January 1-7: Kicking off the yearlist

Now that I don’t have work getting in the way of my birding I decided to go for a London year list using only public transport. Although I’ve kept one for the past couple of years I’ve not made much attempt at it before. Last year I amassed 169 species without much effort which would have been a little higher were it not for the lockdown at the beginning of the year. I have a rough target of 180 for the year with 110 by the end of January.

I had originally planned to see in the New Year at Rainham where I would have seen the highest number of species but plans fell through so I ended up in the Lea Valley instead. I began on Walthamstow Marshes but failed to connect with the incredibly elusive Dusky Warbler. It was a nice bright day and the local Song Thrush was proclaiming his territory.

Song Thrush

There wasn’t a lot on offer at the adjacent Wetlands so I just used it as a shortcut to Tottenham Hale station and took the train up to Cheshunt. I hadn’t figured on everyone who lived nearby taking advantage of the Bank Holiday and the place was heaving. Even the hides at the Bittern Watchpoint failed to offer any sanctuary as noisy tots ensured any Bitterns weren’t going to emerge from the reeds.

I didn’t see anything particularly good for the year list but a Red Kite over Seventy Acres was bird of the day.

Red Kite

I visited the London Wetland Centre on Jan 2nd where for the second day in a row I failed to see Bittern but managed to find a couple of decent birds with four Jack Snipe on the grazing marsh and the same Brambling on the feeders that we’d found in December.

Brambling

After a couple of local days doing Brent Res and shopping, my next expedition was the Bexley Little Bunting. I’d already seen it in December but that was last year and who can resist going for second helpings of such a smart and cooperative bird. This was my third Little Bunting in London and the first two took a bit of effort to find and then never showed for long. The Bexley bird clearly hadn’t read the script as it fed unconcerned along the path just a few metres away. As long it isn’t over-togged then you could watch it for ages and I did leave it happily feeding there when I left.

Little Bunting

As I’d got back to Albany Park so early I decided to take the next train wherever it was going. Luckily it was heading to Swanscombe so I spent the rest of the morning there. There was no sign of the Spoonbill on Botany Marsh but I learnt it had been coming in later. I walked along the brand new Thames footpath for the first time and spent some time checking the Thames but amazingly there was only a single wader on show, a Common Redshank. As I walked back up the hill to the station I looked back at Botany Marsh and could see a distant white blob which through the bins became a Spoonbill, the first one I’ve seen in London in winter.

White Blob (Spoonbill)

It was back to Brent Res the next day and my first good find of the year with a Great Egret in north marsh. I’ve seen a few here over the years but it’s always a good one to see locally and it’s where I found London’s first ever Great Egret many years ago. I also managed to catch up with a Tawny Owl at its day roost before it slinked off back into its hole.

Great Egret

Tawny Owl

I finally made it to Rainham Marshes at the end of the first week of January with my regular Rainham birding frinds John & Janet. We located the regular flock of five Barnacle Geese on Wennington and then found a Brent Goose hiding in with the Canadas, another good year tick and the first bird in 2022 that I didn’t see last year. There were the usual Marsh Harriers hunting near the A13 but no sign of any Ravens that are often present.

4 of the 5 Barnacle Geese

Brent Goose

As we left Serin Mound the resident tame female Kestrel (she needs a name: Katie?) landed on a signpost right next to the path with a vole in her talons and proceeded to consume it while being totally togged. She really has no fear of people and is a delight to watch.

Kestrel with prey

With the tide out in Aveley Bay I was able to rack up some wader year ticks with Avocet, Black-tailed Godwit and Curlew being added but there was no sign of any of the 1,000 Dunlin that had been around – where do they all go? And talking of absent birds, the elusive Dartford Warbler continued to be elusive. It’s been on the river wall for a couple of months and I’ve still only seen it once.

After a stop for coffee & cake we did a circuit of the reserve but didn’t add much more apart from a heard-only Bearded Tit. Back at the centre we decided to look for the Firecrests and were rewarded with point-blank views of both birds. This was another bird I expected to just about see during the course of the year but most probably in late autumn so it was nice to catch up with it so early. At the end of Week 1 I finished on 90 species which was about par.

Rainham December 1st

 With December 1st being my first day of not being employed for a very long time, I decided to mark my official retirement date with a trip to Rainham. None of this lying in and taking it easy, I was there for dawn.

