We've had a very special visitor causing quite a stir this week at Fairburn – if you've visited us in the past week or so you may have heard us all talking about our guest or you may even have had the chance to see it for yourself! I even briefly mentioned this wonderful bird in last week’s blog! Drum roll please... It is of course the spectacular spoonbill! We’ve had daily sightings of this impressive bird; with his punky feathers and brightly tipped orange bill he is in full breeding plumage! All he needs now is a girl to impress! Many who've been to see the spoonbill have also been treated to sightings of little egrets and some of our heron chicks who have yet to leave their nests.
Little egret - Paul Chesterfield (rspb-images.com)
Last Sunday was a fantastic day for raptors with 9 different species seen in total, including a hobby, an osprey and even a hen harrier that stayed with us for a few days before moving on! It’s always an amazing experience seeing birds of prey soaring overhead and seeing so many different species in one day is astounding! We’re still getting regular sightings of a marsh harrier over the Flashes, so be on the look out!
Marsh harrier - Chris Gomersall (rspb-images.com)
Staying on the Flashes, we've had a few lapwings in the area. Lapwings get their name from the odd, erratic way they fly. They are also known as peewits, after their really sweet sounding “pee-wit” call. I challenge you not to crack a smile when listening to that super cute sound!
Lapwing in flight - John Bridges (rspb-images.com)
Over on Main Bay, there has been plenty of activity as well. There have been around 25 Caspian gulls seen, along with common terns, shelduck and oystercatchers. The little ringed plovers are still showing well from both Pickup and Lin Dike hides.
In the world of bugs, there are loads of dragonflies and damselflies emerging right now! If you’re coming down for the bank holiday be sure to be on the lookout around the discovery trail and beyond for flashes of colour as a dragonfly or damselfly whizzes past! Why not join our Minibeast Safari running this bank holiday Monday (25 May), where our expert volunteers can show you lots of different creepy-crawlies!
And finally, if you read one of my last blog posts you may know that I have never heard a cuckoo before. Well I can now finally say that I have! Yesterday afternoon I heard that distinct call while out walking round the discovery trail! It was an amazing moment for me and definitely a highlight of my time at Fairburn so far!