The last couple of days have brought breezier weather, and a taste of autumn - though it's still remarkably mild when the sun is out. Wind can be both good and bad for birdwatchers.
Bad, because many birds skulk down out of the wind, making it harder to spot birds in woodland and reedbeds. Bad, because it can be harder to walk into the teeth o f a gale, or to hold the camera/binoculars/tripod steady.
Good, if you enjoy staring out to sea in search of passing skuas, Gannets and other seabirds - though the wind really needs to be north or north-easterly at Minsmere. Good, if it brings with it passing migrants, including scarce visitors from Siberia and Scandinavia - east and south-easterlies are best in autumn.
Good, too, if you enjoy watching birds of prey. As regular readers know, I have a real soft spot for Kestrels. I can spend hours watching these fabulous falcons hanging in the air, head facing the wind, almost motionless apart from the rapid flap of wings and twist of tail as they hover above the trail of a hapless vole. Their eyesight is so good that they follow these trails, using light in the ultra-violet spectrum - invisible to the human eye - to track voles. The voles, unbeknown to themselves, give away their presence by weeing on the their feet to leave scent trails that attract a mate. Unfortunately for the vole, and fortunately for the Kestrel, this wee is visible in the ultra-violet spectrum, making it easier for Kestrels to locate the many vole highways that criss-cross Minsmere.
Of course, the Kestrels aren't just hunting voles. As mentioned in recent blogs, they have also been busy hunting crickets, grasshoppers and beetles in the dunes and North Bushes, where they have proved extremely obliging to visitors, and where I've been able to spend a bit of time photographing them this week.
A young male Kestrel perched in North Bushes (above) and hovering over the dunes (below)
Of course, Kestrels aren't the only birds of prey seen this week, with many visitors enjoying good views of Hobbies hunting dragonflies over the woods, Sparrowhawks catching waders on the Scrape, Marsh Harriers and Buzzards riding thermals above the reedbed, or even a passing Red Kite.
As for the waders on the Scrape, with migration slowly petering out, numbers and variety are lower than over recent weeks, but it's still possible to find one or two Dunlin, Knot, Snipe, Green or Common Sandpipers or Grey Plovers among the 80 or so Black-tailed Godwits, while a few Avocets are lingering and small flocks of Lapwings can often be seen.
The ducks on the Scrape are slowly regaining their colours after the post-breeding moult, making it easier to pick out the various different species: Wigeon, Gadwall, Teal, Mallard and Shoveler. Small flocks of ducks can often be seen migrating south offshore too, and the first Dark-bellied Brent Geese of the autumn have been seen this week.
Dark-bellied Brent Geese by Clare Carter
While I'm talking about seabirds, although the winds have not quite been favourable for good seawatching, there have been occasional sightings of both Arctic and Long-tailed Skuas this week as well as a few passing Gannets.
Bearded Tits are always easier to see on calm days, but even with the breeze they are becoming much more visible at Island Mere and along the North Wall. Great Egrets and Bitterns remain in the reedbed, and a few Pochards, Tufted Ducks and Great Crested Grebes can be seen at Island Mere.
Among the other popular species seen this week, the Water Voles continue to steal the show at the pond, where both Adder and Grass Snake have been seen today. Kingfishers are seen most days, either on the Scrape or at Bittern Hide, and the young Cuckoo was looking for caterpillars behind the Visitor Centre this morning. A Nuthatch has returned to the Visitor Centre feeders, and one was ringed during yesterday's Bird Ringing Demonstrations - these continue every Thursday until the end of October, weather permitting.
Water Vole by Les Cater
Probably our most popular species during the autumn is the Red Deer, with the rut just starting on the heath. Our popular 4x4 tours return next weekend, with spaces still available for some of the weekday tours. If you are interested, please hurry and book yours at www.events.rspb.org.uk/minsmere, where you'll also find details of all our guided walks.
Red Deer stag and hind during the rut, by Steve Everett