June was a very busy month! On the reserve lots of work was being done on the paths as everything was growing so quickly and needed to be cut back to maintain access. Lots of days were spent cutting and raking different sections with volunteer work parties.
I also took part in the final redshank surveys for the year which involved walking back and forth across two study plots out on the saltmarsh looking and listening for redshank. It is really enjoyable getting up early to experience the wilderness of the saltmarsh at that time of day, watching redshanks flying and calling to each other. June also entailed a last minute sheep round-up, bringing the large flock off the saltmarsh, as the tides were going to be very high that coming weekend. Sheep round-ups are never a quick job but luckily for us it had been very dry so the ground was easier to walk on than normal and we could even skip the waders and just wear our wellies!
(Redshank surveying)
Unfortunately this same high tide was coupled with strong winds that created a tidal surge and had a big effect on the little tern colony at Gronant with a substantial number of nests being lost. I visited the evening after the high tide and despite the devastation the terns were displaying courtship behaviour again already and the numbers recovered quickly which is good news! Our fences at Point of Ayr were also destroyed so one day was spend over there untangling them.
(Little tern displaying after the high tide)
The past two months have also consisted of lots of training. In one week I had safeguarding training, social media training and GREAT welcome training (a technique used to ensure all our visitors at Burton Mere Wetlands receive a high quality welcome to the reserve). These were all really useful and informative and I definitely feel like I am now developing in the visitor experience side of my role. Alice (the other residential volunteer here at the Dee Estuary) and I also attended the RSPB's wet grassland training course in the Forest of Bowland. This was a really fun experience where we got to meet lots of other people from different organisations and find out what their jobs involve and also learn loads about wet grasslands which we can now apply at Burton Mere Wetlands.
At the beginning of July we also attended the RSPB Experience at our UK headquarters, The Lodge. This was two days learning more about the work of the RSPB both in the UK and internationally and all the different sectors of work we cover from research to habitat management and education through to changing policy and lobbying governments.
I also went on my first off-site membership recruitment event in June at Wirral Country Park, Thurstaston where we engaged with the public about the work of the RSPB, the importance of membership support and how this helps the RSPB run and do the amazing work we do! In July I also attended Parkgate Carnival which had a really fun atmosphere and I enjoyed chatting to people and getting them excited about nature and the vast reserve on their doorstep!
(View of the reserve from Burton Point)
At the end of July we had our Big Wild Sleepout at Burton Mere Wetlands! As people arrived the weather was a bit gloomy and we even heard some thunder but it soon brightened up and we had an amazing sunny walk around the reserve. We had a brief glimpse of a marsh harrier and then an amazing view of a water vole which sat directly in front of Marsh Covert Hide for about 10 minutes munching on the reeds! As we walked back after seeing the sunset at Burton Point we managed to get great views of the juvenile egrets flying up in to the roost.
Once it went dark we were able to watch the noctule bats coming out of a roost in the car park through an infrared camera which was really spectacular and then went over to the meres to see the Daubenton’s flying over the water in great numbers. After a brief tangent on to astronomy, looking at the bright blood moon as well as Mars and Jupiter, we went to find the badgers! We got to see two together feeding in our special, lit viewing area which was a great end to the evening! However this wasn’t even the end, as in the morning we opened up the moths traps that had been left overnight to see an amazing array of moth species. I have never done moth trapping before so it was incredible for me to see how they are not all just brown, as I had previously thought, but really beautiful and diverse!
There was such a community feel to the event and seeing everyone so engaged and excited about nature and seeing so much amazing wildlife in one evening was definitely one of my highlights of the placement so far! If you haven’t been able to go to a Big Wild Sleepout this year then you can still camp out in your own garden and experience nature there and then definitely make sure you come along to the sleepout next year!(Out exploring on the Big Wild Sleepout)