MARCH
You may recall that I signed off last month by talking about trying to see the mighty Goshawk which is active at this time of year. Well not just one singular but 6 ... all in one morning!! This is a very cryptic and secretive bird of prey and the only time of the year that there is a chance to get some views is late February/early March when the birds are flying up high above the tree line searching out a mate for the upcoming breeding season .. One consistently good venue is on the road to Cockley Cley near Swaffham but you need a fine sunny day and a decent telescope. Even good binoculars are not powerful enough to pick out any detail as you are some half a mile away from their favourite flight path. Park up, take a picnic and just wait for the action. There is always a group of knowledgeable birders who can help with the sightings. Once they start to breed in late March forget any visit; they hunt deep in the forested areas and are almost invisible for the rest of the year. I have never managed to get any camera shots but do look them up on google .. majestic birds.
A couple of other notable sightings whilst we waited .. a Wood Lark singing immediately above our heads and a very early Brimstone Butterfly on the wing. I also made another visit to Micklemere reserve in Pakenham and was rewarded with great views of ducks, geese and swans from the comfort of the hide. You need to be early-ish to witness all the action but will not be disappointed at this particular pair bonding period of early Spring. The marsh is alive with calls and fly-arounds. Binoculars are fine. A photograph of male Shoveler ducks clearly showing the shovel like bills.
A couple of other notable sightings whilst we waited .. a Wood Lark singing immediately above our heads and a very early Brimstone Butterfly on the wing. I also made another visit to Micklemere reserve in Pakenham and was rewarded with great views of ducks, geese and swans from the comfort of the hide. You need to be early-ish to witness all the action but will not be disappointed at this particular pair bonding period of early Spring. The marsh is alive with calls and fly-arounds. Binoculars are fine. A photograph of male Shoveler ducks clearly showing the shovel like bills.
click on picture to enlarge
Closer to home .. in fact inches from a downstairs window .. another wonderful first for me. When we came to Sapiston in 2012 I was immediately aware of a pair of Goldcrests flitting about and calling from high up in tall conifer trees; they never stay still for more than a couple of seconds and are almost impossible to photograph. Once I found an abandoned eggcup size nest whilst doing some tree surgery and I am certain they are still breeding only 20 feet from our house wall. So that was the extent of my sightings in all those years .. until a memorable day this month!! We had been watching the antics of a male Coal Tit (Parus ater) flying up and down and tapping the window glass in an almost demented state of anguish ... well documented where some species of male birds react fiercely to their reflection. It was a worry that the bird would damage his beak and thus we were obliged to close the blind to calm him down. One day my wife was just about to close the blind when a Goldcrest landed on the same shrub and started looking for insects. She called out and I rushed down with my camera .. as you can see .. a decent photograph at last!! Normally Goldcrests will feed almost exclusively in conifers but I can only think that the frantic activity by the Coal Tit drew the bird down to see what the tit was finding to eat. I am eternally grateful for the Coal Tit.
The Goldcrest (Regulus regulus) is the smallest bird in the UK and Europe .. even smaller than the wren .. absolutely minute .. just another of nature's gems.
What a start to the year
Brian Taylor
The Goldcrest (Regulus regulus) is the smallest bird in the UK and Europe .. even smaller than the wren .. absolutely minute .. just another of nature's gems.
What a start to the year
Brian Taylor
click on picture to enlarge
For beginner bird watchers
At first glance the Coal Tit could easily be confused with the more well known Great Tit but there are obvious differences that can help with a positive identification - Slightly smaller than a Great Tit and lacks any jet black stripe down the breast and under belly. As it flits around and seen from the back the Coal Tit has a bold white stripe on the head extending down to the nape whereas the Great Tit's head is all black without any stripe. The call is very distinctive .. You ask .. Is it a Coal Tit? .. the bird answers .. It is it is it is .. always 3 times
Now to the Oystercatcher .. Not the best of photographs but even with a long telephoto lens I was struggling to get a "pin sharp" shot. However, it is the context that I wanted to expand upon. Beginners are often surprised by the apparently "odd" locations that these beautiful birds are recorded; they are waders. So this one dozing on a post above a marsh. Surely this is where a wader should be. He probably was down probing in the soft muddy areas earlier but this is very much not where he will spend the next few months. We hear them flying over our house almost daily with their loud excited calls They are nesting in bone dry farmland with not a drop of water in sight. Whilst touring in Scotland we were waiting at a red light on a busy road and a pair were nesting on the central island on the gravel inches from the car wheels and another day on a pile of sand in a builders yard ! Yet another of nature's wonderful surprises.
At first glance the Coal Tit could easily be confused with the more well known Great Tit but there are obvious differences that can help with a positive identification - Slightly smaller than a Great Tit and lacks any jet black stripe down the breast and under belly. As it flits around and seen from the back the Coal Tit has a bold white stripe on the head extending down to the nape whereas the Great Tit's head is all black without any stripe. The call is very distinctive .. You ask .. Is it a Coal Tit? .. the bird answers .. It is it is it is .. always 3 times
Now to the Oystercatcher .. Not the best of photographs but even with a long telephoto lens I was struggling to get a "pin sharp" shot. However, it is the context that I wanted to expand upon. Beginners are often surprised by the apparently "odd" locations that these beautiful birds are recorded; they are waders. So this one dozing on a post above a marsh. Surely this is where a wader should be. He probably was down probing in the soft muddy areas earlier but this is very much not where he will spend the next few months. We hear them flying over our house almost daily with their loud excited calls They are nesting in bone dry farmland with not a drop of water in sight. Whilst touring in Scotland we were waiting at a red light on a busy road and a pair were nesting on the central island on the gravel inches from the car wheels and another day on a pile of sand in a builders yard ! Yet another of nature's wonderful surprises.