Every week 2 members from the WVBS take a walk around Pensthorpe Natural Park and record every species that they have seen / heard and how many they have seen. This is submitted into our recorder, David Gibbons, and he collates all the data and sends it on to the County Recorder.
Below are the results from the recent monitoring visits, including a short summary from members.
2nd January 2024
With storm Henk, overnight heavy rain continuing throughout the day, flooded roads led us to a detour to arrive at Pensthorpe later than planned. On the journey, we followed four skeins of Pink-footed Geese up the Wensum valley and they were still over flying on arrival along with Redwing crossing the carpark. A scan of the hedgerow from the farmland hide was alive with finches and Reed Buntings, Linnet, and Yellowhammer, much too active to count correctly. The park was accessible although flooded in parts, Wetland Scrape was 10 feet deep on the marker pole and was only good for ducks which were beginning to show bright plumage. At Old Squaw Lake a drake Pintail was up ending to feed, Gadwall, and a small flock of Lapwing on the edge of the causeway were the only waders seen. Moonwater had a drake Goldeneye and two females. A soggy woodland had a Nuthatch feeding amongst Blue Tit, Great Tit, Coal Tit, Marsh Tit, one ringed. The Wader Scrape was actually a lake, islands being submerged, no waders seen, just a few ducks, however beyond the scrape in the water meadow amongst the cattle were four Cattle Egrets, a couple resting on the back of the animals. A female Marsh Harrier made a hunting sweep over the reed bed. A very pleasant morning’s birding, a fair count despite the weather. Paul , Alan
13th January 2024
A cold start initially at Pensthorpe with a temperature at 8am of just 1 degree Celsius, clear skies and very little wind. Fortunately, it wasn’t long before the sun made an appearance and the temperature rose reaching a max of 5 degrees. Steve had seen Redwing on the way into the carpark and we started our survey looking at the farm fields adjacent to the carpark. Circa 70 Pink-footed Geese flew over SE and we saw Rook, Jackdaw, Goldfinch, Reed Bunting, Yellow Hammer, Linnet, Jay and a rather splendid male Sparrowhawk perched in a tree. On our way to the Farmland Hide we heard Cetti's Warbler near the Flamingos. From the Farmland Hide we had Stock Dove, Common and Herring Gull, Egyptian Goose, more Yellowhammer (40 flew over W), Red-legged Partridge (30), Reed Bunting and Skylark (heard only). On the feeders two Marsh Tits and a Coal Tit kept the Blue and Great Tits company. Wetland Hide was relatively quiet with only Little Grebe of note. At Old Squaw from the hide we had nice views of Goldeneye (m and f) and Common Snipe (x2). On the bridge that crosses the Wensum we had another Cetti's Warbler and then Goldcrest, Treecreeper and a very vocal Common Buzzard along the old railway track. We weren’t able to stay very long at the Woodland Hide as we gave way to a couple with a young family. However, we did manage to see Coal Tit, Marsh Tit and Mistle Thrush before we left. As we made our way through the woods towards Moon Water and much needed refreshments more Mistle Thrushes were joined by Redwing, Siskin and a flock of Long-tailed Tits. After coffee we scanned the grazing marshes and fields north east of the Wader Scrape, where a flock of at least 600 (yes- we double checked!) Barnacle Geese had assembled. They gave a nice aerial display when spooked by a light aircraft and Steve spotted that one of the Barnacles had a completely white head, indicating a possible hybrid. The geese were sharing the marshes with circa 200 flighty Lapwing, 2 Common Buzzards, a female/immature Marsh Harrier and 4 Roe Deer. From the Wader Scrape hide we had close views of a Little Egret, whilst 3 Great White Egrets flew over W with a fourth spotted on the grazing marsh. On the way back to the Visitor Centre we stopped at Moon Water. Three different gulls were seen (Herring, Common, Black-headed) plus another female Goldeneye. Overall, the reserve was fairly quiet, with water levels still high, but we still managed to have a great day and see some good birds. Steve managed to get a Brambling on the way out which gave a total species count of 64 for the day. Howard & Steve
21st January 2024
On Sunday 21 January, I joined Cath and Sue for my first bird count at Pensthorpe. Although a bit breezy - Storm Isha was on her way - we got to count many different species. As we arrived, we were greeted by Jackdaws, Blackbirds and Redwings in the carpark. Looking over the fields adjacent to the carpark, I saw my first ever Redpoll. What a way to start the day! We made our way to the Farmland Hide, where we were greeted by Chaffinches, Greenfinches, Coal, Marsh, Blue and Great Tits, Reed Buntings, and a Tree Sparrow! On our way to the Lake Hide, we spent some time watching five Goldeneye - 3 male and 2 female. The males were pulling out their best moves trying to woo their mate! Fascinating and wonderful to watch. Walking from the Woodland Hide through to the Wildflower Meadow, we were greeted by a large, and noisy, flock of Siskins, with a few Long-tailed Tits and some Goldfinches thrown in for good measure. The Wader Scrape, as were most of the water bodies around the reserve, was unusually quiet, most likely because a lot of the water was still frozen from the recent cold snap. I would like to thank Cath and Sue for showing me the ropes and helping with identification. Lorraine
25th January 2024
We started about 9.15am just as the rain was beginning to set in with little activity along the drive, although a Song Thrush was found high in a tree by the Hootz, and the usual Common Buzzard was sitting on the fence by the cattle. Moving along to the Wetland Hide the water was still high and only held a few duck, but a pair of Pintail flew in near to the hide, always a lovely species to see up close. Peering into the gloom from the Farmland Hide we tried in vain to find the previously reported Tree Sparrow amongst the mixed flock of Reed Bunting, Chaffinch and Yellowhammer, although it was impossible to gauge numbers. The Woodland Hide produced the usual array of Tits including an un-ringed Marsh Tit and one with green over blue on its left leg. Unusually there was no sign of any Nuthatches. In our way to the Old Scrape a Tawny Owl called briefly from the big conifers on the right alongside the Wildflower Meadow. A pair of Goldeneye at the Old Scrape was a bonus as was a lone Oystercatcher among the Lapwing and roosting Teal, while a large flock of Lapwing flew over towards Guist, and Barry picked out a very distant Great White Egret near the far lake. What started out as a very quiet miserable day brightened up when walking back beside the Wensum we were very lucky to have close views of a Cettis Warbler. In all we found 58 species and 917 birds. Barry and Ian