Red-footed Falcons and Hickling Reserve.

After another very poor showing for what used to be common passage birds, the end of April and the start of May saw the UK experiencing a spell of very hot weather (indeed, it was the hottest start to May on record), when on the evening of May 2nd, several Red-footed Falcons appeared in north Suffolk. My immediate reaction was certainly not to jump in a car and drive down there, but was much more a thought of “we’re bound to get one at Hickling tomorrow”.

Red-footed Falcon, Hickling Broad. Mick Saunt May 8 2025

Over the years, the Hickling region has been exceptional for Red-footed Falcons, and since I moved here in late-2006, I’ve lost count of the number birds I’ve seen in the area over the years, even managing to find a few of my own. Although a Redfoot could be seen anywhere in the area, there are hotspots for the species on the reserve, helping to narrow the search further. Popular areas include the 100-Acre field, the long line of dead trees, the Meadow Dyke area and the scattered bushes on the south end of Brayden. I’ve also seen them from the tree tower and enjoyed exceptionally close views from access to the 100-Acre field with AJK. I wouldn't at all be surprised if it is the best site in the UK to see the species.

The end of the new workings (known by some as Brendan’s) provides a decent vantage point from which to scan from the species. I remember a few superb bright, sunny, early mornings with Ryan and Andy during the first Covid lockdown period, when we picked out perched Redfoots over towards Meadow Dyke and enjoyed lengthy views in the still days and quiet skies of that time. A Squacco Heron and Franklin’s Gull during that six-day period made it just about the most exciting and enjoyable week I’ve had here, in terms of birds.

Best area for Red-footed Falcon at Hickling. Whiteslea track and the New Workings in the upper left. Scanning this area from the end of the track to Stubb often pays a dividend.

The weather turned decidedly cooler and windier on Saturday May 3 and conditions were no longer as attractive for a Redfoot. Nonetheless, undaunted and full of optimism, I cycled over to the reserve and made for the vantage point. Over the next few hours, I barely saw anything of interest, never mind a Redfoot - or even a Hobby - and eventually cycled back home pretty cold and dispirited. Sunday May 4 saw little change in the weather but I figured it was still worth another look. I cycled straight down to the vantage point and over the next few hours again managed to see very little of any note. Phil Heath joined me for a while but even together we had no greater joy.

The morning of May 5 felt a touch more pleasant, but still began rather dull and overcast. For the third day, I cycled down to the reserve, my optimism returning slightly. As I approached the end of the new workings, I saw Assistant Warden John and his partner on the bank and joined them. It felt more birdy and before long we’d seen a few Cranes and a handful of hobbies. The sun was starting to appear and the sky was becoming much bluer. I was having distant views of a falcon that I couldn’t reconcile as a Hobby but it was just too far off, so I left it. A couple more people arrived and then Phil turned up again. I mentioned the falcon that piqued my interest to Phil but by now several Hobbies were active and it was feeling much more positive and birdy. It wasn’t long before there were Hobbies all over the place and we were intently scanning them for promising individuals. After a fair while, I had a bird fly through my scope that looked all dark and I followed it for a several minutes. At no point could I see any white cheeks or paler underparts. I tried to get Phil on it but lost it in amongst the Hobbies and Swifts. It was only ten minutes or so before I picked it up again and confirmed that it seemed to be dark all over the head. I got Phil on the bird quickly this time and luckily it stayed in front of us at a reasonable distance, allowing us to scrutinise it more fully over several minutes.

The weekend was dull, cool, overcast and uninspiring. See above! Monday saw an improvement...

Structurally, at times it seemed slightly fatter, short bodied and perhaps broader (or shorter) winged than a Hobby from some angles but it could be very Hobby-like at times as it darted about in the breeze. The underparts looked all dark, apart from the rufous lower belly / vent area, and the head sometimes appeared to be a shade darker than the upperparts and breast. It was remarkably hard to see the underwing well but when we did get good views, it was clearly chequered black and white, a touch more contrasting than on a Hobby, likely due to a lighter ground colour to the flight feathers? The rear edge of the wing was dark and broad.

We were both happy with our views of the 2cy male Red-footed Falcon and the few people present were equally delighted to see the bird, all leaving not long after it had flown off around the corner onto Brayden marshes and towards Horsey.

I called Andy and he came over promptly, joining Phil and I to continue scanning the numerous Hobbies. At this point, I was going through the dead trees around the 100 Acre Field, when I kept getting views of what I presumed was the same distant falcon as earlier. It was hunting low over the reeds and perching frequently, seeming to show a pale front with a rusty tinge, but again it was just too distant. We scrutinised it several times but although it looked very promising, it just wasn’t good enough for us to be happy, and eventually it slipped away again.

About 15 minutes passed and I was then scanning directly east from the end of the new workings when a female Red-footed Falcon shot into the scope at quite close range, perching up on a dead snag. I blurted out the bird and its location, and everyone was quickly on it as it sat atop the bush showing off in the sun, very nicely. This was most likely the bird seen at Potter at the weekend by Pete and Dawn and then briefly in flight near Deep Dyke earlier this morning. A real good-looking bird, and surely one of the most attractive birds it is possible to see in the UK. A well-coloured individual, quite deeply suffused orange on the head, more so than the average bird and with a coarsely vermiculated dark grey mantle. Appeared marginally lighter and slighter than the Hobbies and with shorter, broader-looking wings, white cheek patch, black moustachial, boldly barred underwing and tail, and red legs/feet.

The next couple of hours was spent scouring the skies for anything of interest. There had been very little in terms of waders all spring at Hickling and it has become a shadow of its former self now that the two wader scrapes are no longer maintained to attract for passage birds, since Andy ended his voluntary control of the water levels. Hopefully, they can be restored to their former glory before the vegetation grows up on the new workings and they become even less attractive to waders.

So, all in all, along with the Great Reed Warbler, there were finally a few good birds and some excitement on the reserve this spring. However, a lot of hours went into searching for our own Redfoot and despite our success, it was pretty uninspiring at times – especially on those first two days. It’s easy to see why many people just drive to whatever is around these days as searching for your own birds, even in productive spots, is very hard work now with fewer ‘common’ species to keep you interested. That’s probably why we hardly saw a single birder searching at perhaps the best site in the country for Red-footed Falcons when several were only a relatively short distance away. The lack of birds in general, and the effects of climate change in particular are a constant nagging reminder of where our refusal to adopt more sustainable lifestyles is taking us. It’s all making birding a bit of a chore for regular patch birders at times – day after day of little happening, and the dulling experience of documenting long-term declines in the same area can be dispiriting, but there still (just) enough at present to keep me going.

There may well be a few more Red-footed Falcons picked up in the coming days as a return to warmer conditions is expected. Good luck to everyone out there searching a patch!

Thanks to east Norfolk stalwart and legend Mick Saunt for the use of his photo on this page!