I’m sitting in the office trying to concentrate on writing this post, but with the goings on of the birds in the hedge outside the window, it’s proving very tricky. In the last half hour I’ve seen goldfinches, great tits, blue tits, wrens, willow tits and tree sparrows. There’s also a very defensive young robin that I see several times a day, chasing off anything that gets too close, and even had an angry chirp at me when I went past to get into the Wildlife Garden. It's amazing what you can see just by waiting and watching from the window sometimes.
A flock of long-tailed tits descended yesterday, which I had never been lucky enough to see before. Now I know why they cause such a stir! They’re incredibly sweet looking things, pale pink fluff balls with elegant tail feathers longer than their bodies. Just watching them chattering away for a few minutes, I could really tell that this was tight knit group. After a bit of research, I found out that they do often stay within extended family groups of around 8-20. Which I think makes them even sweeter!
Long tailed tit - John Bridges (rspb-images.com)
The new Coal Tips trail is now open to visitors, which goes up on to the top of (you’ve guessed it!) the coal tips. This trail gives some beautiful panoramic views of the reserve, and now gives visitors the opportunity to follow a circular route down to Lin Dike. It’s also an excellent place to spot marsh harriers as they sweep up and over the tops. Green woodpeckers have also been seen around here.
Snipe have been seen lurking in the vegetation at Pickup this week, and little egrets have been seen flying overhead all over the reserve.
Snipe - Andy Hay (rspb-images.com)