Category: Blog

I didn’t really have time for a walk but it was such a beautiful morning that I decided I had to fit one in.

The colours in the park were magnificent but there wasn’t much bird life – not even the reliable stonechats of recent visits.

I was just about to give up, thinking that the 4 moorhens were all I was about to see when I spotted a couple of goldfinches feeding on the teasels.

However, they didn’t hang around for long; but my morning was made when I saw the flash of a kingfisher. How this little bird lifts the spirits. It disappeared in to a bush only to re-appear and settle on a fence.

I know a kingfisher is really no big deal, but I was very happy.

Click below for a gallery of my photos of this brief walk:

A morning free to go birding and the weather changes for the worse. Never mind, in between the rain I did manage a few shots of interest.

There are reported to be 30+ great white egrets on the lake and as I watched from Herons Green and Herriott’s Bridge I must have seen a good deal of them. Unlike the grey herons, which mainly stayed put in the same spot, they constantly moved around the lake.

Great white egret at Herons Green

Great white egret at Herriott’s

A grey heron with its catch and a tangle of weeds

Grey heron and little egret at Heron’s Green

Grey heron moving up a couple of metres at Herons Green

The lapwings were almost out of my range to get decent shots, as were the black-tailed godwits, but a few came relatively close as did a goosander.

Black-tailed godwits at Herons Green

Goosander

The colour of the wigeon came through the dark grey light (above) as did the flash of green of the teal (below)

Great white egret in the rain

Great crested grebe near the dam

You can generally count on pied wagtails at Herons Green

Click below for gallery of shots from this morning:

There was not an awful lot around this afternoon. A song thrush on the path leading up to the motorway and a couple of blue tits; two stonechats, 3 goldfinches, and a meadow pipit in among the reeds beyond the pool and a couple of moorhens and a black-headed gull on the pond.

Did anyone dump a Christmas tree there?

Song thrush

Stonechat

Meadow pipit

Goldfinch

Stonechat

Photo gallery of today’s photos:

A sunny window to take a short walk in Stoke Park and I was rewarded with good views of fresh autumn stonechats (2) and meadow pipits (3) and a grey heron. There was also a solitary goldfinch, 2 black-headed gulls, moorhens, mallards and a fleeting visit of two grey wagtails.

The teasels looked lovely too.

I went for a stroll around Eastville Park this morning and set off in the sunshine; but by the time I was down by the river the sun had disappeared and it was cold and dark and not much bird life around. However, after a chat with a few of the locals, the sun reappeared and a few birds made their appearance.

A kingfisher flashed by on the river, then a grey wagtail came close by and posed in a log.

The dipper was in its usual spot on the river and the grey heron was standing like a plastic model on the small island on the lake.

The black-headed gulls were keen to be fed by passers-by as well as plenty of mallards and a moorhen.

The dipper was still there sunning itself on the river bank as I headed home.

i still find the homeless people living in tents around the park quite upsetting.

Grey wagtail

Dipper

Black-headed gulls pinching the pigeons’ food

Grey heron

Moorhen

Dipper stretching its wing

A lovely sunny day but quite cold for a trip to the Somerset Levels: we went first of all to Westhay Moor in the hope of bearded tits but no luck and not much else other than lots of shoveler and widgeon.

At Ham Wall we saw no marsh harriers (which I think is the first time ever) and really there was not much exciting about: only one brief view of a great white egret. The most attractive birds were shovelers, gadwall, lapwings and even mallards with their new coats. Right at the end I had my first view of a redwing this year.

I couldn’t resist!

Mallard

Lapwing

Gadwall

Shoveler

A distant cormorant

Gadwall in flight

Redwing

A quick walk around Stoke Park Estate late this afternoon (which isn’t very late now that the clocks have gone back) and a pleasing number of birds: a male and a female stonechat, a wren, a meadow pipit, 11 long-tailed tits, a greenfinch, and 8 goldfinch.

Long-tailed tit

Male stonechat

Female stonechat

Wren

Meadow pipit

Click below for gallery of photos taken this afternoon:

Wow – how many great white egrets (or little egrets) do you want to see? A very brief stop at Herons Green (you can see why it’s called that) and enough action to make many birders salivate. Unfortunately, I only had a few moments to take a few snaps and that’s what I did.

(Avon bird blog recorded a record 32 great white egrets roosting at Herriotts)

Another beautiful morning for a walk around the park (this time with a couple of young apprentices).

The leaves are falling fast

A brief glimpse of a kingfisher then a yellow wagtail were the best on the river; then three cormorants, 9 Canada geese, 2 mute swans, a grey heron and many black-headed gulls looked very attractive against the vivid autumnal colours reflected on the lake.

The more committed apprentice – see his list of birds spotted.

Click below for gallery of this morning’s photos

What a difference a day makes: yesterday we aborted our walk due to the persistent rain, today it was almost T-shirt weather and my local patch, Eastville Park, came up trumps.

All the local favourites: kingfisher, dipper, grey wagtail, grey heron (and 2 handsome juvenile cormorants).

Good to meet up again with some of the local residents but sad to see so many homeless people too.

Grey wagtail

Kingfisher

Dipper

One of two grey heron

One of two juvenile cormorant

Black-headed gull

On golden pond

The park looked beautiful too.

Click below for gallery of today’s photos.

I managed to get in an early walk on a gloriously sunny and warm day on our last full day in Suffolk.

I was really hoping to get a photo of a male bearded tit but the only small bird I could see in the reeds was a reed bunting (the first this week).

I then had quite good views of a kestrel which was often mobbed by small birds.

On the beach there were lots of ringed plover which were very difficult to pick out amongst the pebbles, but wonderful to see in flight.

There were redshank too.

On the pools, as well as the ringed plover, there were dunlin and the first grey plovers of the week.

And then right at the end a bearded tit (but not unfortunately a male).

Click below for gallery of this morning’s photos.

An early morning visit to RSPB Minsmere in the hope of bearded tits but unfortunately it was much too blowy and surprisingly fresh.

However, good views of a kestrel in the field just before Island Mere and a brief glimpse of a green woodpecker was compensation..

At Island Mere just a brief view of a bearded tit, then little grebes, mute swans, grey heron, and greylag geese but we saw no otters

At the Bittern Hide we saw a bittern in flight and a male and female marsh harrier but all too brief for photos. A flask of coffee and then a wonderful local Blythburgh bacon   bap made up for the disappointments.

Tried photographing late summer swallows but my attempts were pitiful.

At the East Hide the best was shelduck, teal, shoveler and gadwall. Avocets were too far back for decent photos.

Click below for gallery of today’s photos: