Destinations 2026 2027
... where there are many holiday photos to enjoy.
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NWT Thorpe Marshes
Conditions good on main circuit. August
The nature reserve at Thorpe St Andrew Marshes – NWT Thorpe Marshes for short – was established in 2011. It's in the Norfolk Broads yet on the edge of Norwich in Thorpe St Andrew. It also happens to be my local patch – just down the road from home and the Honeyguide office, writes Chris Durdin.
August: the season of high summer flowers, with pink and purple dominant. Though there are fewer flowers on the grazing marsh, though there are species such as marsh ragwort and square-stalked St Johnswort. Look in ditches for frogbit, orange balsam, fool's watercress and the poisonous lesser water parsnip. Plus butterflies, dragonflies and, with luck, wading birds on passage. It's also the best month to find the scarce red bartsia bee.
Comma, upper and underside, and a close-up of peacock's wing. 4 August 2013.
Top row: greater willowherb, meadowsweet, purple loosestrife.
Bottom row: marsh woundwort, frogbit in the ditches, rosebay willowherb.
Publications about NWT Thorpe Marshes
James Emerson's The Birds of Whitlingham & Thorpe 2025. This includes bird records for NWT Thorpe Marshes in 2025, and various longer items such as updates on nesting cormorants and herons across the river at Whitlingham CP.
Updated version (June 2020) of Dragonflies and Damselflies of the Whitlingham Area, which has a lot of records and photos from Thorpe Marshes. Report on spiders and related species (April 2020): Arachnids of the Whitlingham area by James Emerson, also includes records and photos from NWT Thorpe Marshes.
There are also Thorpe Marshes wildlife reports for 2012-2019 and previous Whitlingham/Thorpe bird reports. For these, scroll down to 'Wildlife reports & guide'.
Local history
These two blogs give an insight into Thorpe Marshes in the 1960s.
Thorpe Marshes in the 1960s (January 2018) and Thorpe Marshes in the 1960s part 2 (April 2018).
Former railway station: passenger trains ceased in September 1955 and freight in 1964, a local resident advises (22 Oct 2023).
Willow Emerald damselflies
Thorpe Marshes is a great place to see this damselfly in season (late July to October) and to discover more. Willow Emerald egg-laying scars are clear if you know where to look throughout the winter. A local discovery at Thorpe Marshes (January 2018) is Willow Emerald egg-laying scars on domestic apple - a first for the UK. More about this and other unusual places for scars here.
Blogs about Willow Emeralds:
■ What are the chances of that happening? (August 2017) [by Derek Longe].
■ Pretty damsels (September 2016).
■ Willow Emeralds return to Thorpe Marshes (October 2015).
■ A Gem of an Emerald (September 2014).
Gallery of photos of dragonflies and damselflies of NWT Thorpe Marshes on Facebook here includes several Willow Emeralds. A Willow Emerald at Thorpe Marshes on 6 November 2017 appears to be have been the last sighting for 2017 in the UK; there was an even later sighting in 2021, on 9 November.
Willow Emerald Damselfly paper, featuring Thorpe Marshes: "WILLOW EMERALD DAMSELFLY CHALCOLESTES VIRIDIS OVIPOSITING INTO BRAMBLE" by Derek Longe (10MB pdf). In Atropos Issue 58, 2017, and is reproduced here with the kind permission of the editor. See also Derek's NWT blog. Autumnwatch's feature on Willow Emeralds is here on YouTube - the piece on Willow Emeralds starts at 16:26.
Recent sightings
2026
12 August: 8 swallows, 2 swifts, 2 stock doves, great crested grebe, chiffchaff calling. At least 6 red bartsia bees; ivy bee on Canadian goldenrod. Brown hawker, common darter.
6 August (guided walk): 2 lesser emperors, including one perched that could be digiscoped (below). Common darter, red-eyed, blue-tailed and red-eyed damselflies. Hornet mimic hoverfly, hornet, hummngbird hawkmoth on purple loosestrife, red bartsia bee. Birds quiet, as normal in August: great crested grebe, buzzard, a few tits, chiffchaff calling. Lots of flowers. Cattle moved away from Thorpe Marshes today.
Additional invertebrate IDs from Susan Weeks: hoverfly, Eristalis intricaria, a furry bumble bee mimic; Batman hoverfly (see below); hairy shieldbug nymph; bee wolf (wasp).
Lesser emperor male, Thorpe Marshes, 6 August 2026 (digiscoped).
The Batman hoverfly, Myathropa florea (Susan Weeks). Its common name comes from the dark outline on the thorax which resembles the famous batman symbol.
5 August: red bartsia bees, 3 in two places. Angelica in flower (and much more). In mooring basin: 17 small red-eyed damselflies (8 prs, 1 single), 7 red-eyed damselflies, a few common blue damsels. Black-tailed skimmer. Chiffchaff calling.
15 July: stonechat, linnet. Ruddy darter, brown hawker, Norfolk hawker, black-tailed skimmer. No sighting of lesser emperor. Small red-eyed damselfly with red-eyed and common blue damsels, mooring basin.
9 July: at least 2 lesser emperors, count of 33 Norfolk hawkers, 3 small red-eyed damselflies on vegetation in mooring basin. 2 stock doves, heard pheasant.
