Norfolk road trip pt2 - Dashing Hobbies, feisty Avocets and a new Bog!

Cley Marshes

I saw my first ever Avocets at Cley Marshes, back in the 1980s when they were still a relatively rare sight in the UK. Thrilled as I was to see these, at the time, exotic looking waders actually nesting on these shores, my strongest memories of that time were of the place itself. Along with Titchwell and Blakeney Point this stretch of Norfolk coastline, a watery land of reedbed, dune and shingle had a remote and timeless feel then that thankfully still persists today.

The Avocets are still there of course and in much bigger numbers, back in the late 70s a nesting Avocet in the UK was big news - now there are 1500 pairs and increasing still. Climate change has undoubtedly propelled this dainty wader northwards as a breeding bird but let's not forget the role played by the RSPB in creating and managing the habitat they like.

I say 'dainty' but Avocets are feisty too. We saw several 'mobbing' episodes during our time at Cley and nearly all of them involved Avocets!





Avocets, nest prospecting, Cley.


 

Avocets mobbing a Grey Heron, Cley

 

 

 



Avocet mobbing a Marsh Harrier

Both Marsh Harrier and Grey Heron will gladly pluck a young Avocet from the ground so the attacks are worthy ones, though sometimes the harried fights back and we almost had feathers flying at the end of this one!

We spent an evening and an early morning here ...thus avoiding having to pay Norfolk Wildlife Trust and a little protest to NWT about them being the only county that charges Wildlife Trust members for visiting their reserves (come on Norfolk ... get with the programme!)



Reed Bunting - lovely singing male, great early morning sunlight!
 

Every picture tells a story so they say, and I do believe that - there's a tale to be had behind just about every picture I take. As I mentioned last time though, with so many pictures taken between the two of us, in the main the raconteur in me will have to take a back seat to make this a digestible post! So here's a few Cley highlights. As you will see we were blessed with some good early morning and evening sunshine ......

Male Linnet - same gorgeous light and beautifully posed! 
 

Sedge Warbler - so many chattering in the reeds I would have gutted if I didn't get a half decent shot!



Reed Warbler - distant shot across one of the lagoons; just as many around but I was disappointed not to get a better shot.

 

Male Shoveller - caught in that 'golden light' evening sunshine



That's me probably photographing that Shoveller!

The viewing at Cley is second to none, several good hides and of course the boardwalks themselves often provide discreet photo opportunities.
 

Me again - taking advantage of another man's equipment and seeing what a Wood Sandpiper looks like through £1500 worth of telescope!

 

Sadly the Wood Sandpiper (best bird of the day!) flew off before anyone had a chance to photograph it but I did get a distant shot of some of the Little Stints that were also present from this hide. 

Grainy old zoom crop but enough to id them as Little Stints!

Very 'bird laden' this post I know but Cley is after all a mecca for birdwatchers and has been for decades and still is. The same tidal surge that hit Spurn Point and various other coastal spots on the east coast last December also did a fair amount of damage here, but nothing irreversible, its looking great and as wetland sites go this has to rank up there with the UK finest.

 

Here's the rest of the Cley pics ....

Black Headed Gull in tip top breeding condition!

Black Tailed Godwit

Grey Heron stalking something or other - out of one of the hides

Goldfinch in the last few rays of sunlight - never appreciated that pink bill before!!

Lapwing - the light was almost too bright to catch that lovely green/blue sheen on its wing feathers

 

A couple of Cley landscapes taken with the Samsung during a lovely 'golden light' moment during an evening stroll around the boardwalks. The first is looking back towards the delightful village of Cley itself.

 

 

Hobby, one of two circling above the beach at Cley

and here's my Cley finale ... walking along the coastal shingle that borders the reserve and a chance look up in the sky revealed not one but 2 Hobbies circling on high. All of a sudden one of them put back its wings and pelted hell for leather out to sea, the other one followed and although in a matter of seconds they were mere specks against the sea, we could clearly see them through binoculars harrying a smaller bird. There was a lot of swooping and twisting as they worked as a pair and whether they got their bird I don't know, they faded out of sight but it was certainly a moment!












Dersingham Bog

Just inland and a few miles south west of Cley we found a nice little heathland reserve called Dersingham Bog. Very close to the Sandringham estate, it was just a destination berth for the evening but it turned out to be a little gem of a place.













We had another Hobby here and heard a Nightjar churring briefly, in the drier areas there were several Stonechats, Tree Pipits and Cuckoo whilst in the boggier parts there were 4 Spotted Chaser dragonflies and many damselflies of both red and blue variety.

4 Spotted Chaser, Dersingham

Large Red Damselflies, Dersingham. One of Rob's and a smashing picture.

 

Male Stonechat with what appear to be colour rings on both legs.

Male Stonechat, Dersingham



Singing Tree Pipit

 
Dersingham Bog is a designated SSSI (Site of Special Scientific Interest) and managed by Natural England. It wasn't surprising to hear a Nightjar there - the site is of  national importance with currently around 20 churring males recorded there. There are also many scarce bog loving plants here including Round & Oblong leaved Sundew, Cranberry and Bog Myrtle. For more info click here, its a great little spot to visit if you're ever down there.

