Wheatear and some Mist

With 6 days off Laura and I had set aside Monday as 'Bird Watching Day' and after a bit of thinking decided on a trip to Titchwell RSPB rather than Minsmere RSPB, some i later regretted. I started by having a quick look out into the garden, only 6 common species but it was a start. Our first stop was Guist, but before we arrived another 6 common species had the total at 12, but nothing of note. A drake Mandarin was on the river, but was chased out of view by a pair of Egyptian Geese before Laura saw it, 5 Reed Bunting where on the wires nearby and a Buzzard was circling as we left the village. Arriving at Choseley we had totaled 19 and soon added a further 9 species. The mixed flock of Yellowhammer/Corn Bunting was bathed in lovely spring sun shine. c30 Golden Plover also held a lonely Turnstone and 2 Stock Dove feed on spilt grain. Looking down the hill we then got a surprise, below us was a very thick blanket of sea mist, covering the reserve and all the coast. Walking the Fen Trail i picked out a Bullfinch and Cetti's Warbler, as well as more common stuff on the feeders. The pools to the west of the main track and fresh marsh could not be viewed through the mist, with only a few waders visible near the margins. The new hides don't seem to bad if full of 'novice' birders. A female Goldeneye was close in along with c12 Snipe, as for the rest of the birds it was a challenge to ID them. Visibility did improve from time to time and eventually i had most of the common waders. The beach and sea were even thicker in mist, but i picked up a close Spotted Redshank and Rock Pipit on the brackish marsh. Back at the centre with a bacon bap we had a female Brambling and Siskin on the feeders. We left the reserve about 1pm just as the mist started to thin, with a total of 67 species. A brief stop near Holkham Church added a few lingering Pinkfeet, a single White-fronted Goose and a singing Marsh Tit, but also our first Wheatear of the year. A final stop on the way home failed to add the hoped for Woodlark or Dartford Warbler although the former was heard. 3 more common species gave a total of 76 not bad considering the appalling visibility at Titchwell, but to top it off 3 Penduline Tit were found and showed well at Minsmere all day!

Gary's Birthday Birding

After visiting my parents on Friday we decided to drop in at Horstead Mill. There was a few people around so i wasn't expecting the local Grey Wagtail to be around but after initially no sign and a walk across the meadows, Laura located a Grey Wagtail as we returned to the car. I promptly located a further 4 all feeding in or by the sluice. 2 Great Spotted Woodpecker called in the trees and i though i briefly heard a Lesser Spotted Woodpecker also calling.
On Saturday Gary and I headed to The Poachers Pocket in Walcott for a bit of Birthday Beer and Birding. We picked up one new 'pub list bird' with a breeding plumage Fulmer, a group of 5 Dunlin flew through and 2 Med Gulls where in the area. Also worth noting was a small passage of Gannet east with c20 passing through in the 45min or so we watched the see. A brief walk around the Witton area failed to turn up a couple of hoped for birds, but we did find probably our last large group of winter thrushes of the winter, with c50 Fieldfare and c25 Redwing in the meadows by the church. At least 2 Buzzard where in the area but the biggest surprise of the day was a juv. Red Kite over.

Starling Dance

Walking home from work Laura and I spotted a large cloud of Starling swirling, calling and trailing across the sky over Sainsbury's in Norwich. The flock of c2000 Starling skitted about for about 10 minutes before all diving into a couple of trees on on Grove Road. This spectacle I've seen over the reed beds of the Broads a couple of times but never before in the city, and it captivated Laura.
Yesterday I finally made it down to Whitlingham, despite hoping to visit my local patch atleast fortnightly this year this was my first visit of the year. It was rather quiet, not to mention cold. Most of the wintering wildfowl appears to have moved off and a failed to connect with the Siskin, Redpoll, Finch or Tit flocks, with just odd birds. That said the 80+ Teal in the conservation area are worth noting as were the 2 female type Goosander asleep against the island. The bird of the day though was probably the single Dunlin wandering on the shingle spit of Thorpe Station Marsh, viewed across the river from Whitlingham. The Great Crested Grebes have started to pair up and we watched one pair as the performed there weed dance.

