An Afternoon at Snape and Aldeburgh

The forecast was not very promising, but when we reached Snape Maltings yesterday afternoon the sun appeared and it was sufficiently warm for a small Common Lizard to venture out of the reedbed. Lizards are not only wary of humans but they are also protected under law, so this photo was taken with my zoom lens extended. The camera has focused on the thorax: what intricate designs these lovely reptiles have.

I have no idea whether the skin patterns are entirely for camouflage in this species or whether colour and appearance play any part in mating rituals. You can read about some Aegean Wall Lizard research on this topic here.

The photo above shows Snape in the hazy sunshine. 

Some creature, possibly a deer, has carved out a private path through the reeds.

Humans can walk through the reedbeds in the direction of Iken on this slatted boardwalk.



The light was very strange at this point, but the iconic tower of Iken Church, dedicated to St Botolph, was very prominent on the far side of the water.

Hawthorn, also known as May, blossom was bursting into flower. We left Snape, and since the afternoon was still dry, we moved on to Aldeburgh ... 

... where we were greeted by this rather fierce Herring Gull.

I am not sure what the blue line signifies, but this is where the gull chose to stand on patrol.

I saw a couple of people eating fish and chips in a car as we left, so perhaps the bird knew that it was in exactly the right place for its favourite snack.

It began to look as though the promised rain was on its way. In fact, we somehow seemed to avoid it, so perhaps the storm broke out at sea.

It is always a joy to see the emergence of summer flowers, and the Aldeburgh area has some unusual coastal varieties. This was the first Sea Campion I had encountered in 2018.

David walked on towards the martello tower. We could see Orford lighthouse in the distance and the eerie defence 'pagodas' on Orford Ness.

This was the view on the landward side of the path. This water-bound area, just south of Aldeburgh and around the river Alde, is known as Slaughden. It was once a vibrant commercial centre. The tide has already claimed so much of this fragile maritime environment.

Oystercatchers were calling on the landward side of the path,

 ... and a Mute Swan was doing a spot of preening. Look at the size of that webbed foot!
Meanwhile, out at sea ...

... the beautiful head of a seal was bobbing up and down. The photo above was the best my camera produce as the seal was quite a way out in the deeper channels and the light was very stormy.

Back home in the garden, it was good to see a variety of Soldier Beetle I had noted in May last year.

There were several Dandelion clocks on the lawn..

... a sign, I would like to think, that the settled sunny weather ...

... will return before long.

Our First Barn Owl of 2015

What a windy weekend!

I was given a copy of Claxton: Field Notes from a Small Planet by Mark Cocker for my recent birthday. I grew up only a few miles from the Yare-side village of Claxton, so was particularly keen to read the volume. Mark Cocker writes compellingly about his Norfolk owl encounters in the book, and it was these accounts that made me feel the urge to seek an owl encounter of my own.

We headed for the Suffolk coast, watching for birds of prey on a small road that runs along the River Deben, keeping a weather eye on the state of the wind and high tide.

We pulled in at a favourite lay-by and looked around. Intitially the surrounding area seemed devoid of avian wildlife, but all of a sudden a Kestrel swept into view, hovering near the tree-line on our left. It did not hang about, but David was quick to spot a Little Egret in a dyke on the opposite side of the road.

We had watched Barn Owls, these magnificent giants, from this spot in the past. Astonishingly we did not have to wait long before a graceful, if ghostly, form spread out before us, quartering the fields. It circled round for a short while before taking roost in the dense bare branches of a tree. The photos below were nearly all taken behind the glass of the car windscreen and the conditions for photography were far from good. But the joy was in the seeing and the watching, and the record shots below testify to the excitement of what could otherwise have been a dull January afternoon. 

 We finally reached the waterfront, where we looked out on Felixstowe Ferry and its martello towers ...

For more Suffolk wildlife and superb photography ...

• Old Man of Minsmere aka John Richardson: Suffolk (Kingfisher and) Short-eared Owl Sighting 

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