3 July: willow emerald damselfly, 31 Norfolk hawkers, gorse shield bug, Chinese water deer (SW). 2 lesser emperors, 2 grasshoppers reeling (on Norwich Birdnews WhatsApp).
2 July, in windy conditions: 1 male lesser emperor, 1 male scarce chaser. Buddleias in flower and popular with butterflies e.g. comma, peacocks. Evening, on guided walk: 3 common terns, green woodpecker, barn owl (late). Scarce chaser, female black-tailed skimmer, banded demoiselle, many Norfolk hawkers.
30 June: 4 male scarce chasers, 1 blue-tailed damselfly, 9 black-tailed skimmers. Couldn't see a lesser emperor. Gatekeeper, several painted ladies.
28 June: 1 male lesser emperor, 3 male scarce chasers.
24 June, afternoon: 2 male lesser emperor dragonflies, over vegetation between broad and riverside path; 3 male scarce chasers, count of 37 Norfolk hawkers. Various birds heard/singing/seen: female cuckoo, grasshopper warbler, garden warbler, blackcap, sedge & reed warblers, whitethroat, linnet.
Evening: barn owl hunting, grasshopper warbler again, common tern, buzzard, stonechat, other warblers same as this afternoon. Spotted longhorn beetle Rutpela maculata, male scarce chaser, larva of 14-spot ladybird, lots of wild flowers at their best.
13 June: c.20 sand martins.
Dock bugs on a broad-leaved dock leaf that has dock rust.
27 May: 2 hobbies, male tufted duck, great crested grebe. Norfolk hawker, hairy dragonfly, azure damselfly, lots of banded demoiselles. Cattle on the nature reserve.
British white cattle, 27 May 2026
8 May, guided walk: cuckoo seen well and singing, 9 species of warblers, 2 hobbies, common tern, great crested grebe. Hairy dragonfly, emperor dragonfly seen by experienced group members, large red, common blue and red-eyed damselflies, banded demoiselle. Orange-tip, small copper, peacock; painted lady reported (it's a good year for these); spindle ermine moth caterpillars. Black-and-red froghopper, drinker moth caterpillar, dock bugs, lunate cranefly Tipula lunata, Roesel's and dark bush-crickets.
Roesel's bush-cricket (Susan Weeks), Cercopis vulnerata black-and-red froghopper, drinker moth caterpillar.
5 May: hairy dragonfly. C.15 sand martins, rook flying over eastern part of reserve (definitely a pattern), pair of tufted ducks (late wintering birds?). Spindle ermine moth caterpillars in profusion at the cattle corral; guelder rose coming into flower.
4 May: hobby, cuckoo, rook (perhaps becoming regular?), pair of stock doves, 2 sand martins, 2 swallows. Usual warblers, including garden warblers; lonely willow warbler by mooring basin is incorporating chiffchaff notes into its song.
29 April: c30 sand martins, rook flying north (unusual record here), garden warbler singing, an ninth warbler species on the reserve (the occasional 10th is lesser whitethroat, here singing briefly on passage - one was reported on 20 April). Cuckoo (MW).
28 April: male marsh harrier, c.6 sand martins, house martin, 7 species of warblers.
23 April: grasshopper warbler heard from railway bridge, 6 sand martins. Small tortoiseshell. orange tip. Large red damselfly.
21 April, guided walk: 7 warblers as 20 April plus faint sound of grasshopper warbler. Buzzard, sparrowhawk. kestrel, 2 great crested grebes. Alder and St Mark's flies; egg of orange tip butterfly. Lady's smock, marsh marigold.
Sedge warbler and whitethroat (Nigel Harris), photographed on the guided walk.
20 April, early evening: 7 warbler species singing: sedge, reed, willow, Cetti's, common whitethroat, chiffchaff, blackcap. [Also grasshopper warbler and lesser whitethroat reported recently on Norwich Birdnews WhatsApp.]
5 April: sedge warbler singing. 6 tufted ducks, 2 gadwalls, 2 great crested grebes, chiffchaffs and blackcaps singing. Marsh marigold in flower in cut reed area.
Norwich Birdnews WhatsApp: 2 April sedge warbler (MW) and green sandpiper (SW); 4 April female goldeneye (OK).
31 March: 4 oystercatchers in noisy display flight, heading north; 2 great crested grebes + display; 2 teals, 6 tufted ducks, 1 gadwall, 2 linnets, lots of singing chiffchaffs. No hirundines (sand martins reported 30 March, swallows & sand martins 29 March).
26 March: 2 chiffchaffs singing, blackcap on other side of river, 3 buzzards together, just 4 tufted ducks, great crested grebe. Lady's smock in flower in woodland by muddy path to Bungalow Lane.
22 March: common scoter (Ollie King on Norwich Birdnews WhatsApp). One day only.
Common scoter (right) with 2 tufted ducks (Ollie King on Norwich Birdnews WhatsApp).
13 March: male marsh harrier, 3 snipe in the air as harrier hunted, 3 buzzards together, sparrowhawk. Sand martins reported on Norwich Birdnews WhatsApp on 7 and 12 March.
10 March: chiffchaff singing, female stonechat, red kite flying slowly SW, 34 tufted ducks, 4 shovelers (2 pairs), gadwall, mallard, 1 little grebe, 4 linnets (one in song).
3 March: collared dove flying north into Thorpe St Andrew; 2 stock doves in display flight over River Yare, then went into Whitlingham Woods. 15 tufted ducks, 1 teal, 1 great crested grebe, buzzard, linnet. First flowers of coltsfoot and lesser celandines. [Merlin app erroneously said serin and redshank.]
