RSPB Mersehead Blog 21^st – 27^th September 2024

The seasons are changing as we leave summer behind and move forward into autumn. We began the annual task of cutting and nutrient stripping our wildflower meadows this week. Wildflowers thrive on poor nutrient depleted soils as this reduces competition from quick growing grasses which would smother out the wildflowers in a nutrient rich environment. At the end of summer…

RSPB Mersehead Blog 14th - 20th Septemper

Hi, my name is Keira, and I am the new residential volunteer here at RSPB Mersehead.

I have spent the past couple of years living in the Lake District, so I am no stranger to natural beauty. However, since coming to Mersehead I can confidently say that it is a strong contender for one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever had the pleasure of visiting. I am extremely lucky to…

RSPB Mersehead Blog 7^th – 13^th September 2024

September Evening At Mersehead. Photo Credit: C Glass

September at Mersehead is a time for taking stock as we slowly move from summer into autumn and prepare for the arrival of wintering waterbirds from the end of the month. Our survey programme will be changing, and focus will turn to habitat management to benefit next year’s breeding birds and Natterjack Toads. We also…

RSPB Mersehead Blog 31^st August – 6^th September 2024

Bumblebees are colourful, hairy insects that play a vital role in the pollination of crops, flowers, and fruits. Well known for their ‘bumbling’ flight, bumblebees are widely recognised for the loud buzzing noise they make. Unsurprisingly, this is where their scientific name 'Bombus' originates from, translating to ‘booming’.

RSPB Mersehead Blog 17th – 23rd August 2024

From Lillian to Lepidoptera

It has been a wet, windy and wild week on the reserve to say the least! The combination of storm Lillian and some unusually high August tides saw the Merse spectacularly inundated.  Faced with such conditions, staff time is split between ensuring our livestock are doing well in the harsher conditions and checking for storm damage, such as fallen…

RSPB Mersehead Blog 10^th – 16^th August 2024

It’s been a mixed bag of weather this week with days of heavy rain and bright sunshine the next. But that doesn’t deter us at Mersehead!  In this week’s blog hear how our volunteers braved the rain to join us for our summer BBQ, see our Marsh Harrier fledglings in flight, and learn more about the variety of fungi we are finding near our woodland paths.

RSPB Mersehead Blog 3^rd August – 9^th August

A truly momentous moment was recorded at RSPB Mersehead earlier this week. For the first time since the RSPB took over ownership of Mersehead in 1993, Marsh Harriers (Circus aeruginosus) have successfully bred on the reserve. You can see a photograph of the beautiful chicks below! 

‘Chick A’ and ‘Chick AB’ at nest location, RSPB Mersehead. Photo credit: G. Chambers.…

RSPB Mersehead Blog 20^th – 26^th July 2024

Flat, alluvial, frequently marshy land bordering upon a river, a river estuary or the sea, specifically applied to the land bordering the Solway Firth – definition of “merse” Scottish National Dictionary.

The above definition gives a good indication as to where Mersehead obtained its name. The past couple of weeks has seen us spending time out on the merse…

RSPB Mersehead Blog 13^th July – 18^th July

Colourful wildflowers at RSPB Mersehead. Photo credit: F. Sanders.

‘Rainbow Lane’ is the name given to the path that leads from the main entrance track at RSPB Mersehead to the sand dunes. As the story goes, previous tenants of Lapwing cottage observed numerous gorgeous rainbows over that path, eventually coining the name ‘Rainbow Lane’. Many moons later, that…

RSPB Mersehead Blog 6^th – 12^th July 2024

In this week of rather changeable weather, we have been continuing to focus on maintenance work at Mersehead.  While it sometimes feels like we are trying to beat a strimming world record, it’s important that we keep our electric fencing clear of vegetation and the water troughs in good working order for the livestock, during our summer of conservation grazing. 

Moving…

RSPB Mersehead Blog 29^th June – 05^th July 2024

After the vibrancy of the breeding bird season, the summer months feel naturally calmer on the reserve.  Dawn and dusk choruses alongside the springtime territorial singing of our bird species have now faded into the bucolic bleats of sheep and lows of our grazing cattle.  While these moments may seem and feel quieter, the summertime offers a great opportunity to discover…

RSPB Mersehead Blog 22^nd – 28^th June 2024

Mersehead would not be the amazing reserve for wildlife that it is, if it were not for our dedicated band of volunteers.

