As lovely as the weather has been the past couple of weeks, it’s been difficult for me to enjoy as I’ve had to endure the most severe case of hay fever I’ve ever experienced in my life. I’ve been walking around with tissue up each nostril and a face mask to try and keep the pollen out, but I can’t say I’d recommend the technique. I guess it’s my own fault for working on a wet grassland…
RSPB Staff
We’ve been doing our third round of breeding wader surveys this week. As Will and I walked through the fields in the early hours of Tuesday and Wednesday I could literally see pollen clouds erupting with every step and swirling around us in a threatening mist. Fortunately there were plenty of birds to keep my mind occupied, with skylarks, sedge warblers and reed buntings all noisily getting on with their day. As we trudged through the wet grass a roe deer caught our attention bouncing through the field, and not two seconds later we both froze at the same time as we happened upon a young fawn curled up in the undergrowth. We quickly and quietly slipped away.
Will Russell
More cows have arrived to graze some of our fields, which means cattle checks are taking longer; but it’s also a great way to see some of the reserve. I often hear the drumming of a diving snipe, and the other day I witnessed a pair of redshank and a pair of lapwing teaming up to scare off a few cranes – not something you see everyday!
That’s all for this week.
Luke
West Sedgemoor Residential Volunteering team