We set off at 6am and had a good 3 hour run over. We started off at Westleton Heath to have a stab at Dartford Warbler, Woodlark etc. This turned out to be a cracking little wander in the scorching morning sun, with a good scattering of Dartford Warbler, at least 3 Woodlark (can you spot one below?!), a couple of Turtle Dove at least & several Med Gulls overhead.
After a fair old stint on the heath, we moved on to the reserve. Over the next few hours, we enjoyed a slow circuit of the reserve, taking in Island Mere & Bittern Hides, and the various viewpoints around the scrapes. It was particularly cool to take in the number of Med Gulls of varying ages around the reserve and the sound of their distinctive calls could be heard everywhere throughout the day.
Wader passage had largely come to an end by the time of our visit, however there was still singles of both Sanderling & Knot, as well as 3 Black Tailed Godwit later on in the day. The resident Avocets appeared to be in plentiful supply, as were the raucous cacophony of the Black Headed Gull colony. Terns weren't too numerous. There was a decent scattering of Commons, however only 2-3 Little Terns and a similar number of Sandwich. A 2cy Common Tern was a nice thing to see, a plumage rarely seen in the UK (below).
Having done a full circuit of the reserve, we took a short break at the visitor centre for a coffee. The local Pheasants clearly knew which side their bread was buttered, lingering close to the cafe, looking for scraps!
Afterwards, we were super chuffed to have both Water Vole AND Water Shrew pointed out to us, showing from the dragonfly pond boardwalk, close to the visitor centre. Both were mammal ticks for me and a real highlight of the day!
We spent the last part of the day again at both Bittern & Island Mere hides, now far quieter. Close to Island Mere, Gareth headed a little further along the path, while Dan & I paused to look at something. We heard a distinctive 'ticking' call. Both our instincts were confirmed as a Hawfinch flew over our heads and away towards the oak woodlands. A real unexpected bonus!
The reedbeds both during the evening and throughout the day, produced quite a few Bearded Tits, with small family parties seen on a couple of occasions. Bittern booming was heard sporadically throughout the day too. Bittern sightings were at a premium, however we did get lovely fly-by views of one late in the day from Island Mere. This was while listening for the male Savi's Warbler which, after a bit of a wait, began tuning up at some point just before 8pm. It then sang well on and off until we left the hide some 20 minutes later. Despite our best efforts though, we failed to see it!
We did plan on finishing the day, back at the heath to enjoy some Nightjars and Nightingale, however almost as soon as we got back to the car and readied ourselves to drive down to the heath, the heavens opened! A quick check of the forecast and it appeared it was likely to be game over. Rubbish luck! Nevermind, it had been a very decent day indeed. We then wended our way back to the Midlands.
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