24 February: stonechat pair. On broad: 20 tufted ducks, 2 teals, 1 great crested grebe, 1 coot (unusual here recently, despite good numbers at Whitlingham CP). Bird song including greenfinch; buzzard; 2 stock doves. Cherry plum flowering.
11 February, a wet guided walk: c.30 snipe flew from flood area, and a group of 21 circled for some time. 21 tufted ducks, 2 teals, 1 great crested grebe, gadwalls absent today. Great egret flew over from Whitlingham area. Reed buntings and song thrush singing, as yesterday. Two little grebes on River Yare. Yellow brain fungus in three areas; jelly ear looking superb.
10 February: bird song including reed buntings and song thrushes. Tufted ducks, gadwalls and a single great crested grebe.
19 January, late afternoon: bittern flew into reedy edge of broad. Meadow pipits (at least 2), grey wagtail in flight (pre-roost?), chiffchaff calling in two places. 20+ tufted ducks, a few gadwalls & teals, little grebe.
16 January, pm: 2 stonechats, 31 linnets, green & great spotted woodpeckers.
15 January, guided walk on a wet morning: 3 redwings flying over, reed bunting, little egret, heard water rail and Cetti's warbler, 2 great spotted woodpeckers, party of long-tailed tits. Cormorants and greylag geese flying; just 2 tufted ducks; fleeting glimpse of 2 kingfishers. Fungi as in blog. Buff-tailed bumblebee on mahonia on Yarmouth Road.
Pottery piece found by Ann on a mole hill on the riverside path (after cleaning). It's from a Keiller's marmalade jar. Date uncertain, presumably late Victorian or early 20th century. The date, 1873, is part of an inscription that should read 'GRAND MEDAL OF MERIT VIENNA 1873', so an award date rather than a manufacturing date.
13 January: 2 reed buntings, green woodpecker, Cetti's warblers vocal on a mild day. Single male pochard with a few tufted ducks and gadwalls.
10 January: reed bunting, buzzard, 6 male shovelers, a handful of teals; c.100 pink-footed geese flew over, heading north (CD). Late pm: bearded tit called at dusk, 2 GW egret, chiffchaff, 3+ common snipe, marsh tit, c4 grey wagtails roosted. Jus on Norwich Birdnews WhatsApp
6 January: shovelers and teals joined by 6 wigeons; snipe. Goldeneye, chiffchaff & siskin (SW). Marsh harrier, marsh tit, little grebe (CD).
4 January: c.25 shovelers, c.50 teals, a small hard weather influx. Male siskin in alders by railway bridge.
3 January: c.259 magpies and c.110 linnets roosted at west end of Thorpe Marshes, viewed from Whitlingham CP. Jus on Norwich Birdnews WhatsApp. Thought to be record count of magpies for Norfolk.
2025
27 December, late pm: male bearded tit (north side), 2 stonechats, GW egret, 4 shovelers, little grebe, 72+ redwings roosted in wood in SE corner, c6 grey wagtail roosted. Jus on Norwich Birdnews WhatsApp
23 December: flock of c.20 linnets flying around railway bridge area.
17 December, guided walk: great egret flying over heading east, flock of pink-footed geese flying west over Thorpe St Andrew, kestrel, reed bunting (often absent in winter), pheasant; kingfisher and Cetti's warbler seen by group members. On St Andrew's Broad: a small group of tufted ducks, 2 gadwalls, 2 little grebes. Fungi: jelly ear, King Alfred's cakes, turkeytail, yellow brain, blushing bracket. A few late flowers e.g. hogweed, bramble.
Yellow brain fungi, also known as witch's butter.
16 December: stonechat; chiffchaff and water rail heard. No ducks.
11 December: 2 chiffchaffs, sparrowhawk, great egret.
Flooded path with heron, 11 December 2025.
4 December: 200 tufted ducks, most flew to (presumably returned to) Whitlingham CP. 2 teals, 1 shoveler, male stonechat.
3 December: red kite (flew east), 2 stonechats, buzzard, 8 teals, 12 tufted ducks, chiffchaff calling.
26 November: marsh harrier, kestrel, sparrowhawk. 3 snipe (presumably more hidden). Bearded tit heard - one 'ping' by the broad. Stonechat, water rail heard. 39 tufted ducks, 2 pochards (1♂, 1♀) 1♂ shoveler, 2 gadwalls in flight, little grebe.
25 November: stonechat, great spotted woodpecker flew over, water rail heard; just 2 gadwalls, 3 tufted ducks.
12 November: 2 stonechats, little egret on river. No ducks. Warden Matt Wickens has seen jack snipe recently.
30 October: 3 snipe, 3 shovelers (2 males). Skylark flew over.
16 October: bearded tit calling in reeds near St Andrews Broad. Snipe, stonechat pair, 15 redwings flying NE, a small group of siskins flying W. Heard redpoll, meadow pipit, water rails. 15 gadwalls, 1 teal, 2 male shovelers, 4 cormorants. A bank vole in the open on the riverside path. Caddis-flies.
