Good morning. There has been plenty to see over the last couple of days so here are some more recent sightings for you:
On Tuesday, two red kites were hunting over Mere Hide in the afternoon sunshine. Local birder Steve counted at least 97 whooper swans feeding north of the river. He also saw a single pink footed goose along the river in amongst the greylag geese along the river and a bittern from Joist Fen viewpoint.
I walked around Brandon Fen before work on Wednesday morning and saw a barn owl hunting at the edge of the car park. Two roe deer were skulking around and I disturbed a muntjac deer that was resting on the riverbank ahead of me. A chiffchaff was also calling near Wilton Bridge, which was obviously an over-wintering bird.
When I got to the Washland viewpoint, 56 whooper swans and at least two Bewick’s swans were present. A great white egret was feeding along the river and a redpoll flew over just before I got back to the visitor centre.
Although I didn’t have much time yesterday morning. I walked up to the Washland viewpoint and just before I got there, two roe deer ran along the track in front of me. A water pipit flew up in front of the viewpoint and a kingfisher flew along the river. At least four redshanks were present and I was treated to fantastic views of a barn owl that was hunting between the car park and the visitor centre.
The sun came out shortly after we opened up the visitor centre and here is a picture of the visitor centre pond:
As the morning went on, Suzanne and I took the bins down to the reserve entrance and on the way there and back, we saw a treecreeper and heard a green woodpecker. Shortly after we got back, visitor centre volunteer spotted a cryptically camouflaged common snipe that was feeding at the edge of the visitor centre pond which was a bit of a treat.
The light conditions in front of the visitor centre were pretty special yesterday afternoon so here are some more pictures:
It was really rather chilly this morning and despite the disappointingly dull conditions, the reserve still looked rather wintry:
Image credits: David White
I saw three roe deer in Brandon Fen and a couple of birds of prey were hunting over the washland. This included a common buzzard and at least two marsh harriers. When I got back to the visitor centre, there were good numbers of birds around the bird feeders. This included up to four redpolls, a similar number of long tailed tits and a marsh tit.
If you are planning to visit the reserve, please note that the riverbank Public Footpath is now muddy in places. We recommend wearing either walking boots or wellies if you are intending to use this path at present. Please also note that unfortunately, the guided walk that was planned on Sunday has been cancelled due to a lack of bookings. We are very sorry for any inconvenience caused.
We hope to see you soon!