Review of 2019 and 2020 - Birds: Swifts, Cuckoos, Doves, Rails and Grebes

SWIFTS (family APODIDAE)


Swift Apus apus - Seen regularly at home and at the meadows, as well as elsewhere, but seems to be getting fewer of them every year.

Swift, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 12th May 2019

-----------------------------------

CUCKOOS (family CUCULIDAE)


Cuckoo Cuculus canorus - This species continues to hang on locally and I'm fortunate to hear them regularly from home and from the meadows (possibly involving the same birds).  In 2019 they were heard between 21st April and 15th June and in 2020 between 23rd April and 13th June.  At least 2 males and one female were heard at the meadows in 2020 but despite at least one bird being heard on most visits (at least those early morning and evening visits) I only got to actually see a bird on one or two occasions, and then quite distantly.  Elsewhere recorded at Titchwell in 2019 and Frost's Common in 2020, plus at several sites on Mull in June 2019.

Cuckoo, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 9th May 2020

-----------------------------------

DOVES and PIGEONS (family COLUMBIDAE)


Rock Dove Columba livia - 6 at 3 locations on Mull in June 2019.  A Feral Pigeon flew through the meadows on 12th October 2020 and at least some of the Rock Doves seen in Spain in February 2020 were feral types.

Rock Dove, Llobregat Delta (Spain), 22nd February 2020

Stock Dove Columba oenas - Regularly seen at the meadows and occasionally at home (one sometimes sings in next door's garden).

Stock Dove, Worthing, 19th April 2019

Stock Dove, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 22nd March 2020

Woodpigeon Columba palumbus - Common at home and at the meadows.

Woodpigeon, Llobregat Delta (Spain), 22nd February 2020

Woodpigeons, North Elmham, 29th September 2020

Turtle Dove Streptopelia turtura - One in the carpark at Titchwell on 1st June and one singing by the green here in North Elmham on 7th August 2019.  None locally in 2020 but one at Arden Sawah in Cornwall on 7th October.

Turtle Dove, Titchwell, 1st June 2019

Turtle Dove, Arden Sawah (Cornwall), 7th October 2020

Collared Dove Streptopelia decaocto - Common at the meadows (the chapel area rather than the meadows themselves) and at home.  The only mildly noteworthy record was one in from the north at Sheringham on 21st October 2019.

Collared Dove, North Elmham chapel, 6th November 2020

-----------------------------------

RAILS and COOTS (family RALLIDAE)


Water Rail Rallus aquaticus - One seen in the ditch where it runs under the railway on 18th February and the same or another in the same place on 20th March 2019.  In addition one was heard flying over after dark on 22nd March.  Elsewhere one at Santon Downham on 23rd February and heard at Burnham Overy in October.  None locally in 2020 but heard at Frost's Common and also at the Llobregat Delta in Spain.

Water Rail, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 20th March 2019

Corncrake Crex crex - One heard behind the abbey on Iona on 11th June 2019.


Purple (Western) Swamphen Porphytio porphyrio - one heard calling at Llobregat Delta (Spain) on 22nd February 2020.


Moorhen Gallinula chloropus - Usually seen from the meadows.  One on next-door's pond in January 2019 which was probably the same bird that appeared in my garden a couple of times in February including once on the bird table.


Coot Fulica atra - Heard overnight over the garden on 3 occasions and over the meadows twice, all in 2019.  Also one flushed from the ditch under the railway at the meadows on 11th February 2019.

Coot, Llobregat Delta, 22nd February 2020

-----------------------------------

GREBES (family PODICIPEDIDAE)


Little Grebe Tachybaptus ruficollis - No sight records of any grebes at the meadows yet but one heard calling on the river on 19th April and one heard flying over during the night of 22nd April 2019.

Little Grebes, Llobregat Delta (Spain), 22nd February 2020

Great Crested Grebe Podiceps cristatus - No records were of any significance.


Next page: Waders

Or return to Birds index

Great Knot at last

This might feel like a 'blast from the past' post given how far behind I am, but it's not meant to be!  If you've read previous diary entries you'll know that I had several attemptes to see the Great Knot this summer mostly with no success and once with just poor views.  Well eventually I did see it well!

The Great Knot had spent some time at Gore Point, Holme over the previous couple of days so I started off there early doors, after seeing a Barn Owl on the way up at Brisley.  It was a lovely morning, very pleasant, all the better for the Hobby that whizzed through and 2 Spoonbills that flew west.  But there didn't seem to be any waders on the beach. There were a few scattered waders on the estuary, like this Ringed Plover, but no big flocks of roosting Knot.

Ringed Plover, Holme, 2nd July

Eventually I did find a flock of waders on the beach: 17 Sanderling.  They were very nice of course, but they weren't a Great Knot.  Robin Chittenden had indicated that he'd seen the Great Knot further round towards Old Hunstanton early morning a day or two earlier so I tried the beach opposite the golf course.  Nada.