9 October: paths under water, see this movie on NWT's Facebook.
8 October: 2 chiffchaffs calling, goldcrest calling near footbridge, 8 gadwalls (which flew off). Willow emerald.
2 October, guided walk: hobby (very good views), 3 snipe, 2 stonechats, little egret, mixed flock of long-tailed and blue tits, chiffchaff, kestrel, buzzard, great spotted woodpecker, green woodpecker heard. Migrant hawker, willow emerald, common darter. Peacock and large white butterflies. Various last-lingering flowers, a varied selection of galls and various other invertebrates (see below).
24-spot ladybird, cream-spot ladybird on hogweed, spiked shieldbug (Susan Weeks)
30 September: pair of stonechats, 2 gadwalls, 6 cormorants, 1 great crested grebe, chiffchaffs calling and singing, noisy water rails. Migrant hawker, willow emerald, common darter. Caddis flies; peacock and red admiral butterflies.
25 September: 3 tufted ducks, 4 teals, 3 gadwalls, 2 mallards, 4 cormorants, 1 great crested grebe. Kestrel, buzzard, chiffchaffs calling. Migrant hawker, willow emerald.
10 September, guided walk: willow emeralds, common darters, migrant hawkers. Dark bush cricket, dock bug, giant willow aphids, 2 hornets. Water-pepper and redshank growing together. Berries on spindle, woody nightshade, hawthorn and guelder rose. 2 buzzards, 2 Cetti's warblers (seen, which is unusual), several chiffchaffs singing or calling, 3 gadwalls, cormorant. Whitlingham Lane: many ivy bees, hop, 2 toadflax brocade moth caterpillars.
Willow emerald, male: this one was by the railway bridge.
Dark bush cricket, male. Toadflax brocade moth caterpillar, Whitlingham Lane.
Giant willow aphids (Susan Weeks). On the back there is a dorsal tubercle, which in close-up looks like a shark's dorsal fin.
8 September: ivy bees in Whitlingham Lane, willow emerald, buzzard. Chiffchaffs calling. Parent bugs.
25 August: in Whitlingham Lane, magnificent growth of hop; ivy bees (minimum 3), hornet, hornet mimic hoverfly, alder tongue galls. On marshes: 1 red bartsia bee, 1 willow emerald damselfly, chiffchaffs calling.
Ivy bee, Whitlingham Lane.
15 August: 2 little egrets, kestrel, 3 swallows, chiffchaffs calling, brief burst of Cetti's warbler. 2 red bartsia bees. 2 ruddy darters, 1 southern hawker (female), 2 brown hawkers, 7 migrant hawkers, 4 willow emerald damselflies, 3 red-eyed damselflies (lilies on river), 40+ common blue damselflies.
5 August, guided walk: 2 stonechats, common tern, cormorants. Gatekeeper, green-veined white. Few dragons & damsels this windy day: common darter, common blue and red-eyed damselflies. Cluster of early instar parent bugs; bishop's mitre bug (more here). Dock rust; rust on red bartsia is Coleosporium tussilaginis/euphrasiae; sycamore tar spot. Lots of flowers, including marsh sow-thistle and common hemp-nettle. Galls on creeping thistles, oak (marble gall), reed.
Bishop's mitre bug; red bartsia bee on bug box.
29 July: red-eyed and small-red-eyed damselflies still there on vegetation at mooring basin. Female stonechat; great crested grebe on gravel pit. Red bartsia bee, minimum of four.
Red bartsia bee on red bartsia, 29 July.
18 July, guided walk: birds generally quiet now, though heron, cormorants, kestrel, green woodpecker (heard), blackcap (heard), greenfinch, group of 3 chiffchaffs seen and calling. Fleeting views of Norfolk hawker, brown hawker, common & ruddy darter. Red-eyed. small-red-eyed (see below) and common blue damselflies and banded demoiselles. Cinnabr moth caterpillars on groundsel (see photo).
Small-red-eyed damselflies on floating vegetation at the mooring basis, one of at least three pairs egg-laying here, with red-eyed and common blue damselflies nearby for size and other comparisons.
Cinnabar moth caterpillar, one of several on three plants of groundsel (not ragwort) by the mooring basin.
3 July, guided walk: male stonechat, Norfolk hawkers still flying well into evening, probable 5-spot burnet moth and many china mark moths over the water. Plus lots of flowers.
24 June: 12 lapwings heading slowly west, then turned south and flew over the river and the wood at Whitlingham. 3 muntjacs: 2 adults, 1 young. Scarce chaser, 2 males (but it was evening); grasshopper warbler.
21 June: scarce chaser count 8 males; emperor, lots of Norfolk hawkers, black-tailed skimmers. Common, blue, azure, red-eyed and blue-tailed damselflies, banded demoiselles. Heard garden and grasshopper warblers.
20 June: 3 stock doves, marsh tit heard from wet wood by path to Bungalow Lane, garden warbler singing. 43 Norfolk hawkers counted, 5 male scarce chasers, mating pair (and other) black-tailed skimmers.
17 June, morning guided walk: scarce chasers counted and we saw 9 males and 1 female. They have certainly arrived at Thorpe Marshes. Also abundant Norfolk hawkers, black-tailed skimmer, banded demoiselle, common blue, red-eyed, azure and large red damselflies. Commas numerous, also red admiral. Good views of reed bunting and sedge warbler (again). Kingfisher flew past over a sedge bed, buzzard, kestrel, common tern. Two interesting invertebrates from today below, plus thick-legged flower beetle and black and white form of brassica bug. Creeping thistle with pale yellow foliage, by the riverside path, caused by Pseudomonas syringae bacterium.
