Brampton, Norfolk

  • Last sight of the summer falcon

    It was almost the last weekend of the summer – August 25th. The Swifts were long gone and family groups of Swallows were feeding low over long meadow. The next day they had left for the south.

    Just as I walked down the old track from Brampton to Oxnead, I spotted the unmistakeable profile of a falcon just over Keeper’s Wood. Its flight was erratic. Just at treetop height, interspersed with rapid spiraling changes of direction. I had seen this before – a Hobby hunting for dragonflies. With ease and grace it flew west to east along the spine of the wood and back again before disappearing from site towards the Ash Plantation. The whole show lasting no more than a couple of minutes.

    Later that day, whilst walking along the railway line and admiring the sunset, a dragonfly – a Southern Hawker, I think – was diligently hunting midges and other small flying insects. Its flight path formed a triangular pattern, broken only by rapid spiralling changes of direction as it homed in on its prey. The similarity with that of the falcon, the next step up the food chain, was remarkable.

  • Brampton Spring 2018: Cuckoo

    After what seemed like a very long wait, the Cuckoo has arrived in the valley. Announcing its arrival with a rapid succession of calls at 4.50am from a perch on a tree somewhere along the Bure.

    For many years the Cuckoo has arrived in the last week in April. The delay this year due to the cold spring that we have had. Last year it was not heard until 25th May, so we could count this one at least as “earlier than last year”.  The British Trust for Ornithology tracks transmitter tagged Cuckoos every year, these can be seen via the following weblink;  https://www.bto.org/science/migration/tracking-studies/cuckoo-tracking

     

  • Brampton Spring Clean 2018

    Brampton’s hedges and lanes are clear of litter in time for the Spring again. Thanks to all the volunteers for their efforts – some particularly notable ones including Richard Berry’s monster haul of Fosters Lager cans, as well as enough car bumpers and trim to rebuild a car. We were blessed with fine weather, which went some way towards making this, sadly necessary, task more bearable.

    Equipment at the ready (thanks to Broadland DC for the loan)
    A selection of the volunteer litter picker army.
    Assorted grot.

  • Brampton Litter Pick 2018

    The Brampton Litter Pick is set for the morning of Saturday 17th February 2018. If you can spare an hour and a half to help then please let Mark Little know (or send a message via this the Village Website). We will meet at the village hall at 11.00am. Broadland District Council have kindly lent us some litter pickers. Be prepared for rain just in case, but the sun usually shines on us, so here’s hoping!

  • Brampton Harvest Service

    Brampton Harvest Service – tomorrow – Sunday 8th October 2017

    A quick reminder that the Harvest Service for Brampton is tomorrow (Sunday) at 12.30pm. A service of traditional hymns to celebrate the end of harvest.

    Any food donations for the FOODBANK would be welcome and will be gathered during the Service.

    Everybody welcome.

  • Brampton Spring: the (long awaited) return of the Cuckoo

    This year the Cuckoo was a late arrival in the valley. We can usually expect to hear their first call in late April, but not this year. Bill heard the first call yesterday morning (25th May) and I did not hear mine until 6.30 this morning (26th). The call was high and clear, sailing above the chorus of warblers and blackbirds that we are, thankfully, used to.

    As the Cuckoo is such a wily and observant species, not given to wasting energy – or so I like to assume – then the species upon which is parasitises (the egg host) must be just into full egg laying. Perhaps the Sedge Warblers along the Bure. Certainly not the garden Dunnocks who seem to have been hard at work for a month or so already. We are unlikely to find out for certain. All we can say is the the Cuckoo is back from West Africa – Sumer is incumen in..

  • Brampton Spring: Swifts return

    Chilly and overcast weather conditions in early May seemed to delay the return of the Brampton Swifts. Elsewhere, mostly in southern England reports came in of the arrival of the Summer visitor, but it was not until the 10th May that the familiar sight and sound of Swifts returned to the village. Since then the warmer evenings have had the added excitement of a screaming, roller-coaster-ing flight of a dozen or more Swifts dashing above the rooftops.

    The sad fact is that, with each year and each house improvement their nest site choices are diminishing. We need a nest box building project.

  • Brampton Spring Litter Pick

    As promised, the rain cleared just in time for the annual Tidy Up on Saturday. A dozen volunteers combed the highways and byways of the parish in order to gather the rubbish dumped by the careless. Seven bags full of beer cans, bottles, fast food boxes and others detritus resulted from an hours work. Thank you to everyone who contributed theie time.

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  • Old brickwork at Oxnead Lock

    The decaying brickwork of the Oxnead Lock. According to Edwin Rose (writing in 1993 as part of the Norfolk Archaeological team at Gressenahll) this brickwork was probably built in 1851 when the Mill was refurbished, although it is possible that some parts of the structure may date back to 1775 when the original engineering work on the cut was completed.

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  • Oxnead: Eye of Heron

    What struck me was the cold, glassy eye of the Heron perching on a low fence at Oxnead this morning. The slight frost last night had still not entirely melted and the young Heron seemed to be waiting for movement or a sign of life.

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