Thompson Water 21 November 2024 (0640-0900)

I arrived at Thompson Water some 50 minutes prior to sunrise, it was great to be enveloped in the early morning darkness without the effects of manmade light pollution, the only light was from the approaching dawn.

My visit to this beautiful Breckland mere was two fold, to witness Starlings departing their reedbed roost and to see if we have any sawbill duck species.

The first birds of the day was both male and female Tawny Owls calling from mature woodland habitat, I stood still for a few minutes to try and catch the silhouetted Owls through the upper branches against the dim dawn sky, but not seen, it was nevertheless just wonderful to appreciate the differences in calls between the sexes.

Walking along the icy Peddars Way towards Thompson Water I could hear chanting Blackbirds in the dark woodland as well as a few Redwings.

Thompson Water at dawn 21 November 2024

I arrived to overlook Thompson Water at about 0650 with the sound of several duck species, little did I know I would have my highest ever count of Mallard on the water.  At about 0700 I began to hear the incessant chatter of Starlings in the reedbeds, then, at 0712 (18 minutes prior to sunrise) I heard what appeared to be the sound of rolling thunder, this was quickly followed by thousands of Starlings departing their roost, initially, the birds formed tight murmurations to confuse potential raptors and then departed in various directions.   As a rough estimate there was 5000+ Starlings involved in this behaviour, later in the winter months this number may increase up to four fold.

Luckily, much of Thompson Water was free from ice (it does freeze easily following a few frosty nights).  I saw lots of silhouetted views of duck species at dawn, however, as light improved I became aware of hundreds of ducks on the water.  Once light was improved I began a count of each species (which I later record along with other species on BTO's BirdTrack). The counts were as follows:

4 Mute Swans

4 Egyptian Geese

322+ Mallard

2 Goosander

37+ Teal

20+ Gadwall

8+ Shoveler

10+ Pochard

60+ Coot

1 Little Grebe

1 Great Crested Grebe

As can be seen from the above list I counted a high number of 322+ Mallard, this for me is a record count of this species at this locality.  With a number of inlets, channels, and deep reedbeds, it is likely there was many more Mallard present.

Also present was two Goosanders, this species is one of four 'sawbills' which occur in Britain.  There are only six 'sawbill' species worldwide.  The Goosander is a strange looking but beautiful duck, its categorised 'sawbill' name comes from the thin bill which has serrations for catching fish underwater.

In southern Britain Goosanders are scarce winter visitors.  It is a scarce breeder in Northern Britain. 

The Peddars Way footpath between South Pickenham and Little Cressingham 16 November 2024

The Peddars Way is a 46 mile long footpath beginning at Knettishall in Suffolk and linking up with the Norfolk Coast Path at Holme-next-the-Sea.  Approximately 6.5 miles of the Peddars Way passes through my patch and at its closest is less than a mile from my home.  On the morning of 16 November I conducted a number of 'spot counts' on the Peddars Way between South Pickenham and Little Cressingham.

Parkland at South Pickenham Hall 16 November 2024

My first stop of the morning was to overlook the beautiful parkland at South Pickenham Hall.  Wood Pigeons was the most abundant species, the smaller but compact Stock Dove (6) were also seen.  The Stock Dove. although smaller than Wood Pigeon, has a more proportionate appearance and when in flight the pearl grey upperparts contrast with the black borders on the wings and a black terminal band on the tail.  The Stock Dove also lacks white in its plumage (cf Wood Pigeon).

The beautiful Beech tree (closest middle right in the picture) held a few Chaffinches (4), also, two Blackbirds flew into the top of the tree, perhaps these were continental migrants.

Peddars Way at South Pickenham 16 Nov 2024 (Looking North towards the Priory Drove junction)

The Peddars Way between South Pickenham and Little Cressingham is quite undulating in places, in fact the path passes through a few steep climbs, its not hilly, however, it is not flat either as some outsiders would describe it.

The section of path shown in the above picture has good, thick hedgerows either side, here a couple of Bullfinches passed low along the hedge before turning into cover, their white rumps being a conspicuous feature of the birds plumage.

Looking east from the Peddars Way at Great Cressingham.  The small copse in the distant centre of the picture held a few Fieldfares.

My next stop was at the above site on the Peddars Way at Great Cressingham.  I often spend time overlooking large open landscapes, as seen above, the clumps of thickets, small copses, hedgerows, and scattered thorny bushes is suitable habitat for a beautiful but scarce, Great Grey Shrike, this species is well suited to open, bleak looking country, where they perch up high watching its surroundings for prey such as Finches, small rodents, and beetles etc.    

