Walthamstow Wetlands

Walthamstow Wetlands had very recently opened to the public, so today I decided to go birding there to see what it was like. The journey there wasn't too long, so it could be a site I visit more often. 

It was very busy with families, but it wasn't too hard to get away from most of them. I walked up the path viewing Lockwood Reservoir, and almost immediately saw a Wheatear  sitting on a wall. Quite late! 2 Linnets and a Meadow Pipit then flew over the reservoir.

A Late Wheatear

I walked to the end of the reservoir where there were a lot of waterbirds sheltering, mostly Coots, with a couple of Great-crested Grebes too. I then saw a smaller grebe though, so I  turned my scope to it, and realised I was looking at my first Black-necked Grebe. This is a bird that I really should have already seen, but it was still great. 

A Blurry Black-necked Grebe

The rest of the day was spent looking at all the other reservoirs, which didn't have much on them, but some of the birds of note included a Grey Wagtail flying over and a few Little Grebes, bringing the number of grebe species seen that day up to three. I will probably come back here in the winter because it seems like a place where some scarcer winter ducks could mix with the common tufted ducks

Norfolk Weekend

I had been planning a weekend in Norfolk for a while, and I was hoping so see some good birds. My dad and I arrived on Friday night at my aunt's house in Norwich, as she would be joining us. 

The first day we had booked a day with Carl Chapman, who runs a lot of wildlife tours including Norfolk day trips. I had been birding with him before and it was very successful, so we had decided to have another day in the Autumn.

He picked us up from the house at 9:00, and then started to drive us to the coast, explaining where we would be going on the way.

We started off on the coast, where we added Redshank, Black-tailed Godwit, Ruff, Wigeon and a lot of common birds to the trip list, as well as hearing Greenshank and Bullfinch. We soon saw some more exciting species such as two Peregrines hunting over the area, a flock of Brent Geese flying past distantly and two very brief Kingfishers. There was also a distant Red Kite, which are increasing in Norfolk, and a late Small Copper butterfly, which was a species I had never actually seen before.

As we walked back to the car, we all heard a high pitched call, which Carl immediately identified as a Yellow-browed Warbler! We waited for some time until the warbler came out from the centre of the bush and began to feed out in the open! We all got great views of the bird before it disappeared in to another bush. There was also a Cetti's Warbler nearby, which gave a very brief view before it flew into cover and started calling.

The next stop was Holkham Park, where there had been an Osprey for a few days, though I did not know at the time. A Marsh Tit called in the car park as we ate lunch, and a Sparrowhawk flew over.

We then walked past the Fallow deer to the lake, where there were common water birds such as Pochard, Shoveler and Mallard.

A huge flock of Jackdaw flew up in the distance, where there was also a Common Buzzard.

Very soon after this, Carl spotted the Osprey which suddenly appeared almost above our heads! We got amazing views of it for quite a long time. It was very entertaining to watch as it dived in to the water, very close to us, at an attempt to catch fish. After some time it landed in one of the trees nearest to us, and gave great views as it sat perched for a while.

The Osprey at Holkham - Photo by Carl Chapman

On the way back to the car, we heard a Tawny Owl calling (which was surprising, since it was the afternoon), and a Green Woodpecker.

The final stop of the day was at Titchwell, where we added Golden Plover to the list. Carl then managed to find the Little Stint that had been around that day, and we got good views, and good comparisons to the bigger waders next to it. We also had very close views of a Snipe sitting out in the open.

The final birds of the day were a flock of Grey Plover that flew over out heads as we were heading back. A very successful day with Carl Chapman!

Oare Marshes Twitching

The Oare Marshes in Kent is a reserve that I have been going to quite often for a few years now, so when I heard there was a Wilson's Phalarope there I immediately decided I needed to go. It was also there with the long staying Long-billed Dowitcher, Little Stints and a Black-necked Grebe. 

The journey from my house to the Oare marshes takes under 2 hours by Train, so I was soon at Faversham station. I bought some chips from a Fish and Chip shop and began to walk to the marshes (about 3 miles). 

As soon as I arrived at the bit of the East Flood by the road, I saw the Wilson's Phalarope swimming around, so close in I could identify it without using binoculars. A lifer! I decided to find out where the little stints and the Dowitcher were (these would be two more lifers) before having a proper look at the Phalarope. Luckily, there were plenty of other people, who had already been watching a while, to point out the Long-billed Dowitcher and Little Stints! 

An attempt at photographing Golden Plovers on a phone through a scope...

The Stints were feeding even nearer than the Phalarope, as they were foraging in the bit of exposed mud that was closest to us. The Dowitcher gave great views, though wasn't as close as the other two waders. 

I then spent a lot if time watching the Phalarope, and occasionally looking at the many other waders that included Ringed and Golden Plover, Dunlin, Black-tailed Godwit, Lapwing and Redshank. I regret not taking a good camera though, as I didn't expect the birds to be so close.

I walked up to Oare creek to look for the Black-necked Grebe, but could not find it. After some more birding around the area, I returned to look at the Long-billed Dowitcher and Wilson's Phalarope for some more time. This time though I found 2 Curlew Sandpipers (which I tried to get photos of through my scope, but failed). A Snipe that flew out from the reeds was the last new bird of the day.

This trip had been extremely successful, and I walked back via Oare creek after a great day!