Marlingford Great White Egret

Last Thursday Laura told me she had seen 3 men standing in the road near Marlingford with optics, wasn't sure what was there and couldn't stop to ask them. No news the blogs or birdguides so i thought nothing of it. Saturday morning and news of a Great White Egret near Marlingford, working Saturday and Sunday i hoped the bird stayed put. Online directions meant little, so Laura drove me to the place she had seen the men in the road. No birders, no cars but a Great White Egret in clear view. The bird was feeding in the dykes and flooded meadows just east of the village, feeding in the open the bird gave great views, even giving us a fly past, before continuing fishing. This was a long over due life tick, I've looked for a few in the past without success, and i really hadn't anticipated the massive size of this bird. Back in the garden another new 'garden tick' was a Redwing perched up in a tree two gardens down, but still viewable from our garden. The Blackcap appears to have left but the female Siskin still remains with the Goldfinch flock which has doubled in size to 10 birds in the last week.

Oriental Not So Slaty-backed Turtle Gull Dove

Basically we saw the Oriental Turtle Dove in Chipping Norton but dipped the Slaty-backed Gull at Rainham RSPB. That pretty much sums up last Friday when Gary and i went on our first long distance twitch of the year, and also our last for a while with Gary and Claire's baby due in the next couple of weeks. In Chipping Norton the Turtle Dove although elusive at times eventually gave good views, i did need a box though! I big thanks must go to the residents of the area that have let many birders trample their gardens. Also noted was a surprisingly large number of Bullfinch, 2 Brambling, a Blackcap and numerous Tits. Driving from there we passed along the M40, an area I've always been told is great for Red Kite. Sure enough we saw probably 35+ between Oxford and London with one group of 15+ quite a spectacle. At Rainham the RSPB carpark was closed after an accident near the access road the night before, but finding a suitable verge we parked up before heading off towards the tip. 2 hours scanning the large gull flock roosting on the marshes failed to turn up the Slaty-backed Gull. Although one bird looked an idea candidate until it moved, allowing us to then dismiss it due to its small size. A fly though Peregrine was also my first of the year.

Pack in the garden my regular 10 minute feeder watch before work on 22nd, resulted in a unexpected female Siskin on the Niger feeder, a new garden tick in the form of a male Bullfinch perched in the back hedge and rare for the garden a Wren which seemed to take objection to a Dunnock under the feeders.

40th Garden Tick

I still haven't been able to find much birding time, as we have now started some wedding prep, but luckily there has been very little of interest to look for anyway. I have however been keeping an eye on the garden, although the very cold days seem behind us, quite a lot of birds are still frequenting t he feeders. Today in a free 10minutes before i had to leave for work the male Blackcap that first appeared 2/3 weeks ago was back and also a Goldcrest briefly stopped on the suet feeder before disappearing deep into the hunnysuckle of the hedge, my 40th 'garden tick' since moving in last August.

Waxwings at work

After reading of Waxwing on Bar Street on Bird Guides i wondered if they actually meant Ber Street, so being a little early for work i decide to have a look around. Sure enough in the apple tree where the 'Pot Company' used to be, opposite work 3 Waxwing were frantically feeding on the apples. They seemed unaware of the people walking past, in fact standing by the fence of was probably less than 10ft away. Tomorrow I'll take my camera to work, and because of this I'm sure they would have gone.

Painting and Garden Watching

Most of this weekend was spent visiting Gary to paint his new nursery. I had promised i would paint some birds for him and with the baby due in 6 weeks i though i better start. Before catching the train to Gary's i had a brief look in the garden, the male Blackcap was still about and a female Sparrowhawk flew over, but with only a small amount of time put off the 'RSPB Garden Watch' until Sunday. Between painting Gary took me for a pint and bowl of Cheesey Chips at the Poachers Pocket at Walcott. The surprised look on the barmaids face when we rested to be served outside was great. We soon added Red-throated Diver to the pub list, with them flying in all directions, i gave up counting at about 15. Lots of gulls were about but no Med Gull. Just before we left a smaller wader flew past which Gary relocated, a Purple Sandpiper was then duly added to the pub list. We had a Buzzard driving back, Brambling and loads of finches in Gary's garden.

On Sunday morning Laura and I started by doing our hour of the RSPB Garden Watch, racking up 18 species, before heading off to Gary and Claire's for me to continue with my painting. A Treecreeper was a new 'Garden Tick', the Blackcap and Sparrowhawk appeared again. Also flyover were more Black-headed Gull, Common Gull, Carrion Crow and Feral Pigeon.

