Water levels on the reserve have dropped back down, almost to our expected winter levels, but most of the trails are still closed to give them time to dry out. There is still a lot to see though and if you're feeling energetic enough to walk the 4 mile perimeter footpath you'll rack up a good tally of winter wildfowl (potentially including pintail and goldeneye), a few waders (curlew and green sandpiper today) and maybe even the red-necked grebe which has been floating around on various parts of the reserve for the past few days. Today it was at the southern end of the Main Lake and was easily viewed from the footpath. The perimeter path circles the whole site, starting and finishing in the car park and takes in part of the Sustrans 64 route and part of the Trent Valley Way. Other species of note today included 18 shelduck and 5 snipe.
Red-necked grebe ©Stuart Carlton. Twitter: @StuartCarlton48