Suffolk Birding (2 Viewers)

[KayD]

Gunton is just north of Lowestoft. From Great Yarmouth head south on the A12. After the road becomes single carriageway turn left onto Corton Long Lane. At the end turn right and go through Corton Woods and out the other side. Golf course and shelter belt are on the right.

From Lowestoft town head north up the A12 towards Great Yarmouth and take the Corton Road B1385. Go past all the houses and Dip Farm and golf course and poplar belt are reached, on the left.

Bird mobile in and around (poplar and other tree) shelter belt and Corton Wood to the north. Calls from time to time.

Many thanks Paul, that's very helpful :t:

 

[lostinjapan]

Hi all

Wonder if Jonny's Lanner was the bird seen in the Lowestoft area back in October. A large hybrid falcon was also seen in the Lowestoft area in October, as well as a possible Saker on the Deben..so some interesting birds out there.

The juvenile female Saker was seen again on Friday on Mersea Island & could have wandered to Minsmere.

Only Peregrine in my area .

Sean

Hi Ed / all,

I had this falcon at Livermere on Friday. I couldn't clinch I.D. myself. Having no experience of Saker or Lanner in the field - I've since had expert confirmation the bird is a 1st year Lanner Falcon.

This individual did have jesses but was feeding well eating two mice while I watched it.

So, it could feasibly have got as far as Minsmere but there is plenty of escapees at large.

I wonder what came of last winters Gyr / Saker type bird? That overflew my Needham Mkt patch and frequented the Orwell / Felixstowe area... could have headed north?

Otherwise sounds like a great Minsmere visit :t:

Cheers,

Jonny

 

[Original PaulE]

Hi all

Wonder if Jonny's Lanner was the bird seen in the Lowestoft area back in October. A large hybrid falcon was also seen in the Lowestoft area in October, as well as a possible Saker on the Deben..so some interesting birds out there.

The juvenile female Saker was seen again on Friday on Mersea Island & could have wandered to Minsmere.

Only Peregrine in my area .

Sean

i saw the saker falcon at abberton reservoir a couple of weeks ago and i see it was reported there again a couple of days ago presuming it's the one from mersea is there any news on it's origin
cheers

 

[Viv Connett]

i saw the saker falcon at abberton reservoir a couple of weeks ago and i see it was reported there again a couple of days ago presuming it's the one from mersea is there any news on it's origin
cheers

Missed it last weekend by about 3 mins grrrrrrrrrrrrrr

Understand that (assuming it's the same bird) there are photos on the Essex Birdwatching Society website which show all the diagnostics for a genuine saker. No jesses, no radio tags and I was told by one who would know these things that no falconer would be flying a juvenile without tags as they cost a lot of money!!! So the theory at present is that it is a wild bird - but who knows???

If it turns up again I want to see it!!!

 

[Original PaulE]

Missed it last weekend by about 3 mins grrrrrrrrrrrrrr

Understand that (assuming it's the same bird) there are photos on the Essex Birdwatching Society website which show all the diagnostics for a genuine saker. No jesses, no radio tags and I was told by one who would know these things that no falconer would be flying a juvenile without tags as they cost a lot of money!!! So the theory at present is that it is a wild bird - but who knows???

If it turns up again I want to see it!!!

hi viv
thanks for that hope you get to see it,was a cracking looking thing i certainly saw no jesses or tags and thats pretty much the first thing i look for when i see a large falcon,so heres hoping it's genuine though dont know what chance there is of it being accepted

cheers

 

[halcyonlisa]

Is it possible that anyone can give me directions to Corton Wood at Gunton and any gen on where best to look for the Hume's Leaf Warbler?

There is currently a Humes Leaf Warbler being reported by Lounge Lizards behind the Crop Shop in the Town Centre. Walk up Lowestofts main high street and opposite the Tesco Metro is a shop called Crop Shop, go down the small alleyway behind this shop and the warbler is showing there. It was reported as still being there by Lounge Lizards on Twitter today.

I saw an unusal falcon sitting in a tree on the outskirts of Beccles today. I was on my way to an appointment for work and also had no bins in my car. I also couldn't stop too close to it as it unfortunately was perched near to a piece of road you cant just stop on. I did stop however and look at it in bright sunlight (from quite a distance however in the end) and it wasn't unlike those photo's of the Lanner, having a very speckled breast. It was quite a large falcon and very brown and different enough for me to stop my car.

 

[lostinjapan]

Apparently photos of the Mersea/Abberton falcon have been sent to Dick Forsmann. They are awaiting his opinion.

Cheers

Sean

 

[Jonny Rankin]

Apparently photos of the Mersea/Abberton falcon have been sent to Dick Forsmann. They are awaiting his opinion.

