Species in RED have not been seen in Happisburgh by myself but are either British Birds Rarities Committee/County Record Committee accepted records or considered reliable by myself.
Mute Swan
Bewick’s Swan
Whooper Swan
Bean Goose ~ small numbers of the Tundra breeding race rossicus occur as an occasional winter visitor usually in the company of Pink-feet.
Pink-footed Goose
White-fronted Goose
Greylag Goose
Lesser Snow Goose ~ an adult white morph (of unknown origin) flew SE over the garden within a flock of Pink-footed Geese at 11:15 on 7th October 2007. Not included in total.
Ross’ Goose ~ an adult white morph (of unknown origin) was in fields east of the lighthouse with Pink-footed Geese on at least 16th January 2008. It or another flew NW over the garden again with Pink-feet at 08:40 on 24th February 2009. Not included in total.
Canada Goose
Barnacle Goose
Brent Goose
Egyptian Goose ~ rather scarce away from their usual areas of residence. A flock of 7 flying south over our garden early morning on 30th October 2007 was a bit unexpected.
Shelduck
Wigeon
Gadwall
Teal
Mallard
Pintail
Shoveler
Pochard
Tufted Duck
Eider
Common Scoter
Velvet Scoter
Goldeneye
Red-breasted Merganser
Red-legged Partridge
Grey Partridge
Pheasant
Red-throated Diver
Black-throated Diver
Great Northern Diver
White-billed Diver ~ one seen flying past Walcott on 6th November 2007.
Great Crested Grebe
Red-necked Grebe
Fulmar
Sooty Shearwater
Manx Shearwater
Balearic Shearwater ~ occasional offshore summer/autumn visitor. There are perhaps less than 3,000 pairs of this endangered Mediterranean species in the world.
Leach’s Petrel ~ occasional offshore autumn visitor during strong onshore winds.
Gannet
Cormorant
Shag
White Pelican ~ an individual soaring to the south of the village October 2002 was seen at several sites in the east of England and was considered to be an escape. Not included in total.
Little Egret ~ an increasingly regular visitor to the parish.
Grey Heron
Honey Buzzard ~ a very scarce passage migrant.
Black Kite ~ a rare vagrant/migrant. One passed through 27th April 2003.
Red Kite ~ a rare passage visitor. Some birds may be of genuine wild stock, others undoubtedly are derived from reintroduced birds.
Marsh Harrier
Hen Harrier
Sparrowhawk
Common Buzzard
Rough-legged Buzzard ~ a scarce passage/winter visitor.
Osprey ~ a very scarce passage migrant. Individuals often make quite lengthy stopovers at the larger lakes and broads in E Norfolk.
Kestrel
Merlin
Hobby ~ an increasingly common summer visitor.
Red-footed Falcon ~ a rare vagrant. Females seen 14th May 1992 and 19th May 2007
Peregrine ~ a fairly regular winter visitor, occasionally seen in summer.
Water Rail ~ one found dead on our drive 17th November 2008 had probably been caught by the cat.
Moorhen
Oystercatcher
Ringed Plover
Dotterel ~ a scarce passage migrant. The fields in the Happisburgh area have historically been favoured as spring stop off posts by Dotterel.
Golden Plover
Grey Plover
Lapwing
Knot
Sanderling
Little Stint ~ no doubt regular on passage but rarely seen, they have occasionally turned up in flooded fields.
Purple Sandpiper ~ a winter visitor sometimes seen flying past or in small numbers along the seafront at Walcott.
Dunlin
Buff-breasted Sandpiper ~ a rare vagrant. A juvenile with Ringed Plovers on the lighthouse field September 2007.
Jack Snipe
Snipe
Woodcock
Bar-tailed Godwit
Whimbrel
Curlew
Redshank
Greenshank
Green Sandpiper
Common Sandpiper
Turnstone
Pomarine Skua
Arctic Skua
Long-tailed Skua ~ the scarcest of the four Skuas in Norfolk.
Great Skua
Mediterranean Gull ~ most regularly seen at Walcott seafront. Up to 4 have been seen together.
Laughing Gull ~ a rare vagrant. A 1st winter bird at Walcott from 26th December 1991 was the first record for Norfolk.
Little Gull
Sabine's Gull ~ a scarce autumn passage visitor to Norfolk. A juvenile flew north on 2nd November 2008.
Black-headed Gull
Common Gull
Lesser Black-backed Gull
Yellow-legged Gull
Herring Gull
Great Black-backed Gull
Kittiwake
Lesser Crested Tern ~ a very rare vagrant. An adult was off the end of the Beach road 17th July 2005; it was seen at various sites along the north and north-east Norfolk coasts between 16th - 20th July.
Elegant Tern ~ 20th June 2002. An 'orange-billed' Tern present just south of the village was considered by some observers to possess characteristics of this American species and has been submitted to the appropriate records committees as such. The record is still pending. Not included in total.
Sandwich Tern
Roseate Tern ~ a rare summer visitor. The UK's rarest breeding seabird.
