May 2025

After a day of chores, gardening and sorting out some financial affairs, John and I had an evening walk in the village as it was just such a lovely evening. We listened to a Song Thrush singing and a Robin sitting on a low branch singing to us as we walked along the lane. The highlight was a Stock Dove sitting on top of one of the farm buildings!

John and I started the day at Weeting Heath which has now sadly closed down its Visitor Centre. We walked along to the West Hide where we saw two Stone Curlews and John spotted a small chick whilst I was sorting out my scope. The heat haze was awful and so were my photographs!

We drove onto Maidscross Hill which has unfortunately become a free for all dog waking area. Why people take dogs to nature reserves is totally beyond me. I suppose I should be grateful that at least some of them were on leads. We saw a Nightingale briefly and heard several others as well as Common Whitethroats, Willow Warblers and Chiffchaffs. The noise of the planes from Lakenheath drowned out all other noise on occasions and we gave up any hope of seeing any Garden Warblers as although they were singing they just sat tight in the Hawthorn bushes out of view.

The RSPB reserve at Lakenheath was next on our agenda so we put our packed lunch in a back pack and walked down to Joist Fen View Point where John counted 22 Hobbies distantly in the air and he was convinced that a falcon that flew close to us was a Red-footed Falcon. Whilst sitting in the warm sun and eating our lunch I noticed a very close Bittern lurking in the reeds. We sat very quietly and the Bittern stealthily crept out of the reeds catching a few small fish until eventually it caught a Roach. As more people arrived, we put our scope on the Bittern for people to see it well, as it crept around in and out of the reeds. Another booming Bittern also flew across one of the pools.

Whilst all this was taking place, a Cuckoo alighted in one of the trees at the side of us and I was quick enough to get a photograph of it before it flew away. We walked back to the Visitor Centre along the river bank where two Greenshank and four Avocets were on Hockwold Washes. We enjoyed some ice-creams from the shop before driving to Fowlmere. Here we watched a Garden Warbler as well as listening to another one singing nearby. Later we had late afternoon walk at East Wretham Heath where we saw two Yellow Wagtails at Langmere as well as several Mute Swans. It was a lovely day to be out and about despite the challenges of dogs and planes!

It was a warm start to the day as John and I walked down to Peto’s Marsh at the SWT reserve at Carlton Marshes. We met up with some of the Great Yarmouth bird club members and watched several falcons hunting over the marsh. It was not an easy task to pick out the Red-footed Falcons from the Hobbies present, as they were just so high up in the sky. We managed to see a female Red-footed Falcon and a male Red-footed Falcon but the rest seemed to be 2nd calendar year male Red-footed Falcons in amongst the Hobbies. Once my binoculars were up to my eyes I realised that there were also about 30 Swifts high up too. As I was keen to try and get some photographs, I needed John to guide me onto one as I grappled with my camera. They appeared as big as tiny tea-leaves in the air swirling around interacting with one another at times. After a few hundred attempts of pressing the shutter, John and I bid the others goodbye and headed to Ranworth for a pub lunch.

By the time we reached Ranworth Broad the weather had changed and we watched the Osprey from inside the Visitor Centre. After a while the Osprey flew up and over the trees as I took a few photos of a Great Crested Grebe and watched some Common Terns hawking over the broad.

Later at Hickling, Phil kindly walked back to the view point and kindly showed us where he had last seen the Temminck’s Stint. It took a while for me to locate it behind some wafting reeds and managed to get John onto it. Two Little Ringed Plovers were also on the marsh as we watched a few Cranes and Hobbies in the air before retreating back home.

It was a cold, windy day today and I had planned to visit the Food, Craft and Wood Festival at Sandringham which is close to my home. As it was too cold for most people to visit the coast, I realised that it would be busy and so decided to visit as soon as it opened before the crowds arrived. As well as visiting the craft and food tents, I like to watch the chainsaw competition where talented people carve a sculpture (usually a bird or mammal) from a tree stump in 30 minutes. I find it amazing that they can achieve it in 30 minutes. I loved the two bear sculptures and the owls. Hares were also produced.

