Unplanned dash to Norfolk for a 'twitch', late Oct 2026

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 years, sightings in the UK are exceptional rarities that draw significant attention from the birding community.   Vagrants typically appear in coastal counties (notably along the East Coast) during late autumn. When grounded, they often show remarkably confiding behavior, foraging openly on garden lawns, pine trees, or beneath beech stands for nuts, acorns, and insects.  

I think the last bird recorded in England was seen in 1991. The Mundesley bird had been seen for several days before I took the plunge and drove up from Devon. I certainly seemed to fit the bill of being very laid-back around people.

Desert Wheatear

The Desert Wheatear (Oenanthe deserti) is a scarce, celebrated vagrant to the UK, typically appearing in late autumn between late October and December when eastern birds overshoot their migration from Central Asia or North Africa.

Nearly always found in exposed coastal settings that mimic its arid native terrain—shingle beaches, sand dunes, seawalls, rocky headlands, and coastal promenades. They are strikingly confiding and approachable. They spend most of their time hopping across bare ground, perching on low rocks or groynes, and darting down to snatch insects and spiders.

This individual on the beach scrub at Cley is reported to be a 1st winter Male bird.









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