It was a bit windy walking through Rainham West and cold enough to keep most Cetti's Warblers quiet - they really don't like singing when the temperature drops. I continued along the path parallel to Coldharbour Lane rather than the longer route via the barges. At Serin Mound I scanned across Wennington, seeing the first of four Marsh Harriers today; the juveniles have become very proficient in flushing flocks of ducks but I've still not seen one catch one yet!

It was almost high tide when I started walking along the river and it began drizzling a bit. The last bit of mud disappeared beneath the grey waters of the Thames causing the Redshanks to fly and find somewhere to rest up while an Avocet flew across to Crayford searching for that last bit of mud and a couple of Curlew conceded defeat and whistled their way over to Purfleet scrape. Bird calls were then drowned out by a pair of Chinooks that powered their way downriver.

I headed into the reserve shortly after opening time and did the usual anti-clockwise circuit, seeing a solitary Cattle Egret following the bovine herd by Winter Pool; I wonder what it'll do when the cattle leave the reserve for new pastures. 

Cattle Egret

The woodland was fairly quiet so I stopped off at Ken Barrett hide where all the ducks were asleep - I guess even wildfowl are allowed a Duvet Day.

Tired Teal

Snoozing Shoveler

Dozing Mallard

Sleepy Gadwall

While walking along the Northern Boardwalk another Chinook appeared but it veered off from the river and went straight over the reserve flushing more birds than a pair of hunting Peregrines. Butts hide added Snipe and Ruff from opposite sides but little else. By now the breeze had picked up and the swishing of the reeds was too loud to hear any Beardies so I finished the circuit and headed back to the centre and popped into the shop for a calendar.

Norfolk in November

Having missed our annual winter trip to Norfolk at the beginning of the year due to lockdown, we decided to reschedule it to November. I met John & Janet at Kings Cross station on Tuesday morning, November 2nd and we took the 10.52 train up to Kings Lynn. It was a lovely calm sunny day as we headed deep into East Anglia but there wasn't too much to be seen on the way up other than fields full of large numbers of Lapwings, Woodpigeons and Starlings. We did saw a few Buzzards and Kestrels but there was no sign of any wild swans as we passed through the fens.

At Kings Lynn we transferred to the local bus which weaved its way through villages up to Hunstanton. We did manage to see a flock of Pink-feet flying over the fields and I'm pretty sure there was a white bird in amongst them but wouldn't go so far as claiming it as a Snow or Ross's Goose.

We checked into our hotel then had plenty of time to go for a walk along the promenade. We scanned the Wash from one of the raised lookouts and John located a close diver. We expected it to be a Red-throated but surprisingly it turned out to be a Black-throat in full summer plumage, a really smart bird. We found a few Red-throats as well then wandered up towards the cliffs seeing a few Turnstones and Oystercatchers. The tide was high so it wasn't great for waders. It should have been better for seaducks but we didn't see a single one.

Red-throated Diver

Hunstanton cliffs

We wandered up to the cliffs then back south towards Heacham adding a few Sanderling to the wader list. It was glorious sunny afternoon and the number of holidaymakers also on the promenade made it very different to our normal winter visits. We stopped in a beachside cafe for hot drinks then wound our way back to the hotel.

Sanderling

Turnstone

For dinner we chose The Mariner, a pub we'd not visited before but the bar menu looked good. And so it proved, along with a nice pint of Doombar to wash it down.

 

Wednesday 3rd

With the change back to GMT last weekend we had plenty of daylight before breakfast to do some more seafront birding. As we met outside the hotel at 6.45 it was obvious there was visible migration going on as Redwings 'seeped' over. We headed for the viewpoint and set up scopes. Within a few minutes several more large Redwing flocks flew west over The Wash followed by an enormous flock of 2,000 Starling coasting, although here it meant them travelling south. It was a precursor to spectacular day of Starling movement with the passage continuing all day. A flock of Pink-feet flew out of The Wash followed a bit later by a small flock of Brents.

Out to sea a couple of Red-throated Divers flew in, landed on the sea, dived and never resurfaced, a fairly typical diver trick. A lone distant Greylag Goose tried to pass itself off as something more interesting while a couple of drake Eider flew north, the only seaduck of the day.

