The weather has been rather changeable over recent days, and at the time of writing, a sunny and peaceful morning has come to an end abruptly as a torrential downpour has marked the arrival of noon. Despite the unpredictability of the British weather, fabulous wildlife sightings have been dependable, much to the delight of many of our visitors who are out braving the rain!
On Wednesday, a juvenile Bittern emerged from the reedbed immediately in front of the Lower Hide. Visitors described the bird as being less than 5 metres away as it skulked about, finding its feet. Jarrod, our Senior Site Manager, has seen his fair share of Bitterns over the years yet he still described this encounter as a once in a lifetime experience - and he got plenty of photographs to show for it!
Juvenile Marsh Harriers are also being seen practising their moves, up in the sky. Our volunteers have been keeping a keen eye on their actions over the past few weeks and seven individual young birds have been confirmed, fledged from across three nests. It’s a joy to see so many Marsh Harriers across the site, especially considering that these birds were driven to near extinction in the UK, and only one breeding pair was remained in 1971. Watching them cruise over the reedbeds now, it’s almost impossible to imagine their absence. We have had some other star species joining the Leighton Moss raptor line up this week, with three Hobbies seen from Lower Hide and Ospreys being seen fishing most day.
Otters are always a firm visitor favourite, and recently, there have been reports of young cubs swimming at the Causeway Pool with an adult. Please do let us know of any of your sightings and do share any photos you might have with us on Facebook and Twitter! Otters have also been seen from the Eric Morecambe and Allen hides this week, swimming through the shallows.
Also on the brackish lagoons of the saltmarsh, Spoonbills have been seen intermittently throughout the week. Black-tailed Godwit numbers have been around 200-300 throughout the week, however, this morning (Saturday 15 July), the flock grew to c1100 birds. They have also accompanied by a few Bar-taileds. Redshank, Greenshank, Dunlin and Common Sandpipers have been visible from the Eric Morecambe and Allen Hides, and around 30 Avocets – some adult and some young - remain to be seen.
Next week sees the schools finishing up for the Summer, so if you’re looking for ways to keep the little ones entertained over the six weeks break then make sure to check out our Events page. From pond-dipping to family trails, we have plenty on offer to get your wild ones outdoors. If they’re between the ages of eight and eleven, then they will be able to join us for a jam-packed Kids Summer Safari on 9 and 23 August – make sure to book as spaces are filling up quickly!
We hope to see you soon
Beth