We don’t have much woodland and scrub at Langford, but what we do have is home to some nice wildlife. Purple and white-letter hairstreaks, great spotted and green woodpeckers, grasshopper warbler and as of 2017, even nightingale and spotted flycatcher all reside in the more wooded areas of the site and it is now the time of year where we take a break from wetlands and do a bit of habitat management in somewhat drier conditions!
Our volunteers have been busy with some experimental management for grasshopper warblers this winter, by creating large openings and taking out tall scrub in the western block on Phase 1. An area often favoured by this species, we are trying to create a low and scattered scrub, with a tall rough herb layer that they seem to like. The scattered scrub offers good song perches for male birds singing to attract a mate and hold a territory, whilst the thick softer vegetation at ground level provides them with the cover they need for nesting and suits their skulking nature perfectly!
Habitat work in progress.
Grasshopper warblers are fabulous little birds. Named appropriately after their 'reeling' song, that sounds like a grasshopper, they arrive at Langford in April to breed from their wintering grounds in West Africa. Numbers seem to fluctuate at Langford, with six singing males on site in 2016, but only one in 2017! They always seem to bounce back from these scarcer years however and we are hoping the habitat management we have done for them will provide them a good home into the future.
Grasshopper warbler.