Norfolk Bound.

 

At the start of March Lisa and I headed up to Norfolk to celebrate her birthday. I have always loved north Norfolk, having had a couple of trips when I was young as well as working for a company that was based in Norfolk for 18 years. This meant I was quite familiar with some of the areas we were going to go wildlife watching.

On the way to Norfolk we were to stay at Lowestoft for one night so we could call into Minsmere RSPB for the day, followed by a day at Horsey to see the Grey Seals. With luck, we would also have time to visit Sheringham to look for the rare Eastern Black Redstart that had been over-wintering on the esplanade there.

Minsmere started extremely well when Lisa spotted a Woodcock hiding some distance away. We very carefully approached the bird, getting close enough for some photos, although he had spotted us and he had settled down in the undergrowth to hide from us. I had been hoping to see Woodcock in Norfolk as they are very difficult to find in Sussex, despite being reasonably numerous. Unfortunately the bird didn't allow us to get close enough for detailed shots, but it was lovely to see.

We also visited a couple of hides, seeing distant courtship displays of Great-crested Grebes as well as a Whooper Swan. Eventually we went into the Bittern Hide. This was the hide that we were watching Hobby and Marsh Harrier last summer. Our main Bittern experience that day was in the Fenland Hide. This time however, we had our first Bittern sighting of our trip, and although it was quite distant, the Bittern showed very well as it crept along the reedbed.

Also at Minsmere, and all other sites during the whole trip, we kept seeing Muntjac Deer. This species is spreading in Sussex but is much more common in East Anglia.

Woodcock.

Bittern.

Muntjac Deer.

The following day, after our night in Lowestoft we headed to Horsey Beach in Norfolk, a site where Grey Seals give birth. Although there were no actual babies at this time, there were still a few younger seals, although most of the animals we saw were adults. It was a lovely day, apart from a stiff breeze blowing along the beach, with sand flying low over the beach. This gave some lovely atmospheric photos. 

Grey Seals in the sandstorm.

A little further along the beach it was more sheltered from the breeze and the seals were not having to partly close their eyes to keep the sand out of their eyes and they were more relaxed.

Grey Seals.

This is the youngest Grey Seal that we saw. It seemed to be trying to keep away from the incoming tide.

Young Grey Seal.

We enjoyed ourselves so much here, that we left it a little late to get to Sheringham. We knew that the Eastern Black Redstart had been seen the previous day, but there had been no reports that day, so we were just hoping. When we arrived at the seafront of Sheringham, we found the area where we knew the bird had been in recent days but there was no sign of the bird. It was also beginning to get cold and the light was fading quickly. After a while we decided to leave the cameras in the car and just wander to see if we could see any landmarks from some photos of the bird we had seen. We had just about given up when I saw a bird deep in a bush. All I could see was a flickering tail, that is such familiar behavior with Redstarts. I knew it was either the bird we were after, or a normal Black Redstart. Fortunately, the bird moved to the front of the bush and we could see it was the Eastern Black Redstart. I quickly ran to the car to get the cameras. The light was awful, but we got some surprisingly decent shots. With the forecast for the rest of the week looking very good though, we were already planning to return for seeing the bird in much better conditions.

Eastern Black Redstart.

Adder Boy.

 With Winter slowly turning to Spring, I had two memorable encounters showing both seasons in just a couple of days.

On New Years Eve Lisa and I had enjoyed the spectacular Starling murmurations at Eastbourne, where the mass of Starling come to roost overnight on the lower parts of the pier. In late February we decided to go again, as by now the numbers of birds would have built up even further. This time we headed to the eastern side of the pier, as this was where most of the action had been on that final evening of 2025. We were certainly not disappointed with the aeriel display by the birds.

Starling Murmurations at Eastbourne Pier.

Also before the end of February, Paul and I headed to one of our favourite Adder locations on the South Downs. I can't remember seeing any Adders before in February, but with it being a lovely sunny day I felt that we had a chance. It wasn't too long before I spotted a single male Adder, although this was the only one that we saw that day. However, I did call back a few days later with Pete, and we managed to see three different male Adders.

My first Adder of the year.

Two of the male Adders I saw with Pete.

Also on this 2nd visit, I was surprised to find this rather worn Hummingbird Hawk-moth that was settled in the grass. It had probably flown over from France on the southerly winds, although it could possibly have over-wintered here in Sussex.

Hummingbird Hawk-moth.

Bittern in Flight.

 In mid February David and I went over to Dungeness. On the way we stopped off to see a smart, but distant Black-necked Grebe near Winchelsea. As David drove down a very narrow country road I spotted a Sparrowhawk flying towards us. As it settled in the bush to the left of the road David slowed down, and as we got to where the bird was, he stopped so we could enjoy it at extremely close quarters. I could almost have opened my window and reach out to touch it!!

A little further down the road the grebe showed after a short wait, but it was impossible to get close to, and the light was also not particularly good.

At Dungeness, we searched for a Jack Snipe that had been seen occasionally from the hide. However, unsurprisingly we had no luck there.

