Sightings at Pensthorpe – 4th November 2024

Here’s the latest update from WVBS following their visit to Pensthorpe on 4th November 2024

Pensthorpe monitoring Monday 4^th November 2024

We arrived at 7.30am on Monday to a chilly, overcast and grey Pensthorpe with very little wind. Starting our survey in the car park we soon picked up over 50 Stock Doves, together with 100 Starlings, on wires by the old barn. Scanning the horizon we estimated over 500 Pink-footed Geese heading W over the Fakenham area in 5 separate skeins – a common sight these days as they scour the countryside for food-providing fields. The familiar football-rattle call alerted us to a group of 4 Mistle Thrush active around the car park, whilst small flocks of Redwing and Fieldfare pulsed overhead. Up to 50 Lapwing were seen several times – we guessed they were all part of the same flock.

We saw few small passerines in the car park, but at the Farmland Hide 2 Yellowhammer and singles of Song Thrush, Linnet, Bullfinch and Meadow Pipit were seen along the hedgerow near the barn. Coming to the feeders were a pair of Coal Tits and a Marsh Tit, together with the usual Blue Tits, Great Tits and Dunnocks.

Highlights from the Wetlands Hide include Kingfisher, Water Rail, Cetti’s Warbler, 2 Snipe, Grey Heron, whilst on Old Squaw we saw at least 7 Little Grebe (5 more later on the waderscrape). A juvenile Marsh Harrier flew low overhead.

Looking W towards Fakenham we could make out a big flock of 300+ finches, with some coming closer into the Alders near old Squaw hide. We were able to confirm at least 200 Goldfinches in the flocks, with 20+ Siskin and 4 Redpoll (of the lesser type!).

The woodlands were fairly quiet but we managed to pick up another Marsh Tit (no rings) and a Nuthatch on the feeders, plus Green and Great-spotted Woodpeckers around the park.

The wader scrape held large numbers of wildfowl, including 55 Wigeon and many of the 180 Teal we recorded over the day. Another Water Rail was heard calling. We were surprised and delighted when 4 Cattle Egrets dropped briefly onto the scrape, including one first-winter bird. Scanning the marshes revealed 2 distant Great White Egrets, 2 Buzzards including 1 young bird and a pair of Reed Buntings.

In the car park on the way out we could make out a flock of 500+ Starlings swarming before t roosting – hopefully a sign of bigger murmurations to come.

The tally for the day was 67 bird species plus sightings of Muncjac, Squirrel and Migrant Hawker.

Steve Chapman and Steve Connor

Take a look at their recorded sightings below…