Good morning. We have been treated to some lovely weather over the last couple of days so here are some more recent sightings:
I went for a walk before work on Sunday morning and saw a little ringed plover displaying over the Washland viewpoint. A male stonechat was showing well along the riverbank and a painted lady butterfly was showing well along the riverbank.
As the morning went on, a glossy ibis was reported in flight near the visitor centre and a kingfisher made a brief appearance at the edge of the visitor centre pond. A grey wagtail was seen from New Fen viewpoint and two spotted flycatchers were reported along the riverbank north of New Fen North, the first area of reedbed.
In the afternoon, two turtle doves flew into the poplars in Brandon Fen. Two red kites were also seen over the Washland viewpoint.
On Tuesday, Suzanne and Nigel walked down to New Fen viewpoint. They saw a kingfisher and three bearded tits.
I walked around Brandon Fen before work yesterday morning and I heard a goldcrest singing in the car park. A cuckoo was calling nearby and there were plenty of butterflies on the wing. This included several small tortoiseshells and two speckled woods.
Emma had put the moth trap out overnight and these two smart privet hawkmoths were the highlight of the morning's catch:
Image credits: Emma Cuthbertson
Thank you very much to Emma for sharing these great images with us!
While we were out looking at the moths, I spotted a very beautiful ruby tailed wasp feeding in front of the visitor centre. Although I tried, sadly I didn't managed to get any photos of it which was a shame.
Suzanne and I did our last Common Bird Census survey around Brandon Fen this morning. It was a fantastic last survey and we saw plenty. We saw three cuckoos in Brandon Fen and a little ringed plover was flying around in front of the Washland viewpoint. A barn owl was also hunting behind the large pool.
We heard a grasshopper warbler singing at the edge of East Wood and I caught a glimpse of a short eared owl hunting along the river. It had really warmed up by the time we got back to the visitor centre so we retreated for a well earned cup of tea!
If you are planning to visit the reserve, here are a couple of notices: Firstly, there are currently cattle grazing on the riverbank Public Footpath between the Washland viewpoint and Joist Fen viewpoint. Secondly, due to low water levels, pond dipping is currently rather tricky. If you are planning to come and do some pond dipping, we would recommend waiting until we have had some rain.
We hope to see you soon!