Home and North Cove.

Overcast with slight breeze.

Home: No sooner than O got up and went to the bin and I saw a stiff winged gull flying East this side of the river. As soon as it past the house it turned North and went over the house. The bird was flying at around 300 feet so was really high as far as FULMER PETREL goes, but it was an obvious sighting when I got the bins on it.

North Cove:  The best bird here is MARSH TIT although seen already this year the views are special here as was the COAL TITS, BLUE TIT, GREAT TIT, LONG TAILED TIT, WREN, ROBIN, and a single REDWING.0n return back through the reserve a SPARROW HAWK flew through the wood.

Metal ring: Colour ring: Species: Black-headed Gull (Larus ridibundus) Ringing data
Age: 2y. Male Date: 06-12-2011 Locality: Sortedams Sø I, København, DKHS 55.42N-012.35E Ringer: Kjeld Tommy Pedersen (DKC-404), Jesper Brinkmann Nielsen (DKC-749)

 

I also saw this bird at same spot in 2013 and am the only person to record it in the UK





Leathe's Ham, Loathingland Lake and Green Lane, Zmerlyton.

Overcast but still and somewhat mild.

Leathe's Ham:   GADWALL in good numbers of which I counted 82 and PINTAIL at 36. TUFTED DUCK, SHOVELORE, MALLARD, MORHEN, COOT, GREY LAG GOOSE 1, and a pair of MUTE SWAN. Also a calling GREAT SPOTTED WOODPECKER. With 5 COMMON GULL and this BLACK HEADED GULL with Danish ring?

              

Loathingland Lake:  Well down the lake 7 LITTLE GREBE and only gulls beside. As for small stuff along railway track GREENFINCH 6  and CHAFFINCH 3 as well as WREN 2 and ROBIN 2 as well as DUNNOCK 3. But several noisy HOUSE SPARROW.

Green Lane:  YELLOWHAMMER 3 and a fly over GREAT SPOTTED WOODPECKER.

North Wall Lowestoft and Silo.

Rather dull end to the day.

North Wall:  PURPLE SANDPIPERS with five birds and several TURNSTONE and one PYSTERCATCHER. CORMORANTS (Sinises) at three. As were the CARRION CROW.

Silo:  PERI was her lower perch to day trying to get out of the rain. Not enough light for a good pic but the best this year.

Home: RED LEGGED PARTRIDGE made an appearance today but soon disappeared once fed. As soon as he sees me now he is on the shed roof waiting to be fed and then disappears for the day. To easy life I recon. 

Lound Lakes, Gorleston, North Wall and hOME.

Still cold with ice on lakes which is in no hurry to go.

Gorleston:  On the pier head a pair of fully plumaged LESSER BLACK BACKED GULL the best ones I have seen so far. Also on South car park two MED GULLS and TURNSTONE.

Lound Lakes: A few more ducks mostly MALLARD in here at the moment despite the ice with 12 TUFTED DUCK and a few GADWALL but the best was a female POCHARD. 2 SHOVELORE flew in as I  was about to leave.

Home:  GREY WAG and RED LEGGED PARTRIDEG my usual visitors on que.

North Wall:  Behind Birdseye a sad sight of a dog fox which had met its end. Seems an odd place to be. PIED WAG 2 and TURNSTONE 1.

Leathe's Ham and Ness Point.

Very cold with a lazy wind and overcast.

Leathe's Ham:   Three quarters of the lake covered in ice which means some of the duck are ice sitting. With six SHOVELORE and plenty of active GADWALL, MALLARD, TUFTED DUCK, MOORHEN.
Ness Point:     The South East  wind was not causing much movement, but with 26 TURNSTONE at Birds Eye and a single OYSTERCATCHER on the outlet. One BRENT GOOSE flying South.
Home:  The GREY WAGTAIL was flitting through the garden again today but very quiet.
Silo:  Plenty of food for PERI

Sotterly, Suffolk.

