Bird song is picking up now and newly-arrived migrants such as blackcaps and willow warblers appreciated the spell of warm weather over the weekend. The first cuckoo of the year was heard on the reserve on 7 April and the beautiful song of the woodlark can be heard over the heaths across the reserve. Also on the heaths the Dartford warblers are active although you need patience and a keen eye to spot them. We are now looking out for evidence that they have nested. Last week a lesser-spotted woodpecker was heard drumming in the south and south-east of the reserve.
In recent weeks we've been busy building leaky dams in the woodland and on the heaths to improve the wetland habitats for birds such as woodcock and for damselflies, dragonflies and amphibians. The work is already having results - on Saturday Assistant Warden Matt did an amphibian survey and found palmate newts in the Decoy Pond and in one of the newly-dammed areas. He also caught sight of what may have been a great crested newt, a species for which there are no recent records.
Wealden Reserves Office Manager