenile bird, probably the same bird I saw recently. This sighting saw the Goshawk soaring to quite a height, it then descended very fast towards woodland with wings closed giving the bird a torpedo-like shape, a very impressive sight.

On sheep-grazed grassland where turnips and probably other spill provided a food source for sheep, also attracted 70+ Yellowhammers to the feed. When retreated to a hedge the gathering of Yellowhammers appeared like a show of yellow flowers as they sat for a while before returning to feed.

Finally, a pair of Stonechats were seen on fencing from where they flew to the ground to gather invertebrate food before returning to the fence. 

   

On a friends farm at Stow Bedon, Norfolk

This morning I visited Stow Bedon to meet with a lovely couple of friends at their farm in rural Breckland.  I arrived quite early so decided to walk a circuit of the area and what I was immediately struck by was the wealth of birdlife from the outset. Firstly, a pair of Cranes were feeding in a field, their occasional calls bouncing off the trees and resonating over the land.  Also present was a single Kestrel and a few Fieldfare.

Feeding and calling Cranes near Stow Bedon

The first songbirds seen at the farm was Woodlark where a total of 3 were seen overhead, a pair including a singing male and another singleton.  This early hour also produced 2 'drumming' Great Spotted Woodpeckers, a singing Stock Dove, 6+ Greenfinches, and 40+ Collared Doves.

A productive walk around the surrounding area produced 2 Goshawks, the male bird was calling, the female Goshawk, a very large bird, drifted silently behind a Birch wood, looking quite menacing before melting into woodland.  This bird certainly deserves its 'Phantom of the Forest' name.  

A few Mallard and Teal urgently flew into the cover of woodland carr, their behaviour suggesting a Harrier species in the area, and indeed, a female Marsh Harrier appeared and passed overhead.  In a mature Oak wood a pair of noisy Marsh Tits were foraging.

Back at the farm, Finch species seen included Chaffinch, a few Greenfinches and a stunning male Brambling.  Collared Doves were once again numerous with 50+ birds present.  Whilst enjoying a coffee and a great catch up with my friends, I had a great view of the gorgeous garden which was clearly designed for wildlife.  House Sparrows were common visitors, with birds constantly coming and going, who knows the true numbers but it must have been 60+.  Blue and Coal Tits were frequent visitors and the occasional Greenfinch visited.  A stunning Great Spotted Woodpecker was seen on and near a lovely old Silver Birch.  A great end to this visit with lovely friends.

Watton, Norfolk

 Yet another glorious day with bright sunshine and mild temperatures. I was working this morning so this afternoon I took advantage of the lovely weather and check to see if yesterdays Green Sandpiper was still present.  I arrived on site and checked the area but could not see the bird initially, until it flew up to relocate and reveal its highly distinctive dark and white appearance, a very contrasting little wader.

Green Sandpiper in Watton 21 February

I eventually settled down to watch the Green Sandpiper and for much of the visit the bird was quite motionless, although it occasionally preened and then briefly slept.

The Green Sandpiper is mostly known as a scarce spring and autumn passage migrant but in winter this is a very scarce species.  I have occasionally encountered Green Sandpipers on my Breckland patch in the winter months.

Also seen this afternoon was a pair of Egyptian Geese with 9 young goslings and a single Grey Wagtail. 

A beautiful day in the Brecks

What an incredible early spring-like day today has been, a very bright day with a temperature high of 15 degrees Celsius. The wind was a fresh westerly.

I love the vast expanses of Breckland with its large rolling plains, farmland, heathland, and patches of mixed woodland habitats.  This is an ancient landscape with evidence of Bronze age, Roman, and Iceni peoples.  When I walk the lanes and footpaths in the Brecks I am walking in the footsteps of history.

Stonechat (male) 20 Feb

This morning I saw bird species which people in antiquity may have seen, although it goes without saying that those peoples would have seen birds which are now extinct as breeding birds in the Brecks, namely Great Bustards, and a more recent loss, the Red-backed Shrike, however, the latter species I feel will recolonise the Brecks in time.

