Covid-19 (Coronavirus) – Updated 24th March 2020
As going to the Reserve is exercise and as the Reserve is spacious, after much deliberation we have decided to leave the Reserve open to members only, but we will monitor the position daily. In order to do this, members are asked to please co-operate by:
- Remembering social distancing – 2m minimum between people.
- No more than two people, per hide at any one time, subject to (1) above.
- Please carry cleanser with you for hide doors, flaps and locks and wipe down regularly.
Can members users please ensure they follow HM Government guidance in respect of hand sanitisation and social distancing, and ensure they avoid the Reserve if they or any family members (or anyone else you may be in contact with) are showing any symptoms associated with Covid-19.
Lost Property
Items that have been found at Marsh Lane today (15th July) have been handed into the Estate Office and if you have lost anything, it is worth contacting Kay Gleeson (01676 522020) to see if your items have been found. Other items found over the years are three pairs of glasses, a cap and a child’s boot ! If you wish to claim any items, do please be in touch.
Work Party Dates
Subject to the Government lifting the lock-down restrictions, the proposed Work Party dates are:
11th August – 6 pm
15th September – 6 pm
Link to bird ringing group – http://www.westmidlandsringinggroup.co.uk/nhs/4594917630
Updates
31st July 2020 – Records added
30th July 2020 – Records updated
31st July 2020
Sunny intervals, south-westerly.
A female Goosander on Car Park Pool was slightly unseasonal and was the first for some weeks. Migrant waders were limited to a single Green Sandpiper and two Common Sandpipers. There were seven Herons, five Little Egrets and there was a Willow Warbler by the car park gates.
30th July 2020
Sunny and increasingly warm with high cloud.
Early this morning there were singles of Common and Green Sandpiper and a Little Egret flew downstream. There was just a single Common Tern on Car Park Pool whilst a very vocal juvenile Buzzard was sitting next to River Hide hoping to be fed by parents. There was a Green Woodpecker there as well.
Plenty of Warbler activity included a singing Willow Warbler plus two Blackcaps, a Whitethroat and a Bullfinch on the railway embankment; a Reed Warbler and two Chiffchaffs along the central stream, further Reed Warblers, Cetti’s Warbler, Blackcap and Chiffchaff along the causeway; a singing Willow Warbler along the Old Road south of the car park and there were a number of Reed Warblers active around the car park pond. Lastly, there was a Blackcap immediately behind Oak Hide.
As the day wore on the Little Egret crowd increased to five and there were also five Herons. A Grey Wagtail fed on the muck heap and the goose count included 262 Greylags and 86 Canadas.
29th July 2020
Mostly, sunny intervals.
There was a juvenile Hobby over the Car Park Pool at 06:30 this morning and a Peregrine was seen four hours later over Railway Hide. Other birds in the log included Green Sandpiper, five Little Egrets and both male and female Cetti’s Warbler in the north causeway bay.
Little Egrets – Railway Pool – 29 July 2020 – Photographs by Stef Fraczek
Wren – North Causeway Hide – North Causeway Hide
Little Grebe – North Causeway – 29 July 2020 – Photographs by Stef Fraczek
A helpful butterfly count this morning comprised 51 Gatekeepers, 12 Meadow Browns, a Purple Hairstreak behind the causeway screens, a Red Admiral, a Painted Lady, a Common Blue, nine Peacocks, one Holly Blue, three Large Whites, 16 Green-veined Whites, five Small Skippers, three Speckled Woods, a Small Copper and two Small Whites.
Lastly, a Stoat was seen well just on the approach to Railway Hide.
28th July 2020
Overcast with occasional sunny intervals.
Today’s counts included 310 Greylags, a Greylag Canada Hybrid, a Farmyard Goose, three Shovelers, eleven Teal, six Gadwall broods with 36 ducklings, 19 Tufted Duck broods with 92 ducklings, two adult and one juvenile Oystercatcher (the juvenile Green A26), one juvenile Little Ringed Plover, an adult Hobby, seven adult and two juvenile Little Grebes, four Little Egrets, three adult and four juvenile Common Terns, a juvenile Water Rail in the causeway, two Green Sandpipers and one Common Sandpiper.
Butterflies included a female Purple Hairstreak low down on the Guelder Rose Bushes behind Railway Hide, a Painted Lady with no location also a Common Blue.
Common Blue Butterflies – Car Park – 24 July 2020 – Photograph by Stef Fraczek
27th July 2020
Wet all day.
