Sorry to start on a low, but unfortunately Cut Hide was burnt down on Monday night. You can still walk down Cut Lane but the hide itself has been cordoned off. We aim to have the hide replaced as soon as possible and thank you for your patience while we get it sorted out.

The fire service is investigating and leafleting the local area in case anybody saw anything. If anyone has any information that you think could help…

We knew we had water voles at Fairburn Ings but we think the population is small and sightings are rare, so you can imagine our delight when one was spotted paddling about just metres from the visitor centre! This little guy was seen by some of our visitors swimming in and out of the reeds just near our metal heron sculpture, from the boardwalk.

Round the corner at the Kingfisher screen its namesake has been seen fishing…

This is my last blog at Fairburn as I am moving to Arne in Dorset to work as an Information Assistant there. The bonus is that it is a paid contract but I am really going to miss the reserve here. My time here has been fantastic and I have had a great opportunity to get involved in all sorts of things. I arrived at the end of November as was greeted with heavy snow fall which stayed around for a couple of weeks. I think…

The pair of coots that have been active on the boardwalk all week have started to build their floating nest out of dead reeds and other vegetation. Coots can become very noisy and aggresive when nesting and it will be interesting to watch for any interesting behaviour in the next couple of weeks. It is great that these birds dont seem to mind human activity so close by and nest in full view of the pathways.

There…