Dersingham Bog - 24th July 2026

 Today's efforts focused on getting some Stonechats for the project in the late afternoon, then a try for Nightjar joined by PWL and FJS. 

We found a creche of Stonechats and managed two, caught in two panel nets despite the rather windy conditions. Ringing efforts resumed at 19:30 and two doubles were put up. The wind calmed, and we saw a few birds flying around, with one actually on the track just feet from one net when we went to turn on the audio-lure. That bird managed to evade the nets, but a second male was caught where flying Nightjars and a Woodcock had been seen in the failing light.

The 6M bird had some unusual light markings on a few lesser coverts.

Total: 4
Nightjar - 1
Stonechat - 3

Sculthorpe Moor - 23rd July 2026

 Every year, about this time, we do a few evening sessions down near the Sand Martin bank. This is the first year that there has been any interest at the bank at all but numbers never really built up and the few birds there eventually lost interest. So, it was just a matter of seeing if Swallows roosted and picking up a few Reed Warblers moving towards the scape before the end of the day.

We caught 21 new birds, mainly Reed Warblers with a couple of Sedge Warblers, three Reed Buntings that were marked with darvic rings and an unexpected Grasshopper Warbler. He was still in breeding condition and had not begun any form of post breeding moult. Grasshopper Warbler has been reported as heard from this area very recently and we suspect he is still hoping to find a mate and has not bred.

There was a group of 30 or so Swallows overhead but they departed and roosted elsewhere. Not really a surprise with so many suitable roost sites nearby. The presence of a Sparrowhawk will not have assisted with encouraging them to roost.

Control BEF0924, an adult Reed Warbler

3J Cetti's Warbler

Total: 21(4)

Cetti's Warbler - 1
Chiffchaff - 1
Grasshopper Warbler - 1
Reed Bunting - 3
Reed Warbler - 13 (4)
Sedge Warbler - 2

Norfolk Rivers Trust Ingoldisthorpe - 22nd July 2026

 Our second session of the day, this time at Ingoldisthorpe. Nets were  put up between the lagoons in preparation for roosting Wagtails and Swallows. We also discovered that Greenfinch are roosting in the stand of low trees just next to the lagoon complex.

We started ringing birds at 7pm, just after the two doubles and a single had gone up. As the evening drew on, bird activity increased with some birds visiting the ponds to drink and switching from one lagoon to another, and others preparing to roost. It was interesting that both Pied Wagtails and Swallows favoured the most westerly ponds containing water that has already been filtered through at least three ponds earlier in the process before water from the sewage works is returned to the chalk stream. There were plenty of reeds in the other ponds, but the cleaner water seemed to be preferred. We were very pleased to get 77 of 12 species, and just for once get onto a second recording sheet.

Unfortunately the light wasn't too good for photos once the roosting birds came in, but here are some from earlier in the evening.

One of four Whitethroats on the day.

Three Reed Buntings were fitted with darvic rings.

Total: 72 (5)

Blackcap - 6
Blue Tit - 1
Chiffchaff - 1
Greenfinch - 8
Pied Wagtail - 12
Reed Bunting - 3
Reed Warbler - 9 (3)
Sedge Warbler - 9 (2)
Song Thrush - 1
Swallow - 17
Whitethroat - 4
Wren - 1

Sculthorpe Moor - 22nd July 2026

 The forecast shows a brief spell with no rain, moderate temperatures and little wind so we decided to capitalise on the conditions and did the first of two sessions for today. We had two doubles and two single nets up in the beavers' enclosure and considering how quiet it felt were surprised to finish the morning on 51 birds.

The beavers have been taking more small trees done near one of the net rides, but for now they have left us enough vegetation to disguise the nets.

There was a good number of youngsters about, including some very immature Sedge Warblers that were returned to where captured. About 20% of the catch had been ringed before, and that was pleasing. We felt this was a good return for our effort and we wonder what catches might be, once we're able to use audio-lures next month.

Wrens seem to have done well this year.