As a result the only birds of that I noticed were the Red Kites flying over Sandringham and the Red Kite flying low over my front garden.

With a northerly wind blowing and my new neighbours out for the day, I took the opportunity, with their permission to step into their garden and paint the back of my shed before the new fence is erected. The lawns were then mowed and some gardening done before I collapsed on the hammock in the sun. Luckily my hammock is sheltered from northerly winds and I was soon too hot and after having some lunch I thought I needed a break and drove down to Snettisham where I watched Swallows, Swifts and House Martins all swooping down into one of the pools. I wandered around the bushes and heard many birds singing but like me they did not like the cold northerly wind and stayed firmly in the bushes.

I drove to Flitcham where the four Oystercatchers were very noisy and the Shelducks were in courtship mode. The Little Owl was fast asleep as I took its photo before I headed for home.

Having spent my morning and early afternoon sorting out photos and emails I was in need of some fresh air but I did not fancy walking anywhere today as I had been washed out by a migraine last night, so once again I popped down to Flitcham where I had a raptor interaction fest. Three Marsh Harriers, Two Common Buzzards and a Red Kite were mewing and calling at each other in the air. It was a shame that it was a dull, cold, grey day as their interactions were fascinating to watch. In just over 30 minutes I had clocked up 30 species either seen or heard from the hide.

After a lovely pub lunch with family at Sutterton, John and I spent the afternoon at Frampton Marsh RSPB with a friend. We watched a Temminck’s Stint on one of the islands from the Visitor Centre. Down at the sea-bank, in one of the pools, a Curlew Sandpiper and two Little Ringed Plovers kept us entertained as Avocet, Little Egrets and a Shoveler shared the pool.

After spending the morning baking a cake to take away for our next trip to another country, I needed some fresh air and took a walk at West Newton now that the madness of visitors to the tulip field has finished. I knelt at the little bridge to take a photo of the Grey Wagtail on some of the river weed and after a couple of photos, it flew along a bit further and landed at the bank edge. One of the roofers, re-roofing the cottage came to tell me about a colourful bug that they had seen and wondered what I was doing. The roofer had a real interest in the wildlife here and told me what he has been seeing since they have started work on the roof.

I wandered on, now that the large number of visitors have gone and the tulips beheaded, but found the water sprayers are still in place. I felt sorry for one young couple who had arrived by bus and had walked from a bus stop as they were a few days late for the spectacular show of colour that the tulips had provided. Luckily there were one or two late/short tulips that had opened after the beheading so they got the idea. I offered to take their photo in front of some of the yellow flowers so that at least they would have some sort of memory of the event.

I could hear a Common Whitethroat singing as I approached the pool where the pair of Mute Swans were still in place along with a pair of Mallards and a pair of Tufted Ducks. A Reed Bunting posed and sang its mournful song as I attempted a photo of a Reed Warbler hidden in the reeds using Gra’s new settings so that the bird would not be out of focus behind the reeds in front of it, which often pull the bird out of focus. Sand Martins and House Martins and an occasional Swallow were whizzing across the surface of the water but they were too fast for my lens as they dipped in for a drink. A Willow Warbler sang but it did not want its photo taken and neither did the Common Whitethroat as they both flew off before I could press the shutter. A pair of Common Buzzards were interacting with one another over by the woods.

I walked back to my car where a Chiffchaff was singing and luckily it turned around, as it did want its photo taken!

John and I had an early start as we were due in Cardiff to watch my son play a game of hockey. Once again he had been chosen to represent England o40s in the Home Nations Masters Hockey Championships being held in Wales. We had set off early to give ourselves a break as the game was not scheduled to start until late afternoon. We decided upon Symonds Yat as it was not too far off our route. I remember visiting here as a child and being shown a Peregrine sitting on a ledge. Sadly we could not fine one today but I did see two Ravens.

Later we watched Jonathan win 7-1 against Scotland. I was a very proud mum!

