It's been a spectacular week at our Dorset reserves!

The warm weather and flurry of wildlife activity meant there was lots to see and hear at this year's first Dawn Chorus walk at RSPB Arne! These walks will be continuing though April and May across our reserves, along with a bluebell and wildflower walk at RSPB Garston Wood and Intermediate Birdwatching events next week.

Our shuttle bus returned for the last…

Lesley Gorman, RSPB Dorset Reserves Visitor Operation Manager, shares her love of Dorset's Spoonbills and reveals why they are so special. For me and many of our visitors, Spoonbills are one of our most unusual looking birds. I really look forwar...

Our retail manager SJ introduces us to the range of binoculars available at the RSPB Arne Shop and gives you some things to think about before you come in and give them a try. We hold regular binocular demonstration days here at RSPB Arne in Dorset,...

Last week we chatted with the RSPB Dorset Reserves Warden, Hollymay Gladwin. Hollymay has been volunteering and working in conservation since they were just a teenager and has over 10 years of experience in habitat management on the Arne peninsular. ...

Lesley Gorman, RSPB Dorset Visitor Experience Manager, takes us on a night-time adventure across RSPB Arne's heath, in search of the elusive Nightjar. If I were to tell you that I was heading out for a night-time walk in the hope of encountering a &l...

Today we hear from Terry Smith about his volunteering role at RSPB Arne, which involves project managing large events. Volunteers come from all walks of life and often bring their particular skills into their role. Terry has lived in Dorset most of ...

Lesley Gorman, RSPB Visitor Experience Manager at RSPB Arne, tells us about the elusive Cuckoo that can be heard at the reserve, although it's iconic sound is sadly declining across England.

When Wordsworth wrote: “While I am lying on the grass, Thy twofold shout I hear; From hill to hill it seems to pass, At once far off, and near,” he was describing one of our best-known bird calls, that of the Cucko…

We hear from volunteer Bob Skinner about his experience volunteering at RSPB Arne and why he keeps coming back.  Why do I volunteer? It’s not been a dramatic shift, something to do after retirement, but a continuation of all the things tha...

Reptile Surveys at RSPB Arne – A chat with reptile survey volunteers Terry and Nick Above photo: Terry and Nick (Annie Parsons) RSPB Arne is an extremely special place for reptiles, one of just a handful of places in the UK which is home to al...

Is the reserve open to visitors? We are still welcoming visitors during the filming of BBC Springwatch 29th May-15th June. What are your opening hours? These are our opening hours, 29th May – 15th June: Arne Shop - 9.00am-5.00pm Arne Caf&eacute...

This month we join Hyde's Heath Project Officer Rachel Martin on her car free trip to RSPB Arne. As a Project Officer involved in engagement, I always want to make sure my programmes are “fit for purpose”. That means testing and evalu...

Another month at Arne, and Spring is moving forward at a rapid pace. The sound of birdsong on the reserve reminds us that warmer times are ahead, especially the distinctive call of the chiffchaffs. The curly green fern shoots are unfurling, and the ...

This week we hear from former volunteer Amy about her experience volunteering at Arne, and why it is has such a special place in her heart. "I started volunteering at Arne in 2018 to give myself a regular break from the stresses of running my ow...

It's International Women's Day... so here is Staff member Laura writing about what International Women's Day means for her.

Being a women in the nature conservation sector does have its difficulties, and many women* don't feel safe or comfortable to enjoy the countryside alone.  I don't want to touch too much on this today, but have a read of this blog as it highlights many of these difficulties. https…

We’ve had a wonderful month at Arne so far. We are all starting to feel the beginnings of spring and the warmer weather on the way. There have been many amazing sightings recently, including regular sightings of white-tailed sea eagles across t...

It’s national nest box week this week (14^th to 21^st Feb) and the perfect time to think about adding some extra nest sites to your garden, house, garage or shed, ahead of the nesting season. 

If you know the birds that frequent your outside space, whether you have a flock of sparrows, see blue tits flitting about or regularly spot robins - providing a box for them will massively increase their chances of raising…

We’re all looking forward to the RSPB’s 44th Big Garden Bird Watch this weekend (27-29th January). But what is BGBW, and why is it so important to the RSPB? What is BGBW?   The RSPB describes BGBW as ‘the world’s biggest...

Discover the winter wildlife of a frosty RSPB Arne.

New RSPB Arne volunteer Annie shares the highs and lows of her first forays into birdwatching.

RSPB Arne is a fantastic nature reserve to visit all year - there's always something new to see, whether you're a keen birder or just enjoy immersing yourself in nature. Arne includes a variety of habitats from all important lowland heath, to woodland...

The mulled cider has been drunk, the Christmas wreaths have been made and the pines have been pulled… at least for this year!

Pull a Pine was over the weekend of the 3^rd and 4^th December and was a raging success.

This year, Pull a Pine was on our Hyde’s Heath. Hyde’s heath is the most recent patch of heathland we have bought, and therefore needs the most help to restore it. This former plantation was once heathland…

The biggest event in the RSPB Arne calendar is looming – Pull a Pine. As a volunteer at Arne, I’m giving an overview of why Pull a Pine is so important and a behind the scenes look at how we prepare for the big day as a reserve.

Have you ever wondered what it's like to live and work on an RSPB reserve? Our new residential volunteer Annie talks about her experience so far.

October 2022

Sightings

Back in September we reported 4 White trailed eagles around Poole harbour. For the October update I am very pleased to announce we have 5 spotted in the harbour.  Not least one from the new Rock Lea Viewpoint we spoke about last month. 

As the clocks went back yesterday and Autumn is well upon us, the reserve is alive with mushrooms and fungi.   Here are few of the beautiful specimens that have been…

Sightings

 At Arne, there's a bit of a raptor fest going on with ospreys, 4 white-tailed eagles, hobbies, marsh harriers, peregrine, goshawk, and buzzard all being seen around Poole harbour this month. 

In other exciting wildlife news, we have just got the results of some wildlife surveys which has revealed a new population of the incredibly rare Southern Damselfly. This is excellent news for the species population…