The inclement weather saw some hirundine passage with 26 House Martins through between 05:45 and 10:10. Waders included two Oystercatchers, and singles of Green Sandpiper, Common Sandpiper and Little Plover. A Raven flew over Siden Hill Wood and Hobby and Sparrowhawk were seen from Railway Hide.
Later in the morning two Swifts, a Swallow and “steady trickle” of Sand and House Martins went south. A Hobby was seen several times over the Reedbed.
26th July 2020
Sunny intervals and showers.
Waders this morning comprised one adult and four juvenile Little Ringed Plovers, two Green Sandpipers and two Common Sandpipers together with a single Redshank. An immature Peregrine was on the prowl attempting to disrupt birds but other counts nevertheless comprised four Little Egrets, ten Teal, two Shoveler, ten Gadwall broods, 16 Tufted broods, 20 Mute Swans and eight cygnets.
A Lesser Whitethroat showed well on the causeway and other noteworthy birds included a Cetti’s Warbler and a Sparrowhawk.
25th July 2020
Sunny intervals, fresh south-westerly, later heavy showers.
From 08:40 to 10:30 there were two Common Sandpipers on Railway Pool, five Shovelers on Car Park Pool, seven Teal spread between the pools, a Sparrowhawk, 19 Mute Swans and eight cygnets and one Little Egret.
A Whimbrel, the second of the year, was present on Railway Pool briefly between 11:15 and 11:20 when accidentally flushed by a Heron and departed to the south.
Other counts today comprised 156 Greylags, a Greylag Canada Cross, 50 Canadas, eight Teal, 35 Gadwall and six broods, 19 Tufted and 15 broods, four Little Egrets, four Herons, six adult and two juvenile Little Grebes, four Cormorants, 13 Moorhens, 86 Coot, a juvenile Water Rail in the causeway bay, 12 Black-headed Gulls, five Lesser Black-backed Gulls, five adult and three juvenile Common Terns plus a dead adult on the Car Park Pool islands, a Ringed Plover, 79 Lapwing and a Green Sandpiper at Patrick Bridge.
Butterflies in the sunny intervals comprised 18 Meadow Browns, 23 Gatekeepers, 31 Green-veined Whites, a Comma, two Red Admirals, five Speckled Woods, a Common Blue by Railway Hide, one Ringlet, eight Peacocks and Small Skipper.
Damselflies and Dragonflies comprised 80 Blue-tailed, 25 Common Blue, four Small Red-eyeds and four Emeralds together with a pair of Banded Demoiselles, six Common Darters, three Black-tailed Skimmers, one Emperor and one Southern Hawker.
24th July 2020
Sunny south-westerly.
Four Little Egrets were present on Car Park Pool this morning and waders included a Common Sandpiper, a Little Ringed Plover and Black-tailed Godwit, the latter from 08:00 to 08:30 only.
23rd July 2020
Sunny intervals, becoming increasingly overcast with light showers late afternoon early evening, south-westerly.
At 11:30 a pristine Red Kite circled over the lorry park before being driven back to the south by the attention of mobbing Common Terns. At the same time an adult Greenshank came into Car Park Pool with a single Oystercatcher and some Lapwings. Returning waders at this time are usually adults as opposed to young with the young following later. Often with waders one or other sex looks after the young with the other one moving south more quickly. The Oystercatcher was the colour-ringed adult from 2018.
Lastly, there was a female Tufted with 24 young, presumably having adopted some from another female.
Later in the morning a least five different Ravens were seen, two flew over the wood at 10:30 and three flew over the flood plain at 11:15. At 11:30 there were three feeding on the tip field, presumably the earlier three.
Eight Gadwall broods and 11 Tufted broods were counted this morning along with a single Teal and two Little Egrets. Oystercatcher numbers increased to three including Green A20 ringed earlier this year. There were also two Common Sandpipers, a Green Sandpiper and at least one Shoveler.
More less usual butterflies included a Brown Argus and a Small Copper at the south end of the Reedbed.
Railway Pool-Tufted Duck tries to protect her chicks but there are just to many Crows! – 22nd July 2020 – Photograph by Stef Fraczek
22nd July 2020
South-westerly, sunny intervals.
