Autumn birding

A Greenshank, 1-2 Green Sandpipers and 12 Snipe were on the patch on 24th September.

The following morning I heard a Curlew fly over the garden (house tick I think) while checking the moth trap at 3.55 am, closely followed by a Grey Heron 2-3 minutes later.  I was up early as I was keen to get to Burnham Overy early and this early sign of passage made me even keener.

It was just starting to get light when I arrived and 2 Blackbirds dropped in to the staithe from a height as I got out of the car.  The walk out produced a Water Rail in the ditch beside the seawall and another heard calling.  A Reed Warbler was still singing, albeit in a rather muted fashion.  At least 63 Dark-bellied Brent Geese were in the harbour, the most I'd seen this autumn.

Water Rail, Burnham Overy, 25th September

There wasn't much vis mig in the end, just two of several common migrant species seen including Grey Herons, Pied Wagtails, Carrion Crows, Chaffinches and Redpolls.  A party of 8 Bearded Tits flew up from the reedbed and headed north to the dunes before turning round and dropping back in to the reedbed.  There were a lot of Gannets moving at sea (I counted 110) but little else.

There were a few grounded migrants in the dunes, but it was quite hard going.  There were 2 Redstarts, 3 Wheatears, 6+ Song Thrushes, 2 Garden Warblers, Whitethroat and 2 Chiffchaffs.  I spent a while, as I usually do, sitting at the east end overlooking the big sycamore at the west end of Holkham Pines.  Eventually I caught a brief view of the Red-breasted Flycatcher that had been found there the previous day.  I also saw a Hobby and one of the Great White Egrets at Holkham.

Garden Warbler, Burnham Overy, 25th September

The most extraordinary thing I found was an aberrant Small Copper butterfly - see my mothing diary for photos of that.

I returned to Burnham Overy the following day seeing Spoonbill, Great White Egret and Kingfisher but fewer migrants than I'd hoped.  There have been quite a few Blue Tits on the move recently and we saw at least 11 move west this morning (though one group of 8 may have been the same 8 that later moved back east).  There were 3 Wheatears, Garden Warbler, 3 Blackcaps and a Brambling but it was hard work.  A Yellow-browed Warbler was at the west end of Holkham Pines and I could believe the reports of a second bird.  The report of 4 between the boardwalk and Holkham Pines is much harder to believe - even if the observer had included Chiffchaffs they'd have done well to get to 4 that morning!

A message from Ashley as I was walking back along the seawall with Nick alerted us to an Osprey over the harbour.  He must have been much further away from it than we were but still managed to pick it up before us!  Thanks to him I got good views of it as it moved eastwards.

Reed Bunting, Burnham Overy, 26th September

The following day I started off at Burnham Deepdale churchyard (where there was nothing) and took the coastal footpath heading west.  A single Blackcap was the only migrant I'd found by the time I reached Brancaster Staithe but a tit flock on the east side of the harbour contained a nice Yellow-browed Warbler.  If it had been quiet on the first leg, the next leg was far from quiet!  There was Rock Pipit and Grey Wagtail, Redwing, 11 Song Thrushes, Chiffchaff and 2 Blackcaps, and then as I reached Brancaster a Spotted Flycatcher - pretty much a rarity nowadays.  But the real highlight of this stretch was a constant pinging of Bearded Tits along the reeds on the north side of the path.  There were little parties of them moving through, anything from 1 to 14 but invariably calling in the reeds and then coming to the tops of the reeds and then flying up and off east.  Sometimes they would drop down again in the next clump of reeds, other times they would carry on, but always they moved off east so I could be certain I wasn't double-counting.  I'm sure I did under-count as I heard a few birds calling that I didn't see move off and so didn't count, but I certainly saw at least 65 Bearded Tits - a phenomenal total.

