It was a case of third time lucky for me. As I had previously said I had already made a trip to Norfolk and another to Kent but failed to find one. They can be seen from October until April, when birds start their migration back to their Scandinavian breeding grounds.
A distinctive lark with yellow and black face markings and black 'horns' (feather tufts) in breeding plumage. They are almost exclusively coastal birds. Numbers vary greatly from one winter to the next. In a good year, a few hundred may be present, but in others they can be very scarce. Watch for them shuffling their way across shingle and sandy beaches.
I was very excited to see this beauty. It has been several years since I last saw one and thought I must make a special effort this year. I got lucky.
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