Searching the above open country I eventually focussed on the small copse in the centre of the above picture, here there was a number of Fieldfares feeding upon rosehips and probably other wild fruits. The Fieldfares were quite distant, however, salient features of their appearance could be seen, their large size, the grey head and nape, dark mantle, ochre breast, and large grey rump were all noted. 

Also seen at this stop was a single Bullfinch which gave its soft "piu" call, and a lovely Robin which came close to see what I was up to.

Fieldfare - a stunning winter visitor from Scandinavia (from my archives)

My final stop of the morning was at an area known as North Bridge on the Peddars Way just north of Little Cressingham.  The beautiful Watton Brook flows gently under the bridge and  through Alder Carr, and through grazing meadows.   Once again, the landscape here is very rolling.  Sadly, a beautiful bank of Blackthorn has been grubbed out, for why, I really don't know, this habitat ran alongside a ditch and formed the boundary between the ditch and the grazing meadow, it was wholly unnecessary.  This gorgeous habitat supported Bullfinches and Thrush species, as well having great aesthetic value.

A habitat with abundance in the valley is Alder and Alder Carr, this type of habitat supports flocks of Goldfinches, Siskins, and Redpolls, however, this morning all I could manage to see was a couple of Moorhens on the brook and a single Jay in a small copse. 

 

St. Mary's Churchyard, Watton - 14 November 2024 (1400-1450)

St Mary's Church in Watton was built between 1100 and 1200 with records suggesting a church existed here prior to 1086. The round tower is of the Norman period.

The churchyard is quite well wooded with some tall Yews within the interior of the site.  Mature tree species include Silver Birch, Horse Chestnut, and Beech, the latter looking particularly beautiful now with their bronze coloured leaves.

St Mary's Church in Watton, Norfolk (A lovely Poppy display)

 

Yew trees in Watton Churchyard

14 November

This was a shortish visit to the churchyard, as I approached I was mindful that Thrush species would likely to be in the Yew trees feeding upon the berries (arils).  As soon as the Yews came into view I could see Blackbirds in the trees and as I took position to watch the trees more closely I could also see Redwings (32+) were present.

In the boundary trees at least 17 Goldfinches present along with a single Greenfinch.  A single Kestrel passed through the churchyard.

Yew trees and their berries (arils) are highly toxic to animals and humans and ingestion will prove lethal, even to large animals such as horses and cattle.  The berries are only consumed by Thrush species, the seed inside the berry apparently passes through the bird undigested and without causing harm. Fascinating stuff! 

11 November 2024 - A morning of interesting bird movements

Little Cressingham 0755-0945

Finally, today saw bright sunshine following several days of overcast conditions.  Today, I positioned myself within an area of scrub overlooking a large area of game cover and with the light source behind me I should pick up any flying birds as well as appreciating the colours of the Finches present. 

 An interesting day for movements of birds. Finches comprised the majority species with many Chaffinches (uncounted) 50+ Linnets (low estimate) one ♀ Brambling in the small wooded pit, and a single ♂ Reed Bunting. All of these birds seen in the small wooded area alongside the Great Cressingham Road and in the hedgerow trees, also, occasional movements of Finches to and from the site.

I could hear the distant sound of calling Geese, a short while later a spectacular movement of 126+ Pink-footed Geese approached high from the SW, passed directly overhead, and continued off NE. Calling throughout the observation.  The formation was a huge and strung out V, what a stunning sight.

2 Song Thrushes seen in the top of hedgerow trees with a further 2 birds possible present. A well watched bird (scoped) in a treetop with effort given to the covert tips, these appeared triangular in shape, especially the lesser coverts, thus suggesting a juvenile bird.

100+ Lapwings approached from the SW, passing directly overhead and off NE. These birds followed the same approach and departure as the earlier Pink-footed Geese.

Game strip at Little Cressingham   Viewed from my watchpoint overlooking the large game strip.

  

1st to 7th November 2024 - A summary of highlights on the patch

Calm, settled overcast and grey conditions (some may call depressing) often accompanies the month of November and the thoughts of a Great Grey Shrike sitting like a sentinel on a bush top in the vast openness of a bleak Breckland landscape, is always at the forefront of my mind when watching suitable landscapes for this solitary species.

The 1^st day of the month I was working in the evening and being in isolated surroundings in almost complete darkness my focus was on listening for Tawny Owls, I was in luck with birds present at two locations in the small village of Carleton Rode. The first was a calling ♀ on Rode Lane in the village, the second bird was one seen flying in a small wooded area on the Old Buckenham Road.

A target habitat for me in autumn and winter are those large game strips and plots of wild seed mixes, so early morning on the 2^nd I visited one such large habitat at Little Cressingham traditionally used annually for the purpose of providing game cover, these habitats also benefit our Finches and Buntings.