Bearded Tits, between Brancaster Stiathe and Brancaster, 27th September

There were Chiffchaff, Blackcap and more Song Thrushes in Brancaster and I continued to Broad Lane.  Here there was another Yellow-browed Warbler and I spent a bit of time trying to get a view of a Lesser Whitethroat in order to determine its race.  On my initial views I thought it looked interesting but I'd pretty much decided it was probably western after all when Mick Rooney turned up and said it was a definite western that had been around for a few days.  There were quite a few more Chiffchaffs here, at least 4 Blackcaps and a couple of Goldcrests.  A flock of 10 Jays flew west (my notes say east but I'm pretty sure they were west...) and a couple of Siskins flew over.

Yellow-browed Warbler, Brancaster, 27th September

I've never birded the golf-course before and decided to give it a bash today.  There was Wheatear and Whinchat along the north side and a bit further east a second Whinchat.  Towards the end I found a nice Redstart but apart from 6 Song Thrushes and 3 Rock Pipits there weren't many more migrants here.  A nice spot though - I shall try it again.  Oh, there were 2 Red Kites overhead too.

Next I walked up Gypsy Lane where I failed to find anything of much note - another Chiffchaff, 3 Goldcrests, Treecreeper and Bullfinch.  The now rather long walk back to the car was pretty uneventful.

A pre-lunch walk round Massingham Heath with the Mrs on her birthday failed to produce any interesting birds and a post-lunch coastal stroll along the coast path between Brancaster Staithe and Burnham Deepdale wasn't a lot better except for the 11 Spoonbills on the saltmarsh.  Also a Red Kite on the way up to the coast.

Jay, Massingham Heath, 2nd October

Spoonbills, Burnham Deepdale, 2nd October

A seawatch at Sheringham on Thursday 5th October was disappointing - the wind didn't turn far enough round to the northwest until too late in the morning.  The highlights were a Pomarine Skua east and 2 Sooty Shearwaters west together.  Other seabirds included 3 Manx Shearwaters, 5 Great Skuas and 2 Arctic Skuas.  Also-rans were 3 Pink-footed Geese in, 23 Red-throated Divers, 2 Kittiwakes and 9 Sandwich Terns.  Very few waders or wildfowl.

On Saturday I went up to Cley with the usual group.  We started off in Dauke's Hide from where we saw at least 18 Little Stints.  A Curlew Sandpiper was present for a littl while but flew off before the whole group saw it.  I counted at least 80 Ruff.  A Sparrowhawk interacted with one of the Marsh Harriers briefly.

We headed down East Bank just in time to miss the Grey Phalarope that had been showing - it flew off as we approached.  There was a Red-throated Diver on the sea and as we turned back we were advised that the Grey Phalarope had returned.  At first we couldn't see it as it was hidden in the reeds at the edge of its favourite pool but it soon emerged and we all got good views in the end.

Grey Phalarope, Cley, 7th October

After a while it flew to the Serpentine but didn't stay there long before flying to the back of Arnold's Marsh and then flying again, at which point I lost it and we continued on to Bishop's Hide.

Grey Phalarope, Cley, 7th October

Some of the Little Stints were viewable again from BIshop's, as was the Curlew Sandpiper again.

Little Stints and Dunlin, Cley, 7th October

Some nice views of close Ruff from here too, mostly juveniles but varying in the intensity of their plumage colour.

Ruff, Cley, 7th October

I'd not noticed this Marsh Harrier sitting on the ground in full view until someone in the hide asked me to confirm what it was.  My excuse is that it was behind the bar between the flaps from where I was sitting :)

Marsh Harrier, Cley, 7th October

On 9th I had an enjoyable morning at Burnham Overy.  A Tawny Owl was calling in the village when I arrived and a Barn Owl was hunting as I walked out.  Water Rail, Kingfisher and Bearded Tits were all heard calling.  When I reached the boardwalk I spotted this Merlin on a fence post to the east.