Two Ospreys flew over together during the morning and put most of the birds up off the pools. They headed north-east. Other birds today comprised five Little Egrets, 15 Common Terns and singles each of Green and Common Sandpiper. There were still lots of Meadow Browns and Gatekeepers across the Reserve and there was a Common Blue in the car park and two Small Coppers in the horse paddock. In the evening 174 Lapwings, three Oystercatchers, five Teal were all counted on or around the pools with a Whitethroat by Railway Hide and total of 54 Tufted Duck young spread across the Reserve.
Car Park Pool – Common Sandpiper- 22nd July 2020 – Photograph by Stef Fraczek
Railway Pool – Tufted Duck with 26 chicks – 22nd July 2020 – Photograph by Stef Fraczek
A ringing session in the back gate copse was, perhaps surprisingly, remarkably productive. Sixty birds, with no re-traps, were caught in three nets and comprised of the following: –
35 Blackcaps 3 (a) 32 (j)
seven Chiffchaffs all (j)
five Reed Warblers 2(a) 3 (j)
three Garden Warblers 3 (j)
two Sedge Warblers 1 (a) 1 (j)
one Whitethroat (j)
one Willow Warbler (a)
two Dunnocks 1 (a) 1 (j)
two Great Tits 2 (j)
one Robin (j)
one Wren (j)
21st July 2020
Sunny but cool start with temperatures at 5 degrees and a light mist, some cloud coming up later.
Early on there was a Common and Green Sandpiper on Railway Pool and a small trickle of Sand Martins (at least 10) went south at 06:00. A Sedge Warbler was in song on the opposite shore to Oak Hide and later in the morning, what were presumably the weekend’s two Black-tailed Godwits, returned to Car Park Pool.
Water Rails have again bred in the north causeway bay with one juvenile at least seen in the now cleared channels.
Juvenile Water Rail from the North Causeway Hide – 21st July 2020 – Photograph by Martin Durkin
As the morning progressed other birds seen included a Little Ringed Plover, an adult Hobby, nine adult and eight juvenile Common Terns, five Little Egrets, ten Gadwall broods, 13 Tufted broods, two unringed Oystercatchers, 130 Greylags, ten Canadas; butterflies included a Holly Blue by the back gate, a White-letter Hairstreak on the Wych Elms by the Aeromodellers and at least one Marbled White.
The corvid flock on the flood plain remains as large as the previous few days with at least 300 Jackdaws, a number of Crows (uncounted) and a least one Rook. There were also 30 Starlings on the flood plain and a family party of Goldfinches at Patrick Farm.
20th July 2020
Sunny but with a cool north-westerly.
At 08:15 seven Swifts moved south along with two Sand Martins. There were six Common Terns still on Car Park Pool and Reed Warblers were showing well in the bushes adjacent to the pond by the car park. One Little Egret flew into Car Park Pool from Bradnock’s Marsh.
At 09:40 a Roe Deer was seen in the north causeway area.
19th July 2020
Mostly sunny, brisk north-westerly.
Two juvenile Hobbies were hunting low over Railway Pool this morning and there was at least one seen again in the same place in the afternoon. Two Black-tailed Godwits arrived on Car Park Pool mid morning and were joined by a third in the afternoon.
Two Common Sandpipers, one Green Sandpiper and three Little Egrets were also present on the pools and new broods of Little Grebes included six on Car Park Pool and two on the Reedbed.
18th July 2020
Mostly overcast, south-westerly.
It was quiet on the pools this morning but the day was enlivened by a Red Kite that came in low from the south at 11:45 but then seemed to drift back south again. Both Kestrel and Sparrowhawk were also noted.
At least three Little Egrets were sat together on the flood plain with possibly additional birds later on the pools. The Jackdaw flock had reached 300 this morning with nine Rooks.
Twenty-five to 30 Swifts a Swallow and ten Sand Martins went south between 11:15 and 11:45 but at least temporarily, passage dried up thereafter.
Although the weather was mostly cloudy the weather was warm enough for butterflies to be fairly active and the first Small Copper of the second generation was just inside the cattle-catching pen in the horse paddock along with lots of Meadow Browns, Small and Green-veined Whites and at least six Small Skippers. A single Essex Skipper and five Gatekeepers were along the concrete road and odonata included a male Banded Demoiselle by the cattle pen and Brown Hawker and Emperor in the horse paddock itself.
A female Blackcap was feeding a fresh juvenile along the Old Road between the car park and the entrance gate and there were also two Chiffchaffs and a Willow Warbler in the same area.
Along the concrete road there were two Jays, two recently fledged Dunnocks, a juvenile Song Thrush, two further Blackcaps and a family party of Wrens.
