Day 4 of a 4-day Winter Wildfowl, Cranes & Owls tour. There was less of a frost overnight but it was still a chilly day with a fresher WNW/W wind. The skies were blue though, with lots of crisp winter sunshine – much better than it being “mild” (which is weather forecaster code for wet and windy!). We spent the day back on the North Norfolk coast.
Our destination for the morning was Titchwell. On the way, we stopped briefly at Choseley to see if we could find any farmland birds. It is a pale shadow of the site for them it once was sadly, but there had still been a few Yellowhammers around in recent weeks. Unfortunately we found a tractor driving all round the margins of the fields for no immediately apparent reason and no sign of any birds this morning, other than lots of Red-legged Partridges which had been released to be shot.
The tractor drove round to the layby where we had pulled off the road so we moved the minibus out of the way to make it easier for it to get out. No surprise we didn’t get an acknowledgement from the driver, although we know they do have problems with inconsiderate birders parking here. We decided we should move on. However, we then pulled off the road to let another tractor pass which had come out from the drying barns and didn’t get a thank you from the driver of that one either. Perhaps they are just naturally rude to all other road users?!
Down at Titchwell, there were a couple of Long-tailed Tits in the trees in the car park as we stopped to use the facilities. We had a scan under the sallows as we walked in from the car park to the Visitor Centre and then continued round onto Fen Trail. Initially all we found was a Muntjac hiding in the branches and then a little further on we located our target, a Woodcock. It was preening and we could see its back between the tree trunks but unfortunately we just couldn’t find an angle to see more of it. We hoped we might be able to find a better one.
The Tawny Owl was roosting in its usual tree. The sun was on it and all we could see at first was its body, its head hidden in the ivy leaves above. However, we eventually found an angle from where we could see a bit more of it.
We were told there were some Bearded Tits showing well on Patsy’s Reedbed, so we continued round to see if we could find them. Scanning the reeds around the edge, we quickly found several Bearded Tits feeding on the seedheads over the far side. It was sheltered from the wind and they stayed out in full view, giving us some great views in the scopes, males and females. There were several Gadwall and Coot out on the water too and a couple of Water Rails squealing from out in the reedbed.
One of the group scanned back round the reeds in the corner noticed a Bittern which had just climbed up into view. We quickly turned the scopes on that, as it stood in the open sunning itself for a couple of minutes. We had asked at the Visitor Centre earlier, as we knew they had been showing here in recent days, but apparently there had been no sign yesterday. So this was a real bonus today!
After a while, the Bittern started to walk through the reeds. We watched it working its way round the edge of the water before it then came out into the open and stood in the sunshine again. Then it turned and disappeared in too the reeds out of view.
We walked back round on Fen Trail and cut back to the main path on Meadow Trail, but despite looking we could not find any sign of any Woodcock now. They do tend to disappear deeper into cover as it gets busy and we had been distracted by the Bittern.
Out on the main path, we walked back the wrong way scanning the ditches in the hope of finding a Water Rail. We didn’t have to go too far before we saw some movement and there was a Water Rail feeding in the water in the bottom of the ditch under some overhanging branches. We followed it for a while as it worked its way along, watching it through the vegetation. It was rather jumpy though and refused to come out into a more open section, instead darting back in the other way.
The reedbed was rather quiet but we stopped to scan the pool, which was half frozen. There were a few Tufted Ducks and eventually we managed to find a single Little Grebe, for those in the group who had missed the ones on the river yesterday. There were a couple of Curlews and Little Egrets on the saltmarsh opposite.
When we got up to Island Hide, the Freshmarsh looked pretty quiet too. Another Water Rail flew across between the reeds just before the hide. Scanning the first compartment, we could see three Avocets roosting with a small group of Black-headed and Common Gulls. Walking up to the bund, there were a couple of small groups of Teal on the islands on the far compartment and a few Dunlin and Turnstone feeding in between them. A male Marsh Harrier appeared over the bank at the back.
We decided to press on out to the beach. As we walked past Volunteer Marsh, a Rock Pipit flew up calling and across the path, out to the saltmarsh beyond. Scanning down the wide, muddy channel at the far end we could see more Curlews, several Redshanks, two Black-tailed Godwits and a couple of Grey Plovers. Right at the back, a single Ringed Plover was on the mud with a couple of Dunlin.
Out at the Tidal Pool, there was no sign of any Greenshanks or the Spotted Redshank, but there were still a couple of hours to go to high tide. We might stand a better chance on the way back. There were three Goldeneye and a pair of Red-breasted Mergansers diving out on the water. A Kingfisher kept dashing out from the near bank in a flash of electric blue then disappearing back in. When it got to the far end, it flew out and round over the middle of the water then back in again behind us. There were a few Pintail and another Avocet sheltering behind the small island.