Merlin, Burnham Overy, 9th October

While I was watching it a Brambling called from the bushes and a second bird was flushed from the sueada shortly afterwards.  I spent a bit of time watching for vis mig from Gun Hill.  The following totals included birds I saw throughout the morning but as I spent most of the time walking around the dunes I'm sure they are but a fraction of the birds that moved through.  Anyway, I counted 230 Pink-footed Geese in from the north, 23 Dark-bellied Brent Geese, 33 Shelduck, 420 Wigeon, 220 Teal, 14 Eiders (all adult males), 200 Common Scoter, 2 Red-breasted Mergansers, 7 Red-throated Divers and 2 Great Crested Grebes moving over the sea.  Also 4 of 7 Grey Herons west were together over the sea and there were lots of gulls moving all morning - I think 300 Black-headed Gulls and 70 Common Gulls was probably a massive underestimate but I was trying to count only the ones that looked like they were passage migrants rather than just moving along the coast.  Also at sea was a Harbour Porpose, something I don't see nearly as often nowadays as I used to in the 90s.

Overhead I counted 2 Carrion Crows, 3 Skylarks, 3 Grey Wagtails, Pied Wagtail, 70 Meadow Pipits, 22 Rock Pipits, 5 Reed Buntings, 32 Chaffinches, 2 more Brambling, 6 Greenfinches, 4 Redpolls, 48 Siskins and 28 Goldfinches all moving west.  The real number was much higher.  A few Redwings were moving too but as most were heard and not seen I have no idea how many.  There were also birds moving further inland including Starlings and an impressive total of 337 Lapwings.  A Merlin also flew west - not sure if that was the same bird as I'd seen earlier or not.

Finding grounded migrants was a little harder - in fact a lot harder.  I notched up about 6 Goldcrests although most were at the east end where they might have just wandered out of the pines, and there must have been at least 130 Meadow Pipits in the dunes.  A Yellow-browed Warbler was in the willows south of the fence but all in all it was hard work!

I continued on to Holkham Pines, hoping for an early Olive-backed Pipit, but didn't do much better.  Two Chiffchaffs (I hadn't seen any in the dunes at all) and another Yellow-browed Warbler.  As I walked back through the north side of Burnham Overy Dunes I accidentally flushed 2 Short-eared Owls from the marrams, my third species of owl here that day.

Short-eared Owl, Burnham Overy, 9th October

A flock of Dark-bellied Brent Geese were on the beach and among them I could see a Black Brant x Dark-bellied Brent Goose hybrid.  It was a bit too distant for me to make up my mind if it was the same returning bird from previous winters or not.  As I returned along the seawall a Lapland Bunting flew over my head calling and there were 3 Red Kites knocking around the freshmarsh (and another Red Kite at South Creake on the way home).

Red Kite, Burnham Overy, 9th October

I didn't get out much more until 16th October when there was just a light passage at Burnham Overy.  The highlight was 2 calidrids flying west over the boardwalk - I didn't see them well but one was calling, a Little Stint.  2 Little Stints turned up at Titchwell later - the same birds perhaps?  Other waders on the move were 25 Lapwings west while at sea 3 Eiders west was the only notebook-worthy movement.  Over land there were a few thrushes (e.g. 50+ Redwings in) and a few finches (e.g. 5 Bramblings, 4 Redpolls and 7 Siskins).

Redwing, Burnham Overy, 16th October

Kestrel, Burnham Overy, 16th October

There were huge numbers of Redwing going over the house just before dawn on 19th October and mid morning I heard a Brambling fly over, the first time I've recorded that species here since 2014.

There were a few Redwings over Ryburgh the next day too, along with at least 8 Skylarks.  There were 17 Teal representing an arrival of wintering wildfowl, and 2 Snipe showed well.

Snipe, Ryburgh, 20th October

Little Egret, Ryburgh, 20th October

I spent some time at Ryburgh again on the morning of 26th October where two flocks of Pink-footed Geese flew over (92 north-east followed by about 70 west).  Other birds migrating over included 2 Redpolls south, a few Woodpigeons and probably the 14+ Skylarks.  Teal numbers had risen to 33 and there 2 Snipe again along with a Green Sandpiper (also 3 Golden Plovers over).  A drake Mandarin flew downriver and I also saw Kingfisher, Grey Wagtail and 3 Bullfinches.

