Waxwings in Suffork. Snow Buntings at Landguard.

With only a few hours of reasonable weather forecast, we take the short trip to Suffolk looking for Waxwings.
We arrive in Martlesham & find the pub where they have been reported in the trees near by, it is only half light so we have to wait for 1/2 hour for the Waxwings to arrive, we see 7 in flight but only 5 land in the Rowan trees in the court yard in front of the pub.
I get a record shot but it is not to bright, so my small camera finds it a real struggle but it is what it is.

The 5 Waxwings

About seven or eight other birders arrive to have a chat to & get some local knowledge for future trips to the Suffolk area.
With no chance of the weather getting any better we head off to Landguard to look for the Snow Buntings on the beach area.
We do a couple of walks along the beach with no luck, we are feeling a bit cold by now so we pop into the cafe to charge our batteries with some toast & a nice cup of tea, then one last go to find the Buntings.
We spread out to give us a better chance of finding the target birds.
As Jimmy walks along the pebbles on the beeach we find ten Snow Buntings right in front of him, they are a very hard bird to find even when you are right on top of them, so target bird seen & just for good measure we pick out some Med Gulls & a few Little Gulls, so we get 3 year ticks for the day not to bad as we had not to much time due to the bad weather ,the forecast was spot on as we head home with the rain pouring down.

Fieldfare seen with the Waxwings

Glossy Ibis at Oare, Raptors Capel Fleet.

Up early & off to Kent, First stop being Elmley Marshes. The first bird seen was a Barn Owl that flies up from the ground onto a post,it pops from post to post & we get some nice views before it flies onto a nest box to join another bird that is looking out of the box.
The drive down the main path to the reserve is very quite bird wise with so much water laying about nothing is seen that is very unusual for here.
Down by the farm we have a walk along the track towards the old school building in the hope of finding a Little Owl, we have no luck, so with so little about we head off to Capel Fleet to scan from the mound.On the way out we see maybe two hundred or more Curlew walking about on the bits of grass that were not under water. When we arrive at Ferry Lane & park up & scan from the mound.
Not to bad as we pick out many Marsh Harriers, plus Ringtail Hen Harrier also a Sparrowhawk & a nice Merlin was seen, a lot of Common Buzzard are perched on posts all along the fence in front of us.The only let down was a lack of any Short-eared Owls anywhere.
The pager tells us that the two Glossy Ibis had been seen at Oare Marsh, so we head there only to be told they had just flown over to where we had just come from, so after a short time up on the front looking back over the water in the hope that they may fly back again ,but we give up & head back up the main path to have a look for anything that might be about, many Lapwings & Golden Plover plus a few Ruff & Knot with many Dunlin. Jimmy picks up a Stonechat that he needs for a year tick as he missed last weeks one at Abberton.
Then just before we go up over our heads the two Ibis appear as if from nowhere, I only get a quick Photo of them as they pass over head, so just a record shot.

So not a bad morning after all I only got two for the year with the Ibis & a Little grebe but a very nice time spent in the area.

Just a silhouette. Glossy Ibis.

A nice Pintail.

                                           

Hen Harrier,Short-eared Owl at Wallasea, plus great day at Abberton.

Pulling up & scanning across the rough grasslands from the path at Wallasea we pick out a Short-eared Owl as the first bird of the day plus we hear the bird calling a few times before it goes out of sight not to reappear again.
Not to long to wait before we see our first Female Hen Harrier, Marsh Harrier also seen flying over the bank at the back of the fields.
Looking over the other side of the road a Peregrine is seen chasing its breakfast.
As usual we hear many Corn bunting popping about across the path to sit in a small tree in front of us, a good opportunity for some photos.
We see  a bird sitting on a post but with it being a bit hazy through the scope its hard to tell if its a Merlin or not, but it soon flies off the post & we confirm its a Merlin, we seem to see a Merlin every time we come here, another year tick for all of us. A few Kestrels seen as usual here.
Off now to Abberton Reservoir the main target being a couple of White-fronted Geese reported yesterday.
On scanning the water we pick out 2 male Smew quite close to us, later we see a redhead as well.
Scanning the Greylags we see no target bird, so a look over the other side of the road gets us 2 Red-crested Pochard.
Off round to the new layout by the new reserve centre we meet up with Nick Croft for a bit of a talk.
They have made a good job of this new road, it's a lot safer to bird watch here now.
Three Pintail are seen & a couple of Goosander fly over before we head off for a look at the new reserve centre for a cup of tea & a look around.
Back round to Layer Breton causeway for one last look, as we pull up Nick gets us onto the White-fronted Geese that we never saw the first time we looked & as a right bonus Nick wave's us over to see 2 female & 1 male Scaup. A Stonechat also spotted for another year tick for me.
A  really nice morning that was cold but the sun was making it feel good to be out birding with the boy's.

