As the season draws to a close and the summer months give way to autumn migration. Now feels like the time to wrap up the season at Boyton marshes and give an update on the key species in the breeding season.
Lapwings had a marvellous season with 20+ birds fledgling; these can be regularly seen commuting between Boyton and Havergate, where they roost to avoid Foxes and other predators.
The final count of Avocets was two successfully fledged chicks from five nests. A real success story for Boyton marshes and the result of several years planning and proactive habitat management.
The single pair of Yellow wagtails fledged several young which can still be seen on the South side of the reserve near the old Second World War bunker. Soon these will be moving onto Africa where they will winter before hopefully returning to the Boyton marshes to breed in the future.
Redshanks where the only real disappointment of the season, with one chick fledged from 15 nests, high tides and predation where the main reason for this poor season.
The breeding season may be over but the work continues to improve the reserve. Mink have been a major issue in suppressing the population of water voles on site, so this autumn once the data has been collected and it can be justified should mark the start of an operation to remove Mink from Boyton and make Water voles a common sight once again on the reserve.
Now the attention of birders begins to switch to rare migrants and the Boyton “flash” is a great little site for interesting migrants. So far, the site has played host to several Wood sandpipers a delicately marked wader that breeds in north Europe (although a few may still breed in Scotland), Little Ringed plover a charming close relative of the more familiar Ringed plover and possibly my favourite wading bird and definitely in my top five birds Green sandpipers. My abiding image of Green sandpipers is flushing them from ditches and watching them tower in the sky, wings everywhere, the dark wings contrasting with the white rump and the chiffing call as it disappears.
Also part of the larger South Suffolk reserves is Hollesley marshes, this small reserve is home to several pairs of Lapwing and fledged four young from two nests, hopefully great things can be expected of this reserve as it develops.