Orfordness ...........................................................................Val Lockwood

Suffolk BINS –Spring 2011 Spring surprises

Well, where do we start, but only to say WOW! 2011 seems to have continued where 2010 left off, with further amazing firsts for the county.... County first

March –24th. This day started like most other March days, with the majority of us preparing for a ‘relaxed’ day at work, when Suffolk BINS came in to its own receiving and distributing news of a national ‘MEGA’ at Landguard Bird Observatory. A Short-toed Treecreeper had been trapped there and released at around 07:00 before flying into the Holm Oaks at the front of the obs.

News was quickly forwarded to all our members, with regular updates being sent at an unrelenting pace throughout the day, causing a heightened state of hysteria amongst Suffolk birders. Following its release the bird had seemingly disappeared, until it was re-trapped later that morning and, on and off throughout the day, providing fantastic in the hand views for many, as well as some confiding and elusive views on the ‘Icky’ ridge for the rest of the day. Finally it showed very well that evening behind the kitchen, where it continued to please many Suffolk and out of county birders, which the cracking photo in this issue’s colour supplement from our own Lee Woods demonstrates. The nation’s birdwatchers, travelling from far and wide, continued to be pleased with this little star.

Other March highlights included: drake Fudge Duck, Oulton Marsh, at Lackford,the putative Baltic Gull(form fuscus) picked up on ‘The Slough’, and still in the west on the 12th saw the discovery of a Coues’s Arctic Redpoll at Mayday Farm, three Penduline Tits were found at Minsmere on the 14th, a Rustic Bunting was reported from Southwold on the 19th and a stunning singing male White-spotted Bluethroat was discovered at Whitecast Marsh near Oulton Broad on the 20th. On the 28th a Cattle Egret was seen following a plough on Peto’s Marsh, Carlton Marshes SWT before flying off towards Fisher Row and the Great Grey Shrike at Hollesley Common 17th–28th –all provided an excellent supporting cast to the Creeper!

April – Whilst the Short-toed Treecreeper continued to please the masses until the 6th, this was a frustrating month in many ways with some good, but difficult birds just not wanting to play the game. In particular the report of rufous Turtle Dove at an undisclosed site in Barsham proved frustrating, a possible Iberian Chiffchaff, trapped at Haven House, Thorpeness, a male Sardinian Warbler seen well but briefly at Hopton on the 7th, a couple of sightings of Black Stork, over Lake Lothing and Felixstowe, a White-tailed Eagle barely dipping into the county around the Lowestoft area and the possible Sooty Tern off Dunwich on the 24th. Some other goodies included a cracking male Woodchat Shrike discovered in the evening of the 28th and continued to perform into early May at Westhall, Halesworth (see the colour supplement for photo 2), and the stunning White-winged Black Tern (WWBT) at Minsmere, discovered on the 30th (see shot 3 in the colour supplement).

Impressive coastal migrants tracked

May – With the WWBT continuing to perform until the 3rd, the supporting cast for the month included good passages of Pom Skuas and a Kentish Plover on the beach at Kessingland. BINS again came into its own