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Seaton Wetlands 2026

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It has been an excellent year for the wetlands, t he Ospreys were particularly fantastic in the late summer. Below are  a few of my favourite shots and lets hope for an even better year in 2027. Purple Heron This bird was spotted by Clive early on the 23rd July. It only stayed for a few hours but did catch a water vole. Stone Curlew Spotted by Tim C in the early morning on Black Hole Marsh. A relatively unusual setting for a Stone Curlew, obviously just a brief resting stop on its long migration to Africa. Red necked Phalarope This winter plumage bird was spotted by Bob L on 24th August on the river Axe, while we were Osprey watching on Coronation corner. It then flew off in the general direction of BHM and, amazingly, then gave great views from the Island Hide. Kingfisher A regular from the Tower Hide. Wryneck Spotted (20th Sept) on the tram tracks from the Tower Hide by Bob L, while waiting for Osprey. Seen again on the 22nd Sept. Black crowned Night Heron Seen on the Borrow Pit,...
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Unplanned dash to Norfolk for a 'twitch', late Oct 2026

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I was not going back to Norfolk until mid November, but the possibility of seeing a Slender-billed Nutcracker abruptly dragged my plan forward several weeks – so technical it was a ‘twitch’. I will try to resist doing another one anytime soon! Slender-billed Nutcracker The Slender-billed Nutcracker (Nucifraga caryocatactes macrorhynchos) is a rare vagrant to the United Kingdom. A distinct eastern subspecies of the Northern (or Spotted) Nutcracker, it breeds in the northern taiga and boreal conifer forests spanning Siberia eastwards to northern Asia.    Nutcrackers are generally sedentary corvids. However, when Siberian pinecone crops fail following high breeding success, the population undergoes large-scale westward irruptions into northern and western Europe.   The vast majority of historical British records stem from these periodic invasions. The most famous occurred in autumn 1968, when over 300 birds crossed the North Sea into Britain. Outside of invasion y...
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Norfolk, Oct 2026

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Another week in our caravan in North Norfolk. The weather was not brilliant but I did managed to catch a few birds. What was striking about this autumn was the comparative lack of Shrikes. The illustrious Black winged Kite was still near Sea Palling but, again, it stayed hundreds of metres away from any possible viewing spot. As a result the pictures barely even count as record shots! Sea birds from Cley beach, including several  Red throated Divers , Razerbills , Guillemots and Gannets . Marsh Harrier , Blackwit and Stonechat around Pat's Pool and a flight of Pinks overhead. We visited Pensthorpe for the first time. It is a great family venue with several hides, that are probably better suited to birders with scopes, than casual photobirders like myself. They have a wetland avairy including Avocet, Ruff, Beardies and Turtle Doves. I visited Holme Beach twice, going back the second time to get better pictures of three Shore Larks. Both times the weather, especially the wind, wa...
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