Cercopis vulnerata black-and-red froghopper; Rutpela maculata, spotted longhorn beetle on valerian.
Scarce chaser, male, 17 June 2025.
Lots of dock rust Puccinia phragmitis today, on both broad-leaved and curled dock. Later in the year this species of fungus moves onto common reed.
16 June, evening guided walk: comma butterfly, peacock caterpillars; numerous Norfolk hawkers. Cuckoo and grasshopper warbler heard. Good views of reed buntings and sedge warbler.
15 June: scarce chasers mating (see photo) and three probable additional male scarce chasers in flight. Norfolk hawkers common; banded demoiselles, common blue, azure and red-eyed damselflies. Cuckoo singing. Report of two cuckoos seen and grasshopper warbler heard. Still sedge and reed warbler song. Comma and red admiral.
Scarce chasers.
11 June: 52 Norfolk hawkers counted; male and female scarce chaser dragonflies (DL).
1 June: male scarce chaser dragonfly (SW). See photo under 'look out for'.
30 May: common tern, garden warbler. kestrel. Norfolk hawker, hairy dragonfly, black-tailed skimmer, lots of banded demoiselles, red-eyed damselfly within the nature reserve (and on river lily pads too). Reed beetles. Valerian coming into flower. Cattle have arrived.
Four British white cattle, early arrivals this year.
21 May, guided walk: cuckoo and garden warbler heard. Female marsh harrier, buzzards, kestrel. Stonechat with recently fledged young. 2 oystercatchers flying over. Otherwise generally as on 20 May.
20 May, guided walk: cuckoo (seen and heard), garden warbler singing in two places, also sedge, reed and Cetti's warbler, blackcap and chiffchaff. Several reed buntings, great crested grebe on gravel pit, several views of herons. Stonechats feeding two young reported (BM). Damselflies (quality of views very varied): common blue (abundant), azure, red-eyed, large red and banded demoiselle. Hairy dragonfly, black-tailed skimmer; four-spotted chaser and Norfolk hawker also seen. Hornet, mint moth, drinker moth (damaged), thick-legged flower beetle; spindle ermine moth and orange tip caterpillars. Willow warblers absent this year (and forever?); where are the usual whitethroats?
14 May, afternoon: sedge, reed, Cetti's warblers, chiffchaff, blackcap singing; heard ring-necked parakeet.
Spindle ermine moth caterpillars, cattle corral; dame's violet by path near first corner.
22 April, guided walk: grasshopper warbler showing well, garden warbler singing, cuckoo heard, water rail seen, female marsh harrier, stacks of sedge warblers. No lesser whitethroat today; whitethroat still absent. Water vole seen by a group member.
Sedge warbler (digiscoped); green-veined white (Tim Harber).
22 April, guided walk: lesser whitethroat and garden warbler, both singing in a big hawthorn by river. Stonechat pair, 4 reed warblers, numerous sedge warblers. 60 tufted ducks, 2 great crested grebes, common tern, 2 buzzards, kestrel, water rail & pheasant heard. Willow warbler seems to be absent this year. Marsh marigold and lady's smock in flower. Alder flies, cream-spot ladybird.
Cream-spot ladybird.
18 April: 3 reed warblers, minimum of 11 sedge warblers, blackcap, chiffchaff, Cetti's warbler, linnet.
3 April: minimum of 114 tufted ducks, 3 teals, pheasant heard, buzzard. No new migrants: east wind doesn't help.
1 April: St Andrew's Broad had 33 tufted ducks, 3 shovelers, 1 teal, 4 gadwalls, great crested grebe. Reed bunting, singing chiffchaffs; heard green woodpecker, water rail & Cetti's warbler.
28 March, a.m. guided walk in mixed weather: pair of stonechats, little egret, reed buntings. p.m: swallow reported (per Norwich birdnews WhatsApp)..
27 March: peacock butterfly, 67 tufted ducks, 25 herring gulls, 2 marsh harriers, 2 buzzards, blackcap singing. Also heard: teal, green woodpecker, grey wagtail and pheasant.
26 March: comma butterfly. 32 tufted ducks, 1 male shoveler, 2 teals, 3 moorhens, 1 coot, 3 cormorants. Linnet; green woodpecker and water rail heard, several chiffchaffs.
20 March: immature male marsh harrier, 2 little grebes. Tufted ducks back to just a handful.
19 March: 3 little egrets together, chiffchaff singing. 2 shovelers, 3 teals, at least 108 tufted ducks. Green woodpecker yaffling, 2 stock doves flying over. Lots of white cherry plum in flower.
7 March: heard bearded tit (frustratingly, just once). Marsh tit in scrub near tidal flap. Great egret, little grebe, 4 teals, 20 tufted ducks. Reed bunting, green woodpecker, 2 kestrels, buzzard. Little egret on Whitlingham side of river, another birdwatcher reported chiffchaff heard singing from across the river. Coltsfoot and cherry plum in flower.
6 March: great egret (at least fourth day running), male stonechat. 48 tufted ducks, 11 teals (more than usual, perhaps disturbed at Whitlingham).