We returned to the hotel for breakfast then headed down to the bus station for the bus to Titchwell. Before heading down the entrance track we could see waders feeding in one of the fields, there was a flock of Black-tailed Godwits as well as some Ruff while on the other side a Red Kite flew over.

We headed into the reserve and started off walking around the woods. A few Redwings were in the trees along with some Song Thrushes and Blackbirds that had likely arrived with them. However there was no sign of any of the Fieldfares that had been seen earlier.

Taking our time we walked along the main track scanning both sides. A little group of Bearded Tits flew across and a Marsh Harrier hunted over the marshes. The first lagoon was heaving with waders and wildfowl and we slowly went through all of them. Brent Geese chattered away as they flew over in small groups.

Brent Geese

Teal

By the time we reached the beach it was low tide and it had started to drizzle. Nevertheless we gave it a bit of time although there wasn't much to be seen. A flock of eight Eider flew West and Starling flocks caught the eye as they passed over low over the sea. With the precipitation now turning to rain we headed back to the main hide for some shelter and a lunch break. Even here Starling flocks continued to fly past.

Dunlin

We continued back along the path and went through the woods again, adding a few Goldcrests in a mixed tit flock. We stopped at the cafe for hot drinks and to get out of the rain for a bit. The showers had become heavier and more frequent so we decided not to head back into the reserve and instead headed for the bus stop to give us time to scan the fields for owls and raptors. Unfortunately this meant we missed a group of three Glossy Ibis that flew west over the main track! We didn't see any owls but did get four Common Buzzards and still more flocks of Starlings heading west.

Once back at Hunstanton we had a short walk along the promenade but didn't see anything so headed back to the hotel for a rest before going out to Chives for dinner.

 

Thursday 4th

Overnight the wind had picked up and there had been some rain but it was clear at dawn so I headed towards the lookout hearing two Brambling en route. As I walked through the little park a squall hit so I veered over to the covered seating area instead. This also gave protection from the strong northwesterly so I stayed here, being shortly joined by John. Redwings and Starlings were moving through and there was plenty of action on the sea.

Single Guillemot and Razorbill were seen but not the hoped for Little Auk. Gannet, Red-breasted Merganser and Common Scoter were added, the latter being also being a year tick. Two late Arctic Terns flew past and then I picked up a distant Sooty Shearwater also flying north out of The Wash. As we headed back for breakfast more Starlings headed over making a total of 3,300 in an hour.

We took the same bus as yesterday but further along the coast to Holkham. Wandering slowly down Lady Anne’s Drive paid dividends as we came across a close covey of Grey Partridges which also included a single Red-legged. The marshes also hosted plenty of Wigeon and Teal and a few Curlew.

Curlew

Grey Partridge

Red-legged Partridge

Wigeon

The main target here was Shore Lark so we headed straight onto the beach to the roped-off area. A few returning birders confirmed there were two birds showing so we went straight to the far end and had good scope views of both birds.

Shore Lark

We decided to continue over to the dunes for a scan of the sea. By now the NW wind was really strong so we had to use the edge of the dunes for shelter. A couple of groups of Eider flew west and we picked up four more Sooty Shearwaters flying east. We were hoping for Little Auk as they had been seen further along the coast but we didn’t manage to connect with any. There were a few waders on the beach and I also saw an adult Med Gull which promptly disappeared.

We needed to escape from the wind so headed back, pausing to take another look at the Shore Larks. They were a bit closer from this side and we found four this time. Back at the centre we decided to stop at the cafe for lunch and a much needed hot drink. The plan for the rest of the afternoon was to walk through the woods where we could be guaranteed some shelter from the wind.

The woods were very quiet and we only came across one tit flock which also had a Treecreeper in it but no Yellow-brows which we’d been hoping for. We stopped in the hides along the way, seeing four Great Egrets, a White-fronted Goose and the usual raptor fest of Red Kites, Marsh Harriers and Common Buzzards. A few groups of Pink-feet flew past and I haven’t mentioned the Starlings yet which were migrating westwards in flocks all day long so they were difficult to count.

With the afternoon light beginning to fade we walked slowly back to the centre and stopped to scan for a while, hoping to pick up a Barn Owl but none were seen. With Starling flocks continuing to zip over we headed back to the bus stop. It was dark by the time we left so we couldn’t see anything else along the way back. Tonight’s dinner was taken in a fish and chip restaurant which was accompanied by a bottle of Ghost Ship.

