My name is Iain Malzer, I’ve been a residential volunteer at Vane Farm for the last 8 months and have witnessed the four seasons here on one of Scotland’s most important wetlands. As my work placement draws to an end, I thought it would be a good time to share some of the highlights from my year on the reserve.
I arrived in the autumn with the geese. The sound of countless pink-footed geese and greylags flying overhead was common, often we would count groups well into the thousands covering the reserve’s fields, honking and squabbling. On my first visit to the hides, I was lucky enough to spot a male smew diving in flood, a striking white duck with a handsome black mask over its eyes. Flocks of whooper swans roosting on the reserve were always an exciting spectacle, colour rings attached to the legs of some individuals revealed just how far these birds can travel from where they hatched.
Gradually the loch froze over and the birds congregated in small patches of shallow, unfrozen water. Redshank would scout the outsides of these pools, while hardy mallard and goldeneye braced the icy water, dabbling and diving for food. The snow then came and for two weeks the residents of Vane Farm were stranded in the Bothy, occasionally driving the 4 by 4 pickup out to get provisions. The reserve had to close, and so the short hours of daylight were occupied by clearing snow from the paths and helping Vicky, the warden at Vane, check how the sheep and highland cattle were coping with the freeze. Luckily, during this time turquoiseH, a 2009 released east coast white-tailed eagle had taken to roosting on one of the islands on the loch. She would stalk the geese and feed on any dead deer who had fallen victim to the weather.
Then came the most important season at Vane, Spring, or the breeding season. The reserve team took part in intense lapwing monitoring. Locating pairs, then nests, inserting data loggers and trying to work out what was predating certain nests was all in a days work. Eventually we had several lapwing, redshank and oystercatcher nests to monitor. Many of these have since hatched and chicks can be seen running around the muddy pool edges. Waders are not the only breeders on the reserve; young great-spotted woodpeckers are visiting the feeders regularly, juvenile goldfinches, great tits and pied wagtails are also all common sites. On the loch itself innumerable greylag goslings parade through the water in long lines and coot chicks with bright red heads frequent some of the smaller pools. One of the major highlights of the breeding season was watching a brood of robins, who had been monitored using a nest camera since they hatched, fledge successfully.
Now this dramatic breeding season is coming to an end and the birds at Vane Farm can relax over the summer, swallows and swifts can rest before their epic journey to Africa and blackbirds and mallards can build themselves up for another Scottish winter. In all seasons, I have noticed the importance of a reserve such as Vane Farm for all types of wildlife, from migrating geese to dragonflies, and how essential these places are when protecting nature.