Sup suuuuuuuuup!!! I've been doing essential (but not fun stuff) at the computer all day so with Chris being away, what better excuse than to take a break and relax by knocking out this weeks sightings.
For those of you wondering what's been around this week and what you can expect to see this weekend, here are your maps from last weekend and earlier in the week, 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th, 14th.
The most exciting development of the week revolved around the winter plumage Black Guillemot that was found on Thursday. There were a few people that popped down to see it on Friday but it was the better views that were had on Saturday which got the questions flowing. It appeared much whiter than one would expect a conventional Black Guillemot to look at this time of year so Saturday saw plenty of tweets exchanged as we tried to work out just how white is white from the distant views we had.
Sunday morning was awful with only 7 visitors in all day. Fortunately the terrible weather hadn't deterred Steve from heading down to look for the snowball auk at the Witham Mouth and he got some cracking pictures. This enabled us to see some key features which, while not putting the identification beyond doubt, does make this bird a very strong candidate for being the first accepted form of Mandt's Black Guillemot (the high arctic race of Black Guillemot) in the UK.
Rather than waffle on any further about the finer points of the birds identification, for any of you that would like to see more pictures of the bird, check this out, and for some finer id points, this is the place to go. Amazing to think that our sheltered corner of The Wash can attract such incredibly well travelled sea birds! Just goes to show what you can find if you get out and look so hats off to Dave Roberts for heading out there on a cold and wet Thursday morning in the first place.
So, we're a heavy on the text and a bit light on anything that looks nice so far so lets put a stop to that now, check this beauty out!!
Hen Harrier - Rod Smith
What an absolute beauty!! This 'Grey Ghost' has been seen for the last few days both on the saltmarsh and also our fresh water habitats. With this cold snap moving birds around we may finally get more regular sightings as food resources concentrate. We are doing pretty well for birds of prey with Peregrine, Merlin, Kestrel and Marsh Harrier seen regularly from the Visitor Centre during the day. Sparrowhawks put occasional appearance in as they dash after birds at the feeders and the Barn Owl hunt the margins next to the road at dusk. Further out on the saltmarsh you have a chance of seeing all these again, plus Short-eared Owl. It's really a top top raptor reserve.
Wigeon - Jeremy Eyeons
And the reason we have so many birds of prey around.... the sheer abundance of food available. Wigeon, Teal, Golden Plover and Lapwing in their thousands for the Peregrine, smaller waders pipits, larks, finches and buntings for the Merlin, Sparrowhawk and Hen Harrier, small mammals for Barn and Short-eared Owl and anything left over for the Buzzards. A talon wielders smorgasbord, and a fantastic sign of a healthy and flourishing food chain. Where you have top predators, you must have a stable and sustainable food source.
Redwing - Jeremy Eyeons
Fieldfare - Jeremy Eyeons
While it's far too early to say catch them while you can, the winter thrushes are doing an incredible job of stripping the berries from the bushes. The crimson Hawthorns of November are now just twiggy brown carcasses. It's amazing seeing how quickly these birds devour the best bits. There have been a fairly large size group as you approach the reserve and also on the bushes near Mount Hirons and towards East Hide. They are quite nervy but patience and field craft could get you in range to take pictures as good as Jeremy's.
Chaffinch - Mark Sargeant
Starling - Mark Sargeant
Don't forget to give the feeders a good going over before and after your walk on the reserve. Tree and House Sparrows are abundant and as the temperature falls, Yellowhammers should start to appear too. We've noticed a few finches with rings on outside the window so if you can get a ring sequence photographed and read, please do report it and see where it came from.
Will leave you with two of our recent vlogs. The first is about a new viewing area we've put in (though we're not telling you where so only intrepid explorers can find and enjoy it) and the second is some background to the management we've been doing at Freiston which is working out pretty well.
So there you have it. The birds are around, we just need more of you guys to wrap up warm and come and enjoy them :) If you'd like a few more pictures and a bit less waffle in your round up of the week on the reserve, this could be for you. As always, if you like or don't like what we're doing or have any reserve related questions, please get in touch and let us know.
That's all from us this week. Enjoy your weekend everyone, and if you can't wait 7 days to know what's going on here, keep your finger on the Lincolnshire Wash Reserves pulse by following us on Twitter and giving us a ‘like’ on Facebook. Alternatively if you enjoy taking pictures and have a Flickr account then please join our group and share your images with everyone. If you are thinking of paying a visit from near or far please do check out the tide times which can make a big difference to both numbers and variety of birds seen on the day.
The more you're out the more you see - https://twitter.com/BoyWonderBirder
A first class blog with links to in-depth discussion and photos of the potential mandtii black guillemot. Toby's included relevant information for photographers and this week, there's no doubting who the target key audience is - Britain's growing army of increasingly knowledgeable, hardcore birders. Often overlooked, it's part of the RSPB's strategy to re-engage with this audience.