Wildlife

James Lowen

A decent start, then, to our Norfolk life. Definitely Nature's seal of approval.

Those Willow Emerald Damselflies aside, insects have not been brilliant - but that's the nature of autumn. A couple of Silver-washed Fritillaries hung on at Holt Country Park on 23 August. One was a skeletal specimen that did not bear photography, the other in somewhat better nick. Red Admirals have been numerous and widespread, and we picked out a Painted Lady at Kelling. Winterton Dunes produced the best flying inverts, however, with a score or more Grayling which I somehow forgot to photograph, a pair of Common Emerald Damselflies, a young Ruddy Darter and - best of all - a Common Hawker that gave decent flight views but eluded both perch and camera.

It was also nice to catch up with a couple of Norfolk success stories. Common Cranes have long been breeding in the Broads, but the last time I saw them was 1992! So seeing - albeit distantly - a group of nine cruising over Horsey was pleasant. Another group of nine long-legged birds related to Spoonbills at Stiffkey Fen. A personal record count, but a mere 20% of this summer's population, spread along the north coast from Titchwell to Salthouse. I failed to photograph either species, but consoled myself through a close encounter with this Little Egret at Kelling Quags. Nowadays I probably see more Little Egrets than I do Grey Herons - a testament to successful colonisation - but theses 'white plastic bags' never fail to elicit a frisson, as I return to my 16-year-old self, finding a group of this then BB-rarity in Devon.

Other birds that are rather more common now than in my youth are Mediterranean Gulls and Stonechats. I love 'Meds', in particular, and never fail to get a thrill from bumping into one or two on every coastal day. The youngster pictured below feels halfway between juvenile and first-winter plumage; it was photographed today along the shoreline at Horsey Gap. The Stonechat was snapped at Winterton.

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6 Sep 2014 Seal of approval

We have now been living in Norfolk for five weeks. Other than an early report on wildlife encounters and a lightbox of bejazzled insects, my blogging has been pathetic. Quite unlike the first month's wildlife. Here - with thanks to a couple of new lenses - are some highlights.

First up, the story behind the blog title. Argentine friend German Pugnali stayed overnight with us in mid-August before he and I worked the British Birdwatching fair (alternately selling Seriema Nature Tours and lecturing). We got him a mammal tick with two Hedgehogs in our garden. And then two the next day, by taking a boat trip to Blakeney Point to enjoy Grey and Harbour Seals. Separately, I also spent half-an-hour with the colony of Grey Seals at Horsey Gap. I loved both experiences, but there is no doubt that Horsey offers the better potential photographic opportunities, simply because you can take your time. As I will - next time. For now, these images will suffice.

For a few bursts from late August through to early September, the wind hailed from somewhere east. There was enough puff behind it, together with the odd bit of rain, to get my adrenalin going and to get me scouring coastal bushes and trees for migrant birds. I bushwhacked on four or five days, but to very little avail. Any skills I once had appear to have divorced me, as the best find I could muster were a flyover Honey Buzzard (hardly a drift migrant!), a couple of Pied Flycatchers and a Redstart. Hugely disappointing. I made do with seeing a few birds found by other people, but, even then, my haul was pretty dismal. A few glimpses of a calling Greenish Warbler and an arrow-shaped flypast from a Wryneck (both at Winterton) were about it.

Slightly better was jamming into the apparent Eastern Common Tern - a dusky, black-billed thing - that popped up at various places along the north Norfolk coast. I coincided while on a family beach trip to Brancaster. A distant group of terns, roosting on mudflats off the west tip of Scolt Head, caught my attention. Pootling over there in the hope of finding a Roseate, I was bemused by a dusky-bellied, black-billed Common Tern that I couldn't figure out. It was only when I saw Baz Scampion's photographs on Birdguides that I clicked. Amateur or what.

My favourite bird of the period was the showy male Red-backed Shrike at Winterton. It was so good, I saw it twice. I can't recall ever having seen an adult male in Britain, so to photograph this summering beauty was a real treat.