Good morning. Although the weather has been patchy over the last couple of days, there has been plenty to see so here are some more recent sightings:
As I drove in on Wednesday morning, I saw three roe deer on the entrance track. I had a good look on the washland and there were a large group of lapwings present. They were counted later on in the day and there were at least 750 of them. I also saw a redshank and a water rail. As I walked along the riverbank, a marsh harrier was hunting along the river.
A muntjac deer was grazing near the stile in New Fen North and a kingfisher flew over in front of New Fen viewpoint. When I got back to the visitor centre, a very bold jay was feeding on the feeders behind the centre which was nice to see.
I went out before work yesterday morning and here are some of my pictures. I hope you like them:
Water mint:
Giant puffball:
Sympetrum sp. which looks most like a female common darter:
Bulrush:
Hawthorn shield bug:
Image credits: David White
While I was out and about, I spotted a kingfisher that was perched up along the river and heard a willow warbler in sub song near the visitor centre. I also saw a juvenile green woodpecker at the edge of East Wood.
The reserve team were out doing a work party and they saw three cranes over the far end of the reserve. They saw a bittern in flight from Joist Fen viewpoint and heard a grasshopper warbler reeling in the same area. They also saw a small group of bearded tits feeding near the viewpoint.
The sun came out in the afternoon and there were good numbers of red admirals and gatekeepers feeding in front of the visitor centre. Volunteer Lawrence also saw a kingfisher from Mere Hide.
I had a nice walk around the reserve this morning. As I walked along the riverbank, I heard a stonechat singing and a marsh harrier was hunting over the washland.
When I got to New Fen viewpoint, I could hear some bearded tits calling in the reeds and a hobby was hunting overhead. I walked down to Mere Hide and as I walked alongside Trial Wood I saw some interesting species of spiders. This included several garden spiders and my first marbled orb weaver of the year.
A marsh harrier was hunting over the path up to Mere Hide. I went and had a look for the pyramidal orchids that have been flowering on the approach to Mere Hide but sadly they seemed to have gone over.
As I walked back through the reserve, a muntjac deer was skulking near the Trial Wood viewpoint. I also saw the juvenile green woodpecker at the edge of East Wood.
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.
We hope to see you soon!