Cheers

Sean

Hi Sean,

Did Mr Forsman get back? Be good to know if Sakers should be on the radar as wild birds - the sat-tagged French record suggests yes - but obviously falconers birds (& Lanners & Saker hybrids) are rife!

Sad discovery on my Needham patch this morning - Tawny snagged & deceased on a barbed wire fence (pic on my blog below). Otherwise loads of avian activity but still waiting for a real cold-weather movement of wildfowl, woodcock, snipe etc...

Happy birding :t:

Jonny

 

[lostinjapan]

Saker turns Gyr!!

Hi Jonny

Mr Forsmann did indeed reply to Andrew Thompson's query and it wasn't the answer he or anyone else was expecting.

He seemed to think based on images sent to him that the bird seemed more likely to most likely be an immature female Gyr Falcon. However, he couldn't commit to a 100% identification because he felt a hybrid of some sort, most likely betweenGyr/Saker would be indistinguishable from a pure Gyr!!

Things are never clear cut alas with these large falcons. I just hope I get another chance to search for it over the winter period.

Sorry to hear about the Tawny Owl. Always distressing to find birds dead like that.

Good birding

Sean

from

Hi Sean,

Did Mr Forsman get back? Be good to know if Sakers should be on the radar as wild birds - the sat-tagged French record suggests yes - but obviously falconers birds (& Lanners & Saker hybrids) are rife!

Happy birding :t:

Jonny

 

[Jonny Rankin]

Hi Jonny

Mr Forsmann did indeed reply to Andrew Thompson's query and it wasn't the answer he or anyone else was expecting.

He seemed to think based on images sent to him that the bird seemed more likely to most likely be an immature female Gyr Falcon. However, he couldn't commit to a 100% identification because he felt a hybrid of some sort, most likely betweenGyr/Saker would be indistinguishable from a pure Gyr!!

Things are never clear cut alas with these large falcons. I just hope I get another chance to search for it over the winter period.

Sorry to hear about the Tawny Owl. Always distressing to find birds dead like that.

Good birding

Sean

from

Blimey!

Interesting stuff - I noted a report of a Gyr at Ipswich over the weekend. Although a freind that works on Felxistowe docks confirmed the Gyr x Saker is still present down there.

Could be the same individual?

Certainly gave me a fright when it flew over me Needham patch a couple yrs ago :eek!:

Cheers,

Jonny

 

[Original PaulE]

Blimey!

Interesting stuff - I noted a report of a Gyr at Ipswich over the weekend. Although a freind that works on Felxistowe docks confirmed the Gyr x Saker is still present down there.

Could be the same individual?

Certainly gave me a fright when it flew over me Needham patch a couple yrs ago :eek!:

Cheers,

Jonny

it certainly is interesting i've seen three different big falcons now the abberton bird,a very large hybrid that was on the sugar beet towers at sprouton for a couple of months last winter and a large white gyr with jesse's attached that flew over my work a couple of years ago i was hoping the lastest had a chance of being wild but seems we ain't gonna know for sure even if it is.I observed this bird hovering more buzzard like than kestrel and thought this pointed to saker however a bit of reading on the internet and i found tha gyrs hover sometimes to

whatever there status always exciting to see these impressive birds and the panic they seem to install in the local prey species whenever they appear thrilling stuff just wish i could be a little less caught up in the action and make more usefull observations

cheers

 

[Nick Moran]

Keeping up the high quality images on this page (sorry Jonny - your plastic falcon is quite nice!), here are a couple of pics of the Lackford Bean Geese. In the flock-shot, the bird on its own in the middle and the bird on the far right are the two proposed as Taiga; for me the more extreme of the two is the left-hand bird, which I've captured (slightly) better in the other image (despite it lurking behind an Egyptian Goose).

Very educational birds; well worth a look if you're in the area as a mixed flock of Taiga (if that's what they are) and Tundra is exceptional. Beware the parking though; may be best to park along the (wide) entrance track to Lackford Lakes SWT and walk back to the road.

Cheers,
Nick

 

[lostinjapan]

Hi Nick

There were Taiga and Tundra Bean at Boyton back in January...or at least one bird showed aspects of Tundra.

Sean

 

[Nick Moran]

There were Taiga and Tundra Bean at Boyton back in January...or at least one bird showed aspects of Tundra.

Thanks Sean. What I should have said is "a mixed flock of Taiga and Tundra is exceptional, according to my own experience and what I've read"

Still think its a rare occurrence in the UK, though of course there was that very interesting mixed flock in Shetland Feb 2010: http://hughharropwildlifephotography.blogspot.com/2010/02/taigas-tundras.html

Spent another 1.5 hours with the Lackford birds today... not sure I'm much the wiser but views/light were really good (from my slightly uncomfortable position hunkered at the base of an elder bush) - will post any pics that reveal anything else once I've downloaded them.

