Heron & Green- wings

On Tuesday 30th April 2019, Leaving the close at 7.45am this morning, a Grey Heron flew south- east low over "The Pastures. In the evening, around 7.30pm, I popped over to Gunton Meadow and counted 21 spikes of very stunted Green- Winged Orchids in the usual place, nice to see and notices up too which was good so people wouldn't step on them.

First "Kettle" over A47 (A12) at Lowestoft

Driving back after work, on Monday 29th April at 5.30pm, I saw my first ever flying "kettle" of raptors, namely 5 Common Buzzards circling just west of the dual carraigeway, directly over the closed lay-by just north of the Corton, Long Lane roundabout at North Lowestoft. A "Kettle" in birding parlance terms is a term used to a denote a number of raptors spiralling around usually on trying to get getting some lift on with the aid of thermals (conserving energy by the minimum flapping of wings) usually over such great raptor migration places that I have witnessed such as Gibraltar, the Bospheros or Eilat- first time I've seen it over Lowestoft!

Early Spring Goodies: a trio of Savi's Warbler, Turtle Dove & Male Red- footed Falcon

On Sunday 28th April and an early start meant I arrived at Minsmere at 7.50am, I saw Maurice B and entered the hide. It wasn't long before I could hear the buzzing of an excellent Savi's Warbler. It was coming from the other side of the Mere, after 30 minutes I still hadn't seen it. But suddenly someone spotted it and they kindly let me have a look, the excellent Savi's Warbler was in one of the middle bushes at the back. It was perched on the left hand side near the top, it could be seen buzzing away moving its head from side to side. Typically drab with a brownish wash over the upper breast. Someone also kindly put my scope onto it and it promptly flew down and out of sight. Around 20 minutes later it was buzzing again and I spotted it as I saw it perched on the left hand side bush perched in the middle near the top, it showed well here if distantly for a couple of minutes before flying left again. Some distant birds in the sky included 1 Swift, a nice early one for me (I rarely see them before May). Also several 3 Marsh Harriers seen flying around, mostly males. I then left to look at a nearby site, where it was sadly too chilly to look for Adders, but Immediately heard a Turtle Dove "purring" from a Silver Birch thicket just over to the left. By the quarry, a Willow Warbler flew into a small tree and showed well. Even better, a Turtle Dove flew past and right, my first Suffolk sighting for 4 years. Also I heard 2 Nightingales singing away too. A call from maurice B who said the RF Falcon was the Butley end of Woodbridge airfield and showing well, accessed via Forestry Commission camp site parking. I had a little trouble finding Butley and went through one of the villages 3X ( I didn't have Sat Nav or the OS Map for the whole area. But once I found Butley, Maurice's excellent direction came in handy as I saw the brown sign and turned left down a long wooded road, past a load of campers and their call until on the right hand side it opened out with a tall fence on the right hand side of the road and lots of birders cars. I parked up walked up and initially it wasn't apparent where the bird was until, I bumped into Carl B and his wife and they said the bird was on the ground and moving to the left of Carl I could see this excellent bird a fine adult male Red- footed Falcon perched on the ground. Abruptly, a fine Hobby flew past from left to right giving good views as it flew close by. with a smokey grey plumage, eye ring red bill and legs. It then flew up to a post. Eventually we were given access to a kind resident's garden and we got closer views of the bird.

Weekend of dips

On Friday 25th Not hearing about the Hoopoe at Winterton until 7.10pm I would have popped over straight after work but the I can't get the new wi-fi on my phone and worse than that it eats up my $G allowance so no bird news until I get home. Saturday 26th at Ness Point was poor and got worse when I got home and realised an Alpine Swift may have gone through, (I don't get any news on my phone when 4G has run out) I didn't see it though and I was there at the time it was supposed to go through. I checked various tall buildings around the town directly after wards. The Flats Tower block, Lowestoft Lighthouse, the wind turbine and the Grain silo along Lake Lothing but with no luck this time. It also adds to the incredible tally of dips trying to connect to a bird flying through either south from Norfolk or a bird flying north from Norfolk- birds missed in this way include WB Diver, WT eagle X6 occasions, Black Guillemot, Great Shearwater, Cory's Shearwater, Fea's Petrel, Black Kite, LT Skua X5, Pom Skua X7 etc.

Gunton again

On Wednesday 25th April in the evening, whilst in Gunton wood, near Gunton Church seeing Nicholas B. I heard the Yellow- browed Warbler call twice but unable to see the bird.In the trees around 10 Chaffinch and I picked out a fine Brambling at the top of the tree.

More Redstarts at Gunton

On Tuesday 24th April, after work c5.40pm onwards, saw more Redstarts at Gunton, alas too far away to photograph, initially saw a female on the fence looking north along the inward side of the Gunton ORT and then another smart male Redstart (not so much white at the base of the bill) but still a really smart bird. He perched on the fence and the ground too.

North Denes Iberian Chiff- Chaff

On Easter Monday April 22nd, a BINS tweet at 9.41am had me driving to North Parade and walking down the steps behind the Oval, I bumped into Rob Win, who had just seen the bird and after a brief chat I made my way to where Andrew, Rob and the 2 Fergusons who had beaten me to it again despite living south of the bridge! The bird could immediately be heard and was seen well in the sycamore directly in front of us, a superb Iberian Chiff- Chaff.