Those of you following the RSPB Lochwinnoch Facebook page will know all about the excitement caused by a recent visitor to Lochwinnoch. Earlier this month a hooded merganser, an American species, was seen on the Barr Loch by a keen-eyed visitor Robert Allison. We don’t know whether this was a bird from a collection that had escaped, or whether it really had come from the USA, but it was a pleasure to see such a rare visitor, and a beautiful one at that, on our reserve. It stayed from 7-10 October, but despite keeping its distance, lots of visitors pitched up to catch a glimpse, with a few photos circulating on social media from those with lenses long enough to capture it! Thanks to Robert for sharing his photo with us.
The hooded merganser on the Barr Loch (pic © Robert Allison).
Another stunning bird that dropped in recently was a yellow-browed warbler, again rare for the UK and aptly named for its distinctive yellow eye-stripe. Lochwinnoch volunteer Allan Russell picked it out from a mixed flock of goldcrest and tits, near the Lochwinnoch cycle track. This is only the second sighting at Lochwinnoch – the first coming 23 years ago! Well done Allan!
Yellow-browed warbler (RSPB images).
Large numbers of snipe have been seen on the reserve, with over 100 counted on one day in early October, along with jack snipe and lots of waterfowl including tufted duck, scaup, goosander, water rail, pochard, gadwall and goldeneye.
We’ve also had good views of a male mandarin duck in full breeding plumage from the visitor centre windows – strolling around by the feeders with the mallards!
Male Mandarin duck (RSPB images).
The winter migrants have also started to arrive, with whooper swans seen in small numbers so far, but we hope to see more species arrive as the temperature starts to drop.
Whooper swan on the Barr Loch (pic © Joe Crossland).
We’ve had good sightings of hen harriers recently, with a ringtail (female or juvenile) hunting over Aird Meadow and an adult male seen hunting around the Barr Loch.
Hen harrier (pic: © Zul Bhatia).
In late October, a wildfowl count was undertaken at the Barr Loch, which yielded good numbers of ducks and swans, including: 101 mute swans, 336 wigeon, 112 teal, 342 coots and a stunning 31 great crested grebes, which is our highest number for forty years!
Finally, it’s not all about the birds – autumn is a great time to see a wide variety of fungi around the reserve, including the quintessential fairy toadstool, fly agaric, beautifully captured here by volunteer Billy Blair.
Fly agaric (pic: © Billy Blair).
A weasel also popped up outside the visitor centre recently, which is always a treat, even if they don’t stay around for long! And we’ve also had good footage of otters captured on our camera traps, which has been a great way of monitoring their activity on the reserve since they’re mostly nocturnal.
We will of course post updates as and when the winter migrants appear, so stay tuned to our Facebook and Twitter accounts for all the latest developments!
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