Good morning. There has been plenty going on over the last couple of days so here are some more recent sightings. I will begin with some images that have been taken on the reserve recently:
Bittern:
Great white egret:
Bearded tits:
Image credit: David Gowing
Thank you very much to David for sharing these great images with us.
On Thursday afternoon, volunteer Jerry saw three swallows flying east along the river and I spotted a kingfisher at the edge of the visitor centre pond while I was chatting to some visitors.
I went for a walk before work yesterday morning and the great white egret was showing well in front of the Washland viewpoint along with four little egrets. A group of 11 wigeons flew over and two stonechats were perched up nearby. As I walked east along the riverbank, a female marsh harrier flew over. It was being mobbed by two swallows which was entertaining to watch! A kingfisher was fishing in the river near Wilton Bridge and when I got back to the visitor centre, a grey wagtail flew over.
Local photographer Matt Walton came into the visitor centre after having walked around the reserve early. He had seen plenty of bearded tits in New Fen North, the first area of reedbed. He was also lucky enough to see an otter on the track in front of him.
At lunchtime, volunteers Roger and Roy were watching the goldcrests feeding in front of the visitor centre when Roy spotted this migrant hawker perched up in the afternoon sunshine:
Image credits: David White
It was really rather foggy for my morning walk this morning but I could still make out the great white egret in front of the Washland viewpoint. Two stonechats were calling away nearby and small numbers of wigeons were feeding in the large pool. As I walked from the stile to New Fen viewpoint, a muntjac deer ran down the track in front of me. I then saw it again behind New Fen viewpoint.
As I walked back through the reserve, there were good numbers of redwings moving south along with a few siskins. A kestrel was also calling loudly in East Wood.
I will finish with one last reminder that it's our FULLY BOOKED Race for Wildlife tomorrow so the reserve is likely to be very busy from around 10am-3pm. If you are planning to visit, we recommend that you visit earlier or later on in the day. Please also note that due to the amount of participants taking apart and to ensure the safety of those taking part, we will unfortunately not be able to issue permits for visitors to drive down to New Fen viewpoint tomorrow. We are very sorry for any inconvenience caused.
We hope to see you soon!