The wildfowl and other counts today were 15 Mute Swans and 8 cygnets, 21 Graylags, two Canadas, 26 Mallard, 10 Teal, 29 Gadwall and 10 broods; with three on Railway and seven on Car Park, 16 Tufted Ducks and eight broods; four on Car Park including two with a female Gadwall and four on Railway including one group of 19 ducklings, four Little Grebes, four fledged juveniles from elsewhere and a well grown chick on Car Park Pool from the north causeway bay, three Little Egrets, four Herons, five Cormorants, 12 Moorhen, 67 Coot, 40 Lapwing, one Common Sandpiper, only eight Black-headed Gulls, three Lesser Black-backed Gulls and seven adult Common Terns and four juveniles.
Damselfly counts comprised 125 Blue-tailed, 30 Common Blue, two Small Red-eyed and two Emeralds. There was also a pair of Banded Demoiselles around the horse paddock along with two Emperors, one Brown Hawker and 15 Common Darters.
17th July 2020
Sunny intervals, south-westerly.
A much better day for weather today meant that butterflies were prominent with good showings of all the common species in the horse paddock and in the Old Road game crop. There were over 20 Meadow Browns and Gatekeepers and other species included Marbled White, Common Blue, Small Tortoiseshell, Peacock, Essex Skipper, Red Admiral, Large Whites, Speckled Wood and there was at least one Purple Hairstreak on the Oaks along the Old Road north of the car park.
Birds included two adult Little Ringed Plovers and a juvenile Redshank, with seemingly a damaged left leg, 94 Lapwing and at least 300 corvids on the flood plain.
16th July 2020
Overcast, north-westerly.
The Jackdaw flock on the flood plain had increased to 200 today with three Rooks, seven Crows, two Magpies, four Buzzards and a Heron. Three House Martins were feeding around Patrick Bridge along with four Swallows and by the farm there was a family party of Goldfinches. The Kestrel was seen again over the car park area and four Swifts flew over in the morning.
As the day progressed and into the evening a late Shelduck was a surprise find on Car Park Pool and there were singles of Little Egret, Little Ringed Plover and Common Sandpiper together with a Ringed Plover and three Oystercatchers.
At least one Cett’s Warbler was again active around the causeway and five Tufted broods and eight Gadwall broods were counted.
15th July 2020
Overcast with drizzle.
A large flock of corvids are building up on the flood plain, in part attracted by the cattle feeder and today there were 130 Jackdaws and at least two Rooks together with eight juvenile Starlings.
On the pool margins there were two Green Sandpipers and one Common Sandpiper, the Kestrel was again feeding over the car park area and in the evening a Raven flew over with at least one juvenile Buzzard calling from Siden Hill Wood. An adult Little Ringed Plover appeared on Car Park Pool and Swifts built up in the evening from a handful to at least 33 by 20:30 but they had all disappeared by 21:00.
A work party of two in the morning and four in the evening achieved quite a lot with more path clearance, Ragwort removal and the opening up of the North Causeway Bay. Thank you to all those who attended.
14th July 2020
Overcast and showery.
A wider selection of birds were recorded today in the log with nine Gadwall broods and four Tufted broods counted and there were also seven Teal on Railway Pool. Waders comprised 67 Lapwing, three Oystercatchers, two Green Sandpipers and a Common Sandpiper. Two Little Egrets were feeding along the shoreline to Car Park Pool and presumably the same birds were later on Railway Pool.
Fifteen adult and five juvenile Common Terns were counted and other records included two Ravens that flew over, a Cetti’s Warbler along the causeway, over which 25 Swifts were feeding before moving south, two Sedge Warblers (one on the causeway and one on Railway Pool to the left of Oak Hide) and finally six adults and a fledged Little Grebe from off site.
13th July 2020
Overcast and showery.
Birds making the log this morning were two Oystercatchers, a Common Sandpiper, an adult Little Ringed Plover and eight Teal. A male Kestrel was hunting the crop field, three Sand Martins and a Swift headed south at 08:30 and there was a male Blackcap “tacking” by the records box.
12th July 2020
Sunny intervals, light south-westerly wind.
Waders included one Ringed Plover and two Green Sandpipers and there were also two Little Egrets on the pools. Four Jays were along the central streamline and in front of the Reedbed screen there was one adult and three juvenile Reed Warblers. Several Marbled Whites were also seen, although there were no counts.