Grey Heron, Ryburgh, 26th October

With lots to do before heading off to Oman in early November I didn't really have time to go up to the coast any more, but I've always wanted to find an Eye-browed Thrush on my birthday and I wasn't going to find it staying at home (well, maybe I would have done...?).  So I headed up to Burnham Overy instead, but although I did see a single Fieldfare flying west there weren't many thrushes and certainly no Eye-browed Thrushes.  There were 18 Chaffinches and 2 Siskins west but passerines weren't the order of the day.

Looking out to sea things were a little more interesting.  My first Goldeneye of the autumn was the best of a rather small selection of wildfowl and there were lots of auks moving (including both Guillemots and Razorbills, probably mostly the former).  A few other seabirds included 3 Great Skuas, an Arctic Skuas and half a dozen Kittiwakes.  Perhaps the most unexpected observation was 3 distant raptors which were so far out I could barely identify them.  Fortunately they weren't making much progress and with prolonged views I managed to resolve them - they were 3 Marsh Harriers.  Migrating Marsh Harriers over the sea aren't all that unusual but 3 together (well, not very together, but they weren't very far apart) were a bit of a surprise.  The longer I watched them the clearer it became that they did not, in fact, seem to be migrating - they seemed to be hunting.  That struck me as very odd as in my experience Marsh Harriers tend to take prey on the ground, not on or over the sea.  But I continued watching them for half an hour and for most of that time they made absolutely no progress east or west, but flying around in a manner suggestive of hunting (and probably hunting moving targets, not that I actually saw any of them taking anything).  Eventually the dots on the horizon became even smaller dots on the horizon until eventually I couldn't see them any longer as they had become so far out.

I went for a wander around Gun Hill, flushing a Short-eared Owl a couple of times before heading over to speak with a couple who were birding in the dunes.  One of the couple, Peter Forbes, picked something up over the sea close in while we were talking.  Can't remember what he said exactly but he obviously thought it looked interesting as it disappeared beneath the dunes before I got on it.  I kept an eye on the area and was surprised to see a lovely Leach's Petrel appear.  This was what he'd seen and it was incredibly close - but too close as it kept disappearing behind the dunes.  It seemed to be hanging around the same area so I decided to run across the dunes to get a clearer view of it, feeling quite sure that it would not travel far in the time it took me to get to the edge of the dunes.  But it had completely vanished - despite a clear view of the sea for a good distance east and west we couldn't find it again.  I couldn't quite work out what had happened to it - if it flew east we'd have still been able to see it, if it flew west it would have had to have moved out further to get round Scolt Head, and we'd have seen it, if it had landed on the sea I think we'd have seen it eventually.  I even checked along the beach in case it had landed exhausted on the deck, but couldn't find it.  The only other possibility (assuming it wasn't predated) was that it continued along the beach into the estuary.  I had a look there too but by that time enough time had elapsed for it to have gone further, and I couldn't find it.  A little frustrating as after the intial brief views I thought I was going to get a really lovely close view and probably photos, but still great to have seen it.  Not hugely rare in Norfolk I know, and indeed I've seen lots off Sheringham over the years, but I've rarely seen them so close and I'd not seen one at Burnham Overy before.

The only other birds of note were 3 Red Kites including this one.

Red Kite, Burnham Overy, 27th October

I had another 2 Red Kites elsewhere that day but the only other bird of note I saw in my travels was when I stopped off briefly at Brancaster Staithe.  It was so busy I barely stopped the car, but as I did a male Snow Bunting flew south directly over my car.  I couldn't see how far it continued but can't imagine it went down in the harbour area as there were so many people there - it must have either turned or gone straight inland.  I spent many a winter lunch break here during the 15 years I worked at CITB but never once saw a Snow Bunting.

I spent quite a bit of time driving around the lanes in NW Norfolk looking for geese, thrushes or anything else, with absolutely no success.  I can't remember where these Grey Partridges were.

Grey Partridges, NW Norfolk, 27th October

Apart from regularly recording Little Owl, Tawny Owl and Grey Wagtail from home during the second half of October that was pretty much it for me until I headed off to Oman on 2nd November.

