Roydon Common, Choseley Barns & Thornham – Wednesday 11th March 2015
We left home about Midday. It was 11˚C rising to 14˚C and although the day started bright and breezy rain coming from the West rather curtailed the day from about 4pm. The temperature, today was rather misleading because the wind especially near the coast made it feel more like 4-6˚C. We set off for Roydon Common seeing a Buzzard soaring high in the sky near Swaffham and a Kestrel as we turned off from the A47 to go towards Gayton.
Roydon Common
Like yesterday we had made a plan. It was to see a Great Grey Shrike. Over the last few years I have failed miserably to see one either with Jan or our Son, Drew. We have already made several attempts this Winter to see the Great Grey Shrike that has flitted between Santon Downham and Grimes Graves. Today we made an attempt to see the Great Grey Shrike at Roydon Common, which has been at various locations on the Common for a few months now, particularly in the last week or so where it has been seen every day by the Western car park.
Roydon Common
As we parked in the car park there were about 6-8 cars already parked there but we could see no sign of the bird or of a group of birders looking for the bird and as it transpired most of the cars belonged to dog walkers. Jan did speak to one birder a bit later on who thought he’d seen it but it was very mobile and elusive and told Jan we should have been here yesterday when it was more sedentry and fully on view, the story of my life! So, although we had failed once again with the Great Grey Shrike it was far from a wasted journey.
Roydon Common
Sitting in the car park where it did feel quite warm because it was sheltered from the wind and like Croxton Heath yesterday the heathland seems to generate its own heat. The first thing we noticed was that the tall grass was alive with what appeared at first to be Thrushes but as they came closer we could see that they weren’t Thrushes at all but Skylarks and there were about 15-20 of them in groups of 4 or 5 methodically making their way through the tall grasses. Jan then saw a Sparrowhawk clutching what appeared to be a Vole or a small Rat. Jan could also hear Skylarks but I couldn’t because of the tinnitus that I have to put up with. We also saw a Kestrel hovering high above the Common.
Gorse Spider Mite Webbing
As we sat there filming the Skylarks which gradually moved away from us we had some good views of a pair of Stonechats hunting for insects around some Gorse Bushes and in the long grass. Jan also found something that we saw last year on Salthouse Heath, it was a Gorse Bush covered in what you first think is a Spider’s Web, the next thought is that it some sort of protection for a Moth Caterpillar but as our research found last year it is neither. It is the Gorse Spider Mite which live in colonies on the Gorse from the size of a fist to extensive webbing that can cover several bushes. Depending on whether you want Gorse bushes or not they can be seen as a biological control for Gorse or as a pest because they actually weaken the Gorse and eventually kill it.
We decided to carry on to the North Norfolk Coast and as we left the Common we saw another two Kestrels and two Buzzards. Roydon Common has such a diverse range of habitats that if you lived close to it I could easily see that you could devote your whole life to just observing the wildlife here.
As we went through Docking we saw a group of 3 Magpies the first of a quite a few we saw today. I know that Magpies have a deservedly bad reputation, like most Corvids, of nest robbing and the like but you couldn’t help admiring their breeding plumage which when you look at it closely is much more than the black and white bird they are often described as. Especially in sunlight their plumage has several beautiful shades of blue rather than the black.
Folklore Surrounding Magpies
· Many people around the UK salute the first Magpie of the day with a “Morning Captain” and a salute. Not to do so is considered bad luck and in some parts the full salutation is used: “Good Morning, Captain. How are your wife and kids?” What is strange about this superstition is that a Magpie is a member of the Corvid family (Crow, Jackdaw, Jay, Rook & Raven), birds that are usually more associated with bad omens. It is thought that one Magpie is a male, hence Captain, if there are two it is assumed she is his wife, hence the fuller salutation.
· Magpies are regarded as thieves known for stealing eggs, nestlings and the predereliction of aquiring shiny objects to adorn their nests. Where we get the phrase: “Thieving Magpie!”
· Magpies are also remembered from a popular Nursery Rhyme that was used in a popular 68-80 children’s programme – Magpie which was a rival TV magazine to Blue Peter. The presenters were Tony Bastable, Tommy Boyd, Pete Brady, Jennie Hanley, Douglas Raye, Mick Robertson & Susan Stranks. The music to the rhyme was written by Spencer Davis. (I’d like to say it was before my time, but it wasn’t):
One for sorrow,
Two for joy,
Three for a girl,
And four for a boy,
Five for Silver,
Six for Gold,
Seven’s a secret, never told.
· A slightly more sinister version in M. A. Denham’s Proverbs and Popular Saying Of The Seasons published in 1846
One for sorrow,
Two for joy
Three for a wedding,
Four for death
Five for silver,
Six for gold,
Seven for a secret,
Not to be told,
Eight for heaven,
Nine for hell
And ten for the devil's own sell!
From Docking we made our way to Choseley Barns, there were plenty of Corvids, Pheasants, Partridges, Wood Pigeons and Gulls. We stopped at one field where there were 17 Curlews feeding alongside Wood Pigeon and Hares. In the margin there was a large flock of small birds comprising Linnet, Pied Wagtails, Chaffinch and Yellowhammer and I’m sure I saw a Yellow Wagtail but it was just a fleeting glimpse and I only saw it once. Then suddenly further down the field about 50 Dunlin took off, then we saw the reason, a Kestrel was hovering over where they were. In the short distance between Choseley Barns and the main A149 road we saw 19 Hares all lazily chewing what sparse vegetation there was on the freshly ploughed and fallow fields.
One Of 17 Curlews Among Gulls Wood Pigeons & Hare
Making our way down to Thornham we saw about 20 Twite flitting about, Redshank and Curlew. We began to have our lunch on a bench overlooking the marsh but it was so cold we quickly retreated to the car. We did see Teal, Shelduck, Redshank and Black Headed Gulls. We moved back to an elevated position looking west over the sea defences where we had our lunch.
Looking Down From The Flood Defences
Looking down we could see another Hare our 20th of the day, Pheasants, Wren, 3 Egyptian Geese, a Marsh Harrier glided over and a pair of Stonechats hunting insects from some fence-posts below us. These (Stonechats) were our fifth we’d seen since Saturday. It was now 3.50pm and it started to rain. The weather forecast had said that wouldn’t happen until about 5pm but it looked brighter to the East so we decided rather than make our usual stops we would try to outrun the rain by getting as far Eastwards as we could. We bypassed all our usual stops in a bid to keep ahead of the rain.
Hare About 30 Metres From Us
As we approached the West End Watermill just past Burnham Overy we saw a Buzzard soaring high above it and just as we passed the Watermill I caught a glimpse of a Barn Owl sitting on a fence post. Jan quickly turned round and we got a very short hurried video of it. It was unusual to see a Barn Owl out in the rain but it was the second one we’d seen in a couple of weeks braving the rain. Further along the road we saw a Kestrel on top of a telegraph pole intently watching something below it. We also saw a Marsh Harrier near Stiffkey.
Barn Owl
After a very short comfort stop in Blakeney Harbour we carried onto Cley Beach car park bit it was to no avail, the rain was now coming down steadily and it had become very dark and gloomy. We did see a couple of Little Egrets flying, a solitary Shelduck and incredibly our 21st Hare of the day. After a cup of coffee we decided to call it a day and head for home. It was a shame the rain had curtailed our day but even so we’d enjoyed our afternoon out.
Keep your eyes peeled and good spotting.
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