Our second day in North Norfolk with Marcus Nash saw a comprehensive change in the weather, with grey skies and drizzle. The breeze was stronger and it felt a lot colder (although the forecast actually claimed it was a touch warmer).
Brent Geese, Wells harbour saltmarsh
Barely a glimpse of the sun, so the photography yielded only record shots, although we had some good sightings.
Distant Bittern
We started in Wells harbour then walked out across the saltmarsh well beyond the captive duck pond: Brent geese, a distant bittern, marsh harrier among many waders and ducks, mostly rather distant. Back in the harbour we watched a kingfisher hunting from steps and boats, and a Greenshank and Redshank allowed the less experienced birders among us to pick up our ID skills.
Marsh Harrier hunting in the murk
Greenshank and Redshank
Kingfisher lookout
Kingfisher dive
We then headed to Wells beach, where further ducks and waders entertained, including a red-breasted merganser pair, and assorted harbour equipment allowed some landscape photography.
Red-breasted Merganser
Three Buoys.
Fences.
Green Buoy.
Two Buoys.
We headed for lunch in the Holkham Beach cafe. where a goldcrest and a firecrest were feeding in a nearby tree - the latter was avoiding me, so I coundn’t manage an in-focus image! Then we headed out to the beach, where the shorelarks were feeding in the drizzle. We spotted a distant red-throated diver in the scope. Finally we saw a group of white-fronted geese from the road just west of Holkham.
Goldcrest.
Shorelark in the rain.