5 March: little grebe trilling, great egret, male stonechat.
4 March: great egret, female stonechat, green woodpecker yaffling, sparrowhawk, buzzard. Six gadwalls in display flight, a handful of tufted ducks still on the broad. Cetti's warbler & water rail heard (as usual). Various birds singing including song thrush (across the river), greenfinch in 3 places, reed bunting (rather half-heartedly), dunnock, robin.
28 February: c.40 meadow pipits late afternoon, a few linnets. Single great egret, which flew to Whitlingham CP. Sparrowhawk, kestrel. At least 46 magpies at dusk, probably more.
11 February, guided walk: 2 great white egrets flying over, then one by Broad, which flew towards Whitlingham. Shelduck in flight, heading east.
Jelly ear and yellow brain fungi, both looking revitalised by recent damp weather.
4 February: male stonechat, kestrel, 60 tufted ducks, 3 teals (perhaps more hidden from view).
30 January: female marsh harrier, male reed bunting, 14 teals, 29 tufted ducks, 15 Canada geese flying east.
29 January: very quiet. One mistle thrush flew over, heading west.
24 January: marsh harrier (usual immature male), male stonechat. Striking absence of ducks, just 3 tufted ducks.
22 January: 4 Egyptian geese flying east, 2 teals, just a handful of tufted ducks, very quiet.
16 January, guided walk: red-necked grebe still present [from 17 January it moved to Whitlingham Country Park, see Evening News story], with large numbers of tufted ducks, a single male pochard. Stonechat pair, grey wagtail, song thrush. Silverleaf fungus Chondrostereum purpureum one of several fungi species (has been recorded at Thorpe Marshes in previous winters).
Silverleaf fungus Chondrostereum purpureum; male stonechat (Derek Longe).
15 January: red-necked grebe (also present 14 January).
Red-necked grebe (Drew Lyness).
14 January: female marsh harrier, grey wagtail, collared dove flying north over reserve, siskin heard. Relatively low numbers of ducks, though including 5 male shovelers (that then disappeared). Great crested grebe in breeding plumage.
11 January, late pm: single bearded tit, c.40 teals, a few shovelers, flock of c.30 linnets, 2 snipe, 2 meadow pipits.
8 January: male marsh harrier, kingfisher, 14 teals, 12 shovelers, 1 male pochard.
7 January: 72 tufted ducks, 2 shovelers, 10 gadwalls, 2 teals (perhaps more out of sight).
3 January: great white egret, 180 tufted ducks, 9 shovelers (most flew to Whitlingham CP), a handul of gadwalls, teals and mallards. Bearded tits heard (MW).
Sightings from 2012 - 2024 here.
Wildlife reports & guide
Guide: click here to see NWT Thorpe Marshes map and guide.
2024 James Emerson's The Birds of Whitlingham & Thorpe 2024.
2023 James Emerson's The Birds of Whitlingham & Thorpe 2023.
2022 James Emerson's The Birds of Whitlingham & Thorpe 2022.
2021 James Emerson's The Birds of Whitlingham & Thorpe 2021
2020 James Emerson's The Birds of Whitlingham & Thorpe 2020
2019 Thorpe Marshes wildlife report for 2018-19
James Emerson's The Birds of Whitlingham & Thorpe 2019
2018 James Emerson's The Birds of Whitlingham & Thorpe 2018.
2017 Thorpe Marshes wildlife report for 2017.
James Emerson's Whitlingham Bird Report 2017.
2016 Thorpe Marshes wildlife report for 2016.
James Emerson's Whitlingham Bird Report 2016.
2015 Thorpe Marshes wildlife report for 2015.
James Emerson's Whitlingham Bird Report 2015.
2014 Thorpe Marshes wildlife report for 2014.
James Emerson's Whitlingham Bird Report 2014.
2013 Thorpe Marshes wildlife report for 2013.
James Emerson's Whitlingham Bird Report 2013.
2012 Thorpe Marshes wildlife report for 2012.
James Emerson's Whitlingham Bird Report 2012.
Reports are in PDF format.
Wildlife habitats
The three key habitats at Thorpe St Andrew Marshes are the ditches, gravel pit and grazed marshes - see below.
Other habitats, which are all part of the rich mix, include:
- rough marsh of willowherb and nettles, attracting many sedge warblers
- sallow (pussy willow) scrub, good for Cetti's warbler
- the adjacent tidal River Yare
- adjacent wet woodland
- areas of reed, including a reed rond on the river, attracting reed warblers.
Ditches
Many ditches – also called dykes in Norfolk – have abundant water soldier and frogbit, both aquatic plants. These are indicators of good water quality. In the Broads, the occurrence of the Norfolk hawker dragonfly, which is the symbol of the Broads Authority, is strongly linked to water soldier. The best place to see these is over the ditches close to the cattle corral. Water rails and water voles use the ditches, though both are difficult to see. |
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Ditches rich in water soldier (left), water mint (centre) and frogbit (right).
Gravel pit
Gravel extraction – as at Whitlingham Country Park across the river – has led to the creation of a lake, which has filled naturally with river water. Some may call this a ‘broad’: the true broads are man-made, too, though from flooded peat diggings, and typically are much shallower.
Gulls over the gravel pit, December 2011
The gravel pit here attracts wintering ducks, especially tufted ducks (picture below), pochards and gadwalls, moving between here and the Country Park. Unusual ducks call in at times, including smew, goldeneye, red-crested pochard and ferruginous duck over the 2011/12 winter.
