Snow? At the end of April! There has been every imaginable type of weather at Fairburn this week; rain, hail, sleet, snow, high winds, and a few rays of sunshine. There have also been some pretty nifty sightings, which is why we’re all here!

Swift, Mike Langman (rspb-images.com)

First off, because it’s the thing I am absolutely the most excited about, is the return of the swifts. I am yet to see one, but there…

More migrants have been arriving this week and the air is beginning to fill with a greater variety of song. Up on the Coal Tips trail it is impossible to miss the erratic ascent of skylarks and their high, trilling song.

Willow warbler, John Bridges (rspb-images.com)

Across the reserve there are blackcap and willow warblers singing, and chiffchaffs seem to be all over the place. There are smart male Reed buntings all…

Well, we may as well begin with the big sighting of the week; the osprey!  Our Assistant Warden, John, claims that he has spent the past two years giving every gull over Fairburn a shrewd assessment during the spring and summer. His diligence paid off on Wednesday when he spotted an osprey flying West over the visitor centre up towards the flashes.

Osprey, Chris Gomersall (rspb-images.com)

Ospreys are beautiful, fish…

What a busy week for sightings, spring is well and truly here. We have the migrants to prove it!

Sand martins are now becoming quite prolific in the sightings book, going from one or two, to twelve, to sixty, to around two hundred in the past couple of days. Keep an eye out for them over Main bay and Village bay.

Swallow, Chris Gomersall (rspb-images.com)

There was a wheatear and our first swallow spotted down at…

So it had to happen eventually, and even though I got to stay an extra three weeks, after seven months it’s now time to say goodbye to Fairburn and the RSPB internship. I have learned so much, seen so much, worked with loads of different people and am very sad to have to go.

I first became fond of the place when I visited for a pesticide course in spring last year. On my way in I walked along the riverside trail…

I thought last week’s blog would be difficult to follow given the incredible sightings across the reserve.  However, there has been a lot to see and while it may be not as unusual, it is definitely as exciting.

There have been a few firsts for the year including the first cormorant chick seen in a nest, the first peacock butterfly, first bumblebee AND the first sand martin.  Amazing what a bit of sunshine can do…

What a week at Fairburn! All the usual suspects are about, the feeders around the visitor centre have been heavy with tree sparrows, goldfinches, long-tailed tits and reed buntings. There is more birdsong in the air, willow tits are singings and woodpeckers are drumming.

The high winds across the country this week have also blown in a variety of interesting birds. Wednesday saw a raft of 30 male common scoter out on…

Well the sighting of the week, it has to be said, was the snow. I love it when it snows at Fairburn, it’s like the reserve holds its breath. The hustle and bustle slows and looking out across main bay, or taking a stroll down to Pickup feels more indulgent , like it’s somehow more precious.  I have to stop and let myself be in awe for a moment, because all too soon I know it will turn to drizzle and slush.

There has been lots of excitement this week with the arrival of a male smew! First there was one red-headed smew, then a juvenile joined her, and Monday last week saw the arrival of a third female and a male.

They were first spotted from Lin Dike hide and have since given us a right old run around by switching between Lin Dike and Village Bay almost daily. If you are coming to the reserve in hope of seeing them your…

Cupid has been hard at work this weekend and since 'tis the season, several of the staff here on the reserve have decided to share just what it is about Fairburn they love so much. Here is our Retail Manager, Dawn:

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Fairburn changes a little…

Cupid is hard at work this weekend and since 'tis the season, several of the staff here on the reserve have decided to share just what it is about Fairburn they love so much. Here is our Assistant Warden, John:

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Where do I start? The fact…

Cupid will be hard at work this weekend and since 'tis the season, several of the staff here on the reserve have decided to share just what it is about Fairburn they love so much. Here is our Assistant Warden, Karen:

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I was going to write…

Cupid will be hard at work this weekend and since 'tis the season, several of the staff here on the reserve have decided to share just what it is about Fairburn they love so much. Here is our Visitor Operations Manager, Kate:

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I have always…

Reed bunting sightings have exploded this week, there is at least one pair that has been regularly seen at the wildlife garden feeders, and we’ve had some lovely views of them from the office windows!

