Is it safe to go to the beach now?

 As you all know, I am not a twitcher, I am a Birder, and a Birder who has a passion for dogs. Equally, I love to share my passion with others who wish to learn.  What I do dislike are certain people who think our countryside, including our beaches are there for them only and for nobody else to share and enjoy.

I feel that our countryside and beaches are for all to enjoy providing they follow the countryside code, respect wildlife, and leave the countryside in a clean and tidy state upon their leaving.

Responsible dog owner know to keep their beautiful dogs on leads in sensitive area for wildlife, and indeed, those responsible people will hopefully respect certain areas where no dogs are allowed, and indeed areas where people as well who should go in order to protect wildlife and their sensitive habitats.  There are some irresponsible dog owners who should not be allowed to enter sensitive areas, however, in these cases it is rarely the fault of the dog.

I pride myself on not being a twitcher and I am careful to whom I reveal my finds too because I have seen evidence, both having read about and witnessed, when twitchers have worried birds, including species whose very nature is to skulk and remain in cover, but are subjected to organised flushes to see the bird.  I have also witnessed criminal damage in the pursuit of birds.  It is poor behaviour and totally embarrassing to see twitchers as they chase their quarry.  During the pandemic we witnessed in the media idiot twitchers breaking lockdown rules, causing dangerous conditions on our roads due to irresponsible parking, and trampling sensitive habitats as they go.

I equally dislike those who are critical of others using our beaches for their social recreation, dog walking, and taking the family out for the day.  Most families are responsible people, however, there are other families who let the side down.  On the whole, it muse be said that humans have the biggest impact upon the safety and wellbeing of wildlife on our beaches and in the wider countryside.

  On Sunday 23 April, I was birding on my local Breckland patch.  At the end of a great mornings birding I was confronted with the ugly side of humanity when over a 1/2 mile stretch of roadside I collected 2 large (and eventually, very heavy bags) of litter thrown out of cars.  Clearly, the offenders here have an underdeveloped brain and are unable to put together a few letters forming a single syllable word, the word is BIN, well use it then.  I however feel sorry for these offenders as they clearly have an inability to distinguish right from wrong.

I also dislike certain elements of society who feel noisy children should not visit the beach etc, it must be remembered that those who are critical were once children themselves, more importantly, a noisy child who visits the beach may be that person whose curiosity about something they have seen or heard may be the spark needed to get them interested in wildlife and our countryside, after all, the children of today will be the future custodians of our countryside.  So don't be critical of our future environmentalists and naturalists.  

To end, I will once again repeat my dislike of twitcher types who feel dogs, and children should not be on our beaches and countryside.  These selfish people are equally not welcome in the countryside if they are not willing to share it.

A passage of Seven Whistlers and first Nettlecreeper of the year - 20th April 2023

 On the morning of 20th April I decided upon a walk along a 3 mile route on my patch around the Cressinghams in Norfolk.  The day dawned bright with cloudless skies and a moderate NE wind. The habitat I was passing through is well suited to Sylvia Warblers, so therefore, target species was to be either Lesser or Common Whitethroats.

As I was walking west towards Great Cressingham I became aware of distant birds high approaching from the west, this was a small flock of 9 Whimbrel, quite high and in a loose V formation.  I continued to watch the birds as they made their way east in the beautiful clear blue sky.  

Whimbrels are a scarce bird of passage on my patch and usually occur as single birds, therefore 9 together is a great patch record.

The Whimbrel is colloquially known as 'seven-whistler', this being due to the series of seven or so piping notes given by the bird, very distinctive and easily identifies this migrant.

Along my route several Blackcaps were in song as expected and on overhead wires in the village was a single Swallow whilst high up a number of House Martins wheeled about in the sky.

A low soaring Red Kite drew the attention of mobbing Lapwings and once it had alighted in a tree it then became the target of angry Jays.  Nearby a Little Owl was calling.  

It was while I was watching the Red Kite I heard a Raven calling.  Once a very rare vagrant in Norfolk, this very impressive crow species is being seen and heard with some frequency on the patch.  Usually I see single or pairs of Ravens, however, my best single count on my patch was 3 birds together.

As I approached the end of my walk, one of my target species for the day, a Whitethroat, was briefly singing from within the cover of a hedge, a slightly later arrival date for this Sylvia, but always a welcome returning migrant which always raises a smile and a "Welcome back beautiful" under my breath.  

Whitethroat or "Nettlecreeper"

Whitethroats is a species which has endured serious struggles following a very concerning population crash on their wintering grounds in the Sahel region of Africa when a drought in the winter of 1968/69 saw a crash in numbers of Whitethroats, a reduction in numbers so severe that it was reported that 90% of birds failed to appear in Britain the following summer to breed.  Numbers of Whitethroats have steadily increased since this dreadful time, however, not yet to pre-crash levels.  It is because of this desperately sad event that Whitethroats hold a special place in my heart and always bring a welcoming smile to my face.

The wintering grounds of the Whitethroat is in the Sahel, this is along the southern most boundary of the Sahara Desert and stretches from the Atlantic in the west to the Red Sea in the east, and is about 200 miles north to south.  The climate of the Sahel is tropical to subtropical.

I love to use colloquial names for birds, one of those for the Whitethroat is the "Nettlecreeper", an apt description for a species which skulks and nests within ground covering herbage.         

Arrivals of the first summer migrants

From mid-March each year the first summer migrants begin to appear  on the patch with arrivals soon settling down to sing and reaffirm their territories, or passing through on their way to their breeding grounds elsewhere in the country, or indeed beyond.

One of our earliest returning migrants is the Chiffchaff, my first this year was on 11th March at a local sewage treatment works, a type of facility which provides a microclimate and good feeding for newly arrived birds.  Following this first bird, Chiffchaff numbers began to increase from mid March with some sites holding several singing birds.

Male Blackcap

The last week of March usually sees the first Blackcaps arriving on territory, my first of the year was at Bodney on 27th March.  The beautiful song of the Blackcap always brightens woodland which may still be in the final grips of winter.

Blackcaps are found in a variety of habitats with most seen in open woodland, they will readily use overgrown hedgerows, scrub, and mature gardens.

Female Blackcaps differ from males in appearance by their brown caps, although be aware, all juvenile Blackcaps have brown caps until males moult into the familiar black caps.

On 4th April, I visited Croxton Heath hoping to find Adders, however, none were found, but, I did locate at least 4 Willow Warblers, a species which arrives the last day of March, but most in the first days of April. 

My first Swallow of the year was a male bird seen at Saham, this was likely a passage bird as I watched it flying purposefully west along a river valley until lost to view.

Wheatear at Bodney 14 April (One of 3 birds together)

Another early migrant is the Wheatear, this species usually arrives in latter half of March, however, this year my first were seen at Bodney on 14th April, on this occasion 3 birds were seen together (2 males and female).  Wheatears are birds of open country, typically on rolling grassland, farmland, and upland moors.  Nest sites include disused Rabbit burrows and cavities in stone walls. 

Wheatear is an old English word, it's modern translation means 'White Arse' owing to its large and highly distinctive white rump which is particularly visible on the flying bird.

At the time of writing (16th April) look out for and listen for the first Cuckoos and in the last week of April, look to the sky for the first Swifts.