Good afternoon, as we have our Spring Family Fun Day, tomorrow, I won't have a chance to blog. Therefore, here are some more recent sightings from yesterday lunchtime onwards:
A male great spotted woodpecker was on the visitor centre feeders and a several small tortoiseshell butterflies were on the wing around Brandon Fen. A group of nine sand martins also flew north over the reserve.
I took this picture of the bird cherry outside the visitor centre, I hope you like it!:
I went out on the reserve with my camera this morning and took these photos:
Image credits: David White
A group of five lesser redpolls were feeding in the staff car park and a barn owl was hunting near the Washland viewpoint. A great white egret was feeding along the riverbank and a male stonechat was perched up north of East Wood.
A sedge warbler was singing at the northern edge of New Fen North and blackcap was singing in East Wood. A pair of great crested grebes were displaying in front of New Fen viewpoint and a bittern was "grunting" in front of New Fen viewpoint. and another bird was fully booming near Mere Hide.
As I walked back through the reserve, a mistle thrush was singing from the top of a tree south of the railway line and a common buzzard was circling high over the Washland viewpoint. Another blackcap was also singing at the edge of the car park.
Volunteer Roy and I went to pick up the bins at the reserve entrance and we heard a greenfinch singing alongside the track. Sadly, this species has declined as a breeding bird on the reserve over the years. It was therefore great to hear one on the reserve.
Meanwhile, further down the reserve, two cranes flew west over Mere Hide. They then landed on the riverbank west of Joist Fen viewpoint, where they spent the next two hours feeding in full view. A bittern was seen in flight from Joist Fen viewpoint and three roe deer were grazing near the viewpoint. At least four different Cetti's warblers were singing in the same area.
There was some excitement at lunchtime when local birder Steve found a first summer little gull in front of the Washland viewpoint. i dashed up there as this species hasn't been recorded on the reserve since October 2013. I got good views of it before rapidly returning to the visitor centre so that visitor centre volunteer John could go and see it to!
Before he found the little gull, Steve had also seen a female goshawk and a red kite overhead. These are both good records for the reserve so it just goes to show what you can see if you put the time in!
I will return with some more recent sightings towards the end off this coming week so until then, we hope to see you soon!