I don't suppose anyone has come up with a title like that before! It's been an interesting week for wildlife sightings on the reserve. Dartford warblers have been seen quite frequently on the heaths on either side of the main track leading from the car park. Yesterday a group of 4 was spotted. Dartfords are usually seen flying just above the heather and often in the company of Stonechats that will be flitting from perch to perch a little higher up. There are a lot of common snipe overwintering in the wetter areas of heathland, but you won't see them unless they are disturbed and fly off. Today was notable in that I saw 3 pairs of buzzards in the air over the Eastern Heath at the same time, with one pair being harassed by a raven. During this week's work party a small yellow bird came very close to us on a couple of occasions which was a real surprise. There was much discussion as to what it might be and we eventually concluded it was an escaped canary which probably explains its behaviour.
Our reptile surveyors conducted their first survey of 2024 this week and were pleased with the results. They recorded 6 Common Lizards, 31 Slow Worms and 1 Adder.
Wealden Reserves Office Manager