Common Tern
Arctic Tern
Little Tern
Black Tern
Guillemot
Razorbill
Little Auk ~ a late autumn visitor in varying numbers in periods of strong northerly winds.
Puffin
Stock Dove
Woodpigeon
Collared Dove
Turtle Dove
Great Spotted Cuckoo ~ a rare vagrant. One at Cart Gap 31st March 1999 was previously seen at Horsey and Waxham.
Cuckoo
Barn Owl
Little Owl
Tawny Owl
Long-eared Owl
Short-eared Owl
Swift
Pallid Swift ~ a very rare vagrant. One seen 25th October 1999.
Kingfisher ~ one was seen briefly sitting on railings at the paddocks near Laurel Lodge on 11th August and again nearby on 26th September 2008.
Hoopoe ~ a rare spring or autumn vagrant, the most recent was at Holly Farm in October 2005.
Wryneck ~ very rare in spring, less so in autumn but still an uncommon visitor.
Green Woodpecker
Great Spotted Woodpecker
Skylark
Shorelark ~ a scarce autumn/winter visitor.
Sand Martin
Swallow
House Martin
Richard’s Pipit ~ a rare autumn vagrant.
Blyth’s Pipit ~ a very rare vagrant. One in fields by the lighthouse 25th - 28th September 1999 was the 2nd record for Norfolk.
Tree Pipit
Meadow Pipit
Red-throated Pipit ~ a rare passage visitor. An unprecedented 3+ birds were present with 50+ Yellow Wagtails near the lighthouse 14th-18th May 1992. Singing was observed.
Rock Pipit ~ irregular passage migrant and winter visitor to the clifftops. Most records probably refer to the Scandinavian race littoralis.
Yellow Wagtail ~ a passage migrant and probable irregular breeder on farmland. 50+ near the lighthouse mid-May1992 included racial variants known as Grey-headed (Scandinavia) and Blue-headed Wagtail (Central Europe).
Grey Wagtail
Pied Wagtail ~ a common resident, probably breeding, passage migrant and winter visitor. The nominate race alba from mainland Europe, White Wagtail, occurs in small numbers on Spring passage.
Waxwing
Wren
Dunnock
Robin
Black Redstart
Redstart
Whinchat
Stonechat ~ irregular passage migrant and occasional winter visitor. One of the Siberian race maura or stejnegeri on 27th-28th October 1991.
Wheatear
Ring Ouzel
Blackbird
Fieldfare
Song Thrush
Redwing
Mistle Thrush
Grasshopper Warbler
Sedge Warbler
Reed Warbler
Blackcap
Garden Warbler
Lesser Whitethroat
Whitethroat
Greenish Warbler ~ a rare vagrant. Singles seen September 2nd-3rd 1995 and 25th August 2007.
Pallas’ Warbler ~ a rare autumn vagrant.
Yellow-browed Warbler ~ a scarce autumn vagrant.
Radde’s Warbler ~ a rare autumn vagrant. Singles near the RNLI station 12th October 1991 and in hedges behind St. Mary’s House 26th September 2001.
Dusky Warbler ~ a rare autumn vagrant. One was trapped and ringed by the late Mary Unsworth at Cart Gap 3rd November 1982. Also recorded in the hedge behind St. Mary’s November 198?
Chiffchaff
Willow Warbler
Goldcrest
Firecrest
Spotted Flycatcher
Red-breasted Flycatcher ~ a scarce autumn vagrant. 1 or 2 were trapped and ringed by the late Mary Unsworth who visited Cart Gap each spring and autumn for many years in the 1970's, 1980's and early 1990's.
Pied Flycatcher
Long-tailed Tit
Marsh Tit
Coal Tit
Blue Tit
Great Tit
Treecreeper ~ status unknown. May breed and probably occurs as a winter visitor. Any information on this species in the parish would be most welcome.
Red-backed Shrike ~ a scarce passage migrant, chiefly in autumn.
Great Grey Shrike ~ a scarce passage migrant and winter visitor.
Jay
Magpie
Jackdaw
Rook
Carrion Crow
Hooded Crow ~ a scarce visitor, mainly on passage.
Raven ~ a very scarce visitor to Norfolk, one was seen soaring to the NW from the garden early afternoon 10th April 2009.
Starling
Rose-coloured Starling ~ a rare visitor. An adult at Grub Street, June 2001.
House Sparrow
Tree Sparrow ~ formerly common, now very scarce. Any information on this species in the parish would be most welcome.
Chaffinch
Brambling
Greenfinch
Goldfinch
Siskin
Linnet
Twite
Common Redpoll
Lesser Redpoll
Common Crossbill
Bullfinch
Lapland Bunting ~ an autumn passage migrant and winter visitor in small numbers.
Snow Bunting ~ a winter visitor to coastal fields, beaches and sand dunes.
Yellowhammer
Ortolan Bunting ~ an occasional spring & autumn vagrant.
Reed Bunting
Corn Bunting ~ formerly a common breeder, now rather scarce. Any information on this species in the parish would be most welcome.