John and I were up early as we had a free morning and drove to Nag’s Head RSPB. It is a lovely woodland reserve that I have not visited before. We walked down to the hide meeting up with another visitor who said he had heard a Pied Flycatcher singing. It wasn’t long before I heard it too and we moved closer. I soon spotted it and I took a few photographs before going into the hide where I saw a male Redstart. John and I rushed outside and watched it fly up into a tree. On our walk back to the Visitor Centre we stopped to watch a Garden Warbler singing. We walked to another hide and watched a Blackcap as well as a Blue Tit and Great Tit.

We drove to Cardiff and met up with my daughter, Kathryn and together we all watched Jonathan win 5-0 against Wales. It was very hot and were very glad of the cool drinks and a lovely meal altogether at a wonderful country pub at the end of the day sitting outside in the sun!

Kathryn, John and I were up early as Jonathan had a morning hockey match against Ireland in Cardiff. We were joined by Sarah, George and Ted who had also come to watch. The boys were excited to see Jonathan on the pitch and waved to him. It was a tense game as after a while Ireland drew level at 1-1. However the better team won and England were victorious, winning 3-1. It was good to see England presented with the cup after a lovely weekend of fixtures in sunny, hot weather. You cannot beat a mixture of being with family, being a proud mummy with some birding as well in good weather, with a wonderful pub meal sitting in the sun!

After bidding my family farewell, John and I stopped off at Shustoke Resevoir in Warwickshire, where we watched two Black Terns and a Common Tern.

It was a day of playing catch-up with chores, admin and gardening to be done but I hadn’t bargained on doing it all in the heat, so I needed some rest time on my hammock. To my delight I heard and saw two Swifts screaming overhead. I do hope that they are the ones that nest in my neighbour’s house as I love to watch their comings and goings. The real sound of summer.

After a supermarket run and car wash in King’s Lynn I stopped in the docks to watch a Peregrine flying around the silo. Eventually it landed on the silo to preen.

Back at home the Swifts were still screaming in the air as I planted the runner beans in my garden.

After some more gardening I drove down to Snettisham in time for the high tide. It was a glorious evening in the sun. After a chat with Les, admiring his new 800mm Canon lens, he let me have a little try of it. Most impressive! Oystercatchers were sitting on their nests whilst Ringed Plovers, Dunlin, Avocet and a Little Stint ran in front of the advancing water feeding in the mud. On the pits Common Terns and Common Sandpipers were calling whilst an Avocet fed. I watched the tide turn and drove back along the track. Swallows and Goldfinches were sat on the wires by the chip shop.

It was back on our travels again today….gosh this retirement lark is busy! After passing Stonehenge we eventually arrived at Martin Down in Hampshire. It was a lovely hot sunny day and the butterflies were in abundance, with Small Blue, Marsh Fritillary, Green Hairstreak, Small Heath, Common Blue, Adonis Blue , Brimstone, Green-veined White and Grizzled Skipper all on the wing. Because of the heat they were whizzing by us and getting a photograph of them was challenging to say the least, especially as I dis not bring my small camera and was reliant on my iphone for taking pictures.

After a good long walk we drove to the other car park on Martin Down where we had been advised we could see a  Turtle Dove. We soon heard it purring and I quickly located it in an Ash Tree. I ran back to the car and fetched my Canon Camera and took a few photos, gathering up another chap who was desperate to see one. Luckily it was still there for me to show him when I got back to it.

We motored to Harnham where we had a lovely evening meal sitting by the river overlooking Salisbury Cathedral in the evening sun watching Grey Wagtails.

John and I drove to Enford Village Hall in Wiltshire this morning to join the rest of the Nar Valley Ornithological Society that were meeting up with two volunteers from the Great Bustard Group, who were going to load us into two jeeps to take us up and onto Salisbury Plain in the military area, to a hide where we could sit and watch Great Bustards and Stone Curlews. It was another glorious morning but a bit colder than yesterday’s hot weather. On our way we watched several Corn Buntings sitting on posts.

We saw six Great Bustards four males and two females along with a pair of Stone Curlews and a chick. One of the male Great Bustards put on a nice display for one of the females, but she was not interested in him! A pair of Lapwings were not happy with the Great Bustards walking around their nest and mobbed them. We had a wonderful few hours watching the Great Bustards before retreating to the local pub where we all enjoyed a meal and a few drinks together.

