As summer comes to a close the reserves wildlife’s starting hot up! There’s no doubt that this time of year most of the attention goes to the Ospreys. In the last week we’ve had up to 5 around the Arne peninsular with the area off Coombe Heath (Middlebere) being by far the best spot to watch for them. Best be there a few hours before high tide as this will give you a good chance of seeing them fishing. A visit out to the raptor hide might also give you good views of the Ospreys as well as Hobby and maybe even a Kingfisher.
The autumn sunshine around the reserve is bringing out some late butterflies and dragonflies. Other insects such as the Raft Spiders and the Wasp Spiders have been attracting lots of attention.
Perhaps the best sighting in recent weeks was a juvenile Nightjar which was visible on bank holiday Monday! Lots of people got a chance to see this normally elusive species. It’s likely we’ll have to wait until next May to get our next view of a Nightjar but what a way to end the season! Check out this picture.
Fingers crossed the weather stays fine for the next few weeks as the autumn migration really kicks off!
To keep in touch for the latest sightings and news from Arne check out our twitter account www.twitter.com/rspbarne