A 3-day tour looking for autumn migrants mainly on the North Norfolk coast and including a morning watching the Wader Spectacular up on the Wash.

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.

Early in the season, through September, is the best time for drift migrants from Scandinavia. If the wind comes from the east, particularly with rain or mist, large falls of songbirds can occur. Redstarts, Pied Flycatchers and Wheatears often make up the common component, along with scarcer birds such as Wrynecks, Icterine Warblers, Red-backed Shrikes and Greenish Warblers from the near continent. From mid-September, the first regular visitors from the far-east can include Yellow-browed Warbler.

If the wind blows from the north, 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.

Waders are very much a feature of autumn here with Curlew Sandpipers and Little Stints regular, and the odd rarity is often mixed in with them. In previous years, participants on our Autumn Migration tours have seen exciting species such as White-rumped, Pectoral & Buff-breasted Sandpipers visiting from America.

Wader Spectacular

On one morning we will make an early start and head up to the Wash to catch the high tide. This is one of the most amazing wildlife spectacles it is possible to see in the UK, when huge numbers of wading birds congregate around the mudflats of the Wash, in north-west Norfolk, at the end of the breeding season, to moult or to spend the winter. Well in excess of 100,000 birds can be present here at times, the largest number being Knot, plus the likes of Bar-tailed Godwit, Oystercatcher and Dunlin. There is usually a very good variety of other waders present too.

Only on the highest tides each month, the mud is entirely covered with water. At this point, all the birds are pushed off the Wash and fly inland, gathering on the old gravel pits at Snettisham or on the fields beyond. It is a truly amazing site to see them whirling in huge flocks over the Wash and then flying overhead to roost, thousands at a time. An unforgettable experience!

We would expect to see around 100-120 species across the three days.