Titchwell was the next place to try and there were plenty of Knot on the freshmarsh here.  From the bank I couldn't see a Great one among them so I went down to the hide for a different angle.  No-one there had seen it so after a quick scan I continued on to the beach.  Surprisingly, given how much time it has spent on the beach during its stay, and how many birders were on site, there was only one birder on the beach ahead of me, Mike Buckland.  He was already well down to the east where I could see a small flock of Knot and Oystercatchers.  I couldn't immediately pick out the Great Knot but needed to get closer, so headed down towards Mike, not feeling very optimistic given the quite small number of Knot in the flock.  As I reached Mike he indicated that the Great Knot was there and indeed it was!  It tended to keep to the back of the flock, often hidden from view but often appearing at one end of the flock.  The three of us now present moved further round to view the flock in better light and eventually we all got really good views of it.

Great Knot (with Oystercatchers and Knots), Titchwell, 2nd July

Eventually the entire flock took off and flew towards the freshmarsh.  The Great Knot is the lone bird top left in the flock shot below.

Great Knot (with Oystercatchers and Knots), Titchwell, 2nd July

I returned to the Parrinder hide where the bird was showing nicely at the front of the flock, although by the time I set up for photos it had moved round to the back of the flock where it stayed for most of the next couple of hours or so.

Great Knot (with Knots), Titchwell, 2nd July

Lots of Swifts were flying past the hide close by so I made a few attempts at snapping them.

Swifts, Titchwell, 2nd July

Avocet, Titchwell, 2nd July

There were at least 6 Red-crested Pochards on the freshmarsh and we heard a Bittern booming.  A couple of Bearded Tits showed.  Rob eventually turned up and saw the Knot - must have been the first time he's twitched anything for years!  We headed round to Patsy's Pool where we found 2 Little Ringed Plovers.

A successful morning after which I returned home knackered to catch up on sleep.

I think spring finished early this year

On the last Saturday in May I headed up to Burnham Overy in the hope of finding some late spring migrants.  A Spoonbill flew off from the staithe as I arrived (there were 2 Spoonbills feeding in the pools later on) and a Common Sandpiper was in the channel.  A Cuckoo was calling somewhere and it was good to see 3-4 Pochard ducklings in the dyke.

Pochards, Burnham Overy, 28th May

A short spell watching the sea resulted in two flock totalling 53 Dark-bellied Brent Geese flying east and a flock of about 40 Knot east.  A single Swallow moved east, and later one moved west, and that, I'm afraid to report, is the sum total of passage migrants I found all morning.  

Still an enjoyable morning though - love birding here even when I don't see anything of real note.

Little Tern, Burnham Overy, 28th May

Spoonbill, Burnham Overy, 28th May

Saturday gone I was up at the coast again, this time with the group at Titchwell.  Plenty of migrants around this time, but only of the micro moth variety - hundreds of Diamond-back Moths everywhere.  We headed down to Patsy's Pool first where we found 6 Red-crested Pochards (4 males).

Red-crested Pochard, Titchwell, 4th June

With the murky conditions (it was bright and sunny inland but the coastal strip was shrouded in mist) the Swifts were flying low.  I still didn't manage to get any sharp photos though... these were the best of my feeble efforts.

Swift, Titchwell, 4th June

There are some Black-headed Gulls nesting on the roof of Island Hide and one of the chicks had made it down to the ground (or just fallen off).  It's parent was feeding it as we went in to the hide, though seemed more reluctant to do so once the hide was full.

Black-headed Gull chick, Titchwell, 4th June

The 2 Little Gulls were in the mist from the hide but by the time we ventured further up the path it was bright enough (and it was close enough) for us to see one of them a bit better.

Little Gull (right, with Black-headed Gull), Titchwell, 4th June

From the central hides we enjoyed watching a new-hatched Avocet chick.  Apparently it was Titchwell's first this year and had only hatched that morning.

Avocet and chick, Titchwell, 4th June

Two pairs of Moorhen were engaged in some sort of stand-off for a while, after chasing each other round for a bit:

Moorhens, Titchwell, 4th June

Then they turned their backs on each other and started flashing their rear ends at each other, though with their backs turned they can't have seen eachother's displays.  Quite good impressions of lekking Black Grouse, don't you think?

Moorhens, Titchwell, 4th June

Other birds of note on the scrape were a summer plumaged Spotted Redshank (unfortunately right over at the very back, and usually out of view) and a Little Ringed Plover.

Gadwall, Titchwell, 4th June

Common Tern, Titchwell, 4th June

Linnet, Titchwell, 4th June

I spent the rest of the afternoon and evening looking for moths, but managed to see or hear a few birds too, including Stonechat, Tree Pipit, Hobby, Woodcock and Nightjar.

On Monday morning I saw a Red Kite over the road at Sculthorpe on my way to work.