most recent update
Green Woodpecker - Lowestoft - December - © Andrew Easton
A couple of new links for the New Year (both will open in new windows)
Birdline East Anglia - Suffolk January 2007 review
Suffolk Birding with BINS
RED-THROATED DIVER Gavia stellata
Hamilton Dock - 1st to 6th (1), 24th to 25th (1).
Kessingland - 1st (1 S, 1 o/s), 2nd (38 N, 27 S, 14 o/s), 3rd (29 N, 1 S), 4th (1 N, 7 S, 5 o/s), 5th (20 N, 22 S, 21 o/s), 6th (23 N, 4 S, 2 o/s), 7th (44 N, 9 S, 2 o/s), 8th (6 N, 1 S), 9th (32 N, 13 S, 1 o/s), 10th (2 N, 2 S), 11th (10 N, 11 S, 1 o/s), 12th (25 N, 17 S, 1 o/s), 13th (122 N, 11 S, 5 o/s), 14th (2 N, 4 S, 3 o/s), 15th (74 N, 4 S, 3 o/s), 16th (8 N), 17th (26 N, 1 S), 18th (15 N, 1 S), 19th (1 N, 1 o/s), 21st (4 N, 2 S, 2 o/s), 22nd (1 N, 1 o/s), 23rd (1 N, 1 S, 1 o/s), 24th (6 N, 2 o/s), 25th (1 o/s), 26th (1 N, 5 S, 1 o/s), 27th (2 N, 1 S, 1 o/s), 28th (3 N).
Ness Point - 13th (20 N, 30 S).
BLACK-THROATED DIVER Gavia arctica
Kessingland - 4th (1 N), 13th (1 N), 26th (1 o/s), 28th (1 N).
GREAT NORTHERN DIVER Gavia immer
One was still on Lake Lothing on the 2nd, and on the 3rd to 6th it had moved to Hamilton Dock. On the 6th two were present at one stage.
One was back on Lake Lothing viewable from the railway bridge on the 11th to the 17th.
DIVER spp.
Kessingland - 3rd (1 N), 6th (1 N), 8th (2 N), 17th (1 N).
GREAT CRESTED GREBE Podiceps cristatus
Kessingland - 5th (1 on sea), 18th (4 S, 1 o/s), 24th (5 N, 3 o/s), 25th (1 o/s), 27th (2 N, 11 o/s), 28th (2 N, 1 o/s).
Oulton Broad - 11th (4), 17th (2).
LITTLE GREBE Tachybaptus ruficollis
Lake Lothing - 17th (14), 24th (9).
FULMAR Fulmarus glacialis
Kessingland - 24th (1 N, 1 S), 27th (6 N), 28th (1 N).
Gunton Warren - 27th (1 N).
GANNET Morus bassanus
Kessingland - 6th (1 N), 7th (1 N), 8th (69 N), 9th (2 N), 10th (4 N), 11th (56 N, 18 S), 12th (1 N), 13th (1 N), 15th (3 N), 28th (46 N).
CORMORANT Phalacrocorax carbo
Kessingland - 4th (1 S), 5th (1 o/s), 7th (2 S), 10th (1 o/s), 11th (1 S), 16th (1 o/s), 17th (1 S), 20th (1 N), 21st (2 S, 1 o/s), 22nd (1 S).
SHAG Phalacrocorax aristotelis
Lake Lothing - 2nd (1), 3rd (1), 4th (2).
Hamilton Dock - 4th (1), 16th (2), 17th (1), 24th (1), 25th (3).
LITTLE EGRET Egretta garzetta
Herringfleet Marshes - 3rd (1).
Somerleyton Marshes - 13th (1).
Carlton Marshes - 18th (1).
GREY HERON Ardea cinerea
One flew in off the sea at Gunton Warren on the 26th and continued westwards inland.
Two flew south westwards together over Corton on the 27th.
