Autumn on the RSPB Reserve at Titchwell Marsh on the north Norfolk coast is very much a season of transition - an exciting time of the year charged with the anticipation of the unexpected.
The reserve can be likened to a busy international airport. The departure lounge sees of warblers, marsh harriers, avocets and other summer-breeding visitors - arrivals welcoming northern waders, waterfowl, visiting thrushes and dozens of other species relocating to our shores or passing through to more distant over-wintering grounds.
Birdwatchers scrutinise the various reserve habitats - the willow carr, the lagoons, mud flats, the sea - keeping a lookout for unusual travellers which may have become lost, disorientated during this season of passage migration.
The residents prepare for the winter and the long-staying black-winged stilt, a bird which should be in Africa, continues to delight Titchwell's visitors.