Pallas's Grasshopper and Arctic Warblers

Burnham Overy on Saturday 16th September was decidedly quiet.  I spent a little while looking at the sea scraping together a single Manx Shearwater,  4 Arctic Skuas, 2 Great Skuas and at least 10 Pintail but it was hard work - not least because of my distance from the sea from the vantage point I was looking from.  There were at least 3000 Pink-footed Geese in already, possibly many more (a rough count from photos but I didn't capture the whole flock).  A single Spoonbill was seen, 2 Red Kites, and heard-only Kingfisher and Bearded Tits.  Migrants in the dunes were thin on the ground - one Chiffchaff was probably a migrant, one western-looking Lesser Whitethroat might have been, but that was it.

Reed Bunting, Burnham Overy, 16th September

One of the Great White Egrets was seen at Holkham and heading into the pines I found the bird of the day, a Pied Flycatcher.

Great White Egret, Holkham, 16th September

That evening I went to Buckenham Carrs for a Norfolk Moth Survey event.  We were greeted by this tame Reeves's Pheasant (photo taken with my iPhone).

Reeves's Pheasant, Buckenham Carrs, 16th September

On Sunday 17th September I received a message from Stuart who had found an interesting Locustella warbler.  I couldn't dash up there and help him sort it out as I was just leaving home for a tea party in Norwich.  By the time I reached Norwich it was sounding increasingly likely that it would turn out to be Pallas's Grasshopper Warbler (colloquially known as PG Tips on account of the species' pale tips to the tail and tertial feathers).  I'm not sure the tea served at the tea party was PG Tips but news of another PG Tips on offer in the opposite direction was presenting a dilemma for me.  I'd said I would be at the tea party so I stayed.

The last and only widely-seen Pallas's Grasshopper Warbler in Norfolk turned up on Blakeney Point at the start of a week's holiday in Cornwall - I was still driving down but already the wrong side of Devon when news of that one came through.  The wife wasn't very keen on turning round and going home and I probably wouldn't have got there in time anyway, so I missed out on that individual.  I'd never seen one anywhere before or since, and this was on my patch, so I was pretty keen to get up to Burnham Overy to see this one, especially if it was confirmed, once the tea party was finished.

When I got home after the tea party (I had to drop my wife off as she didn't want to see a skulking warbler) there hadn't been any news since it had been flushed into some reeds by a dogwalker, and I hesitated about dashing up now it was getting late.  I didn't hesitate for long though - even though I thought I probably wouldn't see it, staying at home and then subsequently discovering that I might have seen it had I gone would be unbearable - I had to try for it!  I was barely out of the driveway when I received a message that it had not only been seen again but had been photographed in full view.  Moreover it was now confirmed beyond any doubt that it was indeed a Pallas's Grasshopper Warbler (not that I think there was really any doubt about it in the minds of the observers by this time anyway). 

By the time I arrived it had been showing regularly affording people good views.  It was out of view, but I was assured that every few minutes it had been appearing on the top of the brambles briefly before flying right and going back in.  It was a tense wait.  I questioned whether playing tapes was wise, but was assured by those present that it had been working effectively up to now.  And then as I scanned the top of the brambles below me there it was, appearing before my eyes, a Pallas's Grasshopper Warbler coming up and sitting on top of the brambles in clear view!  Most of the bird was in view, though not for long though - a second or two later it flew right as it had done before, but this time going back and into the reeds where I could still see it for a short while until it gradually moved deeper in and out of view.  I had arrived just in time - it didn't show again that day.  It was seen on subsequent days but I don't think many people, if anyone, got good views again after this first afternoon.

Over the next few days desperate twitchers exhibited some very poor behaviour, breaking down a fence and trespassing on a cattle field despite being told not to be the warden.  A completely unacceptable exchange between one idiot twitcher and the wardens was filmed and put on YouTube and I'm pleased to say that while one or two seemed to be defending the twitcher on one or two forums most right-minded twitchers were quick to condemn the behaviour.  If you want people to release news of birds and make it possible for twitchers to go and see them then follow instructions and definitely don't ever remonstrate with the wardens or other local stakeholders.

