#NorthNorfolkCoast – Wednesday 25th February 2015
Barn Owl At Cley Beach Car Park
At the moment I have the “old black dog” with me mainly, I think, because we’ve just had to cancel our holiday on Mull in May due to some unexpected changes at Jan’s work. I was so looking forward to this holiday and it was just 10 weeks away. It isn’t the money but more the fact that I can keep the “old black dog” at bay better if I’ve got something to look forward to.
It was good to get out today but when I’m feeling as I am at the moment it is a real struggle to work up any enthusiasm for going out, even if I know it will make me feel better.
We decided to head up to the North Coast of Norfolk as it was going to be a good day according to the weather forecast. We left about 11.15am and it was 9˚C, cloudy although there were some good breaks in the cloud and plenty of blue sky.
We had just gone through South Pickenham on the Swaffham road when Jan noticed 2 Buzzards soaring quite high probably as a prelude to their display flight which can be quite exciting to watch as they tumble down together. We hadn’t got much further along the road when we came across a male Sparrowhawk hunting along a hedge. As we made our way to Choseley we had a few other sightings: Little Egret, the usual Corvids (Crows, Jackdaws, Rooks, Jay & 2 Magpies) and a Hare.
When we got to the vicinity of Choseley Barns we saw more than 20 Hares in about 4 fields and also quite a lot of Red Legged Partridges. By this time the clouds had dispersed and left a beautiful blue sky and with little wind the 11˚C felt quite balmy and Springlike. Many of the Hares were just sprawled out enjoying the warm sun on their backs. We did see a couple who looked as if they about to have a spar but it never quite developed. Most people are under the impression that it is the buck Hares (also called a Jack) that spar but it is actually the doe (also called a Jill) who instigates these sparring sessions to see if the males have sufficient stamina and virility to make good breeding stock. Another fallacy is that this only happens in March, whereas it actually occurs all year but is easier to spot when the fields are bare or the crops short. In fact in milder Winters Hares will breed all year long but will normally have 3 or 4 litters of leverets (young Hares) each of 2-4 young. There were also quite a few Red Legged Partridges around the Sugar Beet clamps.
Partridge On Sugar Beet Clamp
Hare In Field
Some Facts About Hares
· There are two types of Hare in the UK (although some claim that it is four with the Irish and the Golden Hare but neither is a distinct species as they are sub-species of the Mountain Hare), The Brown (or European Hare) and The Mountain Hare (or Blue Hare, White Hare, Tundra Hare, Variable Hare, Snow Hare, Alpine Hare and Irish Hare).
· The Brown Hare is the fastest land mammal in the UK reaching speeds of up to 45mph (72kph).
· They were introduced by The Romans (although some say they were introduced by the Celts during the Iron Age).
· Hares shelter in a “form” which is simply a shallow depression in the ground. They don’t use burrows.
· In Winter Hares readily move from fields into woods.
· In many places in the UK Hares have disappeared altogether, mainly because of intensive farming practises but also because of shooting, poaching and coursing.
· The Brown Hare is absent from Northern Scotland and the Scottish Islands where the Mountain Hare is prevalent.
· Mountain Hares are smaller and have a more compact shape. They are our only indigenous Hare and have evolved the ability to change from a brownish colour to white in the Winter. It is mainly confined to Scotland, Ireland, the Peak District and the uplands of Northern England. They are only indigenous to Scotland they have been re-located to other parts of the UK.
We were very quickly distracted from the Hares by a flock of about 40 small birds which were making their way along the hedgerows. At first we couldn’t identify them properly as they were playing cat and mouse with us but later when looking at our videos we could see that they were Linnets.
Linnets In The Hedge
We continued on to Thornham Staithe, one of my favourite places. There were plenty of birds here but as it was low tide most of them were inactive and appeared to be sleeping rather than feeding. We saw: Twite, Curlew, Redshank, Skylark, Teal, Brent Geese, Shelduck and various types of Gulls. We had our lunch here and it was very pleasant sitting in the sun.
