Mersehead

At Mersehead, we have two staff cottages with both the Warden and Assistant Warden living on the reserve. We are going to try and keep you updated on the wonderful wildlife we see at Mersehead during our daily walks.

Mersehead Moments

The very distinctive low chatting of whooper swans could be heard from my garden over the weekend and alerted me to the presence of 21 of these elegant swans out on the wetlands. These birds…

RSPB Mersehead Recent Sightings 21^st – 27^th March 2020

At Mersehead, we have two staff cottages with both the Warden and Assistant Warden living on the reserve. We are going to try and keep you updated on the wonderful wildlife we see at Mersehead during our daily walks.

Following the latest clear instructions from the Government for us all to remain at home apart from a limited number of allowed activities, we 

RSPB Mersehead Recent Sightings 14th – 20th March 2020

What a week! I’m sure everyone has had a bit of a wham on their lives with what’s been going on in media and indeed, how it can potentially affect us all in the coming weeks. I’m no different and know that the next few weeks if not months, will be challenging.

RSPB Scotland are following government guidelines and decisions have been made to…

RSPB Mersehead Recent Sightings 6^th – 13^th March 2020

The weather has been as diverse at the wildlife at RSPB Mersehead this week.  Strong southwesterly winds and spells of heavy rain, combined with the moon being full and at its closest to the earth during its orbit (known as a supermoon), have seen high tides on the Solway of over 9m.  These completely flooded the salt marsh and Rainbow Lane, and made areas of…

RSPB Mersehead Recent Sightings 29th February – 6th March 2020

Spring has well and truly sprung, with bird song and the breeding season now underway. In the last couple of weeks, male chaffinches have burst into song along most of the hedgerows and skylarks are ascending with song (usually in the sunshine). Song thrushes can be heard by their varying repetitive calls and blackbirds singing melodious phrases.

 And…

RSPB Mersehead Recent Sightings 22^nd – 28^th February 2020

After so much wet and windy weather recently, the several days of bright sunshine and blue skies that we’ve enjoyed this past week have been welcomed by staff, volunteers and visitors alike.

As for the wildlife, with the days getting longer we are moving into a critical time of year for our wintering population of Svalbard Barnacle Geese. These birds…

RSPB Mersehead Recent Sightings 15^th – 21^st February 2020

A wet and windy week with several yellow warnings for wind and rain as storm after storm batters the UK. In the brief spells of calm sunny weather, we have seen Lapwing warming up their vocal cords with short bursts of display flight. Winter flocks begin to break up in February with birds returning to their breeding grounds. Keep a lookout for the male lapwings…

RSPB Mersehead Recent Sightings 8th February – 14th February 2020

The British Isles have been taking a battering over the past week, with Storm Ciara blasting through earlier in the week. Mersehead faced high risks of flooding and with tidal surges and high winds, parts of the reserve were closed off to visitors for their safety. Snowfall on many of the surrounding hills, along with previous and predicted rains…

Mersehead Recent Sightings 1^st – 7^th February 2020

It may only be the start of February, and we’ve certainly had a few rather frosty starts this week, but there’s nevertheless been a definite feeling of spring in the air!

The warm sunshine on Wednesday morning was translated into “glorious rolling sound” by a chorus of several territorial male Skylarks, an ensemble of “hovering specks…

Mersehead Beach Clean, 1^st February 2020

On a grey and blustery Saturday morning in early February, nine committed volunteers and one very well-behaved dog turned up for our first beach clean event of the new decade and our fifth such event here at RSPB Mersehead since September last year.

Beach litter. Photo credit: Donal McCarthy

Thanks to the help of dozens of volunteers, we’ve been making our way in stages along…

Mersehead Recent Sightings 25^th – 31^st January 2020

The focus at Mersehead this week has been the re-development of the footpath through the woodland to Meida Hide. We have widened the path and are currently installing boarding along the sides to define the edge. Practice for the dawn chorus has been evident with Treecreeper, Mistle thrush and Chaffinch heard warming up their vocal cords. A small party of Long-tailed…

RSPB Mersehead Recent Sightings 18th January – 24th January 2020

With weather settling in the last week, the reserve has been open for visitors, with some great wildlife to showcase. Starlings are still putting on a great display with their murmuration at dusk over the reedbed and raptors aren’t missing out on the spectacle, with peregrine, sparrowhawk, marsh and hen harrier all close by. It’s definitely worth…

RSPB Mersehead Recent Sightings 11^th January – 17^th January 2020

Last week ended with a stunning day of cold bright weather and our monthly wetland bird count (WeBS) over at Kirkconnell Merse, carried out from the eastern banks of the River Nith against an early morning backdrop of a snow-capped Criffel and thousands of noisy Barnacle Geese and Pink-footed Geese flying out from their overnight roosting sites.

