RobboJan's Naturetrek: An Unexpected Outing

Smugglers' Road (Eventually) – Monday 11^th May 2015

An Unexpected Outing – Osprey, Snipe, Fox & Owls

All Pictures Of Foxes & Barn Owls Taken By Jan At A Different Time & Location

An unexpected evening trip. Jan was at work and she texted me saying “What about a picnic supper at Lakenheath, tonight?” It seemed like a good idea but it seemed like a long way to go just to sit at a picnic table.

Jan didn’t get home from work until after 6pm and by the time the picnic was put together it was gone 6.30pm and it seemed a bit pointless to go to Lakenheath so we went down to the picnic spot at Great Hockham but there were so many dog walkers about; then we were going to go to Thompson Water and then it was going to be The Arms at Bodney or the bridge at Watton Brook by this time I was getting a little fed up; it was a good idea but not thought through enough. We went up to the range gates at Bodney but the sun was right in our eyes and there was some major irrigation going on.

It was then decided the Ford at Hilborough but on the way I said what about Smugglers’ Road, Bodney up at the range gates. It was now 7.45pm and I was beginning to feel as if I just wanted to go home. It was a clear evening with a moderate breeze and even at this time it was 21˚C.

We parked so that we could see into the Battle Area but also so we could see along some trees. When we first got there it was quite a tranquil scene with grazing Sheep, the odd Corvid digging for insects and Swallows hawking for the flying insects; that was until a USAF Osprey came along and did some circuits and hovering but after all we were sitting on the edge of the Battle Training Area (STANTA), so we shouldn’t complain too loudly.

USAF Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey (Taken A Few Days Ago Over Lackford Lakes)

When the Osprey flew near and over us my ears felt awfully uncomfortable; I guess that was because of the downdraught of the rotors. Eventually peace descended on us again and we had our picnic supper albeit in the confines of the car.

We could hear Cuckoos all around us, there were at least three of them as we heard them calling at the same time. A male Sparrowhawk flew across our field of vision. Then as the light began to fade the whole atmosphere changed. The wind fell silent, the bleating of the Sheep took on a different feel and we started to hear the distant calling of Tawny Owls. I just wished I had some effective means to record the sound of the twilight. I would thoroughly recommend going out at this time of night.

Then what happened next took our breath away. I was scanning across the Battle Ground hoping to see a Barn Owl when I felt Jan tugging at my arm. I turned to see a beautifully conditioned Fox standing looking at us no more than 30 metres from us. The Fox stayed looking at us for a few seconds before trotting off along the edge of the field. There was no time for photographs or videos just for absorbing the beautiful sight of our largest predator standing less than a stone’s throw away from us. The Fox was in top class condition a fine bushy tail and shiny coat which made us think it was not a nursing Vixen but a young dog Fox. Not very long after this the Fox returned took a look at us and disappeared back into the trees. Jan did hear some rustling in the same location a bit later on but that was the last we saw of the Fox.

We have seen Foxes many times in the wild and in our last home, we used to get them regularly in the garden but it has long been our dream of seeing one on one of our local wildlife spotting trips. It is the first one we have seen since we moved to Watton nearly three years ago.

As it got dark the Bats started to appear and the Tawny Owls were much closer now. We did have our Bat Detector with us but were afraid to use it just in case it prevented the Fox coming back. The Bats appeared to be small so in all likelihood they were Pipistrelles, our most common Bat; there are two different types, the Common and the Soprano which was previously a migrant species but have now been classified as a resident species, but without hearing them on our detector we would never know. However, they were still thrilling to watch.

A Curlew flew past us calling as it went and then we started to hear Snipe calling and a pair of them flew right over us. It was now nearly 10pm so we decided to call it a day but it wasn’t quite over yet.

As we drove up Smugglers’ Road a Barn Owl flew across the road in front of us and disappeared into the trees but even that wasn’t it. As we turned into Harvey Street which is just behind the High Street in Watton, another Barn Owl flew across our path over the shops and the High Street. I wasn’t even aware that there were Barn Owls as close to us as this. Strangely, I was only reading an article recently of how Owls but especially Little Owls are adapting to city life. When we lived in Highbury in North London we regularly used to see a Tawny Owl on the chimney tops and aerials behind us.