 

Friday 5th

Our last morning’s birding was spent on the lookout at the beach as the wind had abated somewhat and there was no rain. There were some large flocks of Knot heading into The Wash with about 600 in total; as we watched them shimmer over the waves they were briefly joined by another huge wave of Starlings out at sea. Starling numbers were even higher than previous day and we counted over 17,000 in less than 50 minutes. We also had our first Fieldfares of autumn while out at sea there were a few Common Scoter and Red-throated Divers.

All too soon we had back to the hotel for breakfast and to pack up. Once we’d settled up we headed down to the bus station and got an early bus back down to Kings Lynn. There were more Pinkies in the fields along the way. We arrived in plenty of time for the 10.44 train to London. Our group trip list was added up and reached a respectable 104 species. It was had to choose a bird of the trip but the impressive migration of Starlings was a top contender; we counted 28,580 but this must have been a fraction of the birds that actually flew over during our stay.

Monday October 4th

Our last birding of the trip was another pre-breakfast visit to Radipole. The overnight rain had stopped so we had a fine dawn at this urban reserve. Janet accompanied us this time and was rewarded with the three roosting Cattle Egrets again by the visitor centre although there were no Greats today.

Cattle Egrets

As usual we made our way to the reedbed platform and watched for half an hour. The egrets soon flew north, no doubt searching for a bovine herd. A few Mipits and Swallows headed south while in the reeds we heard the usual Water Rails, Bearded Tits and Cetti’s Warblers. 

It was soon time to head back for breakfast and then the return train to London. The group trip list was 90 species which considering the wet and windy weather was pretty good.

Sunday October 3rd

The rain had stopped by dawn so John and I headed down to Radipole for some pre-breakfast birding. Just by the visitor centre we located a roosting Cattle Egret in the half-light of dawn and then a second one. These were the two regular birds that a local had told us about when we were at Lodmoor. Except that two had now turned into three! And there was a Great Egret as well.

Cattle Egret

We carried on along the path to the observation platform and spent some time there. Eventually the Cattle Egrets flew off north one at a time, presumably to find a flock of cattle. The Great Egret also flew off in the same direction but we could still see another one in the channel so we had five egrets and no Littles.

Great Egret

A few Mipits flew over but there wasn't much else happening and the lure of bacon got the better of us so we returned to our B&B for another large breakfast to set us up for the day. With the weather forecast looking decent, but still fairly windy we settled on Plan A and  took a cab up to Portland Bill.

Portland Bill Lighthouse

We first checked out the obs quarry but couldn't find the Little Owl so carried on. A Wheatear showed briefly opposite the Pulpit Inn and a trio of Siskin flew over. Mipits and Swallows flew over regularly in small numbers.

We found some shelter on the leeward side of the obelisk and settled in for a seawatch. At first it was just a few Gannets and auks that flew past but we eventually managed three Balearic Shearwaters and I also had a Pomarine Skua that came in quickly, buzzed a few terns then was lost to view behind the obelisk before the others could get on it.

Gannet

A few Kittiwakes and Med Gulls were picked up along with some more auks, including some close enough to be confirmed as Guillemots. Eventually numbness set in and we decided to go for a walk up to the top fields. On our way we found another Wheatear, two Stonechats and a Whinchat.

Wheatear

There was an angry-looking squall offshore which we just caught the edge off as we walked along the coastal path but it wasn't too bad. The local pair of Ravens flew past. 

Rain coming our way

Raven

We looked into a lot of fields and checked the hedges but couldn't find any other grounded migrants so we decided to call it quits and headed off to the bus stop and back into Weymouth. It was still sunny when we got back so we decided on doing a loop of Radipole again. The only egret by the visitor centre was a single Little which completed the set from earlier.

The sun had brought the insects out and there were lots of dragonflies, a couple of Red Admirals and third brood of Common Blue. Find of the day went to John when he located an Elephant Hawk-Moth caterpillar that looked like it was getting ready to pupate.

Common Darter

Red Admiral

Elephant Hawk-Moth caterpillar

The rain started again so we called it a day and retreated back to the B&B for a rest before dinner.