14 - Long-tailed Tit
10 - Blackbird
9 - Chaffinch
3 - Goldfinch
3 - Blue Tit
3 - Collared Dove
3 - Woodpigeon
3 - Great Tit
2 - Starling
1 - Magpie
1 - Black-headed Gull
1 - Dunnock
1 - Blackcap
1 - Treecreeper
1 - House Sparrow
1 - Sparrowhawk
1 - Coal Tit
1 - Greenfinch

Cley East Bank

Having stayed overnight with my parents, we all went out for a morning drive/walk to Cley. We parked up in East Bank carpark and walked down the bank to look for the American Wigeon. Walking out we could see very few Wigeon of any type, but did pick up a couple of Bearded Tit in the reeds and a Spotted Redshank on Arnold's Marsh. A large flock of Snow Bunting could also be seen flying along the shingle ridge. Walking back some of the Wigeon had reappeared and after a bit of scanning we located the drake American Wigeon. Geese streamed overhead, mainly Pinkfeet and Dark-bellied Brent. Dad then picked out 6 Bean Geese near the back of the main group as they flew west, a Barnacle goose was also with the Brents and a lone Whooper Swan was near the Coast Road. Looking over the main scrapes i added Avocet and a surprise Green Sandpiper to my fledgling yearlist, as well as Dunlin, Sanderling, Black-tailed Godwit and Bar-tailed Godwit. We then moved onto Blakeney, before returning to the NWT Info centre for a warming cup of tea.

New Year Proposal

Work, the weather and other engagements have limited my birding activities so far this year. On the 1st after a quiet New Years at Gary and Claire's, Gary and i rose early to start our Jan 1st bird race. With Gary still suffering and on crutches, Gary's dad joined us acting as stand in driver and we head towards Titchwell for first light. The first bird of the year was a Barn Owl near Morsten. The day was dull and drizzly so a good total wouldn't be easy. We picked up a few birds walking out to the beach in the near darkness, but the best birds of the day was on the beach, a group of 9 Shore Lark east of the boardwalk. We collected a lot of the usual waders, and wintering ducks on the sea and a group of Snow Bunting flew through before we returned to the main reserve. We briefly saw the Northern Harrier over Thornham Marshes, and 2 Water Pipit were of note on the fresh marsh, before we watched the feeders by the cafe, as we ate our bacon baps. Choseley was very disappointing with only a single Mistle Thrush on the wires. Stopping to look for Tree Sparrow we stumbled upon a group of 200+ Brambling, the biggest surprise of the day near Burnham Market, large numbers of Linnet were also in the area. Back on the coast we watched the 2 Rough-legged Buzzard at Holkham, but missed the 2 Smew at Wells, and added Red-throated and Great Northern Diver from Salthouse beach. A brief call at Felbrigg added Goldcrest and Nuthatch, before we caught up with the Whooper/Bewick's Swan flock near Catfield. Last stop of the day was Stubb Mill, from the roost we added 5 Crane and Woodcock to the list, also hearing Kingfisher and Tawny Owl. i counted 43 Marsh Harrier, 3+ Ringtail and 1 Male Hen Harrier while at the roost and watched the 1000's of Pinkfeet returning to roost. For the full days listing see my main website.

On the 9th Laura and i visited some of the places we visited on out very first day out birdwatching, staring first at Barton Broad where i soon added Tufted Duck and Pochard to the year list. I then found drake and redhead Smew which frustrating then swam out of view, it then took a frustrating 15/20 minutes before i relocated them through a gap in the trees so Laura could see them. A Tufted Duck x Pochard hybrid was also found, but no Scaup. Horsey was the next stop, while walked down the Nelson track to see the Seals a skein of White-fronted Geese flew over. There were lots of people at the seal watch point, but few birds on the beach or surrounding area. Sanderling and Turnstone about it, so i had a quick sea watch. 2 GN Diver headed east along with 2 Red-throated Diver and 2 Kittiwake. A Black-throated diver was the surprise find as it headed west. I had plans to go to the Nelson Pub and sit in front of the fire, but arriving at 12.15, 15 minutes after it opened it was standing room only! Once back home and warm, i proposed to Laura, something i wanted to do in front of the pubs roaring fire, she said yes!