3JM(P) Blackcap

Total: 41 (10)

Blackcap - 5
Blue Tit - 9 (2)
Chiffchaff - 3(1)
Dunnock - 2
Great Tit - 1 (1)
Marsh Tit - 1
Reed Warbler - 2 (1)
Robin - 2 (2)
Sedge Warbler - 6 (2)
Whitethroat - 2 (1)
Wren - 8

Long-tailed Shrike, Gloucestershire - 20th July 2026

 This bird being somewhat closer than the one that turned up in Fife a short while ago, we decided to go and see it. The heat haze was bad but the bird showed well and the farmer had allowed parking in a nearby field making life in the narrow lanes around the site much easier. With a mainly well behaved group hoping to see it (just the usual few photographers that had to push on closer as usual) it was one of the more civilised twitches we've been at.

Then a little while looking for damselflies and butterflies at Dry Sandford and Parsonage Moor before the drive back.

Common Blue

Southern Damselfly

Keeled Skimmer

Deepdale Farm - 16th July 2026

 An evening try hoping to catch Quail, between the arable fields, as staff had reported seeing them. Unfortunately we saw, heard or caught none so had to be content with the 12 passerines that we caught in what is probably the best 18m net at Hilly Piece. The birds make their way along the hedgerows then cross to the hill, cutting the corner and if we're lucky end up in this net.

After the toils of the breeding season, summer migrant birds, including this Whitethroat, tend not to look

their best as they moult in advance of the migration southwards.

Primary feathers in the process of being renewed, 4332100000

Lesser Whitethroat adult female in body moult

Total: 12

Blackcap - 3
Chiffchaff - 1
Great Tit - 1
Lesser Whitethroat - 1
Whitethroat -4
Wren - 2

Blakeney Point - 11th July 2026

 This morning we joined the warden and staff at Blakeney Point hoping to find Little Terns, Oystercatcher and Ringed Plover chicks suitable for becoming part of three separate projects.

We only got a single Little Tern as the the chicks that we were targeting had actually fledged just before our efforts. Two Oystercatchers received codes with a third only large enough to take a metal ring. Three well grown Ringed Plover chicks became the first colour marked birds that Blakeney Point staff have been able to add to a joint project with the RSPB/NOA.

There may be more Little Terns darviced  over the 

coming days, but for now this is the only one.

Looking for chicks

Total: 7

Little Tern - 1
Oystercatcher - 3
Ringed Plover - 3

Deepdale Farm - 9th July 2026

 This was an early morning visit to trim back the bramble and waist height strands of grass. We had thought that the paths would be kept quite clear by the badgers that move through here, but the rabbits have not been keeping the rides short and some attention was needed especially after the bright sunshine.

CL got to work with the strimmer and I had a single 18m net up. I was fortunate and the net connected with two  mixed flocks of birds moving through, unexpected but one of the benefits of studying a site and knowing how the birds tend to move through. Net opened 8:45am and closed 10:30am.

Juvenile Lesser Whitethroat

Total: 23 (3)

Blackcap - 7 (1)
Blue Tit - 2
Chiffchaff - 3
Goldcrest - 2
Great Tit - 2
Lesser Whitethroat - 1
Whitethroat - 4 (2)
Wren - 2

Norfolk Rivers Trust, Ingoldisthorpe - 8th July 2026

 We arrived at about 5.30pm, ready to get three doubles up in preparation for when the temperature would drop later. The first thing to happen was an observation of one of the juvenile Marsh harriers wing tagged close by. There were other untagged young birds hunting over the fields and a second nest, possibly serviced by the same male, clearly wasn't far away.

The farmer had cut the vegetation around the lagoons and it was easy work getting the nets up. We started catching shortly after 6pm with quite a few Acros including some Reed Warblers from previous years with two from 2023 and three from 2024. We've not worked this site in the evening before and were surprised to see good numbers of Pied Wagtails roosting in the two lagoons either side of one of our nets. Later, Swallow numbers started to build up and they also dropped in to roost in the reeds in good numbers.

Male Pied Wagtail

Cetti's Warbler

Juvenile Swallow

Whitethroat

Total: 47 (6)

Blackbird - 1
Blackcap - 7
Cetti's Warbler - 1
Dunnock - 1
Greenfinch - 2
Pied Wagtail - 2
Reed Warbler - 4 (6)
Sedge Warbler - 4
Sand Martin - 1
Swallow - 22
Whitethroat - 2

Scolt Head - 8th July 2026

 We started the day with a boat trip over to Scolt. There were three Oystercatcher chicks that had reached a decent size and they needed darvic rings. The survival rate of Oystercatchers is causing concern and the colour ringing is a pre-curser to the radio tracking of chicks from hatching due to start next year.