As Nick and I will be running a photography course at Titchwell on Sunday, I needed to get to Titchwell to get everything ready. Trevor, Carrie and Annette gave me a lovely welcome when I arrived. Carrie and I eventually got everything sorted and after some lunch I joined John Gates and together we searched unsuccessfully for Spotted Flycatchers. After a fruitless search of the picnic area and entrance track  we walked around the Fen Trail and watched a Pochard diving and a variety of fluff balls masquerading as chicks from a variety of species.

Down at Island hide a pair of Little Ringed Plover were in courtship mode. Swifts and House Martins were swooping down low over the water and I thought I would get some practice in ready for Sunday. I certainly found out why the birds were called Swifts!

After a day of gardening and sorting out a few issues around a future trip , I popped down to Flitcham where I met up with a local birder John. Together we watched a pair of Marsh Harriers, Little Owl, Red Kite, Oystercatchers and Greylag Geese with a huge number of goslings. The mother Greylag had her work cut out trying to protect the goslings from the Marsh Harriers.

Nick and I were running a photography course at Titchwell today. After getting set up in the Welcome Hub we greeted our participants and I started the Power Point presentation before Nick took over. We sorted out a few settings on the participants cameras and walked along the Fen Trail where we took a few photographs of Blue-tailed Damselfly, Common Blue Damselfly and Large Red Damselfly. On reaching Patsy’s Pool we took some photos of a Little Grebe and a Pochard.

During the lunch break I ran back to the entrance path and watched a Spotted Flycatcher and luckily got a photograph of it before it flew off.

With the group reassembled after having lunch together, Nick and I took the participants down to the beach where we did a photographic study of the Sanderlings. Most were still in winter plumage but a few were changing into a wonderful summer plumage. We advised our participants on suitable settings and we hope they have some nice photographs of them. We also took photographs of Oystercatchers and Turnstones. It was a lovely day and we hope that they will go on to take some good photographs. A big thanks to Nick who gave up his time for us all.

A bit of a mixed day today. After a house survey this morning I dashed up to Weybourne to see the Red-backed Shrike on a distant hedge. The heat haze and distance made it difficult to get a decent photograph but it was a nice bird to watch. I joined Marcus and we went to have a look at some of the bees in a clump on the shingle burrowing in the holes. I will have to mug up on some of the names!

As it was such a lovely day I went for a walk across the clifftop and watched the Sand Martins whizzing around and the Little Terns fishing off shore. Skylarks were singing as were the Meadow Pipits. I returned to my car for a very late lunch before driving to John’s for tea. John drove to Great Yarmouth where we walked across the sand dunes at North Denes and watched Little Terns.  Together we attended the Great Yarmouth Bird Club meeting where John was showing some of our photos that we took in Guyana and he had taken in Venezuela. It reminded us what a fabulous time we had had in Guyana.

I have spent the last few days working in my back garden sorting out my pond. It needed emptying and getting out the last few years of gunk! I was surprised to find six fish still surviving along with six newts and a frog. My rockery also needed weeding and the surrounding carr stone needed its moss removing. All in all I needed a break today and so John and I drove to Welbeck, where we joined a few other birders at the Honey Buzzard watch point. It was a lovely sunny hot day and it was so nice not to have any wind for once.

For the first few hours we watched Red Kites, Common Buzzards and a Peregrine in the air as well as Little Egrets, Common Terns and Gadwall flying over the lake. I wandered along the road and watched Chiffchaff, Reed Bunting and a Chaffinch. As lunchtime approached John and I were discussing our options for a pub lunch when the Honey Buzzard appeared above our heads unexpectedly from behind us along with four Common Buzzards. I fired off a few quick photos but my settings were all wrong on my camera. By the time I had sorted it out my opportunity was lost. I cursed! However at least we had had good views of a Honey Buzzard.