Some of the Corn Bunting

Male Smew

Just about the Hen harrier

More sitting in the sun

Smew again.

The new Reserve Centre very nice.

                                 

Mandarin at Connaught waters.

A quick walk around Connaught water today just to get a photo of the Mandarin Ducks that are in good numbers on the waters. No sign of the Smew today.                        
After getting a photo I take a trip over to Rainham after the White-fronted Goose that has been reported there today. Howard tells me that they have been seen near Purfleet hide, but on the way to the hide a fellow tells me that they had just been sent up by a lorry working on the site. I walk around the reserve scanning all the Geese on the water but as it turns out nobody gets any more views while I am here, the only tick for today is a Rock Pipit. A bit sad but still a nice couple of hours spent  here.

Mandarin Duck

 

First lifer 2014 Hume's leaf Warbler Dungeness. Kent.

Long way off the Bewick Swan's

It was always going to be Dungeness this weekend, we never need any excuse to visit there, so the Leaf Warbler was a right bonus for us.
Brian Jimmy & myself arrive around 8 o'clock & pick out a Great white Egret on Arc Pit as we head down to the beach, also our first Kestrel of the new year seen on the way sitting on a post.
Up on the beach we find it is very busy with many Cormorants & Great-crested Grebe & Gulls every where you looked, after scanning the sea we find Guillemot, Kittiwake ,Red- throated Diver & flocks of Common Scoter, Razorbill as well.
Not bad weather for here so not to bad being up on the beach, but the pager goes off the Leaf Warbler has been seen & showing well, so off over to the ringing area where the bird has been reported.
On arrival we find out that  the place is under a lot of water, so wellies a must.
We see Dave B in the bushes & he is already on the bird, we hear it at first, then get a quick view before it flies over to the over side of the bushes, we all move round to get a better look at it, it lands at the bottom of a small bush in clear view for everybody to see, it is to quick for us to get the camera on it but it's a life tick & that was the aim just to get a view of it, so with the Hume's leaf Warbler in the bag it's off to watch the Gulls by the fishing boats, they are to far out at sea to be able to pick out any thing of note.
A quick stop to see the Tree Sparrows at the farm by the entrance gate gives us another year tick. A quick walk down to New Diggings gets us a Black-throated Diver.-
Now Brian takes us to Caldecot Lane as he has seen that Bewick Swans are about, we see them as soon as we arrive in the Lane, another year tick & one of my favourites I don't know why but I love to see these Swans, they were a long way off though..
A Long-tail Duck is reported not to far off , so off we go to find it.
We end up at the wrong end of the pits, that turns out to be a good thing as we get to see a Great northern Diver at close range, photos taken then off to the Kent end of the pits to pick out the target bird the L-t Duck. so a good day spent at Dungeness again. Up to 102 ticks for the new year so far. Meet some more nice Birder's to have a good talk with.

Great white Egret

                             

Great-northern Diver

Off we go again 1st Jan 77 ticks

Up early & off up the A 10 to Norfolk, the first tick is once again Barn Owl sitting in a tree by the side of the A 10, Brian spins the car round just to make sure it's a Barn Owl, it flies down to a fence post tick one confirmed.This is the third year in a row that it's been the first tick of the year.
The first port of call is the triangle to look for a Golden Pheasant, we pass Penny parked up at the side of the
woods, but like us it turns out she dips out.
So after a few trips around the triangle, we give up & head to up to Titchwell to start the year count in earnest.
We pick up all the usual birds while here,it's well down on last years count, but the weather is not the best.
Out on the sea we pick out Scoter, Merganser,Kittiwake but nothing seen passing through.
Next it's off to Sculthrope Moor, this is a first proper visit here, it won't be the last, we pick up four ticks here. As soon as we walk away from the visitor centre we see many Brambling plus Marsh Tits, Greenfinch,& the first Nuthatch of the year.
Tawny Owl is seen from a nest box that had been set up in the trees as we walk down to the hides.
Once in the hide we must see at least 60 Bramblings & many Tits & Finches plus the first Water rail tick.
A really nice place to visit to get close up shots of birds feeding on the feeders.
The pager goes off to say that Pink- footed Geese are in a field only 7 miles away & so off we go in search of another tick, also reported with them a Barnacle & Bean Goose. we scan the hundreds of Geese but only Pink-footed are picked out, Penny turned up to help scan but in vain, the weather was now getting really nasty so we head towards home stopping off to look for a reported Glaucous Gull without any luck, we are now pretty wet so we call it a day with 77 ticks in the bag, that is twelve down on last year but not a bad start with such bad weather.
Today I add Goldcrest & Ring-necked Parakeet plus Redwing in my garden 80 up & running for the new year.
                             

On the feeders from the hide.

                                               
                                         

So many birds.