We did better than expected and marked 4 youngsters with a fifth only large enough to take a metal ring. A chick marked on the 25th June was also observed. The hope is that these later broods will have a better chance of survival now that the local harriers and kites are no longer feeding chicks in the nest.

This area on Scolt Head shows the tell tale patches of feathers where 

avian predators pluck prey before returning to the nest.

Colonies of gulls and terns once discovered are regarded as an open buffet 

and other species also suffer from the sustained attention.

Total: 5 (1)

Oystercatcher - 5 (1)

Dersingham Bog - 7th July 2026

 We tried the bog in the cool of the evening in hopes of contributing to the Nightjar feeding routes project using tail mounted trackers, but found we were unable to capture the target female and had to be content with a couple of birds from the double we'd erected for Stonechat in the hour or so before they go to roost.

We managed a single juvenile Stonechat that was marked for the darvic marking project and also a male Nightjar.

Total: 2

Stonechat - 1
Nightjar - 1 

A farm in North Norfolk, another field another Quail - 5th July 2026

 Back again for another few hours in the evening. With temperatures set to raise again, this seems the most sensible and efficient way to ring birds at the moment. The last few morning sessions ended with around 20 or so birds for an early start, 6 hours in the field and taking down between 11am and midday was still uncomfortably warm. This way it's around three hours if we have the energy at the end of the day, start at 7pm and have the nets down as it's getting dark.

We set an 18m in the wood and brought that in for 9pm. Tried the field across the track this time and a double by the barn where we base ourselves. We saw a Quail in flight as we set the single, and eventually, just as we were about to pack up got a male in the double net. This evening we also heard a female calling, so there are no less than three birds in this relatively small area. We've also heard birds calling from other fields around our house, confirming this as an exceptional year for Quail in Norfolk.

Male Quail

A lot of the cereal crops in this part of Norfolk look ready for harvesting early, although extremely short stemmed. One of our farmers tells us that they usually expect to harvest in mid to late July, and the crop condition is a result of the weather, with much of the crop dead. I've noticed that the grains look very small and the harvest will not be a good one. Hopefully the birds using the fields will have time to move out before harvesting. The birds at this site can sometimes be heard in adjacent uncultivated fields with rank vegetation so they are quite mobile.

Juvenile Whitethroat

Total: 10

Blackcap - 3
Blue Tit - 1
Chiffchaff - 1
Quail - 1
Whitethroat - 4

Snettisham for ring reading and Pectoral Sandpiper - 4th July 2026

 There was a highish tide and we went along to try for some color ring combinations on waders and darvic codes on gulls. As it turned out we didn't do well at all, only finding birds with codes that were either too far away to be read, or partially obscured or in the case of a couple of Mediterranean gulls broken and incomplete.

However, it did mean we were in the right place when a scare passage migrant was found along the shore line as we walked back.

Pectoral sandpipers bred in the arctic regions of North America and Siberia and are the most common North American wader to occur in the UK.

A farm in North Norfolk - 3rd July 2026

 An evening outing to a site of ours where we've heard Quail, We didn't expect much since we had only heard one bird calling, but the endorsement was now on our licences and we thought we'd give it a go, along with a singe 18m net in the wood where passerines go to roost.

Amazingly, we did catch a Quail, even seeing its gradual approach before flying straight into the second panel of our net. A second bird approached close to the net but remained on the ground and evaded capture.

We haven't done much mist-netting of late and the smattering of summer warblers from the wood net were much appreciated.

Total: 12 (1)

Blackbird - 2
Blackcap - 4
Chiffchaff - 2
Dunnock - 0 (1)
Lesser Whitethroat - 1
Quail - 1
Whitethroat - 2

Sculthorpe Moor - 30th June 2026

 We are not getting out for much mist netting between the weather and other commitments, so went and monitored the area of the reserve that we have rather unimaginatively designated as general area A.

The terrain was lumpy and the species limited, but we got some nice retraps and a even managed a new Grasshopper Warbler.

Adult Sedge Warbler

Adult male Grasshopper Warbler

Adult female Reed Warbler

Total: 18 (5)

Chiffchaff - 13
Grasshopper Warbler - 1
Reed Warbler - 1
Sedge Warbler - 3 (4)
Willow Warbler - 0 (1)

There was also a Lesser Emperor Dragonfly removed from a mist net and released.