John and I made our way to the pub in Cuckney, which is a bit of a tradition with us now and enjoyed eating out in the sun as a celebratory drink was consumed. A mile along the road we walked in Sherwood Forest along a track to the Major Oak. We watched a Woodlark as well as a Blue Tit, Long-tailed Tit and a Robin. A Tree Pipit sang but we failed to find it. We sat by the ailing Major Oak and wondered with so few leaves on it, how much longer it would be alive. We were disappointed to find that the ice-cream van was not present as usual ,but a kind man sold us a drink even though it was technically closed as we sat on one of the picnic tables for a rest in the sun before returning to the car for our drive back home.

Stew has kindly alerted me to an article in yesterday’s EDP where my photograph of my Ring Ouzel was used again. Sadly I wasn’t able to get a copy of the EDP last time it was used but Stew is kindly going to save this one for me.

This morning’s rain meant that I cancelled my plans for today so I now now get on with some computer work that I am now able to do, now that Henry has put in another drive to my desktop as I had managed to fill up my C:Drive with so many photos and trip reports! I am hoping it will now last for some time to come!

After lunch I drove to Snettisham where I was horrified to see so many people and dogs on the beach. High tide was approaching meaning that everyone was walking near the cordons trying to protect the Ringed Plover and Oystercatcher nests. I leapt into action and pleaded with people to put their dogs on leads. Annoyingly the people whose dogs were off leads were locals! I had the usual response…….oh my dog won’t hurt the birds!!!!!! Why is it that these mindless people cannot read the signage that the RSPB have spent money on. Is there no hope for our poor little birds? I could see two little balls of fluff running away and for a moment I thought a wave would take them but luckily they ran back to the parent bird.

I drove to the RSPB reserve where there were far less people but I still had to ask for two dogs to be put on leads. Chicks and ducklings abounded as were courting birds! I counted 43 Mediterranean Gulls amongst the Black-headed Gulls. Sixteen Common Terns were also present.

With news of a Booted Eagle at Kelling this morning, I knew John would want to go and see it. However Booted Eagle is not yet on the official British List as only birds in Categories A, B and C count towards the list that most of us follow for our lists, whether it be the British List or Norfolk List. I saw a Booted Eagle in Cornwall back in November 1999 which although there was no doubt as to its identification still languishes in Category D. It was deemed to be the Irish bird which has now be upgraded and added to the Irish List retrospectively. Come on B.O.U pull your finger out and get this sorted!

However John and I had agreed to help out at the monthly WeBS count at Nar Valley Fisheries which has always been a good social event with friends as well as a monitoring measure of our wetland birds in the U.K. We walked around our usual route, encountering 3 Cuckoos as well as 3 Kingfishers. We counted the Mallard, Tufted Duck, Gadwall, Greylag Geese (sorry you had the short straw today Stewart!) Egyptian Geese, Canada Geese, Mute Swan, Coot (I had an easy task today which makes a change!) Great Crested Grebe, Little Grebe, Grey Heron, Great White Egret, Cormorant, Common Tern and Black-headed Gulls. The surprise of the day was a Black Swan lurking on one of the islands. We saw very few passerines but heard, Robin, Wren, Blue Tit, Cetti’s Warbler and a Marsh Tit.

John and I then enjoyed a pub Sunday lunch together and then joined all the other twitchers at Bayfield Lake. The stories of the observation of the Booted Eagle varied as twitchers that were there before us were quite clearly watching two different birds minutes before we arrived. It left John and I not knowing what to believe or which direction to look, as one version was that the bird(s) had headed eastwards over the trees and the other north-westwards. Hey ho!

We stood it out for a couple of hours and it was nice to meet up with friends, sharing our various stories before I needed a cup of tea and some cake, but not before we had seen 2 Hobbies, 2 Marsh Harriers, several Red Kites and a Sparrowhawk. We drove to Cley Visitor Centre and enjoyed our cup of tea and cake watching another Great White Egret and Little Egret before returning to Bayfield Lake for a short while before heading home.