Stonechat (female) 20 Feb

Stonechats is a beautiful Breckland species and this morning I had lovely views of 3 birds, a pair and a single female.  The male Stonechat is starting to acquire breeding plumage, the black head contrasts strongly with the bold white collar and reddish breast and underparts.  The mantle feathers are black with buff fringes.  The female lacks the black head but is equally attractive. 

Stonechats are conspicuous birds in that they choose prominent perches to watch from, from here, they will drop to the ground to find a small invertebrate and then return to the same or nearby perch.

A good mix of Finches and Buntings were seen on spill. The most numerous species was Yellowhammer (70+) with good numbers of Bramblings (30+), the latter always distinctive, even at range when the birds gather in a hedge in strong sunlight and show off their bright white underparts and orangey breasts.  In flight, Bramblings are easily identified by their narrow white rump.

Goshawk (juvenile) 20 Feb

Another Breckland speciality is the Goshawk and this morning I was privileged to have prolonged views of a juvenile bird.  For about 10 minutes, this large powerful raptor was soaring just above the woodland canopy, it then approached keeping very low and fast over open country towards another woodland, its increasing speed suggested it was focussed on taking prey.

The plumage which confirms the Goshawk as a juvenile are the brown upperparts with white tips to the upper coverts. The underwing coverts and breast has a pale buffish tone, these buff tones contrast with the white secondaries and primary feathers. The breast is strongly streaked black, in adult birds the underparts are barred. An incredibly powerful raptor.

An afternoon walk around my home town of Watton was equally productive with a Green Sandpiper being found. This lovely wader is generally a spring and autumn migrant, but is a scarce winter visitor. 

Finally, a pair of Egyptian Geese had 8 young Goslings, all were happily grazing on grass and weeds on the edge of town.

 

Bird Counting

 I am very fortunate in being allowed to walk a large Breckland farm of which much lies within the STANTA army training area in Norfolk.  The farm I walk incorporates rolling arable land, floodplain, river valley, woodland and woodland carr, mature hedgerows, heathland and marshland.  This wonderful land and habitat provides me with excellent all year birding and each February I conduct bird counts for the Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust.

This year I was able to put in several hours of surveying which produced great birds and some great counts too.

Each February sees winter Thrush numbers building as they pass through on their return to their breeding grounds in Scandinavia.  Fieldfares especially featured during this count period with the best single count being a respectable 395+ birds on grassland.  Redwings did not seem so numerous but whilst on the subject of Thrushes I did record many singing Mistle Thrushes which was very pleasing.

Stonechat. Several pairs found

Several pairs of Stonechats were found, the male birds now beginning to show their stunning breeding plumages.  These remarkable little birds perch on fences and tall weeds from where they watch the ground for a small invertebrate meal.  Watching them closely you can make out a very fast nervous wing-flicking movement.  Female Stonechats lack the black heads of the male, however, they are equally a stunning little bird.

As one would expect in the winter farmland scene, the most numerous species found were Finches and Buntings.  Chaffinches were the most abundant bird with close to 700 birds counted with smaller numbers of Brambling.  My best Yellowhammer count was 55+ birds with many Chaffinches, on land with a scattering of seed spill and beets.  Linnets also featured in areas of game cover with over 300 counted.

Other common species counted included Great Spotted Woodpeckers, several Treecreepers, Nuthatch, and several good sized flocks of Starlings numbering hundreds of birds, their numbers totalling close to 3000 birds.  Beautiful Lapwings also seen with almost 500 birds counted.

This survey is a nationwide count and at the last check of the overall statistics I have recorded the only Woodlark, however, it's more numerous cousin the Skylark saw the best single count of 200+ birds.

Single figure counts included Goshawk, Sparrowhawk, Snipe, Grey Wagtail, Little Egret, Chiffchaff,  Barn Owl and Raven.

Today, the 17th February was the last day I am able to count, and what an end with three flocks of Whooper Swans totalling 111+ birds. 

Friday 3 February 2023. A walk in the Little Cressingham area with Graham and Lynn Trimmer.

 At 0800 on Friday 3 February I was joined by my friends Graham and Lynn Trimmer for a walk along a beautiful lane in Little Cressingham on what was to be a very productive visit with a good range and numbers of birds seen.  Our walk would pass through mostly arable habitat with supplementary feeding in the form of game strips, hedgerows, temporary grassland, and floodplain.  This was a very mild morning at 11 degrees Celsius. 