11th July 2020
Sunny intervals, light south-westerly wind.
An extensive count of birds, butterflies and Odonata was made by Graham Rowling and the counts were as follows.
14 Mute Swans, 48 Greylags, one Canada, a Canada / Greylag cross, 15 Mallard including one fledged young on Railway Pool, five Teal, three Shoveler, 45 Gadwall and five broods (four on Car Park Pool and one on Railway Pool), a Cormorant, 16 Tufted Ducks and one new brood of seven on Car Park Pool, two Herons, two Little Egrets, seven Little Grebes and two fledged juveniles from off-site and a half grown chick on Car Park Pool, presumably from the pair in the north causeway bay, 15 Moorhens, 74 Coot, five Oystercatcher and the fledged juvenile with the colour ring on A27, two juvenile Ringed Plovers, two adult Little Ringed Plovers and one chick still on Railway Pool, 116 Lapwing, one Common Sandpiper, 37 adult Black–headed Gulls and 14 juveniles (as you can see numbers are plummeting) two Lesser Black–backed Gulls, six adult Common Terns, two juveniles and a chick, and two Green Sandpipers at Patrick Bridge.
Butterflies – one Large Skipper, four Small Skippers, four Essex Skippers, a male Common Blue, two White–letter Hairstreaks at the Aeromodellers, two Purple Hairstreaks on the Oaks on the Old Road, two Red Admirals, two Small Tortoiseshells, 25 Green–veined Whites, nine Ringlets, seven Meadow Browns, one Marbled White, one Speckled Wood, one Comma, seven Gatekeepers and seven Peacocks.
Damselflies – two Emeralds, 110 Blue–tailed, 45 Common Blues, four Small Red–eye, one male Banded Demoiselle, eight Common Darters, nine Black–tailed Skimmers and three Emperors.
10th July 2020
Sunny intervals, blustery north-westerly.
Oystercatchers were in noisy display flight over the pools this morning with a least two pairs indulging. The pair of Little Ringed Plovers in front of Railway Hide had two young chicks this morning but despite the fact that there are a few Black-headed Gulls present, a family party of Crows were giving them a hard time. 127 Lapwings and one fledged young from the Reserve were present on Car Park Pool with a few more taking the total to 130 on the Reserve in total. Wildfowl of note included: a drake Pochard, eight Shoveler and five Teal.
A family party of Dunnocks and a young Blackbird were on the path to River Hide, Willow Warbler, Whitethroat and Sedge Warbler were all seen between Oak and Railway and there was again a passage of Swifts and hirundines with up to 16 Swifts, 16 Sand Martins and five House Martins feeding over Railway Pool, birds coming and going during the early morning.
Ladies Bedstraw on the banks of Car Park Hide – 10th July 2020 – Photograph by Nick Barlow
9th July 2020
Overcast, drizzly all day.
Another wet day but a slow turnover of birds. Up to three Little Egrets were present together with two Common Sandpipers and a Green Sandpiper plus three Little Ringed Plovers. An estimated 30 Tern chicks have hatched with a number ringed and probably 15 so far fledged. Only six Gadwall broods could be found this morning and a single Tufted brood on Railway. Despite the inclement weather a Hobby put in a brief appearance, there were four Jays (presumably a family party) near Oak Hide and four fledged Little Grebes presumably from off site.
8th July 2020
Overcast, drizzly all day.
Similar drizzly day to yesterday but in a lull between the rain there were plenty of Warblers on show around Railway Pool. The pair of Willow Warblers referred to yesterday were again along the track to Railway Hide together with two Chiffchaffs and at least two Whitethroats. Three fledged Sedge Warblers plus a singing adult were South-west Pond side of Oak Hide together with at least two Whitethroats.
At about 08:30 ten Swifts and three Sand Martins flew into the central stream with the Swifts flying off east and the Sand Martins south.
On the pools there was a drake Pochard on Railway and on Car Park Pool there were two adult Little Ringed Plovers, a Green and a Common Sandpiper.
7th July 2020
Overcast, drizzly all day.
It was drizzly all day today and perhaps therefore not surprisingly there were relatively few records. Three Green Sandpipers were on the river at Patrick Bridge and there six Little Egrets together on Car Park Pool. Seven Gadwall broods were counted today, three on Car Park and four on Railway Pool.
A pair of Willow Warblers were showing well along the path between the back gate and Railway Hide and despite the inclement conditions, four Gatekeepers were recorded.
