American Golden Plover

Yep, still here! What with being busy at work, clocks going back, constant westerlies, and my camera having been away for repair, inspiration has been fairly low! Today however, an appointment down at Newmarket took me too close to East Harling to ignore so around nine o'clock I'd picked out the American Golden Plover that was was found here a couple of days ago. A bit of a birders bird being subtle and rather dull to look at, but I'm sure the finder was absolutely made up! I always have admiration for birders that are land locked but plug on with local patches and they deserve all the pludits when they turn up the goods-well done!

American Golden Plover - distant!

Wilson's Phalarope

After playing it cool for several days I eventually got round to try for this bird which had by all accounts, been leading a bit of a merry dance as it flitted betwixt Cley and Salthouse. With the pager reporting it as showing on Pat's Pool at Cley, an appointment just 2 mins down the coast was all the excuse I needed to nip along to here and get good, if distant, views of the Wilson's Phalarope, a small wading bird from North America. This was only the second one I've seen in Britain, the first was about a million years ago at Staines Reservoir in Surrey (1984 I think!)

New Moth

Ran the trap all night last night, in with the expected Rosy Rustic, Chestnut, Satellite a late Lesser Yellow-Underwing and Snout was a nice Black Rustic, a new one for me and the garden.

Black Rustic

Quiet

After the 'excitment' of the warbler on Monday its been fairly quiet compared to the rainfalls of Yank land birds in the west- Scilly Season is upon us! The last of the local Swallows departed on the 7th, set for sunnier climes. A drive along the coast on Saturday as far as Titchwell produced a day count of 8 Common Buzzards taking full use of the unseasonally warm (fantastic!) weather.

Blyth's Reed Warbler- Nailed!

Lady Luck was my baby today after a message first thing announced a Blyth's Reed Warbler at Wells Woods, a look in my works diary had me at Wells mid to late morning! After getting work issues out of the way I headed down to the pine woods where I piled the pressure on by actually paying the £3.50 carparking fee!!! I had to see this bird now! Scooting along to where aload of birders were standing on the edge of the woods I stood downwind as it were from where the bird was showing and sure enough the BLYTH'S REED WARBLER gave good albeit brief views as it lumbered around in the bramble tangle. A conspicuously grey bird with the short winged profile and short pale superscilium evident and was fairly vocal too giving two or three harsh 'zzick' call notes in short succession. Alas no pics, but for any non birders, think of a female skinny female sparrow with a thin beak- but less colourful!!

MALTA...don't do it

For anyone thinking of taking a nice holiday or vacation to Malta, watch this video and think again. What gives these ****s the right to blast these birds out of the the sky?!! I don't remember a special mandate to let them slaughter the EU's birds when they joined. I will never visit or encourage anyone to visit Malta while this continues unchecked by local authorities.

(the advert previous is only 12 seconds long)
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/video/2008/sep/30/malta.birds.prey

For a very sweary debate, and link to where I swiped the video from click here https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=3123276740006077877&postID=8495619171115992149

Walcott

As I walked out the front door this morning at 0740 to work a flock of 40 thrushes, presumably Redwing went whisping silently down the street in the murky morning light. During a truely miserable morning weatherwise I took my morning tea break sat next to a grumpy North Sea at Walcott watching the Turnstones when a fine adult Mediterranean Gull, dropped in briefly on the sea wall. Nice.

Mediterranean Gull




Turnstones




Its looking particularly tasty for a Leach's Petrel Fest tomorrow with the wind taking a NW slant with rain, but then ofcourse it would, its a week day!!!

Gull Return

With a blustery westerly wind spitting rain in my face walk up the track this morning, the walk back was slightly more comfortable and interesting as an adult Little Gull flew south low over the concrete pad. The second record in as many years, like bloody buses!