I was up there the next day but didn't see all this going on.  No-one had seen it when I passed by the place where it had been early one, and I didn't spend long looking for it again.  There wasn't much going on in the dunes but there were a few duck passing at sea including 200 Wigeon, 12 Pintail, 100 Teal and 200 Common Scoter.  I continued on through Holkham Pines where a Yellow-browed Warbler was seen and the highlight was a male Redstart (they seem to be rarer than Yellow-browed Warblers nowadays!).  A Hobby flew over and from Washington Hide I saw 2 Great White Egrets, a Common Sandpiper and 5 Pintail.

I continued on to Wells Woods seeing another Hobby and eventually reaching the spot where the Arctic Warbler was.  It spent its time high up in silver birches, at times hard to see, at times a little easier but never easy to photograph.  I was happy enough with the shots I got though - I don't think I've ever photographed one at all before.

Arctic Warbler, Wells, 18th September

I headed up to Stiffkey the next day for a change.  It was very quiet with nothing better than 3 Greenshanks by the time I reached the fen (I started at the campsite wood).  Another 4 Greenshanks on the fen along with Green Sandpiper, Dunlin, 33 Ruff and 9 Spoonbills.  There were also 44 Pintail here and a Kingfisher called.  At Stiffkey Flood the Cattle Egret was still present, a bit too distant to bother trying to take any photos.

Pallid Harrier, Haddiscoe & two hybrid ducks

I didn't see anything of note on Sunday except for a Grey Wagtail at Bylaugh.

Yesterday I headed up to Burnham Overy early, seeing a pair of Barn Owls at Hempton on my way up.  As I headed down from the staithe 2 White-fronted Geese flew over and there were 18 Avocets in the channel.  There were loads of Wigeon in the fields but light was awkward for searching through them.  The big field south of the reedy pool contained 7 Ruff and 153 Dunlin and a Bearded Tit called from the reeds.

At the mouth of the estuary there were 6 Red-breasted Mergansers and 4 Goldeneye, along with 2 Common Seal on the end of Scolt Head island.  Offshore a couple of Red-throated Divers flew east and a Fulmar west but the sea was quiet.

Grey Partridge, Burnham Overy, 6th March

A Stoat scurried through the dunes and I decided to skip the east dunes and head on to see the Pallid Harrier.  As I returned to the car a Red Kite flew over.

Dunnock, Burnham Overy, 6th March

Reed Buntings, Burnham Overy, 6th March

Red Kite, Burnham Overy, 6th March

Next stop New Holkham where the Pallid Harrier flew past 2-3 times giving good scope views but rubbish camera views.  Lovely bird to see.

Pallid Harrier, New Holkham, 6th March

Lots of other raptors in the sky too including up to 10 Buzzards at a time and at least one more Red Kite.

My next stop was Thursford Wood, an NWT reserve that I'd never visited before.  It's quite a  nice spot and I think it would be worth moth-trapping there sometime.  Birds included Marsh Tit and Nuthatch calling.

I then popped in to Great Ryburgh where I've been meaning for ages to see what the Ryburgh Wildlife Group site is looking like now.  Conveniently my arrival coincided with that of a member who kindly invited me in to the hide.  The group have done a great job here and it looks like there's plenty of scope for some good birds so when the chairman of the group turned up I paid up to join the group there and then.  I ended up spending quite a few hours there and saw lots of interesting birds.  There were 3 White-fronted Geese there the whole time and 2 Stonechats for a while.  Among the hordes of Teal and Wigeon I picked up what looked like a Wigeon with pale cheeks and a dark greenish headband, which at first I suspected might be a Wigeon x American Wigeon hybrid or something similar.  It disappeared before I could resolve it but eventually it reappeared and gave good if distant views.  The tertials were not Wigeon-like ruling out aberrant Wigeon or any Wigeon sp. x Wigeon sp. hybrid and it showed white sides to the tail and pale uppertail-coverts or rear rump feathers.  That made me wonder about Pintail and the dark-centred scapular pattern did indeed recall that a bit, although Pintail influence wasn't immediately obvious.  I've seen Wigeon x Pintail before but the head pattern was nowhere near so distinct on that individual, but I've also seen photos of birds with a more distinct head pattern (although still not quite like this one).  The pale crown stripe was divided by a narrow diffuse dark crown stripe and in the end I concluded that Wigeon x Pintail is the correct ID.

