MORE SNOW BUNTINGS FROM DUNWICH

   Last week on a cold and misty morning I trudged along the shingle past the Dunwich shore pools up to the area where people have been putting down seed for the flocks of Snow Bunting and Twite that have been frequenting the beach. As I said it was very cold and apart from a few dog walkers near to the car park I had the whole length of the coast to myself and as I walked along I observed lots of gulls, a few Skylarks and Stonechats, a group of Ringed plover, a small group of Brent geese and various waders on the shore pools. Reaching the feeding site a large group of about 40 Snow Buntings took off and moved a 100 yards down the beach so I lay down on the shingle and waited.

   It didn't take long for the flock to return, flying into the strong breeze and landing on and around the feeding site, staying for a few minutes before flying off to another area further down. This set the pattern for the next hour or so as they repeatedly flew in, fed and then flew off again. The strong wind allowed me to get some flight shots of the birds as they came in to land and hovered slightly before touching down. It was a mixed flock of male and female birds many of which were ringed and I could see that some of the male birds were becoming much brighter which is caused by the brown colouration on the ends of their feathers wearing off revealing the  black and white breeding plumage beneath.

   After the prolonged period of laying on the shingle the cold began to permeate through my layers of clothing despite the regular cups of hot coffee so I left the flock to their foraging realizing that they would soon be departing for their breeding grounds in Scandinavia as the weather warmed up and I may not see them again until next autumn. Heading back along the beach towards the car park I came across the group of Ringed Plover again as they relocated onto one of the shore pools so I sat down a little out of the wind and watched them. A couple of the birds were quite tolerant of my presence and as I sat still they approached closely allowing me to photograph them at will but after a while I decided that I had to head back to the car to warm up. All in all a super few hours without hardly seeing another person in the company of some beautiful little birds.