Today with yet more drizzle, and not many birds about to go see, i decided against a planned trip to see the American Wigeon at Cley, instead opting for a little shopping in the City. This did give me a chance to catch up with the Waxwing on Lower Clarance Road, before heading home.

Final Whitlingham Trip

Gary, James and myself had planned a trip out in North Norfolk, but with Gary suffering more ligament damage James and i slid and skated around an icy Whitlingham. Walking down the lane we first inspected the large flock of Greylag Geese on the meadows, the usual 'little hybrid' and 2 new Greylag/Domestic Geese were with 145 other Greylags. Walking along the edge of Little Broad we located a Coal Tit and at least 3 Lesser Redpoll in the Alders, but with the broad frozen solid no wildfowl. The Great Broad was almost as frozen, with only 2 ice free pockets containing most of the birds. Whilst scanning through the gulls on the ice i located a juv. Herring Gull adorned with a large red ring 'YZC' and a smaller metal tag. James has since found out this bird was ringed at Halvergate Island and has been seen in Southwold this autumn. While James was counting Coot and Gadwall, i found a single female Goldeneye amongst the Tufted Duck, Pochard and Coot. I had been told that Nuthatch had been on the feeders and knowing Jame still need it as a patch tick we paused to check. After only a few minutes a Nuthatch briefly appeared on the feeders joining the Blue Tit, Great Tit and large group of Long-tailed Tit. The second ice hole held a lone Teal, Little Grebe and lots more Tufted Duck, Coot and Gadwall. We watched a fox run across the ice and 2 Redwing flew over, before a walk through the woods revealed little of interest.

A wild goose chase?

With a rare a day off work, i agreed to met James at the station and head to Buckenham to look for the Lesser White-fronted Goose that appeared last week. We got of the train at Cantley and planned to walk back via Buckenham and Strumpshaw. From Burnt House Road we located the main flock of Bean Geese, but due to the lie of the ground couldn't see the whole flock. Moving further along the footpath we got better views and located the Lesser White-front with 100+ Bean Geese. A Barn Owl drifted along the railway hedge line and a Buzzard was perched up on a nearby gate. Approaching the river a ringtail Hen Harrier flew east and 2 Peregrine were perched up in a dead tree. A second Barn Owl flew along the river bank nearer Buckenham, before the elevated position gave us better views of the geese. On the Buckenham side of the reserve most of the Wigeon had been forced onto the river along with a few Shoveler and a Black Swan. 2 Dunlin flew over the new hide as we gave it a one over and a single White-fronted Goose was with a small splinter of Bean Geese. Walking back through Strumpshaw we met Ben, and discussed the merits of the Lesser White-front. I would like to think that historical evidence of the species at this site, the weather when the bird arrived and the fact it seems to have arrived with Bean Geese and associates with them should be enough to suggest it is a genuine bird. But with many feral geese now in Norfolk, it looks like it is guilty until proven innocent.

Winter Update

With working unusual hours at work, Christmas shopping, and recent spell of cold weather, i have manged all but no bird watching in the past few weeks. I have had to make do with glancing out at the feeders during the few hours of daylight i seem to see! A few new birds were added to the 'Garden List' while snow was on the ground. A Mistle Thrush flew over the back of the house on 25th Nov while on the 3rd/4th Dec a female Brambling was under the feeding station. In the large tree opposite a Nuthatch was seen with a tit flock on the 5th Dec Waxwings have been in the area with a single over as i put the bins out on 3rd Dec and other small groups over since. Walking to work via the back streets between Unthank Road and Newmarket Road i have found the main Waxwing flock on a few occasions recently, sadly i could only watch them a few minutes before having to carry on. A brief walk around the back of the UEA, revealed the feeders in the compound to be empty, but large numbers of tits were still sifting through the detritus under them, there included my 1st Marsh Tit at the site for some time and Laura's first Nuthatch.