6th July 2020
Fine start then turning overcast with showers, a little sun later south-westerly.
Limited fair today with just two adult and a fledged Little Ringed Plover (from off site), two Common Sandpipers and juvenile Little Egret on Car Park Pool.
Long-tailed Tit on the Causeway – 6th July 2020
Reed Warbler on the Causeway – 6th July 2020 – Photographs by Stef Fraczek
5th July 2020
Mostly sunny but still windy from the north-west.
There were 16 Mute Swans today with the eight cygnets still present on Railway Pool plus the further cygnet by Patrick Bridge. There were still eight Gadwall broods but an additional Tufted brood from yesterday. Six Teal were counted and the four adult Little Ringed Plovers and fledged juvenile were also still present.
4th July 2020
Overcast, windy, occasional showers 16 degrees.
The first proper wildfowl counts today, courtesy of returning Graham Rowling were as follows: 11 Mute Swans, 53 Greylag including 17 juveniles, one Canada, 35 Gadwall and eight broods, two on Car Park and six on Railway, five Teal, 20 Mallard and two broods, a single on Railway and five on the South-west Pond, two Shoveler, 23 Tufted and a single brood on Railway, three adult and three fledged juvenile Little Grebes from elsewhere, one Heron, four Cormorants, 19 Moorhens, 74 Coot, two adult Little Ringed Plover and a fledged juvenile from off site, 94 Lapwings, two adults and a fledged juvenile Oystercatcher, 285 adult and 125 juvenile Black-headed Gulls, four Lesser Black-backed Gulls, seven adult and nine juvenile Common Terns, a Collared Dove under the feeders, eight Mistle Thrushes on the Old Road (presumably at least one family party), 18 Rooks on the flood plain, 20 Starlings on the Car Park Pool islands and at least two Swifts and three Sand Martins south.
Despite the overcast and blustery conditions it was warm enough, particularly in the sheltered areas, for butterflies and odonata to be visible and the counts were as follows: 13 Ringlets, five Marbled Whites, 19 Meadow Browns, 11 Green-veined Whites, one Large White, two Small Skippers and four Essex Skippers; 190 Blue-tailed Damselflies, 25 Common Blue Damselflies, two Azure Damselflies, three Emerald Damselflies, a pair of Banded Demoiselles, five Common Darters and one Ruddy Darter.
3rd July 2020
Blustery, south-westerly.
A single Black-tailed Godwit was present on Car Park Pool on and off this morning though it did depart around 08:30, only to return half an hour later.
There was a fledged Little Ringed Plover juvenile (from elsewhere) on the shore of Car Park Pool and a pair of Shoveler and a Teal there as well. Seven Swifts were feeding over the streamline and at least five Sand Martins headed purposefully south just before 09:00 with a further 13 Swifts recorded south between 10:00 and 10:30.
Other birds today included one Little Egret, one Common Sandpiper, a Green Sandpiper on the river just north of Car Park Pool and a pair of Pied Wagtails and fledged juvenile on the muck heap along the Old Road.
2nd July 2020
Showery start, brightening later, light south-westerly.
The days highlight was a flock of 13 Black-tailed Godwits which flew north over Railway Pool at 08:50. There was a Green Sandpiper on the pools, probably the same bird that was also seen on the river by Patrick Bridge. One Common Sandpiper, four adult Little Ringed Plovers and a fledged juvenile, five Oystercatchers, at least one half grown Lapwing chick in front of Car Park Hide plus a further 90 Lapwings on the flood plain were the other main waders. The flock of Lapwings on the flood plain also included 32 Starlings.
Other birds of note included one Little Egret, two Buzzards, a Kestrel and plenty of song still from warblers with a Willow Warbler between the car park and the cottages and a Whitethroat singing behind Oak Hide. The overcast conditions in the morning saw a little passage south with seven Swifts, two House Martins and two Sand Martins.
1st July 2020
Overcast, drizzly light south-westerly.
It is 19 years to day since the Reserve opened and by way of celebration Cetti’s Warblers were found to be feeding two fledged young on the causeway this morning. There were also three Common Sandpipers present early on but they seemed to depart, perhaps for the river. There are still two growing Lapwing chicks in front of Car Park Hide.
Records today included six Gadwall broods, four on Car Park and two on Railway, two Tufted broods both on Railway, four Teal, three Shoveler, two Little Egrets, four adult and two juvenile Oystercatchers and four Little Ringed Plovers including a fledged juvenile from off site.