Brightened up at the end of the day so a ride out into the country to see if the usual friends are in position for a new breeding year.

Sotterly:  Along this one lane is a reflection of how birds should be in farm land. With LONG TAILED TITS, BLUE TITS, GREAT TITS, RED LEGGED PARTRIDGE, PHESANT. But the best is finding what I set out for, which was LITTLE OWL. Only one bird at the moment but roosting at the nest site. Also nearby was a pair of YELLOWHAMMER which have already had partnered up. CROW and ROOK as standby birds.

Oulton Broad,Fritton Woods and Haddiscoe Island

Bright dat and serious chill with Oulton Broad frozen.

 

Oulton Broad and Mutford Lock:  Called in for a short walk round, nothing beyond the usual but did pick up a colour ringed BLACK HEADED GULL. Plenty of gulls on the ice and one was colour ringed but to far of. Redshank at Mutford Lock and TURNSTONE.

Fritton Woods:  Plenty of small stuff calling with COAL TIT and MARSH TIT about and a single BEARDED TIT calling from the reed bed. As were MORHEN. ROBIN, WREN, GREAT BTIT, BLUE TIT and several GOLDCREST calling from firs.

Haddiscoe Island: Best was a SHORT EARED OWL well of but at least its on the list for the year. Three COMMON BUZZARD and also a single PERGRINE. I also had two BARN OWL again well of. A single MARSH HARRIER and three GREY HERON as well as two KESTREL. Three WIGEON flew in and a calling SNIPE flew through.

 

Corton Woods, Home and Links Hill.

Bright and cold.

Home:   Woke up to a GREY WAGTAIL  on the roof of the shed , this bird has been about but unseen. It did not stay as it was in and out in a flash. RED LEGGED PARTRIDGE in today and coming to feed when called. GREAT TIT, BLUE TIT, HOUSE SPARROW, MAGPIE, CROW, HERRING GULL, BLACK HEADED GULL, STARLING.
Corton Woods:  Heard a single NUTHATCH but it was well of. But palled in seven REDWING which were feeding in holly and also CHAFFINCH, GOLDFINCH, GOLDCREST, LONG TAILED TIT, BLACKBIRD, JAY, MAGPIE.
Links Hill:  Amongst COMMON GULL, HERRING GULL, BLACK HEADED GULL, CROW, MAGPIE, MED GULL 2.

Ness Point, Lowestoft.

Bright day with slight West wind.

Ness Point:     On arrival a young seal was asleep on the lower concrete, so watched it until it made it's way to the end of the outlet and back to see.

Four flocks of COMMON SCOTER all heading North, each flock 30 birds + Also six RED THROATED DIVER, heading in the same direction, except for one the other way. 17 TURNSTONS which acted really oddly when the seal headed in there direction. As he headed along the outlet they seeming watched on in amazement and followed him as he went. It was as if they either could not believe there eyes, but it was as if they were pushing him along. Also on the head, three PURPLE SANDPIPER.

 

 

                                             Caught this in flight, any thoughts out there?

 





Carlton Marsh, Oulton Broad.

Bright and crisp day for a walk round the reserve. With a year list now standing at 72.

The best bird was three GREAT SPOTTED WOODPECKER flying of between  Spatt's Water and Fisher Row. Also a very pale faced female MARSH HARRIER and also a COMMON BUZZARD. 5 GREY HERON and 8 SKYLARD over Peto's Marsh which was flooded. Here also a few LAPWING and a flock of STARLING about 60 birds. Large flock of PINK FOOTED GEESE well of over Bough St Peter which must have numbered in excesses of thousand birds. 2 GADWALL, 5 TEAL, 1 MALLARD, 2 REED BUNTING, WREN, ROBIN, GREAT TIT, BLUE TIT.

                                Also I heard the plop of a water vole heading into the drink.

Pakefield Beach.

