Winter wildlife magic at Hickling Broad

Wildlife enthusiast, blogger and NWT Volunteer Barry Madden braved the bitterness of the east wind on a February evening to watch the spectacular wildlife at Stubb Mill Raptor Roost at Hickling Broad.

A fly past of common crane at Hickling Broad Nick Goodrum

It is cold here. Bitterly cold. A raw easterly wind whipping in from the North Sea a mile or two away; the boundary between the flat lands of eastern Norfolk and the miles of cruel grey water marked by a line of raised dunes seen as a smudge of dull green on the horizon. The scene before us a patchwork of reed bed, course grazing marshes and fen, interspersed with twisted and stunted hawthorn. The closest you can get to a barren wilderness in this part of the world for there are but scant traces of human activity: a forlorn and long abandoned wind pump, its skeletal sail arm pointing defiantly skywards; a single distant house rendered almost invisible by its light-coloured walls blending seamlessly into the gathering murk. Nothing else, just the wild open landscape unique to this Broadland haven at Norfolk Wildife Trust’s Stubb Mill Raptor Watchpoint at Hickling Broad. 

Us five friends have trudged to this spot, nothing more than a raised bank bordering a drainage dyke, to witness one of nature’s most thrilling and humbling spectacles; the winter roosting of the harriers. We are quite early, 90 minutes before true dusk, but already the leaden, squall-laden skies are casting their shadows over the marshes. Light is poor, visibility far from ideal, but we know the birds will come to seek out this quiet sanctuary to spend another bitterly cold night. And we don’t have long to wait before harriers sail in. First a dark marsh harrier, then a brighter male both gliding on slightly raised wings, buffeted this way and that as they cruise low over the boggy ground. Then delight; a ringtail hen harrier, its bright white rump shining as a beacon through the gloom. A flock of fieldfares appears in a nearby tree and jinking parties of smaller birds, perhaps finches or maybe yellowhammers, are flushed by a buzzard which perches atop a bush before joining another pair of harriers purposely heading towards their roosting zone.

Whilst our attention is focused on the raptors, a pair of common cranes glide over us, dropping down into a hidden pool where they are instantly consumed by the tall ranks of thick reed; lost to sight. These birds are doing well here, naturally arriving as a party of 9 nearly 40 years ago they found the place to their liking and took up residence. Slowly and painfully, with many false starts, the birds began to breed until we now have over 40 gracing the rich and fertile acreage around Hickling and Horsey. In recent years maybe 10 or so pairs attempt to raise young with varying degrees of success, allowing the birds to expand their range into other Broadland reserves and further afield into neighbouring counties. This success story owes all to the sterling efforts of NWT, other local conservation bodies and landowners. Cranes have recently been artificially reintroduced to Somerset, but it must be remembered that in this remote corner of Norfolk where the harriers circle over the reeds and the bittern still finds refuge, we have had majestic cranes for decades. And they always manage to thrill us.

Hen harrier by Elizabeth Dack

Things begin to hot up now with more harriers drifting into view, amongst them a simply beautiful, ghostly grey, resplendently perfect, male hen harrier. What truly gorgeous creatures they are, these birds of wild open spaces. This one drops to the ground seemingly finding his supper, an unlucky pipit perhaps, before he reaches the roosting zone. Through my telescope I can just make out his head tugging at the flesh of the prey he has caught. Such rare birds these and we are privileged to be able to see them in such a setting.

On past visits, on milder, sometimes even bright, winter evenings, the harriers, merlins, barn owls and cranes can put on a wonderful show with massed spiralling as a new bird joins the throng. Merlins arrow into the roost and will happily harass the much bigger harriers, chasing them across the vast open sky in sport. They choose to spend the chill of the night perched atop small hawthorn bushes whereas the larger raptors will roost on the ground or on low branches of dead and broken willows. The owls quarter the fields silent and relentless whilst the sky slower darkens and the stars come out to play. Not today though; the wind chill is numbing our hands, cutting through coats, hats and gloves and making our eyes water. We decide we have seen enough and head back along the narrow, lonely lane to the reserve centre where it is evident much activity is taking place to update and refurbish ready for the coming summer season.

