7th - 13th December

We endured another seven days of weather similar to last week but with more rain, and by the middle of the week there was quite a bit of surface water on the local roads and fields. It was never really windy throughout, Saturday's shift to a force 6 S-SE'ly giving us the windiest day. It was also a very wet with the wind and rain which arrived late morning continued until midnight at least.

Things were quiet on the bird front although another Waxwing overflew the garden calling as I had my head in the woodstore early on Thursday. Looking up I only saw a single bird as it disappeared behind the rooftop, although I can't discount that others may have accompanied it. I took Ossie on a slightly different route later, noting 4 Skylark and 2 Yellowhammers on a field near Short Lane, but as I returned along the Lessingham Road a distant flock of c80 Skylarks were airborne to the south, perhaps taking evasive action from an unseen predator.

Several skeins of Pink-feet were seen moving both NW and SE most days and their seemingly unsettled nature may just have been indicative of local feeding movements. It may be interesting to note that this week coincides with a full moon and the calls of Pinks could be heard after dark on the clearer nights as they probably headed out to feed on sugar beet tops under the moonlight. We walked the fields to the cliffs after the early fog had cleared on Friday, a flock of c60 Lapwing catching my eye as they dropped down to the west of the village. We didn't see much else, but looking towards Eccles on the return journey I noticed a distant but conspicuously white looking bird flying towards us. Raising my binoculars to it I could see it was a Little Egret steadily and purposefully heading flying along the line of the cliff and I watched as it passed the village and continued towards Walcott...



A gleaming white Little Egret in flight, an increasingly common sight in east Norfolk.
© Ron McIntyre