Mersehead Recent Sightings 6th- 12th January
It was another cold and bright start to the week with temperatures dropping to lows of -4 degrees overnight. However, with hundreds, if not thousands of Barnacle geese making their morning flight from their roosting areas to the grass fields around Mersehead where they will feed for the day, farmland birds such as Yellowhammer, Reed bunting and Tree Sparrow calling from the hedgerows, and ducks such as Wigeon, Teal and Pintail calling from the wetlands, the reserve really is a stunning place to be!
A cold but beautiful day at Mersehead. Photo credit: L.Blakely
On Monday we carried out our bimonthly reserve count. The count produced 1 Mute Swan, 13 Canada Geese, 5256 Barnacle Geese, 22 Shelduck, 102 Wigeon, 341 Teal, 81 Mallard, 82 Pintail, 83, Shoveler, 2 Tufted Duck, 1 Cormorant, 2 Little Egret, 3 Grey Heron, 1930 Oystercatcher, 73 Ringed Plover, 12 Grey Plover, 55 Lapwing, 35 Sanderling, 1060 Dunlin, 3 Snipe and 110 Curlew. Of the 110 Curlew, 48 of these were feeding on a section our new land where we have recently been carrying out habitat management, so a good sign! Curlew are classified as globally Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List with the UK hosting up to 25% of the global breeding population. Unfortunately this enigmatic bird is in steep decline here in the UK so is currently the RSPB’s highest priority bird species and we are doing all we can to turn the Curlew’s fortunes around. Here at Mersehead we are managing and creating habitat on parts of the new land to encourage Curlew to breed.
Curlew. Photo credit: Andy Hay
On Tuesday we were out with the volunteers carrying out a litter pick on the saltmarsh section of our trail in the wake of Storm Eleanor. In a short stretch, we managed to fill a trailer full to the brim with litter, it was just an incredibly shocking and saddening amount. There was a wide range of plastics, ranging from Lego toys, to containers of oil. However, a common theme was the amount of single use plastics that many of us use in our day to day lives, such as cotton buds and water bottles. Plastic is hugely harmful to the environment and the wildlife that lives there so by not buying single use plastics such as these people can make a big difference.
One of the more interesting finds on the litter pick. Photo credit: L. Blakely
On a lighter note, the hedgerows along the road to the visitor centre and the main track were trimmed this week. January and early February are the best time to carry out this task as the birds have eaten all the berries available but they have not started nesting yet. Hedges are great for birds and other wildlife, providing insect food and berries, and safe nesting and roosting spots. There is no one size fits all when it comes to how tall or wide a hedgerow should be. For example, tall, thick hedges that are at least 4m tall and 4m wide are great for nesting Bullfinch and Song Thrush, whilst hedges that are no more than 2m tall are preferred by Linnet, Yellowhammer and Whitethroat. Here at Mersehead we trim our hedges on a rotational basis so we can provide suitable nesting habitat for a variety of farmland birds.
House Sparrow sheltering in a hedgerow. Photo credit: Andy Hay
Lana Blakely, Assistant Warden