Before this place became more well-known, I used to walk back alone along this lane, bordered by high dark hedges, with all kinds of ghoulish fancies running through my mind. I defy anyone to make this lonely journey and not look over their shoulder every 100 yards, just in case there may be something following; a darker shadow amongst the gathering gloom, an echo of footsteps or an unnatural rustling in the bushes. Hard not to speed up against all reason to reach your car before darkness falls complete. It is the workings of M R James; the fleeting glimpse of something unholy, for nobody knows you are here and your screams will be lost amidst the howl of the wind.

For us five folk though, chatting as a group, we had no such concerns. We instead were lucky enough to see three more cranes, a family party probably, fly towards the broad before we sought welcome refuge ourselves in the warmth of the local pub. Back to civilisation, cosy and comfortable, whilst close by there were the harriers roosting in the reeds, steeling themselves silently against the chilling bitterness of a moonless February night.   

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Help us protect Hickling Broad – the heart of the Norfolk Broads

Please donate today:

•  Call: 01603 625540

• Visit our website: www.norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk/support-us/hickling-broad-land-purchase-appeal

• Or, Just Giving: www.justgiving.com/campaigns/charity/norfolkwildlifetrust/hickling  

Cranes and Hickling Broad

Common Crane Photo: David Tipling

It would be stretching it a bit to claim that that the cranes of east Norfolk are grateful that NWT has launched an appeal to buy the freehold of Hickling nature reserve, but they should be. Hickling played a role in the return of the crane to the UK as a breeding bird, and it continues to be a key site for them.

Two cranes came to Hickling on 13^th September 1979. It was these that prompted a phone call about the “Biggest bloody herons” that a local farmer had ever seen. Taking that call was John Buxton of the neighbouring Horsey Estate, which is where the cranes stayed, first attempted to nest in 1981 and raised the first crane chick in the UK for 400 years. Once a tightly held secret, this is now a well-known part of the cranes history, told by John and me in the book The Norfolk Cranes’ Story.  

It would, perhaps, have been a neater story if the cranes had bred at Hickling rather than Horsey. It was from Hickling that there is a written record of a payment for a ‘young Pyper crane’ in 1543. That is generally interpreted as the only – and last – indication of cranes breeding in East Anglia, until their recent return. That full circle was not completed until 2003 when cranes nested at Hickling again. They have been there ever since and Hickling remains the place to go to if you want to see cranes, not least as Horsey is a private estate. 

Hickling Broad by Richard Osbourne

There is a Hickling anecdote that didn’t make it into the book. Secrecy may have been the best way to safeguard the cranes in the early years, but they could be tricky birds to hide. This dilemma was illustrated by the visit of a group of conservation students to Hickling nature reserve in about 1985. Richard Hobbs, then the Trust’s Conservation Officer, was with them. John Buxton from Horsey was also there, with Christopher Cadbury from Hickling who was a generous benefactor of Hickling reserve. One of the students heard the sound of calling cranes coming from nearby Horsey. He pointed them out with some confidence as he came from Sweden and heard cranes there regularly. John and Christopher simply denied it, and the student looked perplexed. Richard, a leading figure in the local conservation scene, knew about the cranes’ return to Horsey, and after John and Christopher departed confirmed to the student that he was right.

I don’t get to Hickling as often as I should, but the place and its wildlife have a knack for creating memorable experiences. Inspiring your family to take up your interest in wildlife isn’t always easy. At last it seems to have worked with grown-up son Jim, and last winter we made that afternoon visit that you’ve probably done too, to Stubb Mill. The distant harriers over the marshes were great, and there was a grey blob that through a telescope was just about recognisable as a crane. But it was on the walk back to the car park that we had a proper crane encounter. Three came over in the half light, calling as they flew. I could almost hear the penny drop – now I get it about Dad and cranes.

I returned to Hickling in January, this time to meet the team planning a BBC Countryfile programme from east Norfolk. John Blackburn from NWT Hickling was there, and it was enjoyable to share the recce visit, including the sights and sounds of cranes on a gloomy day. The sun came out for filming in the following week, adding to a wonderful opportunity to showcase both the cranes’ story and Hickling.

Chris Durdin usually blogs about NWT ThorpeMarshes  but is also co-author of The Norfolk Cranes’ Story. More about the book on http://www.norfolkcranes.co.uk/

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Help us protect Hickling Broad – the heart of the Norfolk Broads

Please donate today:

•  Call: 01603 625540

• Text LAND26 TO 70070 with the amount of your donation (£)*
  

  *(Please  note that you may incur a standard network message charge based on your service provider rates).  

