Spring Migrants

 Saturday March 18

News of Wheatears at Cley and Salthouse yesterday had set the pulses racing. I love Wheatears, they are such beautifully coloured and perky harbingers of Spring. Pam had already heard a Chiffchaff from the garden a couple of days ago, Sand Martins had also been reported along the coast.

Salthouse, Beach Road was our first port of call. Despite careful scanning, me one side and Pam the other, nothing to see here, apart from Corvids.

Stopped to view the Corral area on Beach Road, Cley, an oncoming car slowed down. It was Peter and Pauline. They'd seen two Wheatears which had then been flushed by a Peregrine. Undeterred, after a first scan of the Brent flock, we parked at the beach and scanned Eye Field. No luck here either. We returned to park along Beach Road so that I could scope the Brent flock for a Pale-bellied. There were two separate flocks,feeding avidly. I continued to scan in both directions. A brisk shower meant a hasty closing of my window. When it stopped and I continued to scan, Pam called a white Ruff. It must have dropped in with the rain. Having landed amongst the geese it then ran fast towards Eye Pool, before feeding along the edge.






My phone buzzed, Voice Mail. It was Pauline to tell us that they'd got a Wheatear at Salthouse. Scope shelved, Window closed, we were off. The P's were still at Salthouse, Pauline was able to point out the bird to us. I had lovely scope views - but I couldn't find it in my camera. It was distant, and spent ten minutes absolutely still. It must have newly dropped in and was very tired. Having recovered, the bird did its usual fast dashes in search of food until it disappeared from view. Excellent, thank you Pauline.

Maybe Weybourne would also prove productive. Yes, it did, the male Black Redstart present yesterday was still there, flitting about the boats and tractor on the beach. It was very confiding, the photographers standing nearby must have had some good shots. I tried from my window looking up to the beach, not good but better than nothing.




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