Day 2 of a three day Private Tour. With more autumn migrants seen in East Norfolk yesterday, we decided to head over that way today to see what we could catch up with. It was a glorious warm, sunny day – great weather to be out birding.
Winterton Dunes was our first port of call. There had been a Red-backed Shrike seen here yesterday and we were keen to try to catch up with it. There was no news as we drove down but thankfully as we started walking north through the dunes, a message came through to say that it was still present.
Small Heath – there were lots of butterflies out in the dunes
There was plenty to see as we walked along. In the sunshine, there were lots of butterflies out, as well as the regular species we saw a good number of Small Heath and Grayling. The dragonflies were also enjoying the weather, with loads of Common Darters and a few Migrant Hawkers too. A Whinchat appeared in the top of a bush in the dunes as we passed.
Grayling – also plentiful in the dunes today
We eventually got to the area where the Red-backed Shrike had been. As we walked up along the path, there was no immediate sign of it, but when we turned to walk back we found that it had reappeared behind us in the bushes right by the path! We were looking into the sun, so when it disappeared again back into the bushes, we tried to work our way back round the other side, but it had moved again.
At least we knew where the Red-backed Shrike was now and it didn’t take us long to find the bush it was favouring. Positioning ourselves, we were then treated to some stunning views as it perched on a branch. It kept dropping down to the ground below and flying back up. A couple of times we saw it return with prey – first a moth, then a beetle. Fantastic stuff!
Red-backed Shrike – we had great views of this juvenile in the dunes
When the Red-backed Shrike caught the beetle, it flew back to a clump of brambles just beyond. We were watching it perched on the top when it suddenly dropped down into cover. A couple of seconds later, we saw why. A Hobby was flying low over the ground, straight towards the bush and straight towards us! At the last minute, it saw us standing there and veered away to our left. What a cracking view!
Having enjoyed such good views of the shrike, we turned to make our way back. There were now two Hobbys hawking for insects over the trees, calling. A Marsh Harrier circled up too, and a couple of Common Buzzards. We walked over across the dunes to have a quick look at the sea, which produced a distant juvenile Gannet flying past and a few Cormorants.
On the walk back, we found a couple more Whinchats, on the fence around one of the natterjack pools. We came across a couple of pairs of Stonechats too. There was a steady stream of Swallows passing through over the dunes, on their way south.
When we got to the road, rather than head back to the car park, we crossed over and continued on into the South Dunes. At the first trees we came to, we could hear a Willow Warbler calling. It was very agitated at first, because there was a Sparrowhawk in the same sallow, although it flew off when we arrived. We watched as it flitted through to a nearby holly tree.
Willow Warbler – calling in the trees
It was getting rather hot now, particularly as we were more sheltered here from the cooling breeze. It felt like we might need a bit of luck to find some migrants, but we persevered. A small bird flew along the edge of the path in front of us and landed in the bushes, pumping its tail. A Redstart, a nice migrant to find, we had a good look at it in the scope.
Redstart – flew along the edge of the path ahead of us
We walked on a little further but, apart from a couple of Chiffchaffs, it seemed pretty quiet. As we turned back, we decided to walk through the trees in the middle of the valley and as we turned a corner, a Pied Flycatcher flicked across into a small tree in front of us. Unfortunately, it didn’t stop long and dropped quickly out the back out of view. As we walked further along, it flew again, into a larger group of oak trees.
When we got up to the oaks, there was no sign of the Pied Flycatcher, but as we walked through the trees a Spotted Flycatcher appeared instead. This was much more obliging – after flitting around deep in the tree at first, it came out onto a branch right in front of us, giving us stunning views. That rounded off an excellent selection of migrants in the Dunes.
Spotted Flycatcher – another migrant in the dunes
After lunch back at the car park, we headed over to Strumpshaw Fen for the afternoon. The lone Black Swan was on the pool by the Reception Hide as usual. Otherwise, there were lots of Gadwall and Mallard on here and a single Grey Heron. In the heat of the afternoon, the trees were quiet, so we made our way straight round to Tower Hide.
We had been told the hide was really busy today, but when we got there we had it to ourselves. It didn’t take long to find the Glossy Ibis, which has been here for over two weeks now. It looked thoroughly at home, wading around in the water with its head down, feeding. The light was perfect, really showing off the iridescent green gloss on its wings.
Glossy Ibis – looking very glossy indeed in the afternoon sunlight
There were lots of geese and ducks out on the water, or sleeping around the margins. The mob of Greylag Geese included a couple of white ‘farmyard’ geese. The ducks were predominantly Teal, Shoveler and Mallard. We had a careful scan through them at first for a Garganey, but it was only when a noisy Grey Heron flew over and flushed all the sleeping ducks out of the reeds and onto the water that we found one. The Garganey then showed really well and we got a great look at its boldly marked face pattern.
Garganey – showed really well once flushed out by a passing Grey Heron
There was a nice selection of waders here too. A limping Ruff was hobbling about on the mud right in front of the hide, but several more able bodied birds were feeding over towards the back. Nearby, we found three Common Snipe out on the open mud and with them a single Green Sandpiper. Then a Water Rail appeared out on the open mud too, which was really good to see.
The hide had filled up now, so having seen all we wanted to, we were just about to leave when someone asked us if the small birds on the mud next to the Snipe were Bearded Tits. We put the scope down again and sure enough they were – two juvenile Bearded Tits feeding out on the edge of the reeds.
A quick look in Fen Hide didn’t produce many birds of note, but we did see a Chinese Water Deer which walked out of the reeds onto one of the cut areas. On the walk back, we did see lots more butterflies and dragonflies. The highlight was a late second brood Swallowtail which flew over the path and landed on a branch above our heads briefly, before disappearing back towards the reedbed. As well as the regular dragonflies, we also came across several Willow Emerald Damselflies. These are now regular feature here at this time of year, although a very recent colonist having first been seen in this country only as recently as 2007.
Willow Emerald – we saw several of these damselflies at Strumpshaw today
Then it was back to the Reception Hide for a well deserved cold drink and an ice cream before heading for home.
