Back In Birdland

Spring Finally Here in Trimingham!

Over the last couple of days things have definitely started arriving. First a Chiffchaff in the neighbours garden then on my walk around I found this bird calling continuously in the clifftop wood and upper slope, so nice to hear them again.

I searched the fields and tracks for a Wheatear but alas none were found. Once again the Glaucous Gull was on the beach off of the wood. The day was topped off with a single Swallow flying past from the back garden.

This morning I went out with my Dad and after a couple of minutes were listening and watching a couple of male Blackcaps trying to out do one another.

The Meadow Pipits were display flying along the lower cliff slopes and 4 Swallows were seen today. This Iceland Gull was found on the beach, shortly after it gave a flypast as it headed along towards Mundesley. And with more Bees and Butterflies getting on the wing hopefully there is plenty more to see.

Gulls Gulls Everywhere!!

Over the last couple of days I had noticed there were hundreds of Gulls along the shoreline and just offshore on the sea, there must of been close to a thousand along the stretch we walk the dogs from the house. Not one for knowing or watching the news, it only annoys me, it wasn't until Sarah and my Dad informed me of the thousands of starfish, crabs, fish being washed up on the shores.....now I knew why the gulls were in such huge numbers.

The next day Sarah and I walked the dogs along the same stretch and couldn't believe how many gulls there were dotted along the coast, we sat on the clifftop bench for a while taking it all in and then returned home with the dogs, I decided to grab the camera and head back out to get some shots from the clifftop and check out the gull species. I was glad I did as after a minute or so scanning I picked out a Iceland Gull, my first for the Trimingham Patch.

ICELAND GULL

I grabbed as many images as possible as it moved around among the hundreds of gulls feeding, and as the tide changed the gulls started to drift away leaving the Iceland Gull still resting up with a small group of birds having a snooze. It eventually departed towards Mundesley. During this time I had noticed a Kestrel circle and land down infront of where I was, it appeared to have caught a Bank Vole. I then watched it fly to a ridge and hide it away in a grassy tussock, behaviour which I had not seen before. Nearing the time I was going to return home, and with not many gulls left along the front, I picked up on a lone Kittiwake flying in and landing on the sea off of where I was viewing down from, it gave a few passes by along the surf before heading off leaving me very pleased and ready to go and put the kettle on.

ICELAND GULL

KITTIWAKE

KESTREL with BANK VOLE

KESTREL

A quiet couple of months.

It's been a quiet couple of months, birdwise that is. I have been kept busy sorting out hassles at home after a young idiot crashed into our front garden due to speeding!! With the wall repaired now and spring just around the corner I can once again get back into a routine. My Artwork has been keeping me confined to the studio a lot but with plenty of new pieces sold after completing I am not complaining.

Although I have been adding a few additions to the Trimingham year list, it has been very quiet around, Barn Owl was a lovely tick close to our house, and a Woodcock seen flying around at dusk from the back garden was great to watch on a couple of evenings. The feeders have been emptied very quickly, but no unusual visitors.

This caterpillar must of been disturbed enough to make it move, that or the sunny day had it thinking it was time to emerge, believed to be a Oak Eggar moth.

Then over the last few days the cold easterly weather has hit us square on, and despite looking has turned up nothing new. Normally Trimingham misses the snow and bad weather that everyone else seems to get but not this time, the worse in many years is what the people in the village have been telling me, but it does look magical when walking around.

Moving past my 50th into 2018.

My year ended pretty quietly bird wise, a fair bit of rain stopped most morning jaunts out and despite winds not blowing birds towards the coast there was a large build up of Red throated Divers on the sea and the last new bird to go onto the patch list was a Peregrine.

My artwork has kept me busy with many hours spent in the studio, the two pieces below are part of a British wildlife series I have started.

Moving into 2018 after passing my 50th birthday on New Years Eve, I have started listing species on my patch, already I have seen Harbour Porpoises feeding a short distance offshore and the birds are starting to make the list grow.

Moving onto December at Trimingham.

As November ended I had added a few more species to my new patch list at Trimingham, unfortunately Shorelark and Lapland Bunting did not put in an appearance for me but Snow Bunting was a consolation. Golden Plover numbers were increasing throughout the month. Best bird was obviously the Glaucous Gull.

December is upon us now and a lovely sight to see, a few days running now, are the Grey Partridge. Seeing them in the fields and along the lower cliff slopes, when viewing them in the beet field I noticed a few young in one group. The Glaucous Gull is still hanging around and I saw it along the front today (4th Dec), before flying towards Mundesley. A welcome sight today also, after not being seen for a few months, were a pod of harbour Porpoises off the front feeding.

Glaucous Gull Trimingham.

As soon as I got to the clifftop I decided to scan the gulls below on the beach and sea groynes as I normally do, they're not always present here preferring to rest up further along towards Sidestrand, mind you there are so many large gulls along this stretch that they inevitably break off into smaller groups.

I scanned and immediately picked up on a flying white winged gull, and moments later it landed on one of the groyne posts...GLAUCOUS GULL! Since moving to Trimingham in July this year this bird was my 100th patch species, what a great one to take that number too.