MUTE SWAN Cygnus olor
97 were between Carlton Marshes and Castle Marshes, Barnby on the 3rd, with the great majority at Barnby.
Lake Lothing - 24th (2). They later flew to Leathes Ham.
BEWICK'S SWAN Cygnus (columbianus) bewickii
Just across the border in Norfolk eight, plus a Black Swan, were on Gillingham Marshes on the 16th and 17th.
SWAN sp Cygnus sp
A "V" formation of around 12 swans, probably Bewick's, flew westwards over Southtown, Gorleston at 7:45 on the morning on the 26th.
PINK-FOOTED GOOSE Anser brachyrhynchus
15 were on the sea of Kessingland on the 17th.
GREYLAG GOOSE Anser anser
Herringfleet Marshes - 3rd (12).
CANADA GOOSE Branta canadensis
Castle Marshes, Barnby - 3rd (6).
Herringfleet Marshes - 3rd (82).
Kessingland Levels - 4th (3).
BARNACLE GOOSE Branta leucopsis
50 were at Lound Waterworks on the 24th.
DARK-BELLIED BRENT GOOSE Branta (bernicla) bernicla
Kessingland - 11th (4 S), 12th (1 S), 15th (2 S), 22nd (4 S), 24th (1 S), 25th (2 S), 26th (4 S).
EGYPTIAN GOOSE Alopochen aegyptiacus
Carlton Marshes - 3rd (2).
Castle Marshes, Barnby - 3rd (2).
Herringfleet Marshes - 3rd (2).
Oulton Broad - 13th (2), 17th (2).
Lake Lothing - 17th (2).
Blundeston - 24th (2).
SHELDUCK Tadorna tadorna
Herringfleet Marshes - 3rd (4).
Kessingland - 9th (1 S), 11th (1 S), 13th (1 N, 2 S), 16th (1 S), 21st (1 S), 22nd (1 S).
WIGEON Anas penelope
Kessingland - 2nd (10 N, 28 S), 4th (17 o/s), 10th (2 S), 12th (1 S), 19th (2 S), 21st (2 o/s), 23rd (2 S), 26th (5 S), 27th (2 N).
Kessingland Levels - 18th (97).
GADWALL Anas strepera
Castle Marshes, Barnby - 3rd (2).
Leathes Ham - 4th (2).
Lound Waterworks - 13th (49), 24th (23).
Kessingland - 23rd (4 S).
TEAL Anas crecca
Castle Marshes, Barnby - 3rd (8).
Herringfleet Marshes - 3rd (14).
Carlton Marshes - 17th (displaying).
Kessingland - 19th (12 S).
SHOVELER Anas clypeata
Leathes Ham - 13th (29).
Lound Waterworks - 13th (49), 24th (2).
TUFTED DUCK Aythya fuligula
Lound Waterworks - 13th (3), 24th (9).
Oulton Broad - 17th (1).
COMMON EIDER Somateria mollissima
Kessingland - 11th (2 N), 22nd (2 N).
LONG-TAILED DUCK Clangula hyemalis
The female was seen in the dykes near Share Mill at Carlton Marshes again, on the 1st.
COMMON SCOTER Melanitta nigra
Kessingland - 12th (32 S), 13th (2 N), 15th (20 N, 16 S), 17th (1 S), 18th (1 S), 19th (1 N, 6 S), 21st (20 S), 28th (2 N).
RED-BREASTED MERGANSER Mergus serrator
One flew north past Pakefield on the 17th.
GOOSANDER Mergus merganser
One female was at the eastern end of Lound Waterworks on the 18th.
MARSH HARRIER Circus aeruginosus
A female was at Carlton Marshes on the 3rd.
An immature male was at Fritton Marshes on the 3rd.
Two were at Somerleyton Marshes on the 13th.
One was at Henstead on the 15th.
One was at North Cove on the 17th.
HEN HARRIER Circus cyaneus
A first winter ringtail was at Fritton Marshes on the 3rd.