Gravel beaches attract ‘loafing’ ducks and wading birds, which include little ringed plovers in spring/summer. Stock doves often feed on plant seeds on the gravel.
Grazed marshes
Livestock are essential to manage the open grazed marshes habitat.
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Without them, thick grasses and sedges would dominate even more, and would in time be taken over by scrub. More heavily grazed and trampled areas have a distinct structure of lumps and hollows that attract feeding snipe, and have flowers such as marsh marigold and lady’s smock. |
The flood: the grazing marshes include a 'flood', periodically under water, then drying out, here with a greylag goose and mallards in March 2012. The bright green shoots are emerging yellow flag iris plants.
This is an unofficial web page supporting the reserve, to show pictures, promote events, provide reports and note wildlife sightings.
For the official NWT web page, click here or on the logo.
For official information or policy, please contact the NWT directly.
Livestock in trouble? NWT emergency grazing number here.
There is no parking in the private road of Whitlingham Lane. If coming to Thorpe Marshes by car, please park on Yarmouth Road or Thunder Lane.
NWT guided walks
NWT monthly walks led by Chris Durdin
Thorpe Marshes guided walks should be booked, to keep track of numbers and to help contact people if there is a change of plan (e.g. severe weather or flooding).
Booking via NWT - bookings are made online via Eventbrite.
2026
Tuesday 8 September 10am
Wednesday 14 October 10am
Tuesday 3 November 10am
Wednesday 16 December 10am
2027
Thursday 14 January 10am
NWT walks are free of charge and last about 2 hours at a slow pace. They start from the pedestrian railway bridge at the end of Whitlingham Lane.
Remember to bring binoculars and a camera if you have them.
If you'd like to borrow binoculars, please contact Chris: I usually bring one spare pair but more than that is heavy to carry if they aren't needed.
Conditions very through the year and can be tricky to predict. Any time, boots may be wise as paths can be wet in places. In winter, wellies are a good idea when there are puddles or paths are muddy.
Walk meeting point: just over the bridge at the end of Whitlingham Lane.
This is the Whitlingham Lane off Yarmouth Road, opposite Thunder Lane, postcode
NR7 0QA.
What3Words for meeting point: audio/racing/tester
Additional guided walks can be arranged for small groups.
Other events
Dyke dipping: last Sunday morning of the month, May - September See NWT events listings.
Talks: we can offer a talk about NWT Thorpe St Andrew Marshes. Please contact Chris.
Blogs
Mostly blogs by Chris Durdin about Thorpe Marshes, plus some photo sets.
Blogs written for the NWT blog on the main NWT website are no longer online following reconstruction of the NWT website. This are still listed here, in italics, in case they are re-released,
However the links below the line take you to the previous 'blogger' site for NWT blogs, which remains online.
A host of warblers at NWT Thorpe Marshes May 2026, on the Honeyguide blogspot.
Winter at Thorpe Marshes January 2026, on the Honeyguide blogspot.
September at NWT Thorpe Marshes September 2025, on the Honeyguide blogspot.
Thorpe Marshes at its colourful best July 2025, on the Honeyguide blogspot.
Red-necked grebe at Thorpe and Whitlingham February 2025
Photos on Facebook, August 2024
Thorpe Marshes, 18 August 2022, U3A group. Guest blog on the Honeyguide blogspot.
Guided walks, May 2022. On the Honeyguide blogspot.
Walking again at Thorpe Marshes (Water, Mills and Marshes project, November 2020)
Corncrake at Thorpe Marshes (June 2020)
Thorpe Marshes, a refuge in lockdown (May 2020)
Signs of spring at Thorpe Marshes (February 2020)
Three swans a-swimming ... on the path (January 2020); earlier version from December 2019.
A wet day in November (November 2019)
October at NWT Thorpe Marshes (October 2019)
Notes from Thorpe Marshes (August 2019)
Beetlemania (December 2018).
A Tale of Two Bugs (November 2018, on Honeyguide blog.
In Praise of Ivy (written October 2018).
Red bartsia bee discovered at Thorpe Marshes (September 2018).
Oasis in the drought (July 2018) plus photos on Facebook.
Norfolk hawkers at Thorpe Marshes (June 2018).
Thorpe Marshes in the 1960s part 2 (April 2018, on Honeyguide blog)
Thorpe Marshes in the 1960s (January 2018)
What are the chances of that happening? (August 2017) [by Derek Longe].
Sedge warblers return (April 2017).
The times they are a-changin’ (February 2017).
Gathering gadwall (January 2017).
Ovington Ramblers visit Thorpe Marshes (November 2016) [not by CD.]
Pretty damsels (September 2016).
Trapped! (May 2016).
Pop goes the weasel (February 2016).
Winter access to Thorpe Marshes (December 2015).
Willow Emeralds return to Thorpe Marshes (October 2015).
In for the count (September 2015), on Norfolk hawker and orange-tip surveys.
Coltsfoot at Thorpe Marshes (March 2015).
A Gem of an Emerald (September 2014).
Bartsia, mint and combing bee (August 2014).
Damsel delights (July 2014).
November flowers (November 2013).
Half moon highlight (October 2013).
Purple haze (August 2013).
Tree bumblebees at Thorpe Marshes (July 2013).
February at Thorpe Marshes (February 2013).
January at Thorpe Marshes (January 2013).
Other NWT blogs by Chris Durdin:
Bee Orchids get my vote, June 2017.
