Brecks bonanza!

In the absence of any obvious targets in North Norfolk, Brian, Norman and I decided to spend another day down in the Brecks. First stop was Santon Downham, where a four mile walk and two hours of patient tree watching produced just Great Spotted Woodpecker and a Kingfisher.

A move to the famous Goshawk viewpoint immediately produced distant but thrilling views of possibly four birds, both displaying and hunting: a large female Sparrowhawk provided a useful comparison.

A short car journey and brief walk finally found us positioned discretely near the Willow Tit feeders along a forest ride. There were lots of Marsh, Coal and Great Tits, but we could hear the 'trill' call of at least one Willow Tit. I think the single bird below is a good candidate: but what about the ringed individual?  As we drove south towards Lynford we caught a glimpse of the three Tornadoes (plus one!) as they carried out their final pre-decommissioning tour of RAF bases.

Lynford was crowded, but nevertheless produced fabulous views of three Crossbills, as well as a dozen Hawfinches and a mixed finch flock that included a smart Yellowhammer!