Good morning. I will start off where I left off with some sightings from Tuesday afternoon: There were two migrant hawker dragonflies and a hummingbird hawkmoth feeding near the visitor centre in the sunshine. A juvenile common buzzard was also calling nearby, which we could hear from the office.
The main focus of attention bird wise on Wednesday were waders on the washland. Here are some peak counts from the day:
A kingfisher was seen several times from the Washland viewpoint over the course of the day and a juvenile marsh harrier was hunting nearby. A hobby also flew over the visitor centre late morning.
There was some excitement at lunchtime when regular reserve visitor Eddie found a female wasp spider near the new photography station. This is not only the first of these impressive arachnids to be seen in an area of the public that is open to the public this year, it is also the closest one has ever been seen to the visitor centre.
Warden Emma and I went to have a quick look for it after lunch and here is a picture of it:
Image credit: David White
If you would like to see it, please ask in the visitor centre when you arrive and we will tell you where to look.
Meanwhile, further down the reserve, three cranes were seen in flight from Joist Fen viewpoint in the afternoon. A couple of hobbys were also feeding overhead in amongst the house martins.
The weather wasn’t great yesterday unfortunately and it rained on and off for most of the morning. However, a marsh tit was feeding near the visitor centre and a bittern dropped in at the edge of the visitor centre pond at lunchtime. Although it mainly took to skulking at the edge of the reeds, it did appear out in the open on a couple of occasions.
Two cranes were reported in flight from New Fen viewpoint and by the time the rain had stopped, a good number of common snipe appeared at the edge of the large pool in front of the Washland viewpoint. A couple of linnets also flew over, calling as they went.
It is a lovely morning this morning and I spent an enjoyable hour out on the reserve before work. I saw the following on the washland:
I walked around Brandon Fen and there were several warblers feeding in the elder bushes. This included several blackcaps, a willow warbler and a common whitethroat.
If you are planning to visit the reserve, please note that there are still cattle grazing on the riverbank Public Footpath between the Washland viewpoint and Joist Fen viewpoint. Please note that this path is also muddy in places after the recent wet weather.
We hope to see you soon!