The wild Southwest of Bonanza and Brazo Del Este... thousands of birds, a fab tractor and some stunning location shots.

'Tis with a slight tinge of sadness that I leave Tarifa and begin my northward journey back, but its a fool who dashes away when the riches abound and its the wetlands where most of the action seems to be occurring, so rather than head due North, I dally awhile around the Rio Guadalquivir and my first port of call is Bonanza, just outside Sanlucar de Barameda and now part of the Donana nature reserve. Been here before many times in the Spring but never at this time of the year. Surrounded by Parcel Pine forest on one side and salt pans on the other, Bonanza never disappoints!!

Booted Eagle, Bonanza



Booted Eagle, Bonanza

These shots of a Booted Eagle flying over the pine trees was my first of the morning ... no idea what its doing on the 2nd shot!



Black Stork, Bonanza

I'd seen my first Black Storks over La Janda the day before and boy are they wary! Unlike the White Storks they fly at the first hint of camera movement ... one distant shot here followed by one flying away .... I do manage a few better shots later.... ugly critters really aren't they!

Black Stork, Bonanza

It's difficult to convey the sheer number of birds here in Spain in the Winter, on a daily basis down here I witness massive flocks of Meadow Pipits, White Wagtails, Larks, Finches as well as huge numbers of Chiff Chaffs, Black Redstarts, Robins, Stonechats ... and that's without mentioning raptors, storks, egrets, ducks and waders! Almost too much to take in sometimes. Here's a bit more of Bonanza and then its on to Brazo Del Este.

Banks of the Guadalquivir, Bonanza

 

Bar Tailed Godwit, Bonanza

Caspian Tern, Bonanza

Chiff Chaffs galore... not the best of pictures but this is typical. Point your bins or camera just about anywhere and there'll be up to half a dozen around .... only 3 in the pic below but you get the picture! 

Chiff Chaffs.... typical vista!

Common Waxbill, Bonanza



Greater Flamingoe, Bonanza ... off centre, dammit!!

 
A little further North and on the East of the Guadalquivir lies Brazo Del Este - a subsidiary river and system of drainage dykes that again hold huge numbers of Storks, Waders, Raptors as well as smaller birds in the many wet fields, many of them rice paddies .... its yet another birding heaven!

I kid you not, when I arrived in the late afternoon, the first thing I witnessed was a field full of about 300 White Storks .... and then I realised this was just one of many fields, with just as many Storks, some Black Storks, Glossy Ibis, Lapwing, Lesser Black Backed & Black Headed Gulls, Marsh Harriers everywhere... even had a flock of Golden Plover (new bird for the trip!)

Here's a photo montage because time is short for blogging and I'm doing this in bed in a hotel in El Rocio and its already gone midnight!!

One White Stork ...

 



Lots of White Storks!! Brazo Del Este

In total, I don't know, but over 2500 White Storks at Brazo alone.

Black Stork, Brazo Del Este

Several Black Storks here too... maybe 15 in total.


Black Storks, Brazo Del Este

 ........ nice Spoonbill pic

Spoonbill, Brazo Del Este

Always been drawn by birds following the plough in the UK .... usually its looking for something different amongst Black Headed Gulls (almost always to find just that), but how about this for something different .....ace retro tractor for a start! Sky in the background is a bit weak but still a good action shot ....


Storks, Ibis & Gulls following the plough, Brazo Del Este




Wet field, Eucalyptus Tree, Pumping station and van pic! Brazo Del Este

Talking about 'locations' - this was not staged, just where I happened to park the van for a stroll, but what pic for the scrapbook!













I'd stopped to scan for Bluethroats, seeing this as a likely old spot .....

Likely Bluethroat location



Bluethroat from loads away!

.... and sure enough if I zoom in on one particular spot on the above (can you see it?!) there was indeed a Bluethroat. Slight cheat involved here because admittedly, I knew there was one there somewhere, but again its the sheer numbers of birds here that continues to astound ... I must have had 20 Bluethroats at Brazo!

Rubbish image of course and highly cropped but here's the zoom in on the right.






Interesting irrigation structures around here, shame I didn't get the birds in focus.....!

Irrigation and Cormorants, Brazo Del Este

Nowt much to write home about, neither bird and certainly not the photograph, but this has to be one of the most difficult birds to get anywhere near to even a distance shot ..... its a Lesser Short Toed Lark, only included here as a record shot and my first ever pic of one. At least you can make out the diagnostic eye ring!

 

 

 

Drainage dyke & Penduline Tit location

This is where I had my 2nd 'lifer' of the trip, a smashing view of a Penduline Tit ... just on the top of one of the nearest mast heads!










Dragonfly species, Brazo Del Este

Lots of dragonflies about here still, maybe they last right through the year? Have to get the field guide out to this one .....

















Nice female Marsh Harrier coming down a drain, just before she clocked me!



Female Marsh Harrier, Brazo Del Este

2 awesome and bird filled locations in 2 days and then I hit the Donana national nature reserve proper and El Rocio is my base for another couple of days before I head up to Extramadura. More from here in my next post.