The Flickr Littleouse Image Generatr

A fallen tree on the River Little Ouse, Santon Downham, Suffolk

The River Little Ouse in Thetford, Norfolk.

A tributary of the River Great Ouse, for much of its length it defines the boundary between Norfolk and Suffolk.

It rises east of Thelnetham, close to the source of the River Waveney, which flows eastwards while the Little Ouse flows west. The village of Blo' Norton owes its name to the river: it was earlier known as Norton Bell-'eau, from being situated near this "fair stream".

In this area the river creates a number of important wetland areas such as at Blo' Norton and Thelnetham Fens, and areas managed by the Little Ouse Headwaters Project. The course continues through Rushford, Thetford, Brandon, and Hockwold before the river joins the Great Ouse north of Littleport in Cambridgeshire.

Information Source:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/River_Little_Ouse

Aerial view of Santon - site of a Norfolk lost village beside the Little Ouse River. Norfolk UK aerial image

Aerial view of Santon - site of a Norfolk lost village beside the Little Ouse River. Norfolk UK aerial image

Aerial view of Santon - site of a Norfolk lost village beside the Little Ouse River. Norfolk UK aerial image

Aerial view of Santon - site of a Norfolk lost village beside the Little Ouse River. Norfolk UK aerial image

Aerial view of Santon - site of a Norfolk lost village beside the Little Ouse River. Norfolk UK aerial image

Aerial view of Santon - site of a Norfolk lost village beside the Little Ouse River. Norfolk UK aerial image. All Saints Church.

A different location on the nearby Little Ouse River on the Suffolk Norfolk border for four contrasting images across the year

The River Little Ouse in Thetford, Norfolk.

A tributary of the River Great Ouse, for much of its length it defines the boundary between Norfolk and Suffolk.

It rises east of Thelnetham, close to the source of the River Waveney, which flows eastwards while the Little Ouse flows west. The village of Blo' Norton owes its name to the river: it was earlier known as Norton Bell-'eau, from being situated near this "fair stream".

In this area the river creates a number of important wetland areas such as at Blo' Norton and Thelnetham Fens, and areas managed by the Little Ouse Headwaters Project. The course continues through Rushford, Thetford, Brandon, and Hockwold before the river joins the Great Ouse north of Littleport in Cambridgeshire.

Information Source:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/River_Little_Ouse

The location of Thetford Castle, a medieval motte and bailey castle on Castle Lane in Thetford, Norfolk.

The first castle in Thetford, a probable 11th century Norman ringwork called Red Castle, was replaced in the 12th century by a much larger motte and bailey castle on the other side of the town. This new castle was largely destroyed in 1173 by Henry II, although the huge motte, the second largest man-made mound in England, remained intact.

The first castle on the Thetford site was Red Castle and was probably built shortly after the Norman conquest by William de Warenne, the Earl of Surrey.

By 1100, the town of Thetford was controlled by Roger Bigod, the Earl of Norfolk. Roger Bigod decided to build a new motte and bailey castle. The castle was constructed by hand, using workers digging with wooden shovels, and probably without pickaxes. It is estimated that the motte would have taken around 24,000 man days of effort to build.

The Bigod family continued to build their grip on the region, taking advantage of their powerful castles at Thetford, Framlingham, Bungay, and Walton. Roger's son, Hugh Bigod, played a prominent role during the civil war years of the Anarchy, rebelling against King Stephen from his strongholds in East Anglia. It appears likely that a stone wall had been built around the bailey around this time, and recent work has speculated that a stone keep was also erected on the site.

At the end of the war, Henry II took the throne and attempted to restore royal power across the region. In 1157, Henry seized Bigod's castles; he ultimately returned Framlingham and Bungay but retained Thetford Castle for his own use. Hugh Bigod then joined the revolt by Henry's sons, seizing the castle, but in 1173 Henry's forces captured the castle and destroyed the fortifications. The mound, however, proved effectively indestructible.

Thetford declined after the 12th century, and the castle rapidly became disused, although as late as 1558, the Castle Yard was in use and still said to have been surrounded with a stone wall.

Local medieval tradition suggested that the mound had been made by the devil, after he completed the dykes at Narborough and Newmarket. Other traditions claimed that the mound covered a palace filled with treasure, or six silver bells from Thetford Priory.

Information Source:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thetford_Castle

The largest remaining river valley fen in England. Aerial view of Redgrave and Lopham Fen - the source of the River Little Ouse (running west) and the River Waveney (running east). 127 hectare site: National Nature Reserve and biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Suffolk

The largest remaining river valley fen in England. Aerial view of Redgrave and Lopham Fen - the source of the River Little Ouse (running west) and the River Waveney (running east). 127 hectare site: National Nature Reserve and biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Suffolk

The largest remaining river valley fen in England. Aerial view of Redgrave and Lopham Fen - the source of the River Little Ouse (running west) and the River Waveney (running east). 127 hectare site: National Nature Reserve and biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Suffolk

The largest remaining river valley fen in England. Aerial view of Redgrave and Lopham Fen - the source of the River Little Ouse (running west) and the River Waveney (running east). 127 hectare site: National Nature Reserve and biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Suffolk

The largest remaining river valley fen in England. Aerial view of Redgrave and Lopham Fen - the source of the River Little Ouse (running west) and the River Waveney (running east). 127 hectare site: National Nature Reserve and biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Suffolk

The background to these is that I had been watching these gulls from the boat, and instead of fishing, they just fly along the river quite close to the surface, as if pretending to be swallows.
When consulted the bird books say that they also catch insects in flight, which rather gave the game away. So I spent some time yesterday trying to photograph the behaviour. It would have been easier if they had been taking dragonflies, but it seems that mostly they take smaller bugs.
Someone has suggested that this is a mayfly, which seems plausible.

Very characteristic warbler pose

I was zoomed out to get a photo of a derelict building on the river bank, when a brown bird started up from the reeds (in shot). So I instantly switched to the bird, but was too slow to zoom back in, so less resolution on it than I would like.
Only a couple of miles from RSPB Lakenheath Fen, so perhaps not a surprise to see it, but still feel very privileged. And it's only the second one I have seen.