Finally made the effort to go for the Brancaster Hume's Warbler - glad we did
The day started at dawn in Felbrigg for my resumed monthly duck count - they'e been working on the dam this autumn and, as a consequence, wildfowl numbers haven't been worth counting. It was -6 deg when I parked up and headed for the lake! Through the mist I could hear, and then saw, three Whooper Swan departing from the direction of the water meadow and heading west, low over the wood. They were a new species for my WeBS count. The lake was virtually iced over, concentrating all the ducks in one small unfrozen spot - 36 Gadwall, 28 Teal and a dozen Mallard. The wintering pair of Stonechat were flitting around in the reeds and a small skein of Pink-feet flew over, heading east. With news that the Hume's Leaf Warbler - a rare winter visitor from the mountain forests of Central Asia - was still present at Brancaster, I picked up Phil in Gresham and we headed over there. After an hour stood on the bank in freezing fog, with just a few distant calls to confirm the bird's presence, we'd nearly given up when a couple further down the path spotted it. It flitted about in the Willows at the bottom of the bank for five minutes giving good views and occasionally calling, enabling some reasonable shots.
Sunrise over Felbrigg - in absolutely baltic conditions!
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