COMMON BUZZARD Buteo buteo
One was seen at Herringfleet on the 3rd.
One was at Mutford on the 17th.
Red Kite - Sotterley - December 2006 - ©Dick Walden
Just outside our area, but well worth a visit with two Kites and several Common Buzzards in the area.ROUGH-LEGGED BUZZARD Buteo lagopus
Just across the border in Norfolk, one was at Thorpe Marshes near Haddiscoe on the 16th. It later flew southwards.
OYSTERCATCHER Haematopus ostralegus
Lake Lothing - 11th (2), 17th (2).
Somerleyton Marshes - 13th (1).
Lound Waterworks - 24th (2).
Lowestoft North Denes - 24th (1).
Kessingland - 18th (1 N), 25th (1 S).
RINGED PLOVER Charadrius hiaticula
Two were on the beach at Kessingland on the 12th and 17th.
KNOT Calidris canutus
One was along Lake Lothing on the 3rd.
SANDERLING Calidris alba
Hamilton Dock - 3rd (1), 4th (1), 11th (1), 17th (1).
Pakefield - 4th (1).
Lowestoft South Beach - 17th (1).
PURPLE SANDPIPER Calidris maritima
Ness Point/North Beach - 3rd (7), 4th (6), 6th (7), 11th (3), 13th (7), 17th (7), 24th (7), 25th (5).
DUNLIN Calidris alpina
One flew south past Kessingland on the 28th.
COMMON SNIPE Gallinago gallinago
Two were flushed at Carlton Marshes on the 3rd.
WOODCOCK Scolopax rusticola
One was flushed at Corton new sewage works on the 10th.
One was flushed from a roadside ditch at Mutford on the 17th.
Three were flushed in Nebb Wood, Flixton on the 17th.
One was at Carlton Marshes on the 18th.
Three were flushed at Corton new sewage works on the 10th.
REDSHANK Tringa totanus
Kessingland - 20th (1 S), 22nd (9 S).
GREEN SANDPIPER Tringa ochropus
One was seen at Castle Marshes, Barnby on the 18th.
TURNSTONE Arenaria interpres
Lowestoft North Beach - 1st (34).
Hamilton Dock - 4th (18).
Kessingland - 4th (1 S), 25th (1 S), 26th (2 N), 28th (1 S).
Ness Point - 24th (20).
GREAT SKUA Stercorarius skua
One flew south past Kessingland on the 19th.
MEDITERRANEAN GULL Larus melanocephalus
One second winter bird was along Lowestoft North Beach on the 3rd.
Pakefield - 4th (1 adult, 1 first winter), 11th (2 first winters), 17th (3 adults, 1 first winter), 18th (1 adult, 1 first winter).
Kessingland - 6th (1 N, 1 S : not the same bird), 7th (1 N), 8th (1 N).
Gorleston - 22nd (3 including a colour ringed adult seen there in December).
LITTLE GULL Larus minutus
Kessingland - 10th (1 adult + 1 first winter S).
Ness Point - 10th (2 adults S).
Gulliver's latest victim - February 2007- ©Andrew EastonGREAT BLACK-BACKED GULL Larus marinus
A headless corpse lay below Gulliver, the slice and dice turbine at Ness Point, on the 17th.
Alongside the steady increase in numbers of wind turbines built, the volume of CO2 emitted and the human population also continue to rise inexorably. These heavily subsidised cash cows seem better at killing birds and raising money for their operators through the sale of Renewable Obligation Certificates, than their supposed purpose. Corton and Kessingland seem likely to be the next places to be blighted by this get rich quick scam.
In the first year of operation the Scroby Sands wind farm produced less than a third of the electricity it was predicted to. A triumph of "spin" over reality!
KITTIWAKE Rissa tridactyla
Kessingland - 3rd (1 N), 10th (1 S), 11th (26 N, 4 S), 12th (7 N, 5 S), 13th (1 N, 5 S), 16th (1 S), 17th (1 S), 20th (1 N, 1 S),27th (1 N).