Wigeon x Pintail hybrid, Great Ryburgh, 6th March

I heard and then saw a pair of Mediterranean Gulls flying over, apparently the group's first this year, and 10 Barnacle Geese flew through.  A Pink-footed Goose appeared with some Greylags along with a fourth White-fronted Goose.

Today I headed down to Haddiscoe Island, somewhere I've only ever watched from afar, either the road at St Olaves, or from Burgh Castle, or from Waveney Forest.  There is a public footpath all the way round the island but it's a long way!  After seeing Little Owl near Swanton Morley en route I arrived at St Olaves and saw the first of 5 Barn Owls (3 on the island, 2 on Fritton Marsh).  I walked out through the boatyards at St Olaves hearing the odd Bearded Tit in the reeds as I headed north.

As I approached the bungalow about a mile down the footpath it became clear that there were some works going on that completely blocked the footpath, forcing me to retrace my steps and take the track down from under the bridge to the bungalow.  I could have done without adding another couple of miles on to the walk - it was going to be long enough already!  Anyway, I saw a Kingfisher where I turned round and a flock of 19 Bewick's Swans flew east on their way back to Russia.

I saw the first of 4 Stonechats as I continued on and heard 2 Water Rails calling.  A Green Sandpiper flew away and I saw an interesting Buteo land on a post.  I just glimpsed it in flight before it landed, thought I saw some white near the rump and/or base of the tail but didn't get a clear view of that.  At rest it looked like the Rough-legged Buzzard, and may well have been, but it was a long way off.  I watched it for about half an hour and it refused to budge or show me its tail, but I was pretty confident it was the Rough-leg.  I really wanted to see it fly - maybe I would see it again as I passed back down the other side of the island - I'd probably be nearer if it was still in the same area.

I picked up a couple of Short-eared Owls across the island and later one much closer which conceivably could have been one of the same but I doubt it.  A third or fourth Short-eared Owl was present at the very north end of the island from where I could see a Spotted Redshank among the waders opposite Burgh Castle.

Short-eared Owl, Haddiscoe Island, 7th March

The walk back down the other side was relatively uneventful, but a pale Buzzard was perched on what may well have been the very same fence that I'd seen the Rough-leg on earlier.  At first it looked like the same bird, I thought, but as I got closer I felt the head wasn't as pale as I had thought and the belly not as strongly marked.  I went from having doubts about my original ID to concluding that it had to be a different bird.  But then as I moved further away from it and looked back it started looking exactly like the Rough-leg had done originally, so maybe it was the same bird after all, and maybe it wasn't a Rough-leg after all.  The bird must have been in view for well over two hours all told and despite seeing it from both sides of the island it never flew again and never showed me its tail.  It seemed to be front-on no matter what direction I looked at it from!  Even at its nearest when it looked most like a pale Buzzard it was still a long way off and in the end I couldn't make up my mind.  If these are the views it was giving when I was on the island with it I shudder to think what sort of views people were getting from Waveney Forest!  The Rough-legged Buzzard was reported from there this afternoon - I hope they got a better view than me. 

Other birds seen on this leg included a few Snipe and a couple of Greylag Goose x Canada Goose hybrids, one being a normal bird with normal Greylags and the other obviously being the offspring of a domestic Greylag with a flock of white domestic Greylags.  There were lots of Chinese Water Deers on and around the island - must have been at least 25 but very probably more.

Chinese Water Deer, Haddiscoe Island, 7th March

Afterwards I nipped down to Lound Lakes in the hope that the Scaup x Tufted Duck hybrid that I heard about recently might still be present.  It was...

Greater Scaup x Tufted Duck hybrid, Lound Lakes, 7th March