October 18th 2009

Just after 8am Dave, Colin and I were on the cliffs at Hunstanton, Norfolk watching the over night migration continue its westerly direction hugging the coastline. In one hour we managed 9750 Starling, 860 Chaffinch, 100 Meadow Pipit, 100 Skylark, 80 Brambling, 60 Siskin, 3 Whooper Swan and single Rock Pipit and that’s just the ones we could i.d. and logged so we must have missed a lot more. Just after 9am it became slightly warmer the wind dropped and cloud cover came in and the rush started to slow. One of the exposed sandy spits as the tide receded held 5000 Knot and on the sea we managed 100 Common Scoter, 10 Great-crested Grebe and 4 Red-breasted Merganser plus a few Brent Geese and Shelduck.
Peregrine seen as we passed Holme-next-the-Sea moving on to the R.S.P.B Reserve at Titchwell where a slow walk along the footpath to the beach produced 3 Cetties Warbler, with one seen and 2 calling, Swallow heading west, calling Water Rail and Water pipit, 3 Rock Pipit, 2 Little Egret, 2 Bearded Tit, 29 Snow bunting over with 26 of the same seen on the beach. The open water and brackish marsh held many Wigeon, Teal, Shoveler, Pintail plus Grey Phalarope and Little Stint among the Redshank, Grey Plover 1000 Golden Plover and Ruff. A ring-tail Hen Harrier flew low over the marsh and landed in a bush that held a Redstart.
Unfortunately just before we reached the beach a low flying plane and hang glider flushed all the coastal birds off the shoreline so they were well spread out by the time we arrived and though there were good numbers of Brent Geese, Curlew, Bar-tailed Godwit, Redshank, Oystercatcher, Knot, Grey Plover and Sanderling we could not find the Purple Sandpiper. Sea was quiet with a distant flock of 50 Common Scoter, female Goldeneye, 2 male Eider just off shore and 10 Great-crested Grebe. The highlight was a juvenile Marsh Harrier coming in off the sea. The migration continued with 2600 Starling logged and a few Chaffinch and Skylark. Just as we were leaving 1000 Pink-footed Geese flew over.
After lunch we decided to work the area around the houses and bushes at the end of Hunstanton Golf Course at Holme-next-the-Sea but despite our efforts it’s was very quiet except for more Starlings going over and another 3000 logged. A Cetties Warbler heard along the River Hun and a Marsh Harrier and 200 Pink-footed Geese on the adjacent Marsh.

Richard