Ness Point - 10th (2 adults).
Hamilton Dock - 11th (2), 17th (1), 24th (1).
Claremont Pier - 17th (1).
AUK sp. Alcidae
Kessingland - 6th (2 N), 7th (1 N), 8th (1 N), 13th (1 N, 2 S), 17th (1 N), 28th (1 N).
BARN OWL Tyto alba
One was seen at Lound waterworks on the 13th.
Four were seen at Carlton Marshes on the 18th.
LITTLE OWL Athene noctua
Corton new sewage works - 10th (1), 13th (1).
North Cove - 17th (pair).
Lound Waterworks - 24th (1).
KINGFISHER Alcedo atthis
Lake Lothing - 3rd (1), 4th (1), 13th (1), 17th (1).
Oulton Broad - 10th (1).
Carlton Marshes - 17th (1).
GREEN WOODPECKER Picus viridis
Corton new sewage works - 10th (3), 13th (1).
Fisher Row - 13th (1).
Beccles Marsh Trail - 17th (1).
GREAT SPOTTED WOODPECKER Dendrocopos major
Carlton Marshes - 1st (1), 18th (1+).
Oulton Broad - 3rd (1).
Corton new sewage works - 10th (1).
Marsh Lane, North Cove - 17th (1).
North Cove nature reserve - 17th (1).
Warrenhouse Wood - 21st (1).
MEADOW PIPIT Anthus pratensis
Carlton Marshes - 3rd (38), 18th (14).
ROCK PIPIT Anthus petrosus
Hamilton Dock/Lowestoft Harbour - 17th (4).
Ness Point - 24th (1).
GREY WAGTAIL Motacilla cinerea
One was along the stream beside the Linear Park near the Sports Centre, Water Lane, Lowestoft on the 2nd.
One flew south eastwards over Stevens Street, Lowestoft on the 11th.
One was at Corton new sewage works on the 13th.
One was at Kessingland sewage works on the 11th and 18th.
PIED WAGTAIL Motacilla alba
Gisleham - 1st (40).
Kessingland sewage works - 18th (40+).
BOHEMIAN WAXWING Bombycilla garrulus
One appeared briefly in a garden in Selby Street, Lowestoft on the 14th. It was seen again there and in the nearby Avondale Road area on the 15th.
Two were seen on the allotments at St. Margarets, Lowestoft on the 24th.
BLACK REDSTART Phoenicurus ochruros
One was seen by the wind turbine near Ness Point on the 4th.
A very smart adult male was around Hamilton Dock on the 11th. Previously an immature male and a female type bird have been present there this winter.
An adult male was seen at CEFAS at Pakefield on the 22nd.
STONECHAT Saxicola torquata
Castle Mashes, Barnby - 16th (2).
Carlton Marshes - 17th (5), 18th (6).
SONG THRUSH Turdus philomelus
Six together at Corton new sewage works on the 10th seem likely to be wintering birds preparing to return to Europe, as were 12 seen there on the 24th.
FIELDFARE Turdus pilaris
A flock of 80 flew coastwards over Henstead on the 16th.
Beccles Marsh Trail - 17th (20+).
North Cove - 17th (9).
Carlton Colville - 17th (20).
Carlton Marshes - 18th (42).
REDWING Turdus iliacus
North Cove - 4th (6).
Fisher Row - 13th (5).
Beccles Marsh Trail - 17th (2).
Mutford - 17th (1).
Lowestoft - 24th - 28th (small numbers of migrants leaving for Europe have been heard calling overnight).
CETTI'S WARBLER Cettia cetti
At least five were heard at Carlton Marshes on the 1st.
One was at Kessingland sewage works on the 11th and 18th.
CHIFFCHAFF Phylloscopus collybita
Two were at Kessingland sewage works on the 18th.
One was at Gunton Warren on the 24th.