Gary had invited me to join him and James to go and see the Northern Harrier, that had finally been pinned down at Thornham long enough to be positively ID'ed. Rising at 5.45 i wondered was it really worth it. A trudged to the station in the snow where i met James, from North Walsham we slowly made our way to Thornham. From the harbour we didn't have to long to wait, once a snow shower had passed the juv. male Northern Harrier showed well before drifting west over Holme. The bird was much darker than i expected above, and below the orange/chestnut hues showed well as the bird banked and turned in surprisingly good light. A food stop at Titchwell RSPB saw us watching a female Brambling among the commoner birds around the feeders, as well as brief views of an over wintering Chiffchaff. Refuelled we headed onto Wells Woods. 2/3 Goldeneye were on the boating lake as we arrived and a exiting birder informed us that the Northern Bullfinch had been showing along with a probable Siberian Chiffchaff and Northern Treecreeper, all would be new sub-species for me. We soon heard the 'trumpet' call of the Northern Bullfinch, but initially could only locate its commoner cousins. A male Northern Bullfinch eventually flew across the path and after a bit of repositioning we got good views. At least 1 female Bullfinch of a much heavier set was also probably of the Northern race. While viewing the Bullfinch at least 1 Mealy Redpoll was feeding in the birch trees above us. A brief look for the Chiffchaff produced nothing and news of a Baikal Teal in Cambridgeshire got us excited before we opted for a drink in the Dun Cow at Salthouse. Sadly there was not alot to report from the pub-birding hotspot but the 6+ Snipe were a new 'pub tick' and a Barn Owl was seen. A quick half at the Bluebell in North Walsham before our train also failed to added more birds to our list.

A Snowy Morning

Yesterday saw the death of one of the biggest names on the British bird scene, no not Lee Evans but Bernard Matthews, can you think of another Bernard as famous? I tried not to let this news get me down and headed out into the first snow of the winter. Walking around Eaton Park i found a large mixed group of finches and tits, mainly Chaffinch and Blue Tit. Walking through the pitch and putt i added a Great Spotted Woodpecker and scrutinised a very large Long-tailed Tit flock, sadly no northern race birds. UEA Broad was useless with only Black-headed Gull and Mallard, not even or Moorhen or Coot. The feeders in the Rabbit enclosure were much more successful, with Coal Tit, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Long-tailed Tit, Goldfinch, Greenfinch, Chaffinch, Lesser Redpoll, Siskin, Robin, Wren, Nuthatch, Jay, Mistle Thrush, Song Thrush and Blackbird all flitting about. Standing on the bridge i heard another Nuthatch, a nearby tree actually held 3 Nuthatch, i watched these birds for 15 minutes before walking along the river towards Eaton. 2 Kingfisher whizzed passed together, and 4 Mistle Thrush were sat up in a tree, then snow again stated to fall heavly so i headed home.

Whitlingham Wander

Having not been out birding i decided to have a wander around Whitlingham on Sunday, but no sooner had i been dropped off it started to rain, great! Looking across the Little Broad i could see the 2 drake Red-crested Pochard still remained. The drizzle then misted up everything and i saw very little until i reached the conservation area. Most of the wildfowl had concentrated in the bay, with Teal, Mallard, Tufted Duck, Gadwall, Wigeon and Shoveler. a group of 4 Little Grebe hugged the island and a 2 Snipe were in the margins. The highlight was being surrounded by a flock of Siskin while at the viewing screen with birds coming within a few feet. Walking around the east end of the broad i added little else, until i reached the meadow opposite Little Broad carpark, where a Green Woodpecker was on the grass and the 'little hybrid goose' was with a group of Greylag.

American Bittern and Cley Marshes

Sadly the American Bittern was not at Cley, but Walmsley in Cornwall, so on Friday after watching a firework display in Walcott, Gary, Philip, Laura and myself headed off to Cornwall. We arrived at first light, a Tawny Owl flying past as we made out way to the reserve and hides. We joined the queue for the hide and waited for the light to improve and our turn in the hide. The bird was very elusive, so turn over in the hide was low as people struggled to get good views. Two birders literally were at each other throats arguing over the time one had been in the hide! I managed a fleeting view of the bird as it walked between two ditches, peeping through the slatted screen as i waited to get in the hide. I had to wait a further 2 hours before i again got good views of the bird, i was moving between the two hides queuing and rotating through, often only seeing the reeds move rather than the bird. Laura still hadn't seen the bird until finally the bird settled a bit and another birder allowed us to view the bird resting in the reeds through is scope. We then drove home via Derbyshire hoping to see the Franklins Gull but the bird could not be located among the large gull flock in fading light.

