Just a quick one for today to let everyone know that we have had a bittern sighting early this afternoon! The bird flew from the reed fringe to the left of the pond dipping platform (as viewed from the Beach Hut) and dropped into silt lagoon 6 - the northern most lagoon with the large reed block. The bird appeared very pale in colouration, similar to a pale bird that we had back in 2011, so should be quite distinctive…

The monthly Wetland Bird Survey (WeBS) was upon us once again this morning. July is usually a quiet month for WeBS and this year was no exception, however it won’t be long before autumn migration gets into full swing. Here are this morning’s results….

72 tufted duck

41 mallard

11 gadwall

3 pochard

2 teal

44 mute swan – 10 cygnets remain on site, all doing well and now a good size

6 canada…

It’s not very often that we get the opportunity to survey the site at night, however a group of us went out on Friday evening last week to see what we could find in the middle of the night….

Birds and bats were the top priority for the evening, so with 8 pairs of ears and two bat detectors, we headed out at 22.00 around the public footpath and visitor trails around Phase 1.

A juvenile tawny owl was calling…

Volunteer Sunday was upon us once again on the 6^th and it was indeed that time of year again – the annual ragwort pull!

Ragwort is an important, native plant here in the UK, providing food for a number of insect species, including the familiar cinnabar moth. The adult moths are black with red underwings and red markings on the forewings, whilst the larvae are black and yellow striped and of course, can be seen…

It’s that time of year again, just as we humans are gearing up for a (hopefully) great summer, it is about all over for most breeding birds and autumn is on the way. This is particularly noticeable in wildfowl, as they start their post breeding moult in June and July.

Wildfowl – Family Anatidae (ducks, geese and swans), have an interesting moult strategy, unlike most other bird species which moult their primaries…

....on recent sightings from the last few days.

• ruff on the old silt lagoon 7 (the one you can see from the southern edge of the visitor trails). This was with a group of c.30 lapwing.
• greenshank heard calling from the Beach Hut.
• common tern - still 3 pairs with young on site. Look out for the chick with the pair on the left hand gravel island as seen from the Beach Hut.
• hobby over the visitor trails and the old…

The blue-tailed damselfly, or Ischnura elegans to be scientific, is one of our commonest species and can be seen in abundance here at Langford throughout the summer months from May-September. With a UK wide distribution and a tolerance for even polluted and brackish habitats, it is one of the most likely species you will come across. It is a small species at typically just over 30mm in length.

It is worth looking closely…

I completed the monthly Wetland Bird Survey (WeBS) this morning and despite June being traditionally the quietest month for this survey, it is always nice to see broods of young birds around. Here are this morning’s results –

102 mallard – at least 5 broods on site

49 tufted duck

14 gadwall – 1 brood

13 teal – the first teal back on site for the autumn/winter

8 pochard – a group of non…

Please have a look at the link below for a nice little blog by our colleague Mike Pollard from his recent visit - thanks Mike!

http://heartofenglandnature.blogspot.co.uk/2014/06/langford-lowfields-nottinghamshire-sand.html

An article recorded last Thursday at the official opening of the reserve, will be broadcast today at 11.30am.

We may be approaching the quiet summer period when it comes to birding, but there has still been some good sightings in the last week and whilst the bird breeding season may soon be coming to an end, entomological interest is still high on the agenda, with plenty of butterflies, dragonflies and damselflies, beetles, diptera and more on the wing at the moment. Highlights from the last few days include –

Peregri…

After many years of hard work by so many people, from many different organisations and months of planning the event itself, our big day finally arrived last Thursday, 5^th June….the official opening of RSPB Langford Lowfields!

A day of heavy rain on Wednesday got us all rather worried, however the weather forecast was looking good, if a little breezy and sure enough, it was looking OK as people began to arrive…

The Red-eyed Damselfly is certainly one of my favourite damselflies and I was very pleased to be able to show one to the attendees on our guided walk yesterday.

Male 'Red-eyes' tend to use the same piece of emergent vegetation as a territorial platform and sure enough, when I returned in the afternoon, it was still there.

