The Waxwings have arrived!

19/10/05 Holme NOA leaders: Connor

A day trip to Holme NOA started with a good sea-watch. Great Northern Diver, Black Throated Diver and Red Throated Diver (4) were all recorded. As well as this three smart adult Long Tailed Ducks, three Razorbills, a superb Little Auk which landed right in front of us, two Little Gulls, four Kittiwakes, two Fulmars, four Velvet Scoters, fifteen Red Breasted Mergansers, a superb juvenile Pomarine Skua and four Great Crested Grebes making it an incredible hour and fifteen minutes!

On the actual reserve there was a steady passage of Redpolls with fifty recorded including one with a suspiciously pale rump, or was it the light? There were also ten Siskins, two Bramblings and a Rock Pipit and three Meadow Pipits over. A superb finish to the day was eleven Waxwings in the village, on the public footpath near the hump-back bridge.

A bit of a round-up!

19/11/05 Titchwell RSPB Leaders: Simeon, James, Matt.
We took the oportunity of a quick hour and a quarter stop-off at Titchwell. We got there and went straight to the beach after hearing of six Red-Throated Divers, Several Slavonian Grebes and quite a few Velvet Scoter on the sea. I managed to pick up a Red-Throated after just five minutes, closely followed by Matt spotting a few Velvets with the Common Scoter rafts. After that, I spotted three Red-Breasted Mergansers (one female and two males) fairly close in and James spotted a Slavonian Grebe and two more Mergansers.
On the marshes were, 19 Common Snipe (no sign of the Jack Snipe that was there that day), 3 Little Egrets and 4 Little Grebes.
Overall we saw 54 species! Not bad for just an hour and a quarter!

Great bird!

13/11/05 Cley NWT and Salthouse Leaders: Connor
A trip to the Cley area after a run of good birds there recently. We started by sea-watching at Salthouse. The wind was in the north and this was reflected by the birds. Black Throated Diver, two Razorbills, four Red Throated Divers, a Little Gull and ten plus Kittiwake. Then came the most unexpected and best bird of the day, a juvenile Sabines Gull! It lingered offshorefor several minutes before flying west.

The next stop was Cley NWT north hide. Here the Green Winged Teal showed well and two Marsh Harriers were hunting over the reedbeds. What a seawatch and what a trip!

A quick stop!

29/10/05 Cley NWT and Salthouse leaders: Connor
A brief trip to Cley NWT to get the American Golden Plover. This proved successful with the bird showing well if distantly. After watching the bird for five minutes I thought I'd better get a record shot. Shortly after I had done this the bird flew into the reeds with the flock of Golden Plover. On to Salthouse where there was a pair of Richards Pipits. Both were elusive but one showed okay in the end. A lifer and two year ticks! Excellent!