After a lie in to recover from our Cornwall trip Laura and i headed out to Cley. Parking at the Coastguards we headed to the North Hide. One Grey Phalarope was still present but soon flew to Billy's Wash. Large numbers of Wigeon and DB Brent, combine with the strong sunlight meant a i could not locate the Green-wing Teal seen earlier in the day. With news of a few Little Auk passing i had a 30minute sea watch which produced a single Little Auk, Red-breasted Merganser, Red-necked Grebe, lots of duck mainly Wigeon but also Eider and Common Scoter, loads of DB Brent Geese, and distant a Skua sp and auk sp.

Birds and Beer Festival

Since returning from the Scilly Isles i haven't really been out birding to much. During a brief stop at Walcott on the 25th October i saw a small skein of Brent Geese and a single Great Northern Diver fly through. Walking to work on 1st November a Waxwing flew over Christchurch Road in Norwich and on 5th Nov i finally made it down to Whitlingham to catch up with the Red-crested Pochard James had found while i was away.

On Saturday 30th October Gary and i attended the Norwich Beer Festival. While supping our 1st drink, a spicy ale called 'Hey Pesto' we devised a drinking strategy while looking though the beer guide, if it has a birds name we would aim to quaff if down. As it was the last night we found our task harder than expected and had to use our imagination a little.

Hey Pesto - Tipples, Acle, Norfolk.
White Dove - Ole Slewfoot, Hainford, Norfolk.
Gannet Mild - Earl Soham, Earl Soham, Suffolk.
Swift One - NOT AVAILABLE.
Fledgling - Front Street, Binham, Norfolk.
Burston Cuckoo - NOT AVAILABLE
Norfolk Black - NOT AVAIABLE.
Bitter(n) - Elmtree, Snetterton, Norfolk.
Phesant Plucker (cider) - NOT AVAILABLE.
Kingfisher (cider) - NOT AVAILABLE.
Wheat(b)eer - NOT AVAIABLE.
An (Teal)lach Suilven - An Teallach, Garve, Ross.

Pallid Harrier Tick?

Got back from a holiday to the Scilly Isles and south-west late last night, i will do a full report soon. Highlights including Tawny Pipit, Melodious Warbler, American Golden Plover, Red-eyed Verio, Subalpine Warbler, Red-flanked Bluetail, Green Heron, Squacco Heron and Cattle Egret, plus many commoner birds giving great views.

Catching up on the blogs and websites i was surprised to see a retrospective ringtail Pallid Harrier reported at Holme. This has created a dilemma for me, i was at Holme and saw the bird, noting it down as a probable Montagu's Harrier, but not giving it much attention, before concentrated on looking for 'rarer' migrants. The bird has now been re-identified from photos, so do i have a new tick, or is this just a lesson in being more attentive?

Olive-backed Pipit...No Thanks

High tides meant that early afternoon would be the best time to look for the Olive-backed Pipit at Stiffkey, so Laura and i started off at Holme. Walking the dunes towards the Warden's house there was an obvious fall of Song Thrush and Brambling with birds in nearly every bush. I also saw my first Fieldfare of the autumn and Richard's Pipit was briefly seen on an area of short turf. At least 2 Lapland Bunting flew over the dunes and Thrushes continued to come in-off. Around the Warden's House i saw 2 Redstart and a Black Redstart, before Laura found a Yellow-browed Warbler in a clump of Buckthorn. A Great Grey Shrike had been seen on the grazing marshes but looking from the hide we could see little. From the footpath to Thornham the Great Grey Shrike could be seen, albeit distantly. By the time we walked further down the footpath the bird had gone, first flushed by a Magpie then Sparrowhawk. A juv. Montagu's Harrier flew through, but we couldn't be bothered to walk further so returned to the car, and then had lunch at 'The Hero' in Burnham Overy. It was about 2.30 when we parked by the campsite in Stiffkey, cars were everywhere and i could see a line of birders distantly across the very muddy saltmarsh. Before setting off i made a phone call to check if the bird was showing, it was but an Isabelline Wheatear had also just been found in Lowestoft. Before even getting my boots on i had decided to leave the Olive-backed Pipit and go to Lowestoft. After a frantic drive across the whole of Norfolk we eventually arrived at North Denes. The Isabelline Wheatear was showing extremely well at close range, with little need for a scope, it was a shame the camera was at home. In the early evening sun the pale tones and posture of the bird along with it 'pot-belly' appearence distinguised it from a Northern Wheatear near by. We headed back to Norwich, mud free and rather content at seeing a stunning bird, leaving Stiffkey was probably a good call.