• Visit our website: www.norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk

• Or, Just Giving: www.justgiving.com/campaigns/charity/norfolkwildlifetrust/hickling  

The Ovington Ramblers: Hickling Broad

For NWT's 90th Anniversary, the Ovington Ramblers set themselves a challenge to visit our reserves.  With immaculate timing, they have just visited NWT Hickling Broad, the wildlife gem at the heart of the Broads where we have just launched a £1million land purchase appeal.

The Ovington Ramblers, by boat not foot!

What a wonderful morning on Hickling Broad!  The sun was shining in a clear blue sky and – quite unusual for this time of year – there was not a breath of wind.  The whole scene was one of peace and tranquility with just the sound of the rippling water along the side of the boat.

The Broads were hand-dug by local people in the Middle Ages as they excavated peat for use as fuel. 


Also, and not so well known, local potters in Heigham extracted clay to use as their material for making earthenware – hence Potter Heigham.

Richard was steering the boat at the same time giving lots of interesting information, whilst Dave with his binoculars pointed out the wildlife we could otherwise have missed.  One of the first points of interest was the tiny island where Emma Turner lived on her houseboat during the early 1900s.  This pioneering wildlife photographer could spend the whole day lying camouflaged on the ground in order to get a perfect photo, often with the birds walking all over her in her stillness.  She took the first ever photo of a bittern which was thought to be extinct in the UK.

Another important pioneer at that time was Jim Vincent, the son of a local gamekeeper.  From the age of 16 he was employed to manage the shoot for a group of influential MPs and ornithologists.  He was also tasked with attracting and protecting other birds and wildlife in the area, particular the marsh harrier which were also nationally extinct as breeding pairs.

The love and dedication of these two people in protecting the rare birds helped to pave the way for the enormous variety of birds and wildlife we see here today.

Young swans at Hickling Broad

During the trip we passed a large group of young swans who stay together until around 5/6 years old, when they reach maturity and leave to find a mate. This year there were about 50-60 youngsters in the group. We saw lots of marsh harriers flying low over the reed beds, plus great crested grebes, cormorants, reed buntings, tits, and herons.

A glimpse of a chinese water deer

 

We stopped off at various hides and watched large flocks of teal with a few shellducks and shovelers.  We also saw a chinese water deer grazing at the water's edge.

We moored, crossed an unusual ligger bridge and walked to the 60' Tree Tower.  The magnificent view from the top took in nearly all the 600 hectares of Hickling Broad and you could see the sand dunes of the coast along the horizon.   A pair of cranes were spotted in the distance.  Apparently, on one summer's day per year all the purple hairstreak butterflies emerge and cover the oak treetops all around the tower, providing an awe inspiring sight. 

All too soon, we were on our way back but were still lucky enough to see six bearded tits flitting through the reeds. This was an excellent way to see Hickling Broad but there are also good walks taking in all the hides and observation points.

Thoroughly recommended!

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Help us protect Hickling Broad – the heart of the Norfolk Broads

Please donate today:

•  Call: 01603 625540

• Text LAND26 TO 70070 with the amount of your donation

• Visit our website: www.norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk

• Or, Just Giving: www.justgiving.com/campaigns/charity/norfolkwildlifetrust/hickling   (Please  note that you may incur a standard network message charge based on your service provider rates).  

 

Dragonflies at Hickling Broad

Barry Madden, NWT Volunteer
 

Away from the brisk westerly breeze sweeping across the swaying mops of fading pink hemp agrimony, apart from the rustling of thousands of swaying reed stems, we found a sheltered spot in the lee of gnarled and twisted birch. Here was the domain of the dragonfly. Atop every dead stem a common darter perched, its multi-faceted eyes scanning the area around its chosen observation point for potential prey or a mate. We watched these four winged predators as they sparred, hunted and courted, arrowing through the warm August air on their short-lived mission to foster another generation. We were quite mesmerised by these jewels of the insect world; wings glistening, backlit against the burning sun of high summer. With the aid of binoculars every minute hair on the dragonflies legs could be seen, every vein on the paper thin wings, every hexagonal lens of their bulbous, rich brown compound eye. The challenge of course was to photograph these sparkling miracles of nature and do justice to their form; an impossible task really, but we felt compelled to try and capture something of their ethereal beauty and record the moment.