In fact, we were beginning to think that it had been a total waste of a trip when suddenly I spotted a Bittern flying past us. It then turned and flew into the reedbed in front of us. At last something decent for us to photograph. About 15 minutes later another Bittern also flew into the reedbed.

Bittern coming into land in the reedbed.

The second Bittern.

The Purple Pier.

 Every winter we have a small colony of Purple Sandpipers that spend the season on the pier at Newhaven. Numbers fluctuate each year, but after 2 very poor years in 2023 and 2024, numbers have increased to just about double figures again.

After many wet and windy days, a small break in the weather came so David, Paul and I decided to head over to the pier to see if we could get our annual Purple Sandpiper fix.

On arrival I could only see a single RuddyTurnstone on the pier, but as we walked along the pier we heard the chattering of the sandpipers on the lower rafters. It wasn't long before the first bird popped up onto the top of the pier, shortly followed by several more. This presented our opportunity to photograph them. The birds occasionally interacted, but mostly they rested with one beady eye checking the surroundings.

The First Purple Sandpiper 'up top'.

Purple Sandpiper with an itch.

Purple Sandpiper puffed up to keep warm.

The 'beady eye'.

One of the Ruddy Turnstones.

Eventually ten Purple Sandpipers were in view along with four Ruddy Turnstones.

Dartford Warbler Weekend.

 One of the species that I have always struggled with is the Dartford Warbler. The only half decent images I had before were from a session I did with Paul, at Gill's Lap back in 2017. However, although they posed quite well then on the Gorse, they were still a little too distant.

A shot from Spring 2017.

As Lisa's Mum was away skiing at the very end of January, into February, we decided to house sit for her, which would base us in West Sussex for the weekend. Giving us the chance to explore some of the West Sussex heathlands. It was certainly a case of very little in the way of sunshine, but the birds did their best to lift the spirits!!

We were not sure what we would find during the few days we had over there, but were pleasantly surprised to see a distant Goshawk, followed by some Crossbills and good numbers of Dartford Warblers.

Even better, the Warblers were quite confiding for once. At the first heathland Lisa had an excellent close encounter with one of these delightful birds. I had let her try to get a bit nearer, and ended up regretting not trying to creep nearer myself, although that would quite possibly have ruined it with 2 of us approaching.

There were also good numbers of Woodlark in the area, and we constantly heard them singing as they displayed over the heath.

The first day of our West Sussex heath weekend finished with me not having any photos to show for it, but it was still a very enjoyable day watching birds that I rarely see.

The following day, at a different heathland we started well with a Roe Deer complete with a youngster. This was followed by more Dartford Warblers, Crossbills and Woodlark. At last I too managed to get some quite nice photos of the warblers, as they moved around the Heather.

Dartford Warbler doing the splits.

We also saw some Crossbills feeding high in the trees, as well as a group of Goldcrest and Coal Tit feeding on the saplings. We also had a lovely Woodlark sitting at the top of one of the shorter trees that we could photograph.

Male Crossbill.

Goldcrest feeding.

Woodlark.

After spending several hours at the site, we were just heading back to the car when we saw a pair of Stonechats. It is well known that the Dartford Warblers can often be found in the vicinity of Stonechats, so it was not a surprise to see one following them as they searched for food in the Heather. This warbler was actually very confiding and allowed quite a close approach from us both, giving us some excellent opportunities to photograph him. He even did some singing for us, so we could photograph him with his bill open.

Dartford Warbler.

On the Sunday, the weather was pretty awful, so we went for a walk with just our binoculars at Pulborough Brooks RSPB reserve. Due to the weather we didn't see much at all, but it was amazing seeing the extensive flooding of the brooks.

The following day, Monday, Lisa was back at work. However, I decided to stay over for one more day, so I could return to the heathland and have one more try for the Dartford Warblers. Although the weather was once again a little wet, there were at least a few dryer parts of the day, and with me being on my own, I felt I had a better chance of hiding in the heather to get some closer sightings. Perhaps due to the weather it was very quiet, with only a single Woodlark heard early on. A few Dartford Warblers were seen, but nothing close to start with. However, eventually I found a bird working through the heather, so I approached the area before croaching down very low. As I was waiting for the bird to pop up I saw a Goshawk fly low over the heather. However, despite it being quite close, I only managed a nice view through the binoculars. Not long after this, my patience was rewarded with some lovely views of the Dartford Warbler. At one point I could see the heather moving only about 8 feet away as it moved through the heather, Fortunately, it didn't pop up at that moment as that may have startled him a bit too much. However, he did pop up several times at a more realistic distance allowing me to get my best Dartford Warbler photos by a very long way!! As always, I also enjoyed just watching this wonderful bird as he searched for food near me. An absolutely wonderful experience, and also it was during one of the drier parts of the day. 

The very smart male Dartford Warbler.

Following this amazing sighting I walked a little further around the site, only seeing a very smart male Stonechat. Shortly after this the weather deteriated again and the camera went away for the day. I did see a few Common Snipe as I explored further, but otherwise it went very quiet.

Male Stonechat.

It was soon time to head back to Shoreham, before heading back home the following day. A stunning weekend exploring areas I rarely get to.