I haven't been here for the best part of a week so it was nice to see how much has changed during that time.
Volunteer John and Emma had a shock on Sunday when the great white egret landed at the edge of the visitor centre pond! Sadly, it didn't hang around for long though before flying back towards the washland.
A kingfisher was feeding at the edge of the visitor centre pond yesterday morning and Site Manager Dave went down the reserve. He saw a bittern and at least seven marsh harriers near Joist Fen viewpoint.
As the day went on, a grey wagtail appeared at the edge of the visitor centre pond and at lunchtime, Suzanne went for a walk around Brandon Fen. She saw at least 40 lapwings over the washland and two stonechats perched up in the riverbank. She also saw a chiffchaff and a goldcrest.
I went for a walk around Brandon Fen before work and unfortunately, the visibility wasn't great. However, I did manage to take these photos:
Fungi:
Image credits: David White
A group of bearded tits were pinging in the reedbed and I just about managed to pick out the silhouettes of three that flew low over the reeds. Two corn buntings flew south overhead and I saw my first water pipit of the autumn on the bend in the river. A couple of fieldfares flew over and while I was opening up the visitor centre, a goldcrest was feeding in the visitor centre alders.
As the morning has gone on, a skylark flew north over the visitor centre and a Cetti's warbler was singing nearby. I went for a walk with a couple of families and we saw the great white egret from the Washland viewpoint. A grey wagtail was trotting around on the visitor centre lawn earlier on and at least four stonechats were showing well in Brandon Fen at lunchtime.
Please note that due to the fact that the riverbank Public Footpath is now slippery in places, the stile north of East Wood that links the Public Footpath to the path down to New Fen viewpoint is now CLOSED. We are working on an alternative route so we will keep you updated about this.
The weather is looking reasonable for the next couple of days so why not come and visit? We hope to see you soon!