A Day To Forget (Almost) - 3.8.25

After our good visit to Norfolk the previous weekend myself and Brendon must’ve used most of our good luck up as todays trip to Suffolk certainly didn’t go to plan!

For the entire week the first news out on the bird alerts was of a juvenile Black Stork showing ridiculously well in a ditch at Boyton Marsh RSPB so with this we drove up and had just gone past Colchester FC’s ground when there was a no sign message. With that I turned round and headed to Abberton Reservoir. Here we spent a couple of hours trying to spot the previous days Temminck’s Stint but failed miserably. Then whilst still in the hide news emerged that the stork was back so off we went. 

We arrived in good time and started walking the 1.5 miles to where to view but as we passed a birder about half way he gave us the news it’d flown off north again! We continued on and the spent another hour staring at nothing. I was the alerted to the distress calls of gulls above and saw them mobbing something. Thinking it was the stork I lifted my bins and to my surprise I saw myself looking at a year tick dark morph Honey Buzzard! We watched it for a couple of minutes before it drifted off north. 

Another hour passed before we headed for home having dipped the stork. 90 minutes after we left it came back and has showed well since and the Temminck’s was seen again later in the day. So an all round bad day at the office apart from the Honey Buzzard.

Welney, Snettisham + Rye Meads - 27.7.25

White Stork

I again joined Brendon this time on a trip to Norfolk and returning home via East Hertfordshire. We were heading north and had reached Cambridgeshire when he said we’ll make a detour to Welney WWT to look for a White Stork. We arrived and parked up and scanned the field it’d been in the previous day from a couple of vantage points but failed to see it. We then popped into the reserve car park to see if it’d moved but a couple of Tree Sparrow were the only thing of note. 

As we were pulling out the car park a message popped up saying the Stork was still there so we drove back and this time walked the river path. As I was walking up a Marsh Harrier swooped down and mobbed the White Stork and as you can see from my photo above it was only the top half of the bird that was visible so no wonder we missed it first time around.

Pectoral Sandpiper

Spoonbill

Snettisham RSPB was our next stop. I hadn’t been here since 2006 when I ticked a Little Auk on one of the pits. There was something to see virtually all the way down to the southern end of the pits including a year tick Little Tern but sadly the White-rumped Sandpiper wasn’t one of them. Just before reaching the last hides we bumped into Phil Bishop and Colin Maynard who said the other target bird was showing. After a quick chat we parted ways and sat down to scan through the numerous waders only to get a call from Phil to say the bird was now visible from the next hide back towards the car park.

From the rotary hide we finally laid eyes on the Pectoral Sandpiper as it proved the mud. Also seen were 23 Spoonbill doing as they do sleeping. As we walked back to the car Brendon mentioned he’d seen a Turtle Dove from the area we were in on his last visit and within seconds one flew past us and landed on the beach! It got even better when another 4 flew past along the beach setting a record flock for me. 

Night Heron

With no sign of any Curlew Sandpipers we set off for home stopping at Rye Meads RSPB reserve on the way. Here from the Draper hide we waited along with a hide full of other birders including James Walsh. 20 minutes elapsed before someone spotted it tucked into the far bottom right corner of the marsh. When the wind blew the willows out of the way you could see it and I managed a lucky record shot of my 5th Night Heron in the UK and my first anywhere since 2012. Typically soon after we left it flew out and landed in front of the hide briefly!

An excellent days birding

Oxhey Park - 24.7.25

We were doing some green flag work in Oxhey Park when I heard another Crossbill calling and a single bird flew NW. 

Cassiobury - 22.7.25

After lunch I headed back out into the park for more litter picking and about 1.30pm I suddenly heard the familiar glip glip calls of Crossbill. I looked up and counted 7 birds heading roughly NW.

Cornmill Meadows, Trimley Marshes + Braughing - 25.5.25

 

Glossy Ibis

I joined Brendon, Chris Sharp and for the first time James Reader on a day out to Essex and Suffolk. Our first stop was Cornmill Meadows in the Lea Valley. After spending an eternity trying to find somewhere to park and what direction it was to the hide we eventually arrived at the sadly burnt out hide and after an assault course to get onto the charred remains we finally had great views of the Glossy Ibis. It was the first one I’d seen in its summer finery and what a stunner it was.

Also noted were 2 Cuckoo, Water Rail and Cetti’s Warbler.

Purple Heron

With views and photos secured we then headed into Suffolk and Trimley Marshes. I’d only previously been here once before for the Pacific Swift back in 2013. We parked up and had a quick cuppa kindly provided by Chris. As we were drinking it the mega alert went off telling me that an Eastern Bonelli’s Warbler was at Dungeness. Despite my request to head that way I was outvoted!! 

We then set upon the long walk to the hides dodging the showers noting a female Marsh Harrier and half a dozen Little Egret. Upon entering the hide we were informed the bird was seen about 10 minutes ago and roughly where. 20 minutes passed before it was re-found and great views were had of the adult Purple Heron. My second in about 6 5 weeks after the bird on Scilly.

With the bird in the book we trudged back to the car and headed for home via the Hertfordshire village of Braughing. With help from people on the Herts WhatsApp group we had directions for where to park and walk and within 10 minutes we were at the desired location and almost immediately heard the “wet me lips” call of a Quail. Despite it only being 10 feet in front of us in not very tall crops we never saw it but call was good enough for a year tick! 4 Yellowhammer and a Lesser Whitethroat also made the list.