Cranes and Hickling Broad, November 2016.
Big Yellow bee orchids are back, June 2016.
The Meadow in the City, June 2015
NWT Thorpe Marshes Volunteer Group
This group meets once a month on a Friday at the pedestrian railway bridge at the end of Whitlingham Lane, Thorpe St Andrew. Activities vary and are a mixture of practical conservation work (especially in winter) plus surveying and wildlife ID.
Contact alanm@norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk to go on the circulation list about these, and to receive invitations to book a place.
Thorpe Marshes are at the end of Whitlingham Lane, Thorpe St Andrew, Norwich, NR7 0QA, OS Grid reference TG 266 083. Please note that this is the Whitlingham Lane which is North of the river, NOT the one accessed from Trowse.
Recording wildlife at Thorpe Marshes through NBIS
As part of the Heritage Lottery Funded Water, Mills & Marshes project, Norfolk Wildlife Trust is encouraging wildlife recording on the nature reserves at Upton Broad and Marshes and Thorpe Marshes.
This is through the Norfolk Biodiversity Information Service through an online process (click on red writing to see the 'wild walks' information).
We particularly welcome records of all/any mammals, amphibians and reptiles. For more experienced naturalists, reference to Thorpe Marshes wildlife reports (see this page) will also reveal where there is potential for new information, for example a wide range of invertebrates.
Willow Emerald, 17 August (Derek Longe).
Gallery of photos of dragonflies and damselflies of NWT Thorpe Marshes on Facebook here. Last updated June 2020.
Old news and features
New bench (December 2016) at the viewing area over St Andrews Broad, in memory of the two young people who lost their lives in the broad in summer 2015.
Changes at Thorpe Marshes, May 2016: new fences and gates are installed, plus a pond-dipping platform for education work. The shingle spit is now fenced off, on the advice of the Health & Safety Executive and police following drownings in summer 2015.
Drake domestic mallard x pintail at River Green, Thorpe St Andrew: photos here.
Nightingale: hear and see the bird near the reserve on YouTube here (Ricky Cleverly, 23 May).
Mediterranean gull photos from suburban Thorpe St Andrew, Norwich, January 2015, here on Facebook. Seen with group, 19 Jan. Last seen 10 February, not there in second half of February.
Local accommodation
Coming from some distance and visiting NWT Thorpe Marshes? Options for accommodation include:
Oaklands Hotel, Yarmouth Road
Other previously listed here have closed - have I missed anywhere?
Other links
More wildlife records from the Yare Valley on Yare Valley Wildlife.
Birds and beer blogspot from James, with sightings from Thorpe Marshes and other local spots.
Spindle berries, within the cattle corral.
Sycamore tar spot fungus: easy to find on autumnal sycamore leaves,
Creeping thistle with yellow foliage, by the riverside path. To explain, I have copied a quote: "This is caused by Pseudomonas syringae, a bacteria that produces a chemical called tagetitoxin, which poison chloroplasts and causes chlorosis."
Nodding bur marigold, photographed 7 September.
Water vole platform - a survey is underway. Please leave alone!
Common blue damselfly, including on paths such as here.
A cluster of leaves on the end of a willow twig, 29 March 2018, is a gall.
The gall is caused by a gall midge called Rabdophaga rosaria which forms camellia galls on the terminal bud growth of various willow species. Each gall consists of 30 or more closely packed leaves which are initially green but as they mature turn brown in late summer but unlike the leaves they stay on the tree throughout the winter with the pinkish midge larva still inside. The larva emerges in spring. The gall is apparently easier to spot than the gall midge.
The willow species will be easier to determine when in leaf.
ID, words and picture: Jenny Jones.
Whinchat (Ricky Cleverley), 1 Sept 2017
Buff-tip moth caterpillars on sallow, 23 August. Photo and ID by Derek Longe.
Tachinid fly Phasia hemiptera - a parasite, usually on bugs - on angelica, 14 August. Photo and ID by James Emerson.
Comma caterpillar on nettles by the concrete pad, 4 August. It is said to resemble a bird dropping.
Common redstart, juvenile, 17 July (David Porter).
Orange rust growing on meadowsweet Triphragmium ulmariae.
November butterfly: comma on ivy (1 November 2015)
Autumn colour on guelder rose, 27 October.
Ruddy darter: note the narrow waist and the black legs, which can be seen against the pale stone.
Velvet shank: on the woodland edge, this one on the guided walk on 17 Feb 2017.
Small Stag's Horn fungus Calocera cornea
Caddis fly: on hogweed is a good place to see them in autumn.
Marsh marigolds.
4-spot orb web spider, Araneus quadratus
Water rail: often vocal, always tricky to see. Several sightings of chicks this year.
Azure Damselflies, here egg-laying, typical posture 'in tandem'.
Common blue damselfly - big numbers.
Norfolk Hawker: regular in June and July (also late May this year).
Oedemera nobilis, thick-legged flower beetle, 29 May 2018, on an ox-eye daisy.
Jelly ear fungus, lots on an elder by the riverbank.
Sedge warbler
Hairy dragonfly - the first dragonfly of the season.
Stonechat (Ricky Cleverley), in the bramble patch area October to early April, though this year staying into May.
Orange balsam.
Great spotted woodpecker on an ash tree from the railway bridge (Derek Longe).
Guided walk, January 2020.
