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Thompson Water & Threxton – Friday 1st May 2015
Jan In The Hide At Thompson Water
As I was working on the last entry for the blog on the computer yesterday there was a great thud on the window and when I looked around all I could see in the garden was a rather dazed looking male Sparrowhawk sitting in one of the bird baths. I quickly grabbed the camera but all I managed to capture was the Sparrowhawk taking off and flying out of the garden minus breakfast.
We decided to go to a real local gem today, Thompson Water a Norfolk Wildlife Trust Reserve that isn’t too far from us. It is situated in Thetford Forest on Peddars Way and The Great Eastern Pingo Trail. You can read more about these here:
Thompson Water:
The Great Eastern Pingo Trail:
Thompson Water
We left home at about 3.10pm it was overcast with bright spells and a gentle breeze and the temperature was 12˚C. We didn’t dawdle too much on the way to Thompson Water, however, we still managed to see 2 Kestrels , Muntjac hind and a Black cap on our way. We arrived at Thompson Water and our first sighting was right at the car park, it was a Hobby gliding effortlessly above the tree canopy.
We made the short walk to the hide to find that a previous visitor had replenished the feeders and it was just alive with small birds which scattered as we crossed the boardwalk to settle ourselves into the rudimentary hide. It took the birds what must have been, 10 seconds to return to the feeders and for the next few hours it was just non stop action with just brief pauses as a dog walker and 2 runners passed along the paths. At the feeders we saw Siskins, Chaffinches, Blue Tits, Coal Tits, Great Tits, Marsh Tits, Reed Buntings, Nuthatches, Robins and Great Spotted Woodpeckers.
Female Siskin
On the water itself we could see at least 4 Mute Swans, Coots (several sitting on nests out on the water), a Moorhen, a pair of Gadwall, Mallard (one with 3 ducklings), a few Black-headed Gulls and about 15 Crows at various places on the floating foliage of the Water Soldier plant which is both a blessing and a curse to Thompson Water.
Male Siskin
The blessing is that it provides the ideal habitat for a great variety of wildlife especially Dragonflies (the Norfolk Hawker breeds here), Damselflies and Newts; it also displaces other water plants such as Canadian Pond Weed. The curse is that in the summer the plant rises above the water and having dominated and replaced other plants the oxygen levels in the water reduces dramatically which impacts on the wildlife in the lake. Dealing with the plant is not easy and straightforward and this is what John Milton, Head of Nature Reserves (Norfolk Wildlife Trust) says about it:
“Simply removing the water soldier would impact on a number of key species such as great crested newt and Norfolk hawker dragonfly, which we now believe is breeding in Thompson Water. Furthermore, the water soldier is capturing nutrients and so removing the plant would lead to algal blooms. Our options include leaving it alone or removing it in stages but even then there is much uncertainty around the best rate of removal. As the root of the problem is not the water soldier but the higher nutrient status in the lake, the solution is not straightforward.”
View Over Thompson Water From The Hide
Also there were about 30-40 House Martins skimming the surface for insects these remained quite prominent in the location during our time there. There were also a large number of Crows around the edges of the lake but they were more interested in the nearby Poultry Farm. We also saw a Heron which was very mobile and half flying half jumping from place to place as it fished for prey. During our time there the lake was visited by 2 Lesser Black-backed and 2 Herring Gulls which I think had been visitors to the farm and were just using “The Facilities” to freshen up. High above the lake and someway off we saw 4 Buzzards riding the thermals, the question was would we get our five a day as I said in yesterday’s blog entry. We also saw a Hobby (whether it was the same one we had seen previously, I don’t know) gliding over the tree canopy.
Then came a surprise for us, it shouldn’t have been, as Paul Newport, a renowned local birder and frequent visitor to Thompson Water, has reported this sighting in his blog previously, a Marsh Harrier floated in their almost ethereal way along the far shore of the lake completely unbothered by the attention of the Crows, looking for prey. The Harrier drifted into sight from nowhere for such a large bird and drifted out of sight in exactly the same way.
