Recent sightings
Considering the very unpredictable weather the last couple of weeks the wildlife has been great! Still have dragonflies and some butterflies around. Stoat sightings on the rise along with water voles!
Migrant hawker dragonfly: Paul Jubb
Much of the same fantastic birds around since the last few weeks. Inner Marsh Farm Hide is the place to see waders in great numbers like the black-tailed godwits and lapwing! Most days Spotted redshank, common redshank, golden plover, snipe, dunlin and ruff are in amongst them. Still a lot of ruff on the main scrape, up to twenty on one day. The odd sighting of green sandpiper last week and today four from Bridge screen. The kingfisher is still causing lots of excitement and disappointment. As some lucky visitor are getting great views when they are lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time. The visitor centre can be a good spot and around the meres is good. Good reports of raptors the last couple of weeks. Hen harrier (ringtail) seen from the visitor centre along with action from marsh harrier, peregrine, sparrowhawk, kestrel and merlin either chasing each other or the smaller birds off the main scrape.
Great egret seen on Burton Mere Wetlands reserve every other day for the most part. Water rail being seen and heard allot recently from Marsh Covert Hide but they are across the reserve. I had a fantastic view of one at Inner Marsh Farm Tuesday late afternoon and spectacular scenes of pink-footed geese heading out to the marsh.
Pink-footed geese: Paul Jubb
Linnet numbers building now, and the odd stonechat seen towards the top end of the reserve.
Linnet: Paul Jubb
Star sighting
The star sighting for this week was the return of the whooper swans. We had a few turn up on Thursday late afternoon.
Whooper Swan:Paul Jubb
Wardens' wanderings
Warden team have been busy with lots of maintenance job this week across the reserve. They have been repainting the toilets and visitor centre. Opening up the paths, working on the den building area and putting in new picnic benches.
Get involved
RSPB Dee Estuary are celebrating 40 years of looking after the marsh. Join us on Wednesday 23 October for an evening of insight and stories from the men who steered the reserve through those four remarkable decades. Doors open 7pm for a 7:30pm start.
We are running a new event for families and kids called Little Explorers on Thursday 24 October, we will be getting you outside and playing in nature 10 - 11:30am
The new October Wild Challenge family trail in out now. This month is “Wild Things at Halloween”
As usual every year we do our Parkgate Raptorwatch, this Sunday 13 October and Tuesday 29 October are the next couple for October. Come down and joins us to see if you can spot your first short eared owl! The hen harriers and marsh harriers are back already.