Mersehead Recent Sightings 22nd -28th October
During the winter Mersehead becomes home to many birds including geese, waders and ducks. This week it has been all about the birds of prey. Around Mersehead you might be lucky enough to see seven different types of birds prey which include marsh harrier and buzzard.
The buzzard is a common bird of prey. You will most likely see them sitting on fence posts around the reserve or sitting on telegraph poles as you enter the reserve. The buzzard does look boring as its all brown but when you start to look you can see it has a white bib around the neck and bright yellow legs.
photo by Ben Hall
During the winter we have two different types of harrier that visit the reserve. The Marsh Harrier and Hen Harrier. The Hen harriers are know as "Sky dancers". When they are breeding the male and female do this dance in the sky to pass food to each other. Hen Harriers in England are becoming rare, last year only two pair breed successfully. During the summer the Hen Harrier nest on the ground amongst heather on upland moorlands and winter in the lowlands, particularly around the coast, on heathland and on farmland. The Marsh Harrier is one of our newest birds of prey to the reserve. People do mistake buzzards for Marsh Harriers as they are so similar. The Marsh Harrier is slightly larger than a Buzzard, Marsh Harriers can be distinguished by their longer tail, slimmer body and narrower wings. Females are dark brown with a distinctive cream coloured crown and pale patches on the forewing and throat. Males have dark wing tips and grey tail, the breast and head appear yellowish with a brown belly, the upper-wing is a combination of black, grey and brown.
Hen Harrier by Andy Hay, Marsh Harrier by Chris Gomersall
During the summer away from Mersehead a Peregrine Falcon nests on the cliffs. During the winter the Peregrine hunts at Mersehead looking for it lunch. The Falcons are among the world's most common birds of prey and live on all continents except Antarctica. The Peregrine Falcon is the fastest bird in the world. When they dive in the air the can reach speeds of over 200 miles per hour.
PhotoS by Chris Gomersall, Peregrine and Merlin
Mersehead is also one of the homes of the smallest bird of prey, the Merlin. This compact, dashing falcon has a relatively long, square-cut tail and rather broad-based pointed wings, shorter than those of other falcons. Its wing beat tends to be rapid with occasional glides, wings held close to the body. Its small size enables it to hover and hang in the breeze as it pursues its prey.
If you come to Mersehead in the dark you will see our resident Barn owl. The Barn owl use to be called the Ghost owl as it would hunt in the dark slightly. When you come down at night you might hear "hooting" which is the Tawny owls but Barn Owls screech also why people thought they had ghosts lurking around the houses.
photo by John Bridges
Kirsty Griffiths
Events and Learnign Officer