January 2025 Wetland Bird Survey and flooding update

2025 is upon us and another year of WeBS counts lie ahead. Who knows what avian delights await us!? Headline news from the 2024 counts included: 

• A number of species being recorded for the first time on a Langford WeBS:
  • Purple Heron – May
  • Sanderling – May
  • Knot – September
  • Red-breasted Merganser – October
  • Barnacle Goose (presumably a feral one - it had a wild look in its eyes) – November
  • Purple Sandpiper – November
•  The highest ever total number of birds on a Langford WeBS being recorded in October – 2359
•  The highest ever counts to date on a Langford WeBS being recorded for:
  
  • Little Egret – 47 – September 
  • Great White Egret – 30 – September 
  • Shoveler – 212 – October
  • Greylag Goose – 1165 – November
  • Grey Heron – 25 – November

As for the first count of 2025...

... nothing out of the ordinary was found, but it's great to see a good range of species back on site following the recent flooding, which pushes most things off the reserve and numbers of all expected winter species dipping, that is apart from (during this year at least) the Starlings, with the murmuration continuing throughout the flooded period as the birds (estimated at between 75,000 and 100,000 in number) switched from roosting in the reeds to roosting in the scrub on the western edge of Phase 1. The spectacle is best viewed from the 360 Viewing Area - a.k.a Corfe Castle - with the current start time being around 4pm. Other recent sightings of note have included Nuthatch (unusual for Langford), a heard-only Little Owl (again unusual for Langford), Stonechats, Great White Egrets (19 were feeding on the floodbank whilst the Trent was spilling over it), Peregrine, Raven, Red Kite, Green Sandpiper, Marsh Harriers and Whooper Swans.

At the moment we've still just got the short section of Visitor Trail between the Beach Hut and Corfe Castle open. The rest of it is still under a bit of water and even when that drops away we'll need to have a bit of a clear up and give the Trail some time to dry out. Thankfully the flooding wasn't as severe or prolonged as last year's (although who knows what February might have in store for us) and so damage and disruption will be less.

Photos below: Nuthatch, a scarce bird at Langford showing well by the woodland entrance (Ian Hicks) and a Stonechat bringing attention to the Boardwalk safety signage (Chris Cullen)