Day 1 of a 4-day Winter Wildfowl, Cranes & Owls tour. The weather was not great – rain on and off all day and increasingly windy and cold – but hopefully it is getting much better for the next three days. So we headed down to the Broads today, given we would therefore be spending more time in the minibus and wouldn’t have to walk too far.
It is a longer drive down to the Broads but at least we were warm and dry on the way. On a recce visit yesterday, we had found some swans last thing in a field near Horning. As we drove past this morning we could see they were still there so we stopped for a look. Thankfully the drizzle seemed to have stopped. The swans were hard to see at first, in a recently harvested sugar beet field, the second field over and behind a thin hedge. Scanning from the road, we could see they were mostly Whooper Swans, with at least one Bewick’s Swan in with them.
There were lots of geese in the field too, Greylags and Pink-footed Geese, although many of the latter were flying over to another field further back as we arrived. Several of the Greylags were tucked in just behind the hedge though. We walked slowly down the path and kept stopping, giving the closer geese time to walk away.
Once we got to the hedge, we had a much better view of the swans now. We counted at least 4 Bewick’s Swans and around 25 Whoopers, although there were a few down in the far corner of the field which we couldn’t see clearly. Through the scopes, we had good views of the two species, particularly nice to see them side by side, the Whooper Swans noticeable bigger with more yellow on the bill extending down in a long wedge. After a while, many of the swans tucked their necks in and went to sleep.
We turned our attention now to the geese. There were still lots of Greylags, but a steady succession of small skeins of Pink-footed Geese were coming back in now, landing over the back of the field. Again, it was good to see the Pinkfeet alongside some Greylags, the former much smaller with darker heads and darker and more delicate bills. We scanned through the geese we could see but there didn’t seem to be anything else with them.
Pressing on deeper into the Broads, we made our way over towards Martham. We had found three Tundra Bean Geese yesterday too, in a winter wheat field with a few Pinkfeet. It didn’t seem a particularly attractive field so we didn’t think there was much chance they would be there again today, but as we pulled up to scan we were pleasantly surprised to see some geese still in the field. We managed to pull off the road into a gateway and got out to scan.
The three Tundra Bean Geese were still with the Pinkfeet, but they were sitting down at first. We could see their heavier bills and just about make out that the band around them was orange rather than pink, though the light wasn’t great. Eventually they stood up and started feeding, and now we could see their dayglo orange legs. There were lots of Egyptian Geese in the same field too.
It had been spitting with rain all morning, but now the wind picked up noticeably and we could see some very grey clouds approaching from behind us. We got back into the minibus just as the heavy rain started. Given the conditions, we took advantage to make a quick loo stop in Martham, before continuing on towards the coast.
Heading towards Horsey, a Grey Heron was standing on a staithe by the road, but we were mainly looking for different large grey birds today. Further up, we could see several Lesser Black-backed Gulls standing in some flooded grazing marshes with a single Great Black-backed Gulls and another interesting looking large grey-backed gull. Unfortunately, as we pulled up to scan from a nearby gateway a van driving past helpfully sounded its horn and all the gulls took off. There were still lots of Black-headed Gulls and Common Gulls on the wet grass and several Lapwings and Wigeon around the pool beyond. Scanning the grazing marshes, we still couldn’t see any sign of Cranes here today.
Just past Horsey Mill, lots of Chaffinches came up from a field by the road and we had a brief glimpse of a Brambling in the hedge. We turned round, parked and walked slowly back up the road. Several Stock Doves came up from the field with lots of Woodpigeons. The Chaffinches had gone back to feeding down in the field, and there were lots of Linnets in there too. Occasionally we could see the white rump of a Brambling as it flew round, but they were hard to see once they landed again.
Eventually everything flushed and lots of the flock flew up in to the willows the other side of the road. They were hard to see through the branches from our side but then lots of Chaffinches started to drop down onto the edge of the tarmac ahead of us. Then several Bramblings flew down too and we had good views of them now, including a couple of smart, brighter orange males.
Continuing round on the coast road, we could see what appeared to be dead crows hung on strings from posts in the fields, although many of them had broken off and were lying on the ground below. It is an old-school Victorian farmer habit of shooting Rooks and tying them to posts in fields to scare off the rest of the flock, which strangely persists to this day despite the fact (a) it doesn’t really work and (b) there is precious little evidence that Rooks actually do much damage. Bizarrely, we found this farmer had bought plastic Crows and strung them up instead – modern farming methods?! The Rooks were all happily feeding in the next field back.
