Blacktoft Sands has been getting all the Spoonbill action over the last week or so, but happily this morning a visitor returned to the centre to tell us a pair of the stunning birds had dropped in to see us at Fairburn too. They were last seen about 40 minutes ago at midday feeding on the opposite corner of Pickup Pool. For anyone who hasn't been to Pickup Hide its the first hide only a couple of hundred metres from the…

Despite the fairly miserable weather at Fairburn today, the wildlife was not perturbed and visitors were treated to the sight of a roe deer family outing to Lin Dike. Also in the area were 3 cuckoos, sightings of which seem to be picking up again, one was also spotted flying past the visitor centre, possibly the same one that's been calling to us all day!

Joining the serenade around the visitor centre have been blackcaps…

A few of our regular birders have spotted a great white egret on the moat just beyond Newton Farm on Newton Lane (if you’re heading towards the reserve from Allerton Bywater). UPDATE: *It’s now on Spoonbill Flash*
They’re beautiful birds with snowy white plumage and yellow bills. Related to herons but slightly smaller than a grey heron, they’re a common species but uncommon to actually spot so get down there…

We've had some beautful weather here at Fairburn over the last few days, making us think that maybe summer has arrived at the reserve.  But that British sceptisicm means that we still have our jumpers and waterproofs to hand just in case the weather turns.

We have been watching what seems like hundreds of fledglings on and around our feeders near the visitor centre, we've got lots of tree sparrows, blue tits, great…

As I cycled to work this morning along Newton Lane, I glanced across Cedric’s Flash (the pool on the left if you’re coming from Allerton Bywater) and saw a distinctly heron-shaped bird flap down onto the water. However, it was a lot darker than herons usually are (and in my early morning haze had to double check it wasn’t a cormorant or crow!). But no, it was definitely a heron.

I didn’t give it much…

We have a new footpath on the reserve! The warden team have just installed a kissing gate to lead onto the new footpath linking the Riverbank Trail to the Lin Dike trail. This is really exciting as now you’re able to walk to Lin Dike from the main part of the reserve without having to drive down to the Lin Dike car park.

Some of us on the reserve team went to explore it on Wednesday, and had a great time looking…

A glorious morning for an early start on the reserve and the wildlife didn't let us down!! The dawn chorus walk was cancelled last week due to bad weather and was rescheduled for this morning and we're really glad!!

Our Kingfisher's delight us on a daily basis letting us get close up views of them flying, fishing and carrying nesting material but over the past couple of days visitors have been experiencing once in a lifetime encounters with these amazing birds!

On Friday afternoon, a pair of kingfishers were sat side by side on a branch (seen from the kingfisher screen), the male hopped along to the female and they began mating…

The tree sparrows resident to our nest box at the visitor centre have been settling in nicely over the past few months, building their home from twigs, feathers and anything else they can lay their beaks on- and even having to fend their corner from a pair of blue tits who also took a liking to the same nest box.

Over the past few weeks we have been watching the newly hatched baby tree sparrows being brought up by their…

So our juvenile common crane is still around, and I still haven't seen it. This is the third time in as many days I've headed off to one side of the reserve, only to find I've just missed it and its flown to the other. The best spots to see it seem to have been conveniently from Lin Dike Hide, Pickup Hide and also from the road between the flashes. Even though I haven't seen it with own eyes, I have seen some great…

What a fab day to be wildlife watching at the reserve... the sun is shining and the place is buzzing with birds, butterflies and people enjoying a nice cool ice cream!

Sand Martins have been a common sight at the reserve over the past few weeks, and lots of sightings today especially, with flocks nesting in the limestone walls of Fairburn village we're hoping to see them nesting in our newly built Sand Martin wall before…

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…

As spring is just around the corner the wardening team have been out and about on the reserve checking all of our bird boxes. We have 90 on site and they all need to be emptied and repaired ready for their new occupants. Staff and volunteers have also been busy  making new boxes to replace any that have seen better days. The location of each box is mapped so that we can monitor them in the spring and summer as part of the…

Spring is definitely in the air here on the reserve! It has been a fantastic day today and I have even seen people out and about in shirt sleeves. The birds are singing more and more and we have seen great tits and blue tits checking out our newly refurbished bird boxes around the boardwalk.  Vistors had a supprise on a guided walk today when we got buzzed by a bat as it searched for insects over the water. The warm weather…

The week started well with a flock of over 100 siskins along village bay and a flock of 50 waxwings stopped briefly along the boardwalk. It has been a great winter for waxwings but there probably wont be too many more oppurtunities to see these fantastic birds before they begin to return to their northern european breeding grounds.

It has been a good week for waders with 32 curlews seen on the reserve and a black tailed…

The water has subsided and the wind has dropped and the busy week has continued into the weekend with a huge variety of wildlife being spotted. There was a report of a water vole along the Pickup Dike on Thursday. Signs of these elusive creatures are sometimes seen around the reserve but an actual sighting is very unusual. 5 roe deer were seen near Bob Dickens hide on Friday as they run across the path in front of visitors…

Even after partial flooding around the reserve this week, Fairburn Ings has still seen some exciting bird action.

The weekend saw Brambling, Sparrowhawk, Reed Bunting, Willow and Coal Tit at Pickup Hide. Mealy, Arctic AND Lesser Redpoll were all seen on the reserve on Saturday. Around the Visitor Centre there were Bullfinch, Long-tailed Tits, Green Woodpecker and a Weasel. On main bay lake 20 Goldeneye were reported and…

This weekend was time for the 'Big Garden Birdwatch' and we celebrated in style at Fairburn Ings. After several radio appearances on Saturday we had our special event on Sunday. It was great to see so many people on the reserve with a lot coming along to find out more about 'Big Garden Birdwatch' In the centre we had garden bird mask making and 'create your own plastic bottle bird feeder' for children and a question and…

Remember to take part in the 'Big Garden Birdwatch' this weekend and come along to our special event on Sunday!!