RSPB Mersehead Recent Sightings 3^rd January – 10^th January 2020

Damp and mild weather at the start of the week has been replaced by minus temperatures with the first snow fall on Criffel and ice forming around the edge of the wetlands. The pools from the Visitor Centre have been busy with Teal, Wigeon, Pintail and Mallard. A Whooper Swan dropped in which was great to see as we usually see these elegant birds from…

RSPB Mersehead Recent Sightings 14th – 20th December 2019

This is a tough time of year for wildlife, as the days get progressively shorter and noticeably colder. However, as we approach midwinter and the festive period, there are already emerging signs of new life for the seasons ahead.

Hazel catkins. Photo credit: D. McCarthy

Hazel catkins are beginning to appear in the hedgerows, a sure sign that spring is actually…

RSPB Mersehead Recent Sightings 7^th – 13^th December 2019

As the second week of December draws to an end it has become really noticeable how stark and bright the reserve is in the winter sunlight. All the leaves have fallen from the trees and hedgerows making it much easier to spot the tiny Goldcrest flitting from branch to branch. Fieldfare can be seen feeding on the bright red berries whilst Long-tailed tit follow…

Mersehead Beach Clean – 8^th December 2019

It was a bright and windy start to our monthly beach clean event last Sunday morning. Eight enthusiastic volunteers came along to assist us in keeping our stunning stretch of the Solway coastline as free as possible from plastic and other types of waste. The rain held off for most of the morning, although the strong winds meant that we had to be extra careful in loading…

RSPB Mersehead Recent Sightings 30^th November- 6^th December 2019

The bitter temperatures continued into the early part of this week, making for more fantastic icy landscapes in the winters sun. Most of the wetlands had frozen over, with many wildfowl hunkering down, heads tucked in waiting for conditions to improve. The sunrises and sunsets have been absolutely spectacular, with pinks, oranges and reds making the sky…

RSPB Mersehead Recent Sightings 23^rd – 29^th November 2019

There’s a flash of cold in the air as the last of the auburn leaves are shed from trees, and morning frosts glint in the strong midwinter sun. Roe deer continue to graze through the fields in groups, their breath creating smokescreens in the biting air. Thrushes, notably Redwing and Fieldfare, continue to pluck red berries from the Hawthorn hedgerows…

Mersehead Recent Sightings 16th - 22nd November 2019

What a chilly week it has been! On Monday and Tuesday in particular, the reserve was looking spectacular as the ground sparkled with thick frost. For those braving the cold weather, plentiful numbers of Fieldfare and Redwing have been view-able gorging on the berries in the hedgerows, and it would of course not be possible to go without mentioning the thousands of Barnacle…

Mersehead Recent Sightings 9^th-15^th November 2019

It was a cold and windy start to the week here at RSPB Mersehead, but the sun was shining brightly on Sunday morning for our monthly beach clean event. Twelve dedicated volunteers came along to assist us in keeping our 3.2-mile stretch of the stunning Solway coast free from plastic waste. One of the volunteers was even lucky enough to spot a Snow bunting feeding along…

Mersehead Recent Sightings 2^nd – 8^th November 2019

Cold, dry and bright weather is forecast over the coming week, the perfect conditions to head down to Mersehead for some autumnal sunshine. The hedgerows are brimming with bright red berries providing a vital food source. The flocks of Fieldfare have been amazing with up to 70 birds recorded together. A soft “seep seep” call reveals the presence of the …

Mersehead Recent Sightings 26th October - 1st November 2019

We were reminded that winter creeps ever closer this week, with frosts crisping the reserve on a few mornings and making for magical sunrises. As we’ve previously reported, our winter visitors are now well and truly in, and the reserve is bustling with life.

It’s almost impossible to walk anywhere without thrushes bursting from the bushes around you. Large…

Mersehead Recent Sightings: 19th-25th October 2019

It has been another exciting week at Mersehead, with a diverse array of sightings reported by visitors and staff. From both Bruaich and Meida Hides hundreds of splashing Teal, ‘peewit’-ing Lapwing, and bathing geese can reliably be seen. Whilst out on the trails, passing Redwing and Fieldfare continue to gorge on the hawthorn berries which laden the hedgerows…

Mersehead Recent Sightings: 12^th- 18^th October 2019

The magic of bird migration continues to thrill us here at Mersehead. This week saw more winter visitors arrive, including the first sightings of Redwings and Fieldfares. These colourful Scandinavian migrants are best looked for feasting on the abundant supply of bright scarlet hawthorn berries in the hedgerows along the Wetland Trail. A male Brambling was also reported…