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May 2008
Saturday 31st May
A late start at Sparham Pools and few interesting birds, though 2 Cuckoos were calling, a Hobby hunting and a Grey Wagtail flew over. Non-avian interest included a range of dragonflies including teneral Emperor, Black-tailed Skimmers, Broad-bodied Chaser, Four-spotted Chaser, 2 Large Red Damselflies and 3 species of blue damselfly. A few butterflies on the wing too, and a moth: my first Treble-bar.
Nearby at Bylaugh the 2 Mallard x Egyptian Goose hybrids were again present, and with them were 2 Ruddy Shelducks.
Friday 30th May
Not for the first time, this Green Carpet threw me by not being green...
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Green Carpet (left) and Brimstone Moth (right), Bawdeswell, 30th May 2008 |
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Thursday 29th May
Thornham is a good place to check during my lunchtimes when there are passerine migrants around as it represents one of the few places on the coast where I have time to get to that I can see decent migrant cover without going far from the car. I once had a couple of Yellow-browed Warblers here (one of which looked and sounded like a Hume's) but most of the time I draw a blank. Today was no exception, nothing better than a posey Chiffchaff singing.
Wednesday 28th May
Moths are hotting up now...
Tuesday 27th May
Par for the course, the day we all have to go back to work tonnes of good birds turn up everywhere.
After work popped up to Titchwell to see the best of these, a Citrine Wagtail. After over an hour's wait it eventually appeared - a stunning bird, 18 years minus a couple of days after my last spring Citrine, a bird I found at my local reservoir (the first accepted spring record for the UK, though there have been a few since). This one was a beauty, a first-summer (with complete necklace) and said to be a female, though I'm not sure about that. Initially the back looked worryingly olive-brown toned but in subsequent (and better) views from a different direction it looked grey like it should be.
While waiting for it to appear a few other birds of note included 3 Temminck's Stints, Red-crested Pochard, Garganey, Yellow Wagtail, Cetti's Warbler and lots of Little Gulls, Common Sandpipers, etc.
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Citrine Wagtail, Titchwell, 27th May 2008
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Temminck's Stints, Titchwell, 27th May 2008
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Little Gulls, Titchwell, 27th May 2008
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Little Terns, Brancaster Staithe, 27th May 2008 |
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Monday 26th May
Well, with a wet and windy bank holiday week-end and things like a new computer and plumbing emergencies keeping me away from the birds, I've finally got up to date with the diary.
I've also completed sorting out my photos from Corsica and Sardinia last month. Click here to see them all, but here's a selection of the highlights:
Tuesday 20th May
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Little Terns, Brancaster Staithe, 20th May 2008 |
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Sunday 18th May
The Nightingale is still singing away at Swanton Morley. Other bits and pieces included Barnacle Goose, Common Sandpiper, Turtle Dove, Cuckoo, 2 Barn Owls, Kingfisher and Cetti's Warbler.
In the evening when travelling home from Norwich I was surprised to see another Barn Owl flying low over houses right in the middle of Lenwade - not quite their usual habitat!
Saturday 17th May
Another spring Saturday goes by with not enough time for birding :-(
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Spectacle, Bawdeswell, 17th May 2008 |
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Friday 16th May
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Ringed Plovers, Brancaster Staithe, 16th May 2008
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Turnstone (left) and Dunlin (right), Brancaster Staithe, 16th May 2008 |
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Monday 12th May
Moths tonight included my first Sandy Carpet. Need help identifying the pugs please (again). I think the left hand one is a Common Pug (but could well be wrong) and am wondering if the other one is Oak-tree Pug, or possibly Brindled, but not sure. Please let me know if you can solve these. Thanks.
Update: the right hand Pug is a Mottled Pug - thanks Rob!
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Common Pug, I think, (left) and Mottled Pug (right), Bawdeswell, 12th May 2008
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Sandy Carpet, Bawdeswell, 12th May 2008 |
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Saturday 10th May
Apologies for the delayed updates - have been pretty busy lately but hope to catch up in the next week or so.
