Mersehead Recent Sightings 9th – 15th July
It is a wild, wet and windy day today with rain currently lashing against the window pane however there is plenty to report from the past week at Mersehead.
Some new flowers are appearing out on the merse and beach at the moment. Common sea lavender and sea milkwort are the latest additions out on the saltmarsh. Sea milkwort is adapted to surviving in salty conditions by storing fresh water in its fleshy leaves and grows in a thick, spreading mat so as to reduce water loss by evaporation. In the sand dunes the purple-blue sea holly can now be found. On the seaward side of the sand dunes sea sandwort is forming a thick green carpet. This tough plant is a colonist of the seashore and grows in the sand where it is capable of surviving rough weather and can tolerate immersion in salt water at high tide. Along Rainbow Lane a tall yellow plant has just come into flower, perennial sow-thistle.
Down at the mouth of the Southwick Water goosander and common sandpiper have been spotted this week. One of our residential volunteers found a recently predated sandwich tern on the beach and reported sighting 4 flying over the rocks at Southerness. A single swift was spotted whilst working at the back of the wetlands on Monday whilst a magnificent peregrine falcon has been hunting around Bruiach hide. A rare sight for Mersehead, red kite has been seen soaring over the reserve this week. The barn owl is a guaranteed sight in the evening as it silently and gracefully flies from the farm buildings to the merse to hunt. Lesser redpoll has been present on the bird feeders at the Visitor Centre.
On Thursday, residential volunteer Tracey was out completing the weekly butterfly transect; 51 green-veined white, 1 common blue, 8 meadow brown and 9 ringlet were recorded. Tracey also spotted a 6-spot burnet and lattice heath on the way round too.
Photo credit: A.Hay
Rowena Flavelle, warden