Goshawks and other raptors in the Brecks

With just a morning free, Linda, Sue, Peter and I started the morning at Lynford Arboretum. Despite a good walk round (and possibly because of the large number of dog-walkers) very few passerines were in evidence, although we did get distant views of a pair of displaying Goshawks. Best of the rest was a single Yellowhammer and a Great Spotted Woodpecker...

Coffee at Brown's was followed by a drive to the Goshawk layby, where it was fun sorting out the several Goshawks we saw from the hordes of Buzzards, Kestrels and Sparrowhawks. A pair of displaying Curlews were fascinating to watch, as was a singing Skylark.

A late lunch at Oxborough Hall and then home via Watton to dodge the traffic!

Frustrating day (But three year ticks!)

The Summer Wine Crew made an early start, driving through the frost to Great Massingham. Arriving at 08.00, we spent nearly an hour and a half not seeing any of the reported eight Hawfinches (Well: not conclusively any way) A juvenile Cormorant with a completely white 'underside' was interesting.

We moved north to Titchwell, which added just a distant Mediterranean Gull to the tally, although some close views of common waders were worth recording. Since I was tasked with delivering some of Linda's wax wraps to the visitors' centre, we continued east to Cley, which was absolutely rammed. After coffee we walked out to the Serpentine, where a pleasant couple let us peep through their telescope at a distant Jack Snipe. If it hadn't been 'bobbing' it would have been impossible to pick out!

Last stop was Hickling, where the elusive target birds - a pair of Garganey - dozed distantly on a grassy island. Nearby a couple of Great Egrets stalked the shallows, while several Red Kites patrolled over the red beds: at least two Water Pipits scuttled around in front of the viewing platform.

The ISS, two planets and a new comet!

At 8.00pm I braved the settling frost to photograph the International Space Station tonight: it passed close by Jupiter and then Mars before going into eclipse in Leo. A faint comet (just 14th magnitude) is in the same part of the sky, so I used a long exposure to grab an image - just a small, fuzzy ball!

Swan song in Cambridge

This coming Saturday Linda and I will attend our final meteorite event at the Institute of Astronomy in Cambridge. For over twenty years we've sold meteorites, lectured about them and even appeared in a Christmas pantomime on numerous occasions! We've made many friends both at the Institute and among the members of the Cambridge Astronomical Association. All good things come to an end, however and, since we are retiring in May, this will be our last public event...

However: if any Astronomy, WI, Rotarian, U3A or similar group are interested in a talk on any subject from meteorites, space travel, birds, butterflies etc etc, I'll still be available!

Grand Music Quiz, 2025

Last night's music-themed event in aid of Hemblington Church saw a capacity crowd at Heathlands enjoying a fiercely competitive evening's quizzing. As always the terrific team of Linda, Sue, Peter and Peter ensured the evening was a great success, both financially and as a social event for the local community. Many thanks to them, to the quizzers and to Jill and the staff at Heathlands: see you next year!

A squadron of Stock Doves!

Peter and I were discussing the number of these beautiful, gentle birds that have visited our neighbourhood in recent days: today there were no less than seven present in my garden: three in the Sycamore, three on the roof and a singleton at the ground feeder!

Meanwhile a pair of Buzzards have been displaying overhead..

Eclipsed!

I crawled out of bed at 04.30 to photograph the 'Worm Moon' as it went into eclipse. Given the recent weather, I was delighted to find a clear sky (and heavy frost) and was able to sequence the eclipse until around 05.00, when a low cloudbank in the west obscured the Moon.

Lunar eclipse

Tomorrow morning, just before sunrise, there will be a partial eclipse of the Moon: this is a near-total eclipse, with most of the Moon passing through the Earth's umbra. Best time to look out will be around 04.30 - 05.30: here's a photo of the near-full Moon taken at 04.30 this morning.

Another flock of Lesser Whitefronts and a year tick at Hickling!

The 'Summer Wine Crew' dodged the showers all day, moving from Cley to Cromer to Hickling! Our first trek out to the Sea Pool at Cley was totally birdless, while there was some compensation at Bishop's Hide with big flocks of Black-tailed Godwits, Avocets and Brent Geese. Carrying on round to Dauke's Hide we were delighted to see that the recently-present nine Lesser Whitefronts were close enough for photography: this is the third different group we've encounterd this year!

After coffee we moved along to Sheringham and then Cromer, where only one of our target species - a pair of Peregrine Falcons - was easy to find on the Church.

Last stop was Hickling, where a couple of Cranes and a year-tick Treecreeper were about the best!