Male reed bunting, Andy Hay (rspb-images.com)

Each week we get one or two recorded sightings of roe deer on the Riverbank trail and up on the Coal Tips, they’re always a lovely sight, even if all you see is a little…

It has been a fantastic week for birds of prey again with the marsh harrier out at about almost every day, visible from both Lin Dike and Pick-up. Also from Lin Dike there have been buzzard, peregrine and sparrowhawk seen. A sparrowhawk and buzzard down near Charlie’s, a couple of red kite over Fairburn village and a short-eared owl up near Big Hole.

The view from Pick-up hide, Sally Granger

A bittern has been…

Signs of spring are popping up around the reserve, hawthorn has already been spotted coming into flower, and this week we had our first snowdrop sighting in the grass by the visitor centre. Skylarks have been seen on the stacks and around the Lin Dike link a few times, and they have also been heard singing, while both herons and tree sparrows have been seen carrying nesting material. We are go!

First snowdrops, Sally…

The Big Garden Birdwatch Lounge is thrumming with activity. Those two nuthatch have been busy at the feeders, we have also had a reed bunting, bullfinch and a siskin sat almost within touching distance of the visitor centre windows.

Beyond the balcony a flock of around 20 siskin were spotted in the trees around the visitor centre, and down in the wildlife garden in full view of the lounge there has also been a weasel…

Fairburn may have been flooded but the wildlife doesn't seem to be too bothered! The recent sightings book is as full as ever and there is plenty to see. 

The flashes were busy with 70+ curlew and 30+ goldeneye on New Years Day, and more than 100 golden plover were seen over this week.

It’s also been a busy week for birds of prey with peregrine and marsh harrier over Lin Dike, a red kite, sparrowhawk and a very busy…

It’s the first couple of weeks back from the holidays for the reserve team and we’ve come back to the aftermath of the biggest flood the reserve has ever seen! The plus side to this dank, damp, dreich weather is that there is a fantastic range of fungi around. I’ve never spent much time trying to identify fungi before and found it a bit like the first time I tried to identify moths - tricky and confusing. However I’m…

It's New Year's Eve so I thought I'd reminisce over the past year at Fairburn Ings and share with you a few of my highlights.  I've only worked at Fairburn since April so my favourite bits are a bit summer and autumn heavy - feel free to share your own highlights though and tell me what I missed in the early months of 2015!

First of all, I have to start with the avocet explosion of 2015! And by explosion…

As you may be aware, West Yorkshire, as well as many areas in the north of England, has experienced widespread flooding this week.  At Fairburn Ings, we're thinking of everyone across the region who have been affected by the floods and hope you're all staying safe.

As a designated washland, Fairburn Ings is designed to flood when the water levels in the river Aire become too high.  Because we take the excess water…

Sadly, this is going to be my final blog post as a Visitor Experience Intern at Fairburn Ings. I’m moving on to pastures new to start an actual grown up job in Leeds. I’ve had such as great time here and met some fantastic people, and I can’t quite believe it’s ending. Fairburn is only a quick trip over the M62 for me though, so I’m sure I’ll be back for a visit when I have a craving for some open space.…

Sitting with a cup of coffee in the centre and watching the usual squirrels hanging upside down to get the nuts from the feeders, and the pheasants and red legged partridge hoovering up dropped seeds is now my favourite way to start the day. Stoats and weasels are now on my list of things to watch for, as quite a few people have reported seeing them running around. One of my favourite sightings of the week was of a very…

Only two weeks until Christmas, and things are starting to feel very festive around the visitor centre. The Christmas tree is up, and outside we have a tree strung up with all kinds of food for birds to enjoy, including strings of monkey nuts and berries. It's proving particularly popular with robins, who will quite happily sit atop the tree and watch for whatever delicious food you're putting out for them next!…

Yesterday we had a visit from the volunteers and staff at Bempton Cliffs. Before coming to Fairburn Ings, I spent 6 months at Bempton Cliffs so it was great to see lots of familiar faces and have a good old catch up. I joined them for a walk around the reserve and a spot of bird watching, something I haven’t done in a while I’m ashamed to say!

First stop was Pickup hide, where we had our first sighting of…