19th-25th December

Sunday 25th - a family Christmas day walk around the village in the afternoon resulted in not one but two Shotesham ticks in the space of less than a minute! As we walked along Wash Lane, a male Goosander flew west overhead, but this was eclipsed soon after as a ringtail Hen Harrier crossed the lane in front of us. We later also saw it hunting between Market Lane and the Little Wood. Fantastic Christmas treat - 114 species for the village now. Also of note were a Little Egret, lots of Fieldfares (and a few Redwing), close views of a Marsh Tit in the Wash Lane house garden, and some rather early flowering Lesser Celandine by the stream between Stubbs Green and the Market Lane ford.

Saturday 24th - went to Horsey with the boys to see the Grey Seal colony. Seemed to have expanded further this year, with pups as far north as by the Gap car park - a chalked up sign said 320 pups so far. Birds in the area included 23 Cranes in flight over Horsey Mere, 2 Goosanders flying north, a close-in first-winter Kittiwake and a distant skua which was presumably most likely a Pom, although I couldn't rule Arctic out on the views obtained.

Friday 23rd - my final chance at a walk at the Nunnery Lakes this year. No sign of any hoped-for Smew or Waxwing, but I did finally see the young male Goldeneye that had been around a while. A Buzzard with some pale-based uppertail feathers caused only momentary excitement.

Thursday 22nd - after a period of grotty cold weather, the warm sunshine today inspired Mistle Thrush and Goldcrest to start singing at the Nunnery.

Always nice to see a "real" duck at the Nunnery Lakes

Studies in relaxation, Horsey

GBB and Grey Seal, Horsey