Good morning. I am not going to be here much for the next couple of days so here are some more recent sightings:
It turned out to be quite a nice day on Tuesday. Emma and Suzanne went down to Botany Bay at the west end of the reserve to look for marsh carpet moth caterpillars during the morning. Although they didn't see any, they saw four cranes and at least six juvenile marsh harriers.
Meanwhile, closer to the visitor centre, volunteer Paul Holness spent some time up at the Washland viewpoint. He counted at least 104 mute swans which is a great count for this time of year.
Emma and I went down to Botany Bay during the afternoon so that I could check out the route for The Long Walk, which is a 10 kilometre guided walk that will take place around the reserve on Sunday.
This was the first time that I had been in to “our bit” of Botany Bay SSSI since last September so it was a real treat for me. I saw lots of yellow loosestrife bees, several scarce chasers and some lumbering brown hawkers.
While I was waiting for Emma to pick me up, a bittern flew over by head and as we set off back towards the visitor centre, another one followed it. They both disappeared eventually into Botany Bay, probably on a feeding trip.
Meanwhile, at New Fen viewpoint, David Capps, one of our local photographers saw a bittern clambering up a reed in front of the viewpoint before falling in the water! It apparently looked most disgruntled after it had its unplanned bath!
I went for a walk before work this morning and it was lovely in the morning sunshine. I disturbed at least two painted ladys that were bathing on the riverbank Public Footpath and a meadow brown that was determined not to be photographed!
I had more luck photographing insects along the hard track between New Fen viewpoint and Mere Hide. Here are a few of the better ones that I took:
A comma:
A small skipper:
A posing female sympetrum sp. which was feeding like a common darter but looks more like a female ruddy darter!:
Image credits: David White
I bumped into locals Matt Walton and David Capps who had seen two kingfishers and a bittern from New Fen viewpoint. There was also apparently a roe deer with her fawn in the viewpoint when David got there which must have been a bit of a shock!
I saw also saw three common terns fishing over the Washland viewpoint and heard a grasshopper warbler reeling at the edge of the visitor centre pond. A kingfisher shot across the visitor centre pond shortly after we opened and a green woodpecker was feeding on the visitor centre lawn.
There is plenty to see at the moment so why not come and visit? There are also still places on The Long Walk on Sunday, so we hope to see you soon!