After the storm the cold wind still comes in. Johnathan gave me a call as he thought he had some EIDER ON the beach so as we were going shopping we set out and sure enough three birds. One male and two female. Floating reasonably close inshore but only with bins I took a chance and phone binned them. Not so bad.

Breydon, South Wall.

Bright day with slight cold wind from the West.

List still increasing and now at 65. Still not pushing the boat out so ok with that. But best bird today was a BEARDED TIT, only one along the South Wall. Also a single male STONECHAT and plenty of GREY and GOLDEN PLOVER on the flats. AVOCETS running up and down as were the DUNLIN and REDSHANK. B-T-GODWIT, CURLEW, MARSH HARRIER, PINK FOOTED GEESE flock on far bank. LAPWING, CURLEW, with MALLARD, SHOVELORE, WIGEON, SHELLDUCK,

Kessingland Sewer Works.

Spent an hour yesterday and the same today looking for the reported Pallas Warbler with no joy. Would have been a good bird for the start of a year tick.

Kessingland: Plenty of CHIFFCHAF all feeding on flies from the works. I would think there must be at least five birds in all. But the most did concerting thing are the WRENS who have taken to feeding the same way as have DUNNOCK. Other birds are the major level of PIED WAGTAIL that are chasing feed behind the outlet pipes. LONG TAILED TIT, GREAT TIT, BLUE TIT, BLACKBIRD with a female rung bird. SONG THRUSH, CHAFFINCH, GOLDFINCH. ROBIN.
Pakefield: A COMMON BUZZARD was waiting for a game of football at Pontins. Might be waiting for a while.

Drive to Norwich.

Dull and overcast.

But managed to increase my list by two. The best being a flock of REDWING which flew my daughters house and came down for a rest in a tree across the road. The other bird was a single LITTLE EGERET which was in a small dyke near the Acle roundabout.

Nees Point, Links Hill and Gunton Wood.

Bright with a distinct chill in the air.

Gunton Wood: I was unable to catch up with any reported nuthatch so no joy here but plenty of the Tit family and GOLDCREST as well as GOLDFINCH.

Links Hill: Several large gulls in the car park but only one MED GULL which was ringed. Also two COMMON GULL and BLACK HEADED GULL. Just one CROW and CORMORANT out at sea.

Ness Point: The sad conclusion here is that there was only two PURPLE SANDPIPER. When you think that I can remember over 30 birds here in the winter. TURNSTONE numbered out at 9. With just one RED-THROATED-DIVER sitting on the water, obviously not feeding. But a reasonable movement of CORMORANT heading North. But a surprise was a pair of SHOVELORE heading South.

Oulton Marsh, Lowestoft.

Cold night with little sun during the day, but all the same a good day to be out.

Increased the list for the year by ten, so now stands at 44. With nothing out of the ordinary. But with two SNIPE and nine MEADOW PIPIT feeding together in a meadow. But how it they disappear when they land I have no idea. They flitter in the air, hang there and then just drop to earth and they might as well not be there. I did have a good view of a SONG THRUSH and an odd calling bird in a bush which never did show itself. Several KESTREL with an assumed six birds in all. Around 50 WIGEON and only two TEAL and two pairs of SHOVELORE. A single GREY HERON and only two GOLDCREST. I followed a party on the move of LONG TAILED TITS about 10 birds in all and withy them three blue tit.

The first two days without trying.

Happy 2017 to all as we start again our blog for this year.

With the first day of the year overcast and rain and the second a contrast with blue sky and cold.

The year list only stands at 34 but  this is no surprise as I have not ventured out except for a few minuets. The best being 2 COMMON BUZZARD along Acle Strait and a fly over the house job in the shape of a PEREGRINE this evening. A lovely GOLDFINCH at the Ham, with ducks showing well. GADWALL, TUFTED, MALLARD, PINTAIL,WIGEON, COOT, MORHEN, G-B-B-GULL as well as HERRING GULL.
Home:  RED LEGGED PARTRIDGE and the usual garden birds.