One Tuesday

 Tuesday March 12

We have done some short birding trips locally during the last week, the only birds of note have been the 35 Whooper Swans in a usual field near Sea Palling. For the first time ever, there were no Mediterranean Gulls on the beach behind Sea Life in Yarmouth.

Today started with three well spread - and futile - visits to known Little Owl spots. Three dips for this Welshwoman. Well, I wouldn't sit out in the rain either. It rained on and off all day, the sky varied from dark grey to very dark grey. We managed two year ticks, two Reed Buntings amongst a flock of finches near Abbey Farm. And a White Wagtail on a boat at Thornham. You can see the rain.

The Waxwings at Titchwell were nowhere to be seen. 

Three Cattle Egrets in a roadside field near Burnham Norton were probably the Thornham three. Their stance and demeanour mirrored the day even more than usual for the heron family.

 


A tractor drawing a trailer of tree trunks pulled into the gateway at Holkham.

We stopped in the last layby and saw three Barnacle Geese for the month amongst the Greylag.

 


The White-tailed Eagle at Cockthorpe was not present either. A local birder, who arrived at the same time as us, left his car to tell us exactly where it had been feeding on a dead hare this morning. He'd only had his phone this morning so had returned with his camera, 'hoping that it would remember where there was some food and return'. He was pleased with a male Stonechat I found as we were talking - a good village tick. It was good of him to come and tell us. We left. As we were driving through Holt..... the message came through that the bird had returned to its food. We had a Sainsbury's delivery due.

Our garden feeders are buzzing at the moment, we had to make a food collection drive to Van Der at the weekend. Probably thirty Siskin, the most ever, making it necessary to fill the sunflower heart feeders daily. The flock of Long-tailed Tits prefers the fat balls, the Bramblings feed on the ground below, or on the trays put under the feeders to catch the chuck-outs.

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