Thorn ham Staithe
Curlew
Moving Eastwards onto Brancaster Staithe where again we saw much the same variety of birds with the addition of: Turnstones, Oystercatchers, Little Egrets, Grey Plover and Black-tailed Godwits. We saw two interesting things here. 1. A Turnstone with six leg rings a metal, black and yellow one on one leg and a black, green and red on the other. 2. A Herring Gull that was picking up Mussels and dropping them from a height until they broke and it was able to eat the contents, very clever.
Turnstone With 6 Leg Rings!
Our next stop was Burnham Norton where we saw Brent, Greylag and Canada Geese, Lapwings and Starlings. We continued on to Burnham Overy Staithe where once again we saw a similar mix of birds with the addition of Greenfinch, Reed Bunting and Cormorant. There wasn’t much feeding activity going on as the tide had turned and was coming in.
Windmill At Burnham Overy
As we drove onto Holkham we passed a lot of birders all lined up with their scopes looking down onto The Freshmarsh but we tend to stay away from large groups like these (They were watching 120 European White Fronted Geese). Just before we got to Lady Anne’s Drive a Buzzard swooped out of the treetops and deeper into the woods.
We had only just turned into Lady Anne’s Drive when I caught sight of what at first I thought were three Barn Owls hunting over The Freshmarsh. It looked as if one landed on top of a small tree while the other two carried on quartering the reed beds and open fields. We managed to get some footage of them but by now the light wasn’t as good and it turned out after we’d looked at them through the scope that it was indeed two Barn Owls but the one in the tree was in fact a juvenile Marsh Harrier which sat there throughout the whole process. It had possibly just eaten and as we have observed in the past that Marsh Harriers and indeed most raptors (birds of prey) will sit for a while if undisturbed to allow for their meal to digest. We also saw at this location some Teal, Wigeon, Lapwing and Egyptian Geese. Although there were other Geese about they were in nowhere near the numbers we have seen them here previously this Winter.
View From Lady Anne's Drive Onto The Freshmarsh - Holkham
The sky had now clouded over and the light was beginning to fade as we pulled into the car park overlooking Stiffkey Saltmarsh. We saw plenty of Curlew and Little Egrets with the addition of two Marsh Harriers one of which appeared to come down on some prey. Then just as we were about to leave a Barn Owl flew gracefully, no more than 10 metres across and in front of us but disappeared just as quickly as it had appeared. Always a glorious sight.
View Across Stiffkey Saltmarsh Towards Blakeney Point
Live Update: As I am writing this on Thursday lunchtime there are about 20 House Sparrows on and around our feeders in the garden along with a couple of Starlings, Long Tailed Tits, a Robin, several Dunnocks, Blackbirds, Collared Doves and Wood Pigeons.
The light was now seriously beginning to go so we could only really make one more stop at either Morston Quay, Blakeney Harbour, Cley Beach, Salthouse or Salthouse Heath. Which would you have chosen?
Well it was really one and a bit stops because we made a comfort stop at Blakeney Harbour and then onto Cley Beach. As we drove through Cley-Next-The-Sea two Hercules transport planes flew so low over us you could smell the engine fumes!
We pulled into the beach car park, which was now deserted and as we parked I caught a glimpse of white to our left as we overlooked Cley Marshes. Expecting it to be a carrier bag or something but it was our fourth Barn Owl sitting beautifully and settled on a fence post about a 100 metres from us. It remained there for over 20 minutes during which time the planes flew over us at low altitude twice and Jan got out of the car to film the Owl and the planes. I can only think that it had already eaten. It was a shame that the light had deteriorated so much that the video is a bit dark. There were also 30-40 Golden Plovers on the ground directly in front of us but that was even darker.
Hercules Transport Plane
Barn Owl Cley Beach Car Park
Once the Barn Owl flew off and it was now nearly dark we decided it was time to head for home but as we drove down Beach Road we heard the calls of Barn Owls on both sides of the road but whether they were from the same bird or different birds we shall never know. On our way home we also saw a Muntjac Deer and two Hares.
Answer to the quiz next time. Keep your eyes peeled and good spotting.
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