It’s been another great week for avid bittern watchers here on the reserve. The female that is nesting in the Lower Hide area has extended her feeding flights and has been making notable excursions on her food-gathering forays. This means that not only will visitors sat in Lower Hide are in with a chance of a fly-by but anyone stood on the Skytower, on the Causeway or in Grisedale or Lililan’s Hide could also be in the running. Photo by Dave Dimmock.

 Our other busy-nesters, the marsh harriers are also highly active right now and can be seen engaging in spectacular food passes over the reeds. This stunning sight is a real treat to witness as the male swoops low over the nest area with a food items in his talons. The female will emerge from her reedbed haven to greet the male who then drops the prey to her as she turns in mid-air to catch it. This is truly one of the best wildlife spectacles one can see anywhere on the UK!

Out on the saltmarsh the avocets have been causing delight and dismay in equal measure. The tiny (and it has to be said, extremely cute) chicks are a joy to see as they take their first tentative steps into to the world. Unfortunately, they are often met by black-headed gulls who see these little bundles of fluff as nothing more than a tasty meal. And while seeing this grisly act unfold before your eyes can be unpleasant, it’s simply the way of nature. All being well, enough chicks will survive to fledging stage – last year we had 20 avocet chicks fully fledge.

For those interested in more unusual visitors, we have seen the return of spoonbills again in recent days. Initially two dropped in but just one has decided to stay put. This bird can be looked for from the Eric Morecambe Hide or if you travel to Leighton Moss by train (from the south) it can often be seen well as you pass the pools before arriving at Silverdale. Other birds of note on the saltmarsh pools include black-tailed godwits and the occasional passage wader such as spotted redshank, greenshank or ruff.

Otters never fail to please our visitors and continue to be seen with regularity from Causeway and Lower hides. The mum and her three young can often be seen hunting in a boisterous pack out in the water while the lone male also makes frequent appearances from time to time.

 One of the otter’s main food items (and bitterns too for that matter) are eels and here at Leighton Moss we have a healthy population of these fascinating fish. We are currently seeing the arrival of good numbers of elvers as they migrate into the reserve having made their way from the spawning grounds in the Sargasso Sea, to the east of the Carribbean in the North Atlantic. Our wardens check our eel traps to monitor populations and this spring has seen unprecedented numbers of tiny eels streaming onto the site – good news for lots of our wildlife! Pic by Ruth Watts.

If you’re planning to visit Leighton Moss soon please take a look at our events listings at rspb.org.uk/leightonmoss to see what special activities and events are coming up. You can also keep up to date with what’s going on by visiting the official Leighton Moss Facebook Group or on Twitter @Leighton_moss