Cheers
Nick

 

[Jonny Rankin]

Mr Bean

Thanks Sean. What I should have said is "a mixed flock of Taiga and Tundra is exceptional, according to my own experience and what I've read"

Still think its a rare occurrence in the UK, though of course there was that very interesting mixed flock in Shetland Feb 2010: http://hughharropwildlifephotography.blogspot.com/2010/02/taigas-tundras.html

Spent another 1.5 hours with the Lackford birds today... not sure I'm much the wiser but views/light were really good (from my slightly uncomfortable position hunkered at the base of an elder bush) - will post any pics that reveal anything else once I've downloaded them.

Cheers
Nick

Much better pics of the Beans than I managed Nick.

If not Taiga then what do you suspect the larger individuals to be? Mixed race or another species in the mix?

There was a White-front with the Beans when they arrived but sadly seems to have moved on... certainly hasn't turned up at L'mere yet.

Hundreds of Lapwing and Golden Plover by Livermere village this morning - then whole flock was flushed by a male Peregrine :t:

Cheers,

Jonny

 

[Jonny Rankin]

Thanks Sean. What I should have said is "a mixed flock of Taiga and Tundra is exceptional, according to my own experience and what I've read"

Still think its a rare occurrence in the UK, though of course there was that very interesting mixed flock in Shetland Feb 2010: http://hughharropwildlifephotography.blogspot.com/2010/02/taigas-tundras.html

Spent another 1.5 hours with the Lackford birds today... not sure I'm much the wiser but views/light were really good (from my slightly uncomfortable position hunkered at the base of an elder bush) - will post any pics that reveal anything else once I've downloaded them.

Cheers
Nick

Just noticed this recent Bean pic on the Cley Birds gallery. Very visible size difference on these Tundras - sexual dimorphism?

http://www.birdingworld.co.uk/Cley 2011.1.htm

In flight the 6 Lackford Beans all looked comparable - but obviously on the deck differences are visible... to clarify the Tundras are the birds with the 'bumped' foreheads and stubby bills whilst the Taigas have the more elongated head / bill?

Are there any other racial differences - beyond size - to look for?

Great to have these birds so close to home - there was 6 Tundras at Lackford (& surrounds) in Feb 2010 but I recall them all looking uniform as Tundras.

Spooky that another 6 should turn up in the same place tho... ?

Cheers,

Jonny

 

[Nick Moran]

Just noticed this recent Bean pic on the Cley Birds gallery http://www.birdingworld.co.uk/Cley 2011.1.htm. Very visible size difference on these Tundras - sexual dimorphism?

Yes - according to this useful Dutch reference, fab M > fab F = ross M > ross F.

In flight the 6 Lackford Beans all looked comparable

Someone 'helpfully' flushed them this morning (I was going to yell 'FIELDCRAFT!!!', then I remembered fieldcraft...) - I thought the Taiga-types were detectably longer-winged.

- but obviously on the deck differences are visible... to clarify the Tundras are the birds with the 'bumped' foreheads and stubby bills whilst the Taigas have the more elongated head / bill?

Yes - the Taiga-types look more triangular-headed to me, though this difference seems to be less obvious close up (I was 80-150m from them for 1.5hr this morning).

Are there any other racial differences - beyond size - to look for?

Yes - see the Dutch reference. Bill colour doesn't seem to be reliable (too much variation); likewise the amount of white at the bill base.

there was 6 Tundras at Lackford (& surrounds) in Feb 2010 but I recall them all looking uniform as Tundras. Spooky that another 6 should turn up in the same place tho... ?

Coincidence - there are lots of Beans around at the mo! Much stranger things have happened... Anyway, one of the Tundras is a 1st-calendar-year so that conclusively rules out at least that individual being one of the in Feb 2010 birds. (All the others - of both 'types' - are either adults or indistinguishable from adults, to my eye).

Cheers
Nick

 

[Jonny Rankin]

Beanie

Great stuff Nick :t:

With thanks for sharing the article too - thats a superb resource.

Hope to get back another view of the Beans to test my new knowledge!

Cheers,

Jonny

 

[Nick Moran]

More Bean Goose shots from early this morning; I was less than half the distance away but the light was twice as bad (especially for 'taigas1', when they were really close)! These ought to clinch the Taigas though.

 

[Stuart Read]

I saw & photographed the beans on Monday, The bulkier bodies & longer necks weren't always easy to detect while feeding, but more obvious when alert, I thought the size difference was very noticeable in flight.
Quite often the 2 taigas would be seperate from the tundras.
Some photos of both at http://www.flickr.com/photos/gryllus/

Stuart