It is well and truly back to work after the Christmas break at Beckingham Marshes and we have been busy in the last couple of weeks helping our fencing contractor, Colin to prepare for installing a new perimeter fence on the marshes. This new fence will replace the old and in places, dilapidated fence line, improving our boundary security.
But as always, we are never alone out on site - there is always something interesting to look at and last week, we were treated to a series of good records - a nice welcome back to work! Firstly, around mid-morning, I was alerted by the familiar 'wink wink' sound of pink-footed geese flying overhead. Unfortunately, the thick fog made counting them impossible, but a good number flew over the site, heading north.
A kingfisher was next, flying along Beckingham Main Drain right in front of us. This is my second Beckingham kingfisher sighting recently and still a species that is neither common, nor expected on the marshes.
We seem to be doing well for woodpeckers recently, as demonstrated by the presence of both green and great spotted in the last couple of months. Once again, these species are not what you would expect on site - we have a distinct lack of trees! However, a green woodpecker was calling away at the north eastern corner of the site last Wednesday, much to our delight.
And finally, a real treat and perhaps the highlight of the day - a beautiful barn owl hunting at the eastern end of the site. The bird was present for most of the day in the same place, seemingly having found a productive feeding area. Owls cannot feed in poor weather, such as wind and rain. The inclement conditions the previous night may have forced the bird to feed during the day. Barn owls are always present around the Beckingham Marshes area, so do look out for them at dawn and dusk, particularly in the winter when their crepuscular habits mean they are out and about earlier with the darker nights.
Barn owl. John Bridges (rspb-images.com)