Mersehead Recent Sightings 28th October - 3rd November
Arguably one of the most impressive of winter scenes, the mesmerising Starling murmuration has begun with gusto this week where up to 10,000 birds were seen swirling, surging and rolling in the sky above the reedbed. Studies have shown that when an individual bird moves, it only affects its 7 closest neighbours, which then affects the next 7 neighbours and so on. This is why the flock looks like it is twisting and swirling; some birds are moving in one direction at one speed whilst other birds are moving in a different direction at a different speed.
Photo Credit: David Kjaer (rspb-images.com)
Despite thousands of Barnacle Geese around, they do move on and off of the reserve. This was the case on Wednesday when we only counted 1,777 birds. Last week we counted 11,070, one of our highest counts ever. Carrying out counts every week will help us to avoid these polarising situations and give us a clearer picture of goose numbers by the end of the season. By also recording which fields the geese use we are able to see how the geese are moving around the reserve and tailor our management for them accordingly.
We’ve been over at Kirkconnell again this week where we had a fantastic count of 533 Pintail as well as 4404 Barnacle Geese, 111 Wigeon, 880 Lapwing, 10 Oystercatcher, 229 Redshank, 19 Curlew and 1 Greenshank.
Once a week we carry out a winter passerine survey. This involves counting wintering flocks of finch, bunting, larks and pipits to see how they are utilising the winter stubble and wild bird cover crop that we have sown for them. The seeds that these fields hold provide a rich energy source over the tough winter months. The count this week produced 19 Skylark, 16 Reed Bunting, 35 Greenfinch, 32 Chaffinch, 5 House Sparrow and 1 Yellowhammer.
Photo Credit: Andy Hay (rspb-images.com)
The hedgerows are really alive with birds at the moment as they feed on fruits produced there. As well as all the usual suspects such as Goldfinch, Chaffinch, Linnet and so on, Redwing are still present in large numbers, and a striking male Bullfinch was spotted mournfully calling on Monday. Bullfinch are thought to be named due to the stocky, bull-like appearance of the head and neck area together with a stout chunky bill. They are not common at Mersehead due to the lack of their preferred habitats; mixed broad-leaved and coniferous woodland, large gardens and parks. They are not so keen on large open and coastal areas so it was a real treat to see one here.
Photo Credit: John Bridges (rspb-images.com)
A female Marsh Harrier was seen hunting over the reedbed on Sunday and true to form, the Kingfisher that has been seen regularly from Meida Hide didn’t disappoint, showing up almost every day this week. On Wednesday we counted 230 Cormorants roosting on a sand spit as the tide was coming in whilst later that day 17 Snipe were spotted from the visitor centre.
Throughout November & December we are conducting a series of ‘Duck & Goose Walks’. These will take place on Wednesday 15th, Wednesday 22nd November, and Wednesday 6th December. Come along and join us to see how many different kinds of ducks & geese we can spot. For more information call 01387 780579 or email mersehead@rspb.org.uk or visit our facebook page RSPB Dumfries and Galloway and click on events.
Lana Blakely, Assistant Warden