The first part of our walk took us through a corridor of roadside hedgerows, here, we saw several Chaffinches, also Yellowhammers were present and we had nice views of a lovely female bird in a hedge. These species are attracted to the feed strips along the field margin.

Overhead, a small flock of Fieldfare headed N/E, these and other Fieldfares were undoubtedly those located in the valley.  Many fields are now holding winter Thrushes as they make their way back to their Northern Europe breeding grounds.

A little further along the road a Sparrowhawk flew from woodland and headed west. In the same woodland a Goldcrest called.

Fieldfare. A beautiful winter Thrush seen on this visit

We then stopped for a coffee break, it was at this time we had great views of many hundreds of Starlings feeding amongst grazing sheep, this large gathering was often joined by more birds arriving from the west. Many Fieldfare were also present and fed amongst the Starlings.  A small flock of Yellowhammers arrived in a Bramble patch close to us.  A singing Mistle Thrush was heard.  On a fence we saw both a male and female Stonechat, the male bird is clearly beginning to develop breeding plumage of Black head, white collar, and deep red breast.  These birds often to flew to the ground to find food and returning to the fence.  

On our return walk, Graham, Lynn, and myself reflected upon the birds we saw on the floodplain.

Stonechat. A stunning little bird

But we were not finished yet. Once returned back at our cars, we chatted much about the morning, it was here we saw several Buzzards, but the highlight here was the presence of 200+ Skylarks on and over temporary grasslands, a very notable count of this familiar songster. It was a timely reminder for us to talk about my favourite piece of classical music, Vaughan Williams 'The Lark Ascending'.  What an incredible man he was and what an ear for a bird and its song which he transcribed into music. I find this piece so beautiful and very moving.

Just as we were to leave for home, a single Raven left a nearby woodland, a species I am seeing quite frequently on my Breckland patch. 

To finish, I wish to than both Graham and Lynn for joining me on our walk. A wonderful morning.

Peddars Way (Thompson and Stow Bedon) 30 January 2023

 I had a most enjoyable early morning walk along the Peddars Way footpath between Thompson and Stow Bedon early on the morning of 30 January.  It was made even more pleasurable by meeting my friend Matthew Clements.  What a lovely young man Matthew is, we enjoyed a thoroughly good chat as we treaded this ancient pathway.  And what a fantastic early morning it was with clear blue sky and stunning light and visibility. 

It seemed like birds were responding to the beautiful morning with several common species engaged in singing in order to defend their territory for the forthcoming breeding season.  The habitat along the way comprised mature pine and deciduous woodland and Breckland heath, much of which was within the army training area. 

One of the first singing birds was a Marsh Tit.  This beautiful bird is quite noisy for its small size, it has a loud sneezing like "pitchou" call, this morning however I heard the song, a rapidly repeated "chip chip chip chip chip chip chip".

Marsh Tit.  A fairly common bird of broadleaved woodland

As I continued my walk I passed an area of dense reedbed and swamp habitat, within the reeds two Water Rails called, a very distinctive pig-like squeal, possibly unnerving for those who are not aware of the source of this noise.

A few Nuthatches were present in typical broadleaved habitat, one bird was heard singing its delightful, repeated "wee wee wee wee wee wee".  Other woodland residents seen and heard today included 'drumming' Great Spotted Woodpeckers and a couple of calling Treecreepers.

Black Rabbit Warren was one location visited this morning, this beautiful Breckland heath lies within the army training area.  The light was simply stunning.  On this visit a Mistle Thrush was singing in pine woodland

Black Rabbit Warren (and Yes, I did see a Black Rabbit here some years ago!!!!)

Mistle Thrushes, our largest Thrush species, is always an early songster, and indeed an early breeder. This large Thrush is colloquially known as 'Stormcock' as it sings early in the year from high in a tree and in stormy conditions.

Once home from ths productive walk, I was once again rewarded with a very respectable 40+ House Sparrows feeding in my garden, how lovely is that.