A Stay in Suffolk - Part I

Monday 8th April was wet and windy as we drove up to Suffolk for my extended stay to look after my Mum after her foot operation. The weather did improve as we headed east out of Devon but the traffic was horrendous, not helped by it being Easter school holidays, and it took over 8 hours to get to Suffolk with traffic jams and delays and bad driving all along the way. The only good thing about the journey was seeing my first Red Kites of the year soaring over the M3 motorway, just 2 birds though, and other highlights seen from the car were Stock Doves, Roe Deer, Fallow Deer and Ring-necked Parakeets.

Mum's op on her right foot was on Tuesday 9th April and it was a bit more involved than the op she had on her left foot back in 2017, this time she was in a plaster cast and a lot less mobile than expected so things were a little bit more problematic than we anticipated.

David drove back to Plymouth on Thursday 11th April leaving me to deal with my Mum on my own, I had forgotten how fussy and stubborn she can be but it wasn't too bad. 

After David left for Plymouth I headed out for a short walk at nearby Chantry Park where I regularly birded as a pre-teen back in the day and it was very soothing to be back in nature after a busy couple of days. It's been many years now since I last went to the Park and the wildlife area has certainly grown into an interesting mix of habitats. It's also a lot less secluded than before and on my visit it was quite busy with dog walkers and fishermen. 

Chantry Park pond

It used to be a good place to see Lesser-spotted Woodpecker but there was no sight or sound of them today, they may even no longer be present here, but I did hear a Green Woodpecker yaffling away.

My first Whitethroat of the year was also heard and briefly seen and the warm weather brought out a few Comma, Peacock, Brimstone and Orange Tip. There were also Bluebells, Ramsons and Cowslips in bloom, Blackcaps singing and Chiffchaffs yammering away, spring certainly seems more advanced here than down in Devon and it was nice to walk on dry footpaths for a change after the mudfests around Plymouth.

Peacock

Cowslip

I also headed over to the old Sproughton Beet Factory site (The Pits as I used to call it) just over the road from the Park and which used to hold breeding Little Ringed Plovers although the factory has long gone and the lake filled in but a singing Cetti's Warbler was my first record for here.

I managed to get out for a morning walk on Saturday 13th April, it was a beautiful day and a very warm 20°c in the sunshine. I walked down to Bobbits Lane Meadows and Woods, somewhere I used to visit back in the day when it was farmland but now it is a nature reserve and a very well managed one too. Again it was a good mix of habitats with a beautiful display of Bluebells in the woods and I was very surprised to see very little dog shite around especially with it being so close to a large housing estate.

Bobbits Lane Meadows and Woods

Bluebells

A singing Whitethroat, 2 Holly Blue,  2 singing Cetti's Warblers and a Muntjac Deer were the highlights but the best was a Nightingale singing away, I even managed a few brief flight views of it too. It was quite surreal listening to it belting out its song while the A14 traffic hurtled past, the trains on the main line in to London thundered by and the wolf pack at nearby Jimmy's Farm howled away but it was a joyous sound and one I haven't heard for years now.

Nightingale

Sunday 14th April was another lovely day but much cooler than the previous one and I headed out to Chantry Park and the Old Beet Factory again for a look about. It was all much the same but there was a lot more insect activity and I saw my first Green-veined and Large White of the year and in a lit underpass beneath the A14 I found 2 Streamer, a Frosted Green and a Brindled Beauty. There were good numbers of Green Longhorn moths flitting about in a young Oak tree and a Corizus hyoscyamia was a nice find, looking very much like a Firebug.

Green-veined White

Brindled Beauty

Grey Heron

Wednesday 17th April was sunny but chilly in the breeze and there were fewer insects around on my Chantry Park walk. The Green Longhorn moths were again dancing around in the Oak tree and I finally managed to confirm my first Small White sighting of the year. There was a different Brindled Beauty in the underpass under the A14 along with a Common Quaker and I also found a Gooden's Nomad Bee sunning itself on a bramble leaf in a sheltered spot.

Common Quaker

Gooden's Nomad Bee

Birdwise it was all the same but there were now 2 male Whitethroats singing away and just 6 Canada Geese on the pond with the usual Blackcaps and Chiffchaffs still being very vocal.

It was sunny and cool again on Thursday 18th April but the wind had dropped and it was quite pleasant as I headed out to Bobbits Lane again for a walk. The cooler conditions meant there were fewer insects about than on my previous visit but the birds were noticeably more active. I walked further than I did previously as I hoped to see Corn Buntings in an area where I always used to see them back in the day but I was out of luck, maybe they are no longer present. A nice bonus though was a singing Lesser Whitethroat, a bird I rarely see or hear but unfortunately it stayed well hidden in the hedgerow. However a Nightingale in a nearby wood was quite showy as it sang in the undergrowth very close to the road, at one point I was listening to the Nightingale, a Lesser Whitethroat, Chiffchaff, Blackcap and a Whitethroat all singing away at the same time which was quite special!

Nightingale - record shot

Other birds of note were 2 Sand Martin overhead, a flyover Yellowhammer, 3 soaring Buzzards, a Little Egret, 2 Grey Herons and 2 singing Cetti's Warblers before it was time to head back home.

I managed to get out for a proper birding trip on Saturday 20th April, it was dry with occassional sunny spells but cold in the strong wind, just 10°c compared to the 20°c the previous Saturday. I caught the train to Needham Market, just a 10 minute ride away, and I walked along the River Gipping and around the lakes and gravel pits there, something I have never done before.

I found an interesting selection of waders with Lapwing, 2 Oystercatcher, a Redshank, a Dunlin and a Greenshank seen but 2 distant Green Sandpipers were eclipsed for wader of the day by 3 Little-ringed Plover which showed beautifully. Ducks were well represented too with Mallard, 6 Teal, a male Shoveler, a pair of Pintail and 4 Gadwall all noted along with 2 Shelduck. 

Little Ringed Plover

Little Ringed Plovers

Little Ringed Plover

Other birds of note were a Red Kite, 2 Little Grebe, 2 Great Crested Grebe, a Little Egret, a Whitethroat, Greylag Geese, 3 Buzzard and a Kestrel and it was nice to finally see good numbers of Swallows and Sand Martins amongst my first House Martins of the year.

Not so nice was snapping my Nikon ED50a telescope in half, apparently a fairly regular problem with older models. I was aware of this design flaw issue but I had hoped it would not happen to me especially as I rarely use this scope. Hopefully Nikon can do something with it although it is 12 years old and out of warranty, I have returned it to them and will have to wait and see.

Oh dear!

Whoops!