So...last week was another busy week here at Forsinard. Six members of staff were trained in the use of the new Argocat that we took possession of recently. This will primarily allow us to transport equipment and materials out onto the bog to enable us to block old hill drains that are drying out areas of the bog and causing erosion of the peatland. There is also potential in the future for the Argo to be kitted out to help fight brush fires such as the two that we had last year.
This baby vole was relocated to a safer spot away from the Argocat!
As always, survey work is very important at this time in the season. Below are some photographs from the darkside of the moon...well...the other side of the reserve.
Bog Pool System
Never has driving in a straight line been more important!
Finally, we have had a very special visitor from down south. We had a hen harrier from Forest of Bowland make a brief visit to the reserve. At Forsinard we have a healthy harrier population, but last week 74843 (also known as “Beth”) paid us a visit on a grand tour of the UK. She has been on her travels since she was satellite tagged at her nest as a youngster last summer. She is special because there are still very few breeding Hen Harriers in England where they continue to suffer greatly from human persecution. If you would like to find out more about Beth and the fortunes of the Bowland Harriers then why not follow the SkyDancer blog at: www.rspb.org.uk/skydancer/
Adult male Hen Harrier with nesting material - Andy Hay (rspb-images.com)