Our persistence finally paid off when we found a flock of Common Cranes in a field. They were far enough away that we would not disturb them, so we parked in a layby and got out. A huge flock of Pink-footed Geese came up from the fields behind. We counted 26 Cranes, 23 in one group and 3 further over. Good views through the scopes, but the rain started to get heavier again so we retreated back to the minibus.
We turned back inland. As we were passing, and it was raining, we drove round through another couple of areas good for Cranes but there was no sign of any more here today. One of the fields where we had seen some recently had someone walking through with four dogs.
We were heading for the Yare Valley next. As we drove down towards Strumpshaw we had a glimpse of a couple of Redwing which flew out of the trees by the road. Just beyond, we could see Fieldfares in the grass behind the hedge. We turned around and found somewhere to stop. Now we could see there were hundreds of thrushes in the field, mostly Fieldfares, but with a much smaller number of Redwings scattered in with them. Eventually we all got good views of both in the scope.
From Strumpshaw, we turned down towards Buckenham marshes, over the level crossing. As we drove down the access road, we could see several more Redwings in the paddocks and a pair of Mistle Thrush dropped out of the trees. It landed in the grass but then flew up to the fence behind where it was joined by the second.
When we got to the corner overlooking the grazing marshes, we stopped to scan. There were not many geese on here today, just a few Greylags and Canada Geese we could see from here. We could see lots of Wigeon, though fewer than there used to be at this stage of winter, and no shortage of Chinese Water Deer.
It was still spitting with rain so we drove on down to the fisherman’s car park. We were going in to the hide anyway, but given it was time for lunch we decided to eat here where we could get out of the weather.
While we ate, we continued birding. There were more Wigeon, plus Teal, Gadwall and Mallard around the pools in front of the hide. A close Lapwing walked across right in front. Scanning over the grass, we found a single Ruff further back, feeding in amongst the ducks. A lone Stonechat appeared on the fence off to the left and a Marsh Harrier hung over the trees beyond.
After lunch, the rain had stopped but it was still cold in the increasingly blustery wind. Scanning the marshes the other side of the track, we found a small group of Barnacle Geese feeding hunkered down in amongst the rushes.
We drove back round to Strumpshaw to use the facilities and get a hot drink. It was disappointing to find the feeders had been taken down due to rats, as this is normally our go to site here for Marsh Tit. We sat in Reception Hide with our coffees, where the heaters were much appreciated. Several Marsh Harriers were already gathering out over the reedbed, we counted 8 in the air together at one point. A couple of Common Buzzards drifted over too.
Speaking to one of the wardens, there had apparently been some Redpolls by the overflow carpark in recent days, so once we had warmed up we headed back out. We walked up through the main car park and back down the road. It was cold and windy and there was no sign of any Redpolls but we did eventually find several Siskins feeding in the alder trees. A flock of Goldfinches came down to feed on the edge of the road.
Round to Cantley next, we parked and walked down over the railway crossing to view the marshes. There had been over 200 White-fronted Geese here yesterday apparently but when we arrived we could see very few geese this afternoon initially. We found some Canada Geese and a smaller number of Pink-footed Geese. Then scanning more carefully through the scopes, we found a small group of three or four White-fronted Geese feeding in the rushes. They were hard to see, feeding with their heads down, but when all the geese were flushed by a passing Marsh Harrier, one landed again out in the open. We were looking into the wind and it was still spitting with rain, so our optics kept getting wet. Once we had all had a good look at the White-fronted Geese, we beat a quick retreat back to the minibus.
Our normal itinerary takes us back to St Benet’s Abbey to finish the day. It was not really the weather for owls now but as we were heading back via Ludham, we decided to call in for a quick look anyway. Along the access road, we could see a couple of cattle still out in one of the fields and there were four Cattle Egrets with them but they were all huddled close in behind the hedge. A large mixed flock of Fieldfares and Starlings was feeding in the wet grass but flew up as we passed.
Scanning the grazing meadows from the car park, it was perhaps no surprise it was very quiet. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. A succession of lines of Cormorants flew over, heading in to roost, but not much else. We walked back down the road to the other side of the barns to scan the fields just in case. We did get better views of the Cattle Egrets, which were now further out in the field around the feet of one of the cows.
It was time to head for home. Considering the weather, it had not been a bad day overall and we had seen some good birds. Hopefully the weather would be a bit better tomorrow.
