A 4-day tour looking for autumn migrants and returning wintering birds mainly on the North Norfolk coast.
Autumn Migration
This is a very exciting time for bird watching in Norfolk. Migration gets under way in August and carries on all through the autumn into early November. A large number of birds pass through the region on their way to their wintering grounds further south. Significant numbers of other species, particularly waders and wildfowl, congregate here to spend the winter. There is always a wide variety of different birds to see and different places to explore.
From mid-September, regular visitors from the far-east can include Yellow-browed Warbler and as we get into October Pallas’s Warblers are often seen. This is the most exciting time of year for Siberian vagrants. In previous years, rarities seen on these tours have included Red-flanked Bluetail, Richard’s and Olive-backed Pipit, Radde’s, Dusky, Arctic, Barred, Western Bonelli’s and Hume’s Warblers, Red-breasted Flycatcher, Long-eared Owl and Great Grey and Daurian Isabelline Shrikes.
If the wind blows from the north-west, Seabirds take centre stage with large numbers of Shearwaters, Skuas, Gannets and Auks all possible. These can include scarcer species such as Long-tailed Skua, Sooty Shearwater, Leach’s Petrel and Sabine’s Gull, amongst the literally thousands of Gannets and Kittiwakes which may be flooding past offshore. Later in the autumn, Little Auks and Grey Phalaropes are both possibilities, blown inshore on strong northerly winds.
As the Autumn wears on the geese return to Norfolk to over winter, including roughly a third of the world’s population of Pink-footed Geese. Other species of geese can also be found, along with a variety of wintering wildfowl and waders. It is a real spectacle to witness the huge flocks of birds arriving from the continent at this time of year.
We would expect to see around 115-130 species across the four days.
Gift Vouchers
If you would like to give a gift to someone who is interested in birds then a gift voucher from The Bird ID Company is an ideal present.
The vouchers can be flexible, and used against any tour or tours over the following 12 months, or can be bought for a specific tour.
