The telltale signs or autumn are now with us, shorter days, misty mornings, heavy dew and shinny bright berries lining the hedgerows. There has been a distinct lack of rain during September which has facilitated our activities on the reserves, particularly our grassland management and estate work. However we know this will soon come to an end and we prepare for the grasslands to change their character and become a wetland home to many hundreds and thousands of winter wildlife which flock in from afar. After the arrival of the first avocets on the 25th August, wader numbers have continued to rise, with over 300 black-tailed godwits, 160 redshank and 490 curlews using the area in front of the hide at Bowling Green marsh during the month. Whistling wigeon and tinkling teal can be heard at both Bowling Green and Exminster Marshes, particularly at night as the birds start to gather on the recently filled pools adjacent to Station Road.
As the winter roost continues to build, a visit to Bowling Green Hide is well worth a visit. Two hours before and after high tide is the peak time, as the birds get pushed off the estuary mud, and as interested people jostle for room in the hide, so do our feathered friends as it is standing room only on the fresh water pools of the marsh.
On all sites our grassland management work continued and the final bales were removed at the end of the month, with over 80ha cut and 460 bales produced, a lot of material has been removed which will help the grassland sward and continue to knock back the more invasive species such as soft rush and tufted hair grass, which are very successful in out competing our finer grasses that are favoured by many bird species. The Galloway cows and calves have proved to be quite an attraction as their teddy bear faces look over the hedges, breath steaming in the cool air.