Brambling (Now in winter plumage)

Having positioned my self where I had good views of the game strip/seed mix plot, it was apparent that Finches were present in good numbers alongside the roadside by the game strip. Highlights seen included 100+ Linnets 100+ Chaffinches, a few Greenfinches, and also my target species for the morning, a beautiful ♂ Brambling with Chaffinches. Bramblings are winter visitors from Scandinavia in varying numbers. Although just the single Brambling seen this morning I am confident numbers will increase. Numbers are variable year to year, in particularly good years I have seen three-figure numbers of Bramblings. Although now in their winter plumages ♂ Bramblings are still distinguishable from ♀♀ from their brighter orange breast and scapulars and dark heads. Bramblings will remain with us until late March by which time ♂♂ begin developing their breeding plumages, their solid black heads and bright oranges make this a very attractive Finch species.

Inevitably, with high numbers of Finches present, Sparrowhawk is always at the forefront of my mind and as expected a mass ‘putting up’ of Finches announced the arrival of a ♀ Sparrowhawk in a small tree close to me, but rapidly departed as soon as it arrived. 

Also seen on this productive morning was a single Goshawk drifting in a slow glide towards woodland, this raptor would not be interested in Finches, its quarry would be larger species like Pigeons, Crows, Pheasant, and duck species.

 On the 3^rd I visited the vast expanses of arable habitats and dense field boundary hedgerows in the Great Cressingham area. Highlights once again saw good numbers of Finch species (100+ Linnets) and Chaffinches. In excess of 30 Blackbirds were seen with some feeding upon Hawthorn berries, also a small flock of 17+ Fieldfares dropped into a dense hedgerow where a Bullfinch was seen. Also in the hedgerow was a small flock of 12+ Tree Sparrows, a very scarce species now. Overhead a small flock of 13 Golden Plovers circled.

Raven - Increasing (It's amazing how just a few years ago this was a very rare bird in Norfolk) 

The main highlight of the morning was seeing 3 Ravens passing overhead calling. I initially heard Ravens calling to the west of my position, not too long after 2 Ravens flew east calling, these were shortly followed by a single Raven following.

 A short work break on the 5^th was spent overlooking Seamere Marsh at Hingham. Thrush species were the highlight with 8+ Blackbirds in a broken hedgerow and in a young Ash tree a small flock of 12+ Fieldfares were seen along with a single Song Thrush which was a probable migrant.

A flock of 8+ Stock Doves arrived and a large number of Wood Pigeons (1000+) were ‘put up’ by a possible passing raptor.

Early morning of the 7^th I visited a beautiful Alder and Willow Carr in the River Wissey valley at Bodney. The old Alders within the Carr held good numbers of feeding Finches, most notably, a large flock of 150+ Goldfinches which wandered the canopy and settling to feed upon cones. A few Siskins were also present. At least 70 Skylarks were wandering the fields and a similar number of Fieldfares (of which 50+ NW) were noted. A small southerly movement of 14 Lapwings passed over.

On a nearby wet meadow, a single Great White Egret looked very stately.

Finch Fest at Little Cressingham 2 November 2024

 For me, this time of year sees me checking game strips and wide field margins for Finches and Buntings. These habitats provide good feeding for birds throughout the long winter months, seed spill and weed seeds being target foods.  

I chose a regular point to watch and count birds from, I had good views along a large game strip, fallow land, and weedy margins.  A hedgerow alongside the road provided birds with a quick place of safety and hedgerow trees were used as a gathering point for birds to watch their surroundings from.

The most numerous species was both Linnet (100+) and Chaffinches (100+), these birds were expected as the habitat provides good feeding.  Also noted within the large numbers of Finches was a single Brambling, although I suspect more may have been present.  Bramblings are winter visitors from Northern Europe, these are annual visitors on the patch in varying numbers, sometimes they are present in three figure counts.

Brambling (Male) A stunning Finch from Northern Europe)

Small numbers of Redwings and Song Thrushes (2) were seen.  I was able to scope a couple of Redwings, these are very attractive wintering Thrushes with a strong head pattern including a very conspicuous and bold supercillium and submoustachial stripe.

Whilst watching these birds I was ever mindful that a Sparrowhawk would turn up given the wealth of prey present.  The collective noise and 'putting up' of Finches told me that indeed a Sparrowhawk was in the area, with this, a female Sparrowhawk flew into a small tree not 30 feet from me, but rapidly departed as soon as it arrived.

With everything settling down it was the turn of larger birds like Crows and Pigeons to be on their highest guard when a Goshawk drifted passed and headed for woodland, a magnificent, powerful raptor.

Goshawk - 2 November (Crows give this raptor the highest respect)