Our “Tuesday” Volunteers arrive week in, week out completing everything from practical habitat management such as scrub removal to benefit the UK’s rarest amphibian the Natterjack Toad, to completing wildflower meadow management and improving…

RSPB Mersehead Blog 15^th June – 21^st June

Saturday 15^th June marked the beginning of “Maintenance Week” at RSPB Mersehead. During this week, our holiday homes (Barnacle and Shelduck) don’t have any bookings, enabling us to give these cottages a little TLC! Thanks to the hard work of both our staff and volunteers, the insides and outsides of these holiday cottages are looking spick and span. Our volunteers whitewashed…

RSPB Mersehead Blog 8^th – 14^th June 2024

We may be asking ourselves where the summer has gone but the weather hasn’t stopped us getting on with our survey and maintenance work on the reserve. 

As you will have seen from recent blogs our focus has been preparing for the return of livestock to the reserve so we can reap the benefits of conservation grazing.  A special thanks to our Tuesday volunteers for their…

RSPB Mersehead Blog 1^st June– 07^th June 2024

It has been another busy week this week on the reserve, with our staff and volunteers having to battle against some rather wet and windy moments in between some glorious sunshine.  Much of the focus of our reserve staff over the past months has been on our breeding survey work and while this is still continuing, you may have noticed the last couple of blogs have focussed…

RSPB Mersehead Blog 25^th – 31^st May 2024

Following on from the theme of last week’s blog, we were delighted to welcome back the Aberdeen Angus herd to Mersehead for the summer. Currently in the wet grassland compartment to the left of main footpath up to the woodland, cattle are an important aspect of managing the habitats across Mersehead for various species.

1. The cattle help control vegetation growth by…

RSPB Mersehead Blog 18th – 24th May 2024

A Grazing Community

Throughout our winter months Mersehead is descended upon by our beloved Barnacle Geese, while our Barnies return to their Svalbardian shores, a spring chorus of Natterjack toads can be heard for miles, however in the summer months one of our biggest visitor draws are of a slightly more domestic nature.  This week our reserve team have begun preparing for…

RSPB Mersehead Blog 11^th – 17^th May 2024

Survey season is in full flow at Mersehead and Kirkconnell Reserves and, over the past week, we have walked far and wide in search of breeding waders, Lapwing chicks, Natterjack Toad spawn strings, and butterflies. Exploring almost every square inch of a nature reserve can reveal interesting finds including amazing species of both flora and fauna, animal prints, and beautiful…

RSPB Mersehead Blog 4^th – 10^th May 2024

Saying goodbye to the barnacle geese

After staying with us over winter the Barnacle Geese have now left this part of the Solway Firth for their 2000-mile migration back to their breeding grounds in Svalbard.  The spring migration generally starts in April or early May, when the geese leave the Solway Firth and head to Helgeland on the western coast of mainland Norway.  They then…

RSPB Mersehead Blog 27^th April – 3^rd May 2024

RSPB Mersehead has been transformed in recent weeks into a luscious, green landscape with plants rapidly growing and fresh leaves out on many species of tree.

Trees out in leaf near Media Hide, RSPB Mersehead. Photo credit: F. Sanders

If you haven’t been to the reserve for a while, you will certainly notice a difference in the amount of greenery. Grass is growing thick…

RSPB Mersehead Blog 20^th- 26^th April 2024

Barnacle Goose numbers have dropped rapidly over the past week from 7,450 to 4,550. The geese are starting to depart from the area as they begin their 2,000-mile migration back to their breeding grounds on Svalbard. In 2023, the last geese left the reserve on 27^th April so we may only have a matter of days left to enjoy their company. Pink-footed goose migration has also been…

RSPB Mersehead Blog 13^th – 19^th April 2024

Throughout the breeding season our reserve team are out and about at all hours of the day and night diligently surveying a variety of species employing a variety of different methods and techniques.  To give you a flavour of the wide variety of survey work we undertake here at Mersehead, in the last week alone we have continued to survey our brilliant Barnacle Geese (Branta…

RSPB Mersehead Blog 6^th – 12^th April 2024

It’s been a very wet start to April with heavy rain and wind combined with high tides.  But this has led to some spectacular sights at the Mersehead and Kirkconnell reserves.

View along Rainbow Lane, Mersehead. Photo credit: R Chambers

Usually, Rainbow Lane is part of our Coastal Trail but here is the view along the track on Sunday.  The water was higher than the team…

RSPB Mersehead Blog 30^th March – 5^th April

Beach clean

Following our third beach clean, the shorelines at RSPB Mersehead are now looking squeaky clean! A huge thank you to our hardworking Tuesday Work Party Volunteers who helped out with this. I was amazed by the amount of rubbish we collected over two of our beach cleans. 

Rubbish collected from RSPB Mersehead during 2 beach cleans. Photo credit: F. Sanders

Although…