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Jan 2018
1:57am, 23 Jan 2018
17,413 posts
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flanker
Lots of waders today (or yesterday, I guess) at Titchwell & Burham Overy. Nothing too unusual (both godwits dunlin, knot, ruff, curlew, sanderling, ringed plover, etc) but more grey plover than I've seen before. Nice views of marsh harriers, water pippit & water rail. No bittern 
Failed miserably on the sea watching; found a few goldeneye and a couple of red-throated divers, but never got on the long-tailed ducks There were loads of birds out there, but I'm just not good enough at identifying them from the quick glimpses between swells and diving. Kinky had more success, but I'll let her tell her own story...
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Jan 2018
1:57am, 23 Jan 2018
17,414 posts
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flanker
(some pics on facebook btw for anyone interested)
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Jan 2018
8:43am, 23 Jan 2018
976 posts
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J2R
@flanker, watching out for sea birds at Titchwell in winter, the coldest activity known to man...
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Jan 2018
9:09am, 23 Jan 2018
28,137 posts
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HappyG(rrr)
Ah, thanks guys. We had 3 of them at the feeder. As Kinky said, plumage really bright just now. And really striking, against the snow. We live on a farm, so pretty open countryside round us. Not really a "garden".
Lots of raptors, as discussed. And mammals galore - we had a big ID problem with a bigger than weasel, but brighter red colouring than stoat with white throat. I was saying a marten (pine marten) but was difficult to ID. G
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Jan 2018
9:25am, 23 Jan 2018
24,674 posts
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Derby Tup
I think with id generally the key is to try to determine /remember:
Relative size
Colouring
Whereabouts
Activity
Knowing how things compare to regular familiar sightings is invaluable. As is colouring plus ‘what it was doing?’
Previous example of yellowhammer springs to mind. I haven’t seen many Siskin but I don’t remember one on the ground
Having ‘sighter’ species in mind is so useful. Robin, blackbird, jackdaw, lapwing, kestrel, buzzard, mallard, coot, redshank are fairly mundane but so useful for thinking for example ‘well it was bigger than a blackbird but smaller than a jackdaw - mistle thrush then not song thrush or redwing?’ ‘Or well it’s a duck but much smaller than that mallard drake nearby. Oh yes, teal is a small duck and they like being in the margins of weedy lakes. Teal it is’ 
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Jan 2018
9:30am, 23 Jan 2018
371 posts
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bonners
Great advice to us beginners as always Derby, thanks.
Anyway, in yer face feisty Robin, the grey wagtail is back in the garden, obviously not giving up that easily.
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Jan 2018
9:47am, 23 Jan 2018
24,675 posts
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Derby Tup
Hey we’re all beginners. Some of us have just been beginners longer than others
I was just thinking it won’t be many many moons till the great annual Fetch first chiffchaff of the spring challenge starts! I drove round chiffchaff corner in Huddersfield last week and instinctively reached to wind down my window it’s in case :):)
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Jan 2018
10:20am, 23 Jan 2018
977 posts
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J2R
Great advice there, DT! My prediction for first chiffchaff here - March 19, 11:08am. (No particular reason for the time but if I'm going to be specific, I might as well go the whole hog).
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Jan 2018
10:22am, 23 Jan 2018
21,905 posts
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Dave A
As well as a Kingfisher spit yesterday we also heard male and female Tawny owls on last nights walk. We’ve heard them intermittently in the past, including juvenile, but there was some good twooting and screeching going on last night.
With regards to Little Egret, is there any difference between the size of male and female? We have regulars near us now, this morning two were wading in a river and one was distinctly bigger than the other.
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Jan 2018
10:29am, 23 Jan 2018
2,319 posts
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phal
On my birdy course the chap talked abou ‘jizz’ (snigger, sorry...) too... which I suppose would come under activity DT in your list, but as in the behaviour and movement of a bird. E.g on the ground when corvids move with one leg at a time and ‘walk’ where as a blackbird hops with both feet.... helps eliminate things it can’t be and closer to things it might... I find spending a bit of time looking at silhouettes and beak shapes handy too..... so when out looking it can help with the narrowing down of stuff.
I still make some epic mistakes 😀😀😀 as my brain tries to make sense of things.... the list is long 😉
Sounds like the list is growing nicely flanker; looking forward to hearing more about it 😀😀
Yelliwhammers ate lovely birds
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