Out at the beach, the tide was already quite well in and there were just a few waders on the shore. Several Sanderling were running in and out of the waves with a Grey Plover, a lone Knot was further over and there were Oystercatchers gathered trying to roost off towards Brancaster. A single Bar-tailed Godwit flew in and landed on the beach.
Looking out to sea, we could see the small flock of Common Scoter but the water was quite choppy (and brown!) today. The ducks kept disappearing into the troughs so they were hard to follow. There were several Velvet Scoters with them but even though the light was good, they were hard to pick out unless they drooped their wings and we could see the white wing patch. Eventually most of the group that wanted to managed to see at least one. Otherwise, we found a few Red-breasted Mergansers, a Goldeneye and a single Great Crested Grebe on the sea, but no sign of the Long-tailed Duck which had been reported earlier.
It would be lunchtime by the time we got to the Visitor Centre and it was cold out on the beach so we turned to head back. As we came out of the dunes, another Water Rail was swimming across the near corner of the Tidal Pool. It stopped in the middle where it could stand on the bottom and seemed to be undecided which way to go for a minute, before flying in under the near bank.
A little further along, we found a Greenshank feeding with a Curlew out in the water. It had obviously flown in while we had been out on the beach. One of the group thought they had seen a pipit land on one of the islands further back and while we were looking for that, another wader dropped in right at the front. When we looked down, we realised it was the Spotted Redshank. It was on the closest island, right by the path and only a few metres away from us. Stunning views. The scope views were fill the frame and we had a fantastic view of its needle-fine bill with its bent tip.
The waders were all coming in to roost here over the high tide. A Ringed Plover then dropped in right in front of us too, in the lovely low warm winter light. The Red-breasted Mergansers were diving just off the bank in between the islands now too. When all the ducks flushed off the saltmarsh, we turned to see a Merlin circling with a Marsh Harrier. The Merlin flew across west over the dunes. We didn’t know where to look!
In the end, we had to drag ourselves away and head back for lunch at the Visitor Centre. There were a few Goldfinches in the alders and when a flock of Long-tailed Tits passed through a Treecreeper appeared on one of the tree trunks nearby too.
The long-staying Long-billed Dowitcher had disappeared for a couple of days at the start of the week, but had been seen back at Holkham again yesterday while we were in the Fens. Thankfully, it was apparently still there today so we decided to head back that way to see if we could see it. As we drove past Burnham Norton, a single Cattle Egret was in the field right next to the main road again. We pulled up quickly in the layby to check out the geese in the field by the road opposite Holkham Park and found three Barnacle Geese in with the Greylags.
As we arrived on Lady Anne’s Drive we could see a few people looking but it didn’t seem like they were watching the Long-billed Dowitcher. When we got out of the minibus, they pointed to it just the other side of the fence!
The Long-billed Dowitcher was feeding with a Black-tailed Godwit on the edge of the water between some Teal. We had some great views of it as it probed its long bill into the wet grass, rather like a grey snipe. Then a Red Kite drifted over the grazing marsh flushing all the ducks and the Long-billed Dowitcher flew up too, calling. It circled round and dropped down again further back in the long grass with the godwits. A Great White Egret flew in over the marshes and over the Drive.
It was all a bit too easy and we now had a little more time than we had allowed to find the Dowitcher. Historically, Lady Anne’s Drive was a good place to see Grey Partridges but they seem to have disappeared recently. We were heading back to Warham Greens for the roost, so we decided to take a detour round the back of the Park to see if we could chance upon some. We checked out several more places where we have seen them regularly in the past, but drew a blank. A couple of Bullfinches flew across the road in front of us at one point, and we drove past a Raven which was in a field right next to the main Dry Road as we headed back towards Wells.
It was time to head to the raptor roost and as we drove in along the track, a couple of Fieldfares flew up into the trees ahead of us. There were a few Pink-footed Geese in one of the fields but we couldn’t see anything else in with them.
When we got down to the edge of the saltmarsh, there were lots of people with scopes gathered already. Apparently the Pallid Harrier had already been seen but no one seemed to know where it had gone or what had happened to it. We found a space to stand and started scanning. There were a few Marsh Harriers over the back of the saltmarsh and a Common Buzzard perched on a bush. A shout went up and we looked up to see a Short-eared Owl flying past in front of us.
We were just thinking that when the Pallid Harrier comes in early it often likes to perch on the footbridge or a nearby bush when someone picked it up flying again. On cue, it drifted in and landed on one of the rails of the bridge in the low afternoon sunshine. It stayed there for the best part of ten minutes so we all had a great chance to look at it through the scopes.
After a while, the Pallid Harrier took off again and circled round in front of us before eventually drifting off back over the saltmarsh. Mission accomplished and even better to see it now having missed it on Tuesday.
It was close to 4pm now and starting to get colder as the sun set. A perfect end to our four days, we headed back for some last tea and cake.
