Fleet Pond ~ 20th September ~

A quick visit to the pond yielded very little unfortunately. The two usual Yellow Legged Gulls were although right in the middle of the lake, as usual! It is presumed they are an Adult and 3CY, but it is so difficult to tell with these birds! Also on the water was a lone Shoveler which is the first I've seen on the lake for over a year! In Sandy Bay there was a nice Grey Wagtail. However the highlight of the walk was watching a female Kingfisher  we saw her on 2 or 3 occasions and on one of these occasions she perched around 40 metres away. By the time we got closer, she had flown but still a fabulous find!

Adult + 3CY Yellow Legged Gull

Mute Swan

Female Kingfisher

Yellow Legged Gull

Titchwell Marsh ~ 10th September ~

This is my first post on this blog and I hope to update it as often as possible.

Anyway, my trip to Titchwell was one of the best birding trips I have had with over 80 species seen on the trip, including 4 lifers for me. On arrival we were greeted by the sight of over 100 twitchers trying to see a previousely reported Little Bittern. I waited for 30 minutes but had no luck with the bird so decided to move on (which I'm glad I did as for the following 4 hours it wasn't seen!!). From the first hide I saw my first Curlew Sandpiper, as well as the commoner waders such as Dunlin, Ringed Plover, Ruff etc. The next stop was the new Parrinder Hide. This hide has been much debated and I can see both sides of the argument as although the hide is very nice, it is a bit over the top! From this hide we saw the other target species, the Buff Breasted Sandpiper. Although distant, the bird showed well through the scope. From the hide we were also able to get close views of Avocets, Wheatears, a Pintail and a Spotted Redshank. Down on the beach there was an incredible variety of waders! Dunlin, Sanderling, Curlew, Oystercatcher, Turnstone, Grey Plover, Knot and Bar-Tailed Godwit. Offshore there were 2 Eiders and my first Arctic Skua drifting east with 3 Gannet. Back at the first hide a Little Stint was seen but best of all, the Little Bittern was showing by the Visitor Centre. The bird was incredibly difficult to see as it was hiding in the reeds that were only visible from one angle and so only 2-3 people could see the bird at a time. I was very kindly allowed to see the bird for about 5 seconds before being hurried along by some twitchers!!

A superb days birding, and one I'll remember for a long time! Thank you for reading!

Poor Photo's of the Buff Brest will be added later...

Curlew Sandpiper + Ringed Plover

Pintail

Little Bittern Feet (Somewhere!)

Knot

Bar Tailed Godwit

Curlew

Avocet