Birding Braunie

Dear God. Could you please refrain from making early spring mornings less dewy. My boots, socks and fetching cargo pants got rather wet at the weekend as I crawled through scrub grass at Thistly marsh in a quest to capture a Grasshopper Warbler. Picture the scene; I’m crawling through wet grass at 6am, trying to un-snare my telescope’s tripod legs from a resistant bramble tentacle whist attempting to not collapse on my backside which would rightly raise a few questions from passers-by later on. I could hear that tinnitus-like reeling or playing cards in the bike spoke sound of the Grasshopper Warbler a few metres away but couldn’t see anything – this is normal. I caught a glimpse of the joker as it moved from one small straggly bush to another. It was keeping low and unhelpful. This too is normal. Finally, it blinked first and sat up in a Hawthorn bush and sang it’s little heart out. I still had to manoeuvre myself and my kit to a view where I could get a shot. Normally a bird fli...

What chance have I got? I mean, I would quite like to hit the 200 species mark this year and my chances are looking rather Dodo like. I know there’s no prize for reaching this total or I’m not doing a patch race etc... but I like to have a target because it motivates me to get out early or go a bit further to see more. This is the problem though, I haven’t gone that bit further. I do get up early but I have realised I haven’t been that far from home this year with Thetford in Norfolk being the only trip I have made outside Essex/London. Having said that, the species are ticking over slowly. Obviously I would like to bag at least 20 new species a month to realistically reach that score and the arrival of spring has helped boost my total. Just by snatching a couple of hours here and there, before work, after work, en route to somewhere and by just looking up sometimes has got me the majority of the common spring migrants. At Wanstead Flats a Wheatear and a Whinchat. Common Whitethroat,...

So there I was with a couple of hours to kill on a day off work and with all my chores ticked off, I quite fancied ticking off a few migrants missing from my year list. To get the most from the time, it had to be somewhere close and Wanstead Flats seemed the best option. The only problems are, a) I don’t have much luck there although it is well birded and always has some tempting birds. And b) it’s a weird place due to some weird folk wandering around and generally seem to be shifty-looking men hanging around with other shifty-looking men or loud dog owners on mobiles who feel the need to follow me and scare the birds out of every tree. Still, the birds are good Most of the action appeared to be near the main car park with Meadow Pipits , Skylarks and a couple of Wheatears basking in the warm sunshine and liking the worn out tree trunks that litter the place – in a nice way. Female Wheatear Another bird flew in close to the Wheatear I was vainly trying to photograph and I ass...

The weather warmed up a little at the weekend and as my Saturday didn’t require me to hit my thumb with a hammer, I sneaked off to Rainham while the lady of the house had her back turned. There had been a few sightings of the wonderful Black Redstart and a couple of migrants in the shape of Northern Wheatears. I had highish hopes........ Didn’t bother with the RSPB reserve as the walk along the Thames river path was probably the best route to take to see migrants. Or so I thought. I walked west towards the stone barges and saw, well, nothing. One small bird flew ahead of me and disappeared – think it was a Linnet but couldn’t be sure. On the Thames a pair of Shelduck honked and small parties of Wigeon and Teal were seen. Further along the path there are a number of jetty/pier type things that have seen better days and are now defunct. A pair of Oystercatchers liked them although I think they had had a falling out. Oystercatchers, not talking The stone barges are the remains...

I’m sure I don’t need to say that we have all experienced a rather prolonged and uncomfortable winter and early spring. The weather has affected all of us in some way and it now looks as though it will affect the springtime stirrings of many birds. With invertebrate food in short supply because of the cold climate right now,  the source of nourishment birds need to survive and prepare for raising a family is reliant on the food we put out for them. At the Bittern Watchpoint, the emphasis is of course on the Bittern and other waterbirds and mammals like Water Rail and Water Vole, but just as important at this time of year are the little guys. We have a regular supply of nuts and seed beside the hide that, when things are quiet, becomes the focus for many visitors to the watchpoint. Chaffinches, Robins, Dunnocks, Great, Blue and Long-tailed Tits, Reed Buntings, Great Spotted Woodpeckers, Jays and occasionally Lesser Redpolls all enjoy the rich picking the authority supply. ...

Hooray! We are now in March but the idea of spending a day at the Bittern Watchpoint is a bittersweet one. On the one hand, we will shortly lose the enigmatic Bittern from the reedbeds but on the other, well actually both hands will now not be frozen solid and painfully numb. Before I open up the watchpoint I like to get around parts of the park to see what’s about. Yesterday I picked the walk up to Holyfield Hall farm. With a species list for the year of 99, I was hopeful of getting a Green Woodpecker at least but this bird has eluded me since Jan 1st and although I heard a couple, I didn’t see any. Overhead, I saw a Carrion Crow mobbing a Sparrowhawk and the edges of the goosefields had noisy House Sparrows arguing about clearly important matters such was the cacophony  coming from the hedgerows. In the trees gathered 30+ Redwings and a few Fieldfare , getting ready to leave for the Spring. The Goosefields had as you might expect, a few flocks of geese, including Greylag ...

Decided to pop up to Thetford in Norfolk yesterday to see the long-staying Black-bellied Dipper. This like our native Dipper but a subspecies found in Northern Europe and as such, rather rare in this country. Anyway, first a zip up the M11 and A11 until you hit Thetford Forest and then Thetford itself. For all you Dad’s Army fans, this town was where they shot most of the TV series. It’s a lovely town and one that has been overlooked by me in the past. River Thet I arrived at the Nuns’ bridge and set about following the riverto the area where the dipper favoured. The ground was very muddy and it was difficult to stay upright. very soon, I found a small group of birders huddled together beside a tributary stream close to the car park. They weren’t cold or having a love in but were all admiring the Black-bellied Dipper that was putting on a display for anyone who was interested. It was incredible to be only 10 feet from the bird. It spent half its time swimming in the stream and ...