Hello there! I will begin by sharing an image of the visitor centre pond that I took once the sun came out on Sunday:

As the weather hasn't been that great this week, there haven't been many crane sightings and our nesting pair have been mostly keeping their heads down. However, a group of three have been seen over Joist Fen viewpoint this morning. These are likely to be some of the non-breeders that are currently…

Good morning. It has been a rather chilly Bank Holiday weekend hasn't it? However, those who have wrapped up warm and braved the conditions have seen plenty. Here are some more recent sightings:

I led a rather bracing dawn chorus walk yesterday morning and we were treated to excellent views of the extra pair of cranes. They flew into New Fen North, the first area of reedbed at around 06.15. After spending around half…

Good afternoon. Well, unfortunately, the weather in May has started with a bang rather than a whimper! Nevertheless, there has still been plenty to see so here are some more sightings:

There have been several sightings of a group of three cranes over the last couple of days, mostly from Joist Fen viewpoint. As all indications seem to show that our nesting pair are still on track, these are most likely to be extra birds…

Good afternoon. We have now reached the mad month of May! There has been plenty to see recently so here are some more sightings for you:

Although our cranes have been relatively quiet for most of the week, at least three individuals were seen in flight yesterday. They were actually seen over New Fen North, the first area of reedbed, which is relatively unusual for this time of year. 

We did our last early morning bitt…

Good morning. I will begin by sharing some lovely images that have been taken on the reserve recently:

Great crested grebes:

Marsh harrier:

Image credits: Stephen Reeve

Cetti's warbler:

Hairy dragonfly emerging out of raised plant bed:

Image credits: Scott Grear Hardy

Thank you very much to Stephen and Scott for sharing these wonderful pictures with us.

It has been a relatively quiet week for the cranes and the…

Happy Easter to you all! I hope you are enjoying the lovely weather that we are having at the moment.

Our nesting pair of cranes are still fine and the extra pair have been very busy over the last couple of days. They were seen displaying on the riverbank from Joist Fen viewpoint on Friday afternoon and they flew the whole length of the reserve yesterday. They were even circling over the visitor centre for a while, which…

Good morning. There has been plenty to hear and see here recently so here are some more recent sightings. 

Our resident pair of cranes are busy with nesting at the moment but another pair is still in the area. The two "extras" have been seen in flight north of the river this morning.

There are still at least eight booming male bitterns and I have heard at least two on my morning walk this morning. They are also…

Good morning. This is probably the last chance that I am going to have to post some sightings for a while so without any further ado, here we go:

On Wednesday afternoon, two cranes were seen in flight from Joist Fen viewpoint and a pair of garganeys were seen in New Fen South, the newly cut area between Mere Hide and Joist Fen viewpoint. 

Two common lizards were basking in the sunshine alongside West Wood and I saw a

Good afternoon. Apologies for the lack of updates recently, there has been a lot going on here recently.

Although the chilly north easterly breeze hasn’t helped, there has been plenty to see and some summer migrants are starting to arrive.

Our resident pair of cranes are present and if you are lucky, you may see a single bird in flight from Joist Fen viewpoint. At least one other pair are also still in the area…

Good morning. I will begin by sharing some images that were taken on the reserve last Friday that I haven’t had a chance to share yet:

Great crested grebe:

Great white egrets in flight:

Bittern:

The beautiful sunset:

Image credits: Cathy Ryden

Thank you very much to Cathy for sharing these lovely images with us.

On Monday afternoon, local birder Steve B found a pair of garganeys in New Fen South, the recently…

Good afternoon. I will begin by sharing some lovely images that were taken on Thursday morning by photographer and regular visitor Ron Smith:

Bitterns:

Cranes:

Image credits: Ron Smith

Thank you very much to Ron for sharing these great images with us.

On Friday evening, four great white egrets were seen in flight from Joist Fen viewpoint. This certainly isn’t something that you would have seen here (or anywhere…

Good morning. I will start off where I left off with some sightings from Tuesday afternoon. Suzanne walked around Brandon Fen at lunchtime and saw a buzzard overhead. She also saw two kestrels and two red legged partridges.

Meanwhile, from the Washland viewpoint, four ringed plovers and two little ringed plovers were showing well. At least one water pipit was also feeding nearby.

On Wednesday, Photographer Norman T took…

Good morning. The reserve is really starting to come alive now so it’s time for some more recent sightings:

On Friday, a bittern was seen from Joist Fen viewpoint and a kingfisher was seen from Mere Hide. A curlew was also calling on the washland.

