Christmas, before and after

I sometimes think I didn't appreciate how lucky I was cutting my birding teeth somewhere like Suffolk - and that I didn't properly take advantage of it either. Birding trips were often 'up the coast', and whilst I did do a lot of birding on the estuaries and around the fields, woods and reservoirs of the Shotley Peninsular, I perhaps didn't spend as much time locally as I should've. I would kill to have a patch like this again! Therefore, one of my highlights of the birding year, as simple as it may seem, is my Christmas Eve walk. This year, I expanded it, starting at Holbrook Creek on the Stour, walking down river to Shotley Gate, and then part way back up the Orwell, covering eight and a half miles in total and taking all day. 

Holbrook Bay, and some 'art'

Things got of to a bad start when I failed to find the Slav Grebes in Holbrook Bay; however, in my defence, the tide was low and it was still very windy, and holding my scope steady was problematic. Things then picked up with an adult Little Gull which flew in front of me at the eastern end of the bay (heading north-east), and then 3 female Common Scoter off Nether Hall. Rounding the point, a juvenile Great Northern Diver was feeding close inshore just west of Johnny All Alone Creek.

2 of the 3 Scoter

GND

At Johnny All Alone there were 415 Brents washing and loafing on the mud, and I scanned them for a Black Brant, without luck.I couldn't find much between JAA and Shotley Gate, although a female Marsh Harrier was hunting over the saltings in Erwarton Bay, and there was another flock of Brents below Kiln Queach - 297 (of which c.40 were juveniles), but again none were sporting snowy flanks. Reaching Shotley Marina, the expected Med Gulls numbered three adult winters.

Med Gull

Leaving the Stour behind me, I turned up the Orwell, coming across another party of Brents, totalling 261, at the southern end of SHotley Marshes. Still no Brant. However, another small flock was further along, this time numbering 140, which finally produced my main target of the day, a fine adult Black Brant, which I watched and photo'd for a while; I think this is now the third one of these I've found on the grazing marshes here - the first in 2004 when it still needed a description being sent to BBRC! 

I rounded things off at Crane's Hill, with a Peregrine scattering the waders that were roosting on the saltings, and examined the damage to the flood banks and the flooded grazing marsh to the north - not quite on the same scale as what happened elsewhere, but impressive nevertheless. All in all, a good day. 

Scoured floodbanks at Crane's Hill, with Felixstowe in the distance

Flooded grazing marsh at Crane's Hill

On Boxing Day, I paid another visit to Holbrook Bay, this time successfully,easily picking out 6 Slavonian Grebes on the river. Nearby, the Black-throated Diver showed well at Alton Water off the sailing club, and on the Strand, from Stoke Sailing Club, a Scaup was feeding amongst the boats and the Peregrine was in residence on the bridge.