Started early this morning with an unsuccessful look for the Great White Egret that was again at Bintree Mill last night. A Little Owl nearby but not much else in the early morning mist. Looking from Bintree Woods over towards Sennowe Park didn't fair much better although there were 3 each of Barn Owl and Turtle Dove.
After that I headed down to Minsmere to help with a group. Bitterns were booming and seen in flight twice. A couple of Nightingales were singing, one even showing briefly. Waders included a distant Curlew Sandpiper but it was mostly pretty standard stuff. The group seemed to enjoy it though, especially the Treecreepers.
If news of the Subalpine Warbler on Westleton Heath had come out an hour or so earlier I would have gone to see it on the way out - which would have been a particularly good move as it turned out to be Britain's fifth Spectacled Warbler. By the time I was home it wasn't worth going back to see this (I saw the first and second), but it would have made a nice end to the day if news had seeped out just that little bit earlier.
Thursday 8th May
House Martins have only just arrived back in Bawdeswell today! They're normally the last of the three common hirundines to arrive but they are usually easy to find well before the end of April, long before the first Swifts arrive in their breeding areas - Swifts arrived in Bawdeswell on Sunday.
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Brimstone Moth, Bawdeswell, 7th May 2008 |
Woodpigeon, Thornham, 8th May 2008 |
Tuesday 6th May
The field behind my house has always proved rubbish for birds but recently it's been ploughed and whatever they were doing to it today (planting potatoes I think) attracted loads of birds this evening. Most of them were common species like Starlings and Pied Wagtails but in far larger numbers than I normally see here, and among them was a nice male Yellow Wagtail. Not a species I had expected to see from the house - I haven't even managed to see one at any of the more likely sites like Sparham Pools or Swanton Morley yet.
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Yellow Wagtail, Bawdeswell, 6th May 2008 |
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Monday 5th May
Sparham Pools was a bit disappointing this morning: Little Egret, Grey Wagtail and Turtle Dove being the best. Drove through Worthing later on where there was another Little Egret and a Grey Wagtail in the river beside the bridge.
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Chiffchaff, Sparham Pools, 5th May 2008 |
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Sunday 4th May
Didn't have long this morning so just popped in to Swanton Morley briefly. Didn't go all the way round, just a quick look at Holkham Lake. Long enough, however, to see my first Black Tern for the local area bouncing around, as well as Common Sandpiper and Barn Owl, and to hear yesterday's Nightingale singing in the distance. I was pleased with one Black Tern but a little later there were apparently 20 present.
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Black Tern, Swanton Morley, 4th May 2008
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caterpillar, Swanton Morley, 4th May 2008 - if you can identify this, please let me know! |
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Saturday 3rd May
A misty start at Swanton Morley but it soon brightened up. More summer visitors in this week with Turtle Dove singing and Reed Warbler numbers rising to at least 12.
A pair of Little Egrets were feeding in one of the dykes. Top bird today though was a Nightingale, my first in the local area, singing away with a Cetti's Warbler.
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Marsh Tit (left) and Little Egrets (right), Swanton Morley, 3rd May
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Common Tern, Swanton Morley, 3rd May 2008
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male Garden Warbler, Swanton Morley, 3rd May
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male Willow Warbler, Swanton Morley, 3rd May
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female Whitethroat (left) and male Lesser Whitethroat (right), Swanton Morley, 3rd May
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male Sedge Warbler (left) and Wren (right), Swanton Morley, 3rd May
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Tufted Ducks, Swanton Morley, 3rd May 2008
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male Pochard, Swanton Morley, 3rd May 2008
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Little Ringed Plover, Swanton Morley , 3rd May 2008
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Canada Goose, Swanton Morley, 3rd May 2008
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displaying Great Crested Grebes, Swanton Morley (Norfolk, UK), 3rd May 2008. Click here for a longer series of photos of these birds displaying.
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Gadwalls, Swanton Morley, 3rd May 2008
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Mute Swan (left) and the Sun, both in the early morning mist, Swanton Morley, 3rd May 2008
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Friday 2nd May
Had a nice pair of adult Mediterranean Gulls fly over at Choseley at lunchtime. Also Yellow Wagtail and Marsh Harrier between there and Thornham (but no Dotterels).
Next month: June 2008
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