There was plenty to see from the Washland viewpoint on Saturday and here are some of the highlights:

• Little ringed plover: 2
• Ringed plover: 2
• Curlew: 1
• Redshank: 3
• L…

Good morning. Please note that there are a selection of road closures that are due to take place nearby over the next couple of weeks which will affect access to the reserve. I will therefore try my best to summarise them below:

• Work has started today on Wilton Bridge, which is on the B1112, just north of the reserve entrance. This is due to take around 12-14 weeks and for the most part, it will be controlled by traffic…

Good morning. Without any further ado, I will start off where I left off on Wednesday with some more recent sightings. Two cranes were seen in flight over the reserve and a tatty looking buzzard was circling over the visitor centre.

Site Manager Dave saw 12 whooper swans over Joist Fen North and nine pochards were feeding just west of Joist Fen viewpoint. He also saw a great white egret in flight. Warden Katherine was…

Good morning. Now that the weather has finally settled down, there has been plenty to see on the reserve recently.

On Sunday, at least 80 whooper swans were feeding north of the river and a red kite flew over Joist Fen viewpoint. Although unfortunately, we didn’t see any barn owls on our barn owl walk, we did see a few other things. A marsh harrier was hunting near New Fen viewpoint and a bittern made a brief flight…

Good morning. The wind has finally dropped (a bit!) so it is time for some more recent sightings:

On Thursday, a female marsh harrier flew over the visitor centre pond and a grey heron spent some time fishing in the pond. I popped up to the Washland viewpoint mid-afternoon and spotted a smart great crested grebe feeding on the river.

I had a good walk around the reserve on Friday morning and I spotted presumably the same…

Please note that our Ghosts of the Fens barn owl walk on Sunday 17 March is now FULLY BOOKED. Unfortunately, we can only accommodate those who have booked places in advance. We are sorry for any inconvenience caused. 

As you may know, we currently charge the following for non-members to visit the reserve. The current prices are as follows:

£3- Adult

£2- Student

£1.50 (First child free per family group)

Our nature reserves are special places that support a host of wildlife. We’re only able to carry out our valuable work through the generous support of people like you. To help us continue our vital conservation work…

Good morning. Wow, it has been a bit breezy this week hasn’t it?!

Although the conditions haven’t been ideal recently, there still have been a few things around. I walked around Brandon Fen on Saturday morning and flushed two red legged partridges near the visitor centre. Two buzzards were circling overhead and a female marsh harrier was hunting over the washland.

I stopped briefly at the Washland viewpoint…

Good morning. We have been kept entertained over the last couple of days by the antics of a pair of mallards that seem intent on nesting quite close to the visitor centre. Here are some pictures of them prospecting one of the raised plant beds in front of the visitor centre:

Image credits: David White

The same pair were seen trying to get into the visitor centre yesterday morning so who knows where they are going to…

Good morning. It is a bit of a dull day this morning unfortunately. However, plenty has been seen over the last couple of days so here are some more sightings:

I led a very windy crane talk & walk on Sunday afternoon. Despite the weather, we still saw a few interesting things. Seven tufted ducks were feeding in front of New Fen viewpoint and two great crested grebes were showing well just behind Joist Fen viewpoint…

Good morning. I will begin by sharing some lovely images that were taken on the reserve at the end of last week:

Barn owl:

Stoat:

Male mallard:

Kingfisher:

Long tailed tit:

Blue tit:

Great tit:

Image credits: David Gowing

Thank you very much to David for sharing these wonderful images with us.

On Friday, a common snipe was skulking at the edge of the visitor centre pond and a marsh tit was making regular visits…

Good morning. Well, February went by like a flash and we are now into March so here are some more recent sightings for you:

I will start off by sharing some images that photographer Mark Lynham has shared with us that were taken on the reserve on Sunday:

Canada geese:

Female marsh harrier:

Image credits: Mark Lynham

Thank you very much to Mark for sharing these lovely images with us.

On Wednesday, a marsh tit was singing…

Good morning. We have been treated to some fabulous weather recently so here are some more recent sightings from Sunday afternoon onwards.

Volunteer Denise saw a buzzard over Brandon Fen and a treecreeper at the edge of the car park. A stoat was also seen hunting along the riverbank. 

On Monday, Suzanne saw three buzzards over West Wood and a marsh harrier over New Fen North. A barn owl was seen hunting over the washland…