HOLME
Varied habitats and one of the UK’S top observatories
Holme brings back many memories, as it was the first bird reserve I ever visited in the 1960s. Three organisations are involved with the area – Natural England with the full SSSI, Norfolk Wildlife Trust NWT) with Holme Dunes, and the Norfolk Ornithologists’ Association (NOA) with the observatory and hides. The mixed habitats guarantees something of interest all-year round, with a staggering 50,000 birds having been ringed at the observatory and more than 300 species recorded in the area. Watch displaying Avocets, Little Ringed Plover and Redshank around the freshwater in spring, while Ringed Plover and Oystercatchers breed along the beach. Warblers include Reed, Sedge, Grasshopper, Common and Lesser Whitethroat likely. Cuckoos look for nests to lay in, while Bitterns catch eels by the hides. The seaward side of the dunes has a mix of terns, skuas, sea ducks and gulls passing, depending on the direction of the winds. Birds of prey can come in the form of breeding Marsh Harrier and wintering Hen Harrier. In late spring, watch for Hobby. The sheer number of rarities make this a great spot in autumn with Pallas’s, Dusky, Yellow-browed, Greenish and even Sardinian Warblers have been found; plus Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Blackthroated Thrush, Citrine Wagtail, Firecrest, Red-breasted Flycatcher, Wryneck and Hoopoe. Out on the broad, Caspian Tern, Purple Heron, Black-winged Pratincole and Alpine Swift have been found, with Redfooted Falcon and Northern Harrier over the grassland.