On the 11th, in preparation for National Nest Box week (14th-21st February) we put up 7 nest boxes at Corton disused railtrack. Hopefully some of them will soon be occupied, and we hope to add more in the future.
Over the last few years an intrepid band of Lounge Lizards have built and put up 94 nestboxes in Mutford Wood and a further 15 around Ash Farm and Beulah Hall at Mutford. Next weekend a further 11 will be put up there taking the total there to 120, plus the 7 at Corton.
MARSH TIT Parus palustris
Flixton Decoy - 13th (3).
Worlingham bypass - 17th (1).
Marsh Lane, North Cove - 17th (1).
North Cove nature reserve - 17th (2+).
COAL TIT Parus ater
North Cove nature reserve - 17th (2+ singing).
Lound Waterworks - 24th (3+).
TREECREEPER Certhia familiaris
Flixton Decoy - 13th (1).
Wicker Well, Somerleyton - 13th (1).
Marsh Lane, Worlingham - 17th (pair).
Marsh Lane, North Cove - 17th (singing).
North Cove nature reserve - 17th (singing).
JAY Garrulus glandarius
Carlton Marshes - 18th (2).
Gunton Warren/Links Road - 21st (1).
GREENFINCH Carduelis chloris
Gunton Warren/Links Road - 21st (6).
Lowestoft North Denes - 24th (9).
SISKIN Carduelis spinus
North Cove nature reserve - 4th (2+), 17th (2).
Flixton Decoy - 13th (2).
LINNET Carduelis cannabina
Carlton Marshes - 18th (14).
Gunton Warren/Links Road - 21st (8).
Lowestoft North Denes - 24th (12).
LESSER REDPOLL Carduelis cabaret
North Cove nature reserve - 4th (8+), 17th (4+).
BULLFINCH Pyrrhula pyrrhula
Sprats Water Lane, Carlton Colville - 1st (5), 17th (7).
North Cove - 4th (1), 17th (2).
SNOW BUNTING Plectrophenax nivalis
Kessingland Beach - 5th (16), 5th (8), 9th (12), 20th (12), 28th (20).
YELLOWHAMMER Emberiza citrinella
Mutford - 17th (1).
Carlton Marshes - 18th (2).
Gunton Warren - 21st (1 first returning bird to take up territory).
REED BUNTING Emberiza schoeniclus
Beccles Marsh Trail - 17th (1).
Carlton Marshes - 17th (1), 18th (2).
CORN BUNTING Miliaria calandra
Carlton Marshes - 1st (1).
NON-BIRD NEWS
A Hummingbird Hawk-moth was watched drinking from a puddle inside the ambulance station at Beacon Park, Gorleston just before midnight on February 20th, it then flew further into the building. Overwintering by adults has been recorded along the south coast of the UK in recent years, but this one is considerably further north than usual. Though it may be one that has already migrated from a wintering site farther to the south. In his 1999 CD on the Sussex butterflies and moths, Colin Pratt FRES, says that in Sussex the adult "has been seen in every week of the year except for the first and third weeks of December, and the last three weeks of January" (see 1st link below)
A couple of links about overwintering Hummingbird Hawk-moths in the UK
Brighton & Hove City Council Forums - Hummingbird Hawk-moths
Butterfly Conservation - Hampshire and Isle of Wight Branch
A Red Admiral was on the wing at Gunton Warren on the 3rd. One was also seen at Benacre Hall on the same date.
Harbour Porpoise - February 2007- ©Connor DarbyHARBOUR PORPOISE
Pakefield - 11th (1 dead on the beach).
Ness Point - 13th (1).
Kessingland - 19th (1 N), 22nd (1 S), 26th (1 N).
GREY SEAL
Kessingland - 18th (1).
CHINESE WATER DEER
Haddiscoe (Norfolk) - 3rd (1).
Worlingham - 17th (1 dead on the road).
Carlton Marshes - 17th (1).