The venue for this spell of insect photography was the wonderful Norfolk Wildlife Trust reserve at Hickling Broad. I can remember the first time I espied this rather special place. On that occasion it was from the high ground near Martham on a pristine June day the best part of half a century ago.

Me and my young friends had spent the day aimlessly cycling along country lanes with no particular destination in mind and here we were taking a breather whilst overlooking the famous Broadland haven. Eric Hosking was to blame for us having knowledge of this place; his autobiographical work ’An Eye for a Bird’ had enthralled us and filled our young minds with visions of exotic places and even more exotic birds. But the most interesting aspect of the book (borrowed regularly from the local library) was the whole chapter devoted to Hickling, a place held dear to his heart and one this pioneering photographer visited regularly during the war years. Within this chapter were accounts of intimately close encounters with bitterns, bearded tits, harriers, both marsh and Montagu’s, as well as anecdotes concerning other species we had hardly heard of let alone dreamed of seeing. But it was getting late, the sun slowly lowering into the western sky and we had 20 miles to cycle home. The reserve was tantalisingly close but its exploration would have to wait for another day.

As it happened that day was many years in the future; the 1980s in fact when I began to visit the area regularly to watch the harriers and cranes coming in to roost at Stubb Mill, then simply a raised muddy bank, exposed and lonely. And it wasn't until I started working for NWT much later still that I got to know the reserve better. Of course much has changed since the days of Hosking. NWT now manages a vast area of this unique landscape allowing public access to much of it year round. Summer boat trips take eager eyed visitors to secret niches where otters, spoonbills, waders and purple hairstreaks can be seen, whilst the Visitor Centre ensures a warm welcome. But the essential wildness remains; acres of reed interspersed with shallow creeks where the billowing sails of river craft glide sedately past. Wide open skies punctured by silhouettes of wind pumps and stands of wet woodland. Broadland at its most evocative.
 

For all that, it can sometimes seem an empty place, frustratingly devoid of the bird life for which it is renowned. But then a brown spangled form will rise from the reeds and fly over your head, a bittern moving between feeding stations. Or yelps from lapwings will alert you to a passing peregrine. A feeling of being watched will make you look up into the spindly oaks to find a pair of fledgling tawny owls curiously gazing down at you and a gang of bug hunting children, or you will find a swathe of marsh thistle where swallowtails dance supping nectar. Or as today you will chance upon a quiet, sheltered spot where a swarm of dragonflies entertain you with their aerobatics beyond anything man can, or ever will, be able to achieve.
 

We were privileged to have a brief encounter with creatures whose world we will never fully understand and whose pedigree is eon. Soon this year’s generation will succumb to the gathering chill of autumn but for the next few weeks they will buzz around this excellent nature reserve completing their life cycle. Go look, go experience their mastery of the air, go to simply celebrate their existence, go because you can. 

Progress at Potter reedbed creation site

Nick Carter, Conservation Officer (Fens)

NWT and the Environment Agency are working together to create a new reedbed near the village of Potter Heigham. 

Construction of the reedbed and the internal, deep pools were completed last year. 

Work by Matthew Williams Digger Hire this year has seen work on the ditch network to carry water from Hickling Broad to the site across NWT grassland. 

Construction was completed in mid-June but it won’t be until November that we can let water through to the site, under licence. The aim is to raise the water level up to sea level which should result in the flooding of much of the site to make it suitable for reed establishment.

Reed planting was done in 2013 and last year. The former reeds, around the internal perimeter ditch, have colonised well and should start spreading out into the neighbouring fields as the site is wetted up. 

Naturally-occurring reeds on the site, in the ditches along the field boundaries, are already growing in the field margins. The reeds planted last year have not fared so well. There has been some establishment along the new internal pools but those planted within the fields have failed to grow. Many of the reed plugs were found lying on the ground, either because they had been pulled out by birds or had floated out when water levels were raised last winter. These are being re-planted currently, with warning tape being draped across the caged areas to deter birds from feeding on the reeds. 

This winter, water levels will be raised gradually and the reeds checked to make sure they do not float out.  If required a further year of reed planting will be carried out next year to ensure rapid development of the reedbed across the site.