I couldn’t resist taking advantage of the widespread frost this Monday morning to walk into work through the reserve from Fairburn village and spot some amazing wildlife in the cold. And I’m very glad I did!
At eight o’clock Monday morning everything was cloaked in a thick layer of sparkling frost. The sky was bathed in muted pastel colours of pink and purple, and the moon was reflected off the surface of the water of Village bay. It was anything but silent though, as dozens of birds called from the bushes; great tits, robins and blackbirds set up a riotous morning chorus as I walked across Village Bay field.
The view from Charlie’s hide was spectacular as the sun began to rise, giving a soft orange glow to the birds on the water. A heron took off as I sat down with my binoculars, spreading its huge grey wings and soaring low over the water of The Cut, where ruddy-headed pochards and sleek goosanders were swimming.
Pochard image by Ben Hall (rspb-images.com)
Continuing my walk along the riverbank trail, I looked left towards the river Aire, and through the trees caught the merest glimpse of a beautiful male goldeneye before he ducked under the water. When I reached Bob Dickens hide, I was looking for the roe deer that are spotted so frequently around that spot, and I was in luck! Just left of the hide in a grassy field were two beautiful does – one of them was facing towards me, her large ears pricked up, whilst the other munched grass – her distinctive white rump patch clearly visible above the misty grass line.
Roe deer image by Andy Hay (rspb-images.com)
Carrying on towards Big Hole, I though my luck couldn’t get any better when all of a sudden something burst into the air out of the grass ahead of me. The strengthening sunlight illuminated the apple green back and golden yellow rump of a green woodpecker! Instead of flying out of sight though, he landed on the nearest tree, so I was able to admire the ruby red crown and jet black eye mask of this stunning bird.
My final treat of the morning came in the form of a flock of tiny brown birds – I wasn’t sure what they were at first – there were six of them fluttering from tree to tree and foraging amongst the branches. I finally managed to find one of them through my binoculars, and saw streaky brown plumage, a very yellow beak and a black chin patch under the beak. After hearing so many people talking about lesser redpolls in the visitor centre, I was reasonably sure that these were what I was looking at, mainly because they didn’t look like anything else I knew. But a quick check back at the visitor centre confirmed my suspicions – these tiny finches love their seeds, and can often be seen, especially in winter, dangling from slender twigs in birch and alder trees, looking for their next meal. If you catch a good glimpse of one, look for the distinctive red patch on their heads.
Lesser Redpoll artwork by Mike Langman (rspb-images.com)
The morning really is the best time to spot wildlife, especially in the cold weather – it’s a great excuse to arrive bright and early and enjoy a spectacular walk through the reserve. We hope to see you soon!