In true Mr Benn shopkeeper fashion (I'm showing my age now), up popped volunteer Mark…

After getting thoroughly soaked every day last week, it was a pleasant change to have some lovely weather for our monthly Sunday work party yesterday! 12 people were greeted with glorious sunshine and 20C+ temperatures for a day of fencing and polytunnel work.

Over the last few weeks we have been installing sheep netting along the Phase 1 scrub fence line to provide protection and reduce disturbance for breeding birds…

In last week’s blog I mentioned the first reserve records of hairy dragonfly (and how it got us all rather excited!) and promised more on the subject this week. So, read on for a bit of info about the latest addition to our reserve list....

The hairy dragonfly, or Brachytron pratense, to be scientific is an uncommon species throughout much of the UK, but is thought to be expanding it’s range to the north and west…

It’s perhaps the best time of year for the entomologist at the moment, with new species emerging nearly every day and always something to see. Here is a quick list of newly emerged species for this week –

Panorpa germanica/communis – scorpion flies. Related to lacewings, the males are instantly recognizable by their scorpion-like appendages at the tip of the abdomen. But don’t worry, they won’t sting you…

We found a small, silver coloured Sekonda ladies watch on the visitor trails yesterday morning. If anyone has lost it, please do give us a ring on 01636 893611 and we can get it back to you.

Thanks,

Jenny 

Hello all blog readers – apologies for the absence of blogs over the last week, I have been away on holiday. However, it’s now back to business as usual and my first task this morning was the monthly Wetland Bird Survey (WeBS). It’s a glorious day here, with plenty of birds to see and loads of insects on the wing. Here are this morning’s WeBS results and other highlights –

49 mallard

29…

Not one, but two guided walks today at Langford.  Well, one was a guided walk and the other was a guided ride!

Our monthly 'Discover Langford Lowfields' walk saw 26 people attending.  This was a really good turn out considering the weather and the weather forecast.  However, we did manage to dodge most of the showers and could just about hear the numerous warblers competing against the wind!

In the afternoon, I…

We have been treated to some excellent birds recently here at Langford and the good stuff just keeps on coming, with yesterday’s records making it perhaps one of the site’s best days ever.

It was also volunteer Sunday and 8 people arrived bright and early to the news of a spoonbill, seen early morning on silt lagoon 6 (the reedy one near the Beach Hut). The bird had then flown over Phase 1 (where the visitor…

Spring is well on it’s way now, with migrants continuing to arrive and more excellent Langford records. Here are some highlights from the last week –

2 grasshopper warblers reeling on the western boundary of the site – so good to hear these after an almost total absence last year.

2-3 cuckoo calling – listen out for them on the public footpath by the silt lagoons, in the Phase 1 scrub and on the western…

There have been some excellent migrants in the last few days here at Langford, as well as good numbers of our common species moving in. Highlights as follows -

Ring ouzel on 19th April

Spoonbill overhead on 21st April

Whinchat today at the northern end of the site - a very pleasing site tick for me, many thanks to the gentleman in the car park who tipped me off!

Whimbrel on 17th April

16 yellow wagtails and 1 white…

Yesterday Paul and I conducted the monthly WeBS count. It’s getting quieter now, as the majority of winter wildfowl have moved off, with wigeon, goldeneye and whooper swan gone now. However there are a few pintail, teal, pochard and shoveler hanging on and of course resident and summer migrant species are starting the breeding season.

Here are the results –

114 tufted duck

40 mallard

24 teal

18 gadwa…

A very quick check of the newly opened visitor trails this morning revealed not one, but four Egyptian Geese!

Also Willow Warblers, Sedge Warblers and Blackcaps could just be heard over the cold, strong wind, plus there was a good smattering of Sand Martins.

RSPB Langford Lowfields opens officially in early June.  However, we are delighted to announce that the new trails around the northern end of the site, are now open for everybody to enjoy.

You'll have the option of either the shorter Cromwell Trail, or the longer North Trail, or you can combine the two.  So why not come and enjoy the sights and sounds of a Langford Lowfields spring!

The Beach Hut visitor centre will…