Being gluttons for punishment, John and I were in position alongside the lake at Bayfield this morning with Mike and Jane, hoping to see the Booted Eagle seen from here yesterday, which we missed by 20 minutes due to taking part in our local WeBS count.  We were the only four birders there which surprised us. After a short while of watching Buzzards and Red Kites another birder stopped in car and told us that he had watched the Booted Eagle from the Glandford road from near the Wiveton junction. We all jumped in the car and raced up the road, still with no other birders present along the wall or gateways, but sadly we only saw more Buzzards and Red Kites along with a couple of Kestrels. Later on we returned to the lakeside as other birders had now arrived which would give us more eyes looking alongside the wall. Another birder stopped to tell us that the warden from the reserve had seen the Booted Eagle as it was now sitting on a pole but could not tell us exactly where. After a few investigations at the Visitor Centre it seemed that it was a volunteer that had seen it, who failed to pass the information to the WhatsApp groups or Bird News services. Grrrr!!!! Another message on the WhatsApp group suggested the eagle was now over Martham which left us all just a little perplexed!  We had a heart-stopping few minutes when a very pale Common Buzzard appeared but scope views soon clinched its identification that could not be determined just with binoculars.

After lots of discussions with various friends, John and I decided that some refreshments were needed and we joined Greg and Trevor in the Visitor Centre for drinks and cakes before we walked to the central hides on the reserves where we watched Avocet, Shelduck, Lapwing, Pied Wagtail, Redshank and a Little Egret.

I have spent the last couple of days pouring through some checklists and altering excel spreadsheets, where necessary, to suit some forthcoming trips that John and I have planned for some upcoming trips abroad. With taxonomic splits and proposed splits it has taken me far longer than I anticipated! Just as well that the rain and wind yesterday gave me the perfect excuse to get it done. I woke up this morning with a migraine and although there were some birds that I would have liked to have seen on the coastline I had no energy to do so and so I continued, after taking some medication, with my lists.

By this evening I felt a bit better and wanted to attend an excellent talk given by Nick Acheson on Bolivia to NarVOS members. He was going to concentrate on the conservation of some critically endangered birds that I was fortunate to see in Bolivia in 2014. As many of you know, after my family, my thirst for travelling, birding and wildlife watching is  paramount and without it I would find life very dull. Nick reminded me of the wonderful trip that I had back in 2014 and how lucky I was to be able to see the critically endangered Blue-throated Macaw and Red-fronted Macaw. It wasn’t easy to see either bird as special permission had to be granted to see the Blue-throated Macaw on a private ranch and we had to wade and jump through and over water and grassy clumps to get to see them. We watched them on nest boxes and in flight.

Red-fronted Macaws were watched on a cliff face and we waited for the birds to fly in, hoping that the local farmers would be persuaded not to shoot them as they were raiding their seeds and crops. Trips like these make life very special. John, Tim and I joined other NarVOS members in the pub afterwards and had a convivial time as we generally do when we all have a shared interest.

My birdwatching started at Weybourne where along with Tim, Roger, Paul, Chris and Richard we stared at the reeds in hope that the Marsh Warbler was going to show itself. We watched a Reed Warbler and a Great Tit emerge from the reeds and a Kestrel hovering over them but except for a brief snatch of song we did not see it. Eventually we called time on it and Tim and I enjoyed a lovely meal in the local pub before driving up to Kelling Heath where we watched a family party of Stonechats.

Birdwatching has taken a back seat as my son and family are with me. As it was a hot day we drove to Wells where we all had a lovely time in the sea playing with my twin grandsons’ body boards. But gosh the sea was cold.

However drama was never far away when I had to go and help a man who had swum out to rescue a little boy who was going under the water and then got into difficulties himself as they were both out of their depth with quite a current flowing.  As I was already waist-deep in the water it did not take me long to reach them both. Luckily I managed to get the little boy’s head above water again and managed to help tow him to shore. With Jonathan’s help we got both of them back to the beach. Fortunately they were both ok, if a little shocked but the mother who was standing on the shoreline took a bit of reassurance.

After the drama was over, we played tennis and cricket on the beach, delighted in two Garden Tiger caterpillars that we found and went and had an ice-cream before driving back home. I think the only birds we noticed were a Red Kite and a Pied Wagtail sitting on the wires above my garden.