3rd - 9th August

With the exception of Friday 8th, when a force 5-6 NNE'ly blew up, the winds this week were generally light and with a S'ly bias. It was however a week of cloud, any prolonged spells of sun were few and far between and we were subjected to many showers, some longer periods of rain and thunderstorms after dark midweek.

I visited Cart Gap early morning a couple of times but couldn't make it on the Friday in the onshore blow, these being better conditions for sea-birding than winds off the land. I heard from Bob, who had managed to watch for a while at Walcott, and Gannets, a few Arctic Skuas and a Manx Shearwater passed by whilst he was there. My sightings included the usual Terns and Gannets and one morning 2 each of Knot and Redshank flew north. Turnstone numbers had reached 13 at Walcott by Thursday and 27 Herring Gulls, were loafing there. Saturday 9th dawned and the wind was S'ly, force 1-2 with 7 oktas cloud cover for the hour that I watched from06:25. Gannets were abundant this morning with 145 north and 73 south and with them were 4 Fulmar and 2 Kittiwakes, again northward bound. A party of 6 Little Terns flew by and waders were represented by Oystercatcher, Ringed Plover and Sanderling. A single Red-throated Diver, still rather early, flew south and ducks passing north totalled 19 Common Scoter and 11 Teal.

Warblers are starting to become a bit more obvious of late; they tend to go rather quiet and secretive as their breeding season progresses, I guess the constant demand for attention takes it's toll. A Blackcap was 'tacking' in the garden on and off and Chiffchaffs were more numerous than usual including 5 for a couple of days in a local clump of trees and brambles. Whilst sorting some stuff for recycling one morning a noise like the start of a cat fight alerted me. Thinking maybe our cat Polly may be in trouble, I looked up at the very moment a Little Egret flew from behind the house, the most likely perpetrator of the harsh noise. Still a rather uncommon sight in Happisburgh, it was the first I had seen from the garden and a good one for the garden list. Aside from a visit by the Hobby again, on the 6th, there was nothing else of note seen...