Saturday 2nd October

 The threatened storm hadn't arrived at first light so I headed down to Radipole for a bit of pre-breakfast birding leaving the others to enjoy a lie-in. Among the gulls in the car park was the expected Med Gull and I stopped on the bridge by the visitor centre to see if anything flew out from its overnight roost. A few Little Egrets emerged and I nearly had a Cattle Egret when a stocky all white bird with an orange bill flew around at the back but it was just an Aylesbury type Mallard. A Kingfisher zipped past which was to be the only one all weekend.

I walked down to the viewing platform over the reedbed where I heard Bearded Tit, Water Rail and a few Cetti's Warblers but there wasn't much else so I headed back for a full English breakfast just as the rain began.

With an appalling weather forecast of strong winds and heavy rain we made plans for the day and decided not to venture too far. We took the bus down to Ferrybridge and walked to the visitor centre/cafe for a bit of shelter. 

Ferrybridge

There were plenty of waders with Oystercatcher, Ringed Plover, Dunlin, Sanderling, Bar-tailed Godwit, Turnstone and a single Little Stint to look at along with a few Sandwich Terns and yet more Med Gulls.

Bar-tailed Godwit

Juvenile Sanderling

Turnstones

Despite the continuing rain we decided to walk up the shingle ridge and have a look at the sea in case the wind had blown in anything close; unfortunately there was nothing apart from a few gulls. We checked out the pools at the east end where there was a Curlew to add to the wader list and a Little Egret, then went back to the centre for another look at the waders.

By now we were all pretty wet through so we decided to head back into town and walked back up the road to get the bus. We got off by the roundabout and walked over to Radipole for a proper look. We walked the entire length of the paths but there wasn't much around in these conditions. We flushed a Sparrowhawk that was taking cover in a tree and as we approached the screen at the top end a Buzzard was sat on the fence but flew off when it saw us approaching. A decent flock of Swallows and House Martins were feeding over the open water.

With the visitor centre shut we called into Greggs for a late lunch and headed back to the B&B to dry out and have a rest. Hopefully the weather will be better tomorrow.

Weymouth October 1st

This was the start of a long weekend's birding break to Weymouth with my friends John and Janet. After a uneventful but long three hour train journey down to Weymouth we walked the short distance to our regular B&B to check in. A few minutes later we headed off down the road to Lodmoor. The weather was still fine although the breeze had picked up.

We decided on taking the anti-clockwise route around the whole reserve and started off in the SW corner. We had Sandwich Tern calling and one was picked up circling high with a Med Gull yet within a few minutes there were three on the deck and three more still flying around and the number of Med Gulls was in double figures. Out in the middle was a Great Egret and it didn't take long before we'd found another amongst the Little Egrets.

Sandwich Tern

Waders were fairly thin on the ground to start with: a few distant Black-wits and a single Snipe but as we went to the next lookout we added Common Sand and Greenshank. John picked up an interesting pigeon flying along the back and got me on it and it turned out to be a Turtle Dove, an unexpected year tick for both of us which I thought we'd missed this year. There were lots of dragonflies out in the afternoon sunshine.

Migrant Hawker

We stopped to look into Weymouth Bay but seeing nothing more than some very distant gulls and terns among the moored up cruise ships we carried on up the Eastern side. Another Great Egret flew in and Water Rail was heard calling. A Marsh Harrier showed well and kept flushing the waterbirds.

Marsh Harrier

A few Bearded Tits pinged in the reedbed and the odd Chiffchaff and Blackcap called from the adjacent trees. Heading down the Western side the light was more favourable and we stopped several times to scan across the marsh and chat to the locals. Waders on this side included a small flock of Dunlin and some dazzling Lapwings in superb light.

Lapwing

The egret tally kept rising with several Littles feeding and at one point we could see five Great Egrets showing how common they'd recently become. Med Gull numbers were also up and the final tally was at least 90.

Little Egret

Various Great Egrets

Mediterranean Gulls

A mostly white bird with dark wings and a red bill looked like a gull to the naked eye but soon revealed itself to be an odd Ruff, apparently this individual has been present for about five years and has become whiter each year.

Leucistic Ruff

Back at the end we had another scan of the bay but apart from a Shag and some very hardy swimmers there was nothing new of note so we headed back to our digs and a short rest before heading out to Wetherspoons for a well earned pint and a fish 'n' chips dinner.