Monday, 16 March 2020
Merlin & Water Rail= perfect tonic
On Monday 16th March from from 5.20- 6.15pm, I drove out to Fritton woods and walked to the Mound. Around half way out, a dark brown Merlin flew low over the ground and perched on a gate post where it was seen hunting.A dark, compact Falcon, with flicking wing action, it flew down and pursued some prey in the grass before returning to its post. Great to see as I haven't seen one for several years. This was also the case with a squealing Water Rail, that cried from the nearby reeds I walked down to the reed edge and a tiny watery channel had the said bird running across from left to right, again another bird not seen in the last couple of years. A close Barn Owl hunted over the reeds by the river and another more distant Barn Owl hunted around the River Yare area. A Bittern was also heard booming. Meanwhile over to my extreme right a male Marsh Harrier quartered the fields too. Still no sign of the elusive SEO, but a great trip out nonetheless.
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2 comments:
Hi Peter just to let you know a very good site for Merlin is the Breydon Water hide. Maybe a little late now but during winter if you try and coincide an early morning high tide which forces the birds into a smaller area you will often see one. Especially look on the posts to the right. Good luck
Thanks for that, I will try next winter! I have seen them at Breydon before, always a good bird to see not seen often enough so I will consult the tide timetables and give it a go!
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