You can read Paul’s blog here: http://brecklandbirder.blogspot.co.uk
Squirrel Acrobatics
Then if all that wasn’t enough, I spotted a Hobby perched near the top of a tree on the far bank (again, I don’t know if it was the same one as previously). It sat there for well over 40 minutes before we, rather than it, left. Unfortunately for most of that time it had its back to us but it did turn to face us once showing us the beautiful markings of his white face, moustache, chest and red vent and thighs. Sadly our cameras aren’t good enough for us to do this magnificent bird full justice. Most of the Crows completely ignored the Hobby except for one that as it flew past him, flew into him quite dramatically but it didn’t phase the Hobby at all, it just remained perched there watching the House Martins flying around.
Hobby - Our Cameras Just Weren't Up To The Job
As we left the hide and walked back to the car we couldn’t help but wonder at the beauty of Thompson Water and what a haven it is for wildlife. My only regret is that because of my mobility problems I can only see a very small part of it, I would like nothing more than to wander around the lake and see some of the other treasures to offer. I know it’s a really difficult subject but access in the countryside, for me only means one thing; access denied or severely restricted. Last week’s Countryfile programme was very refreshing as it told the story of an RSPB warden who became wheelchair bound and because of that it changed his whole attitude to access for the disabled on the site he managed and with a few simple solutions he is changing that for the better without taking anything away from the able bodied. Something we all need to think about; just because someone becomes disabled they are still human beings who have the same needs and aspirations as the rest of society. If we don’t believe that, then we should follow the way of the Nazis and eradicate all who are different, in any way from us. Think about it.
After leaving Thompson Water we slowly made our way home through Thompson along Church Road where we saw the Greylags with their 8 goslings we filmed last week, they have grown quite a bit but they were also joined by another 28 adult Greylags which I’m sure the farmer is not happy about. On the other side of the road to where we stopped there were 2 Egyptian Geese. We at first thought they were alone, until they moved and we saw 5 tiny heads of their goslings appear over the crops as they waddled along. While we sat there we got our “5-A-Day” when a Buzzard lazily glided over, no doubt looking for perhaps a nice plump gosling to take home to his chicks.
29 Of The Greylag Geese
As we turned into Stow Bedon Road we saw 2 Muntjac Deer. On one side of the road was a hind and the other side there was a stag with a broken left antler.
We decided to make one last detour before returning home. We went through Threxton but the only thing we saw, apart from the beautiful countryside was a lot of activity around the Sewage Treatment Works. The rather rich smell obviously didn’t bother the 30+ Swallows that were busily collecting insects on the wing. We also saw 2 Goldfinches and a Blue Tit here as well.
The Day's Sunset From Home At Watton
This is what we saw:
Sparrow hawk (at home)
2 Kestrels
Hobby (3 sightings – it may well have been the same bird)
Marsh Harrier
5 Buzzards (in different locations – 3 at the same time)
30-40 House Martins
Blackcap (1 seen & 1 heard)
Great Spotted Woodpecker
Crows (too many to count)
2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
2 Herring Gulls
5 Black-headed Gulls
30+ Swallows
2 Goldfinch
Coots (quite a few)
Moorhen
Chiffchaff (heard)
Wood Pigeon (too many to count)
Mallard (several – 1 with 3 chicks)
1 pair Gadwall
4 Mute Swans
Heron
2 Egyptian Geese (with 5 goslings)
31 Greylag Geese (2 with 8 goslings)
At the Feeders at Thompson Water (too many to count)
Siskin
Blue Tit
Coal Tit
Great Tit
Marsh Tit
Nuthatch
Reed Bunting
Robin
Chaffinch
3 Muntjac Deer (2 hinds 1 stag)
1 young Rat (under feeders at Thompson Water)
3 Grey Squirrels (1 on feeder at Thompson Water)
Red Tailed Bumblebee
Garden Bumblebee
Early Bumblebee
Keep your eyes peeled and good spotting.
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