Hudsonian Insurance & Cisticola at Last

A quick dash down to a familiar haunt (Walberswick) paid off this time - at last - and I managed to connect with the family of Zitting Cisticola in the reeds behind the beach.

The relief was immense, despite the fact that these birds (8 in total, I believe, the result of a couple of successful broods) were probably here for the long haul. Views weren't great, but I got plenty of distant but clear views of juveniles mainly and the odd adult. I had to settle for poor record shots, with this being one of my best, but I was thrilled to have seen such rare British birds (after three attempts!), and I had a very pleasant time watching them early morning with a nice local chap who seemed very knowledgeable about them.

Further south, at Cattawade, I eventually clocked the Hudsonian Godwit once I'd realised that it had almost finished moulting into winter plumage with just remnants of its summer dress visible on the underbelly, quite unlike the smart fully summer-plumaged bird I'd seen in photos on the Internet. Its identity was nailed when it flew from one bank of the stream to the other: black underwing patches were clear to see.

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Scrutiny of the photos (both of the bird in flight and feeding on the deck) clinched the ID once again (as they had done in Flintshire), but this time I had definitely seen the bird for real - with the naked eye, through bins, scope and camera lens. Again, I was filled with a sense of relief.