While I've been enjoying some extremely memorable birdwatching in Portugal (this isn't the place to relate the stories unfortunately), it's been a really busy week at Minsmere.
Work has progressed well on building the new fence around the Scrape. The bank on which the fence will sit has been raised in places, though there is some earth-moving to do. The first stretches of the fence itself have now been constructed too, as can be seen from this photo taken at lunchtime today looking left from North Hide. Work will continue until at least the middle of February, so there will continue to be disturbance on the Scrape for several weeks yet.
Meanwhile, in the reedbed we've had the amphibious reed-cutting machine called the Truxor back to carry out important clearance work. This machine can access much wetter areas than the wardens can on foot. It cuts the reed and scoops it into piles beside the cut areas. North Marsh has already been cut - see photo below - and today they were cutting in front of Bittern Hide.
Last week the Truxor was also used to clear encroaching vegetation from the pond, ready for the arrival of school groups to go pond dipping in the spring.
Other exciting bits of machinery were in use last week too as the Soft-track and Piston Bully were demonstrated. These big machines have been used to cut reed and fen vegetation, gathering the cut material and storing it a large plastic bag. Here it is dried and turned into briquettes for use as biofuel - a process that was also demonstrated for the first time last week. This is part of a DECC-funded project to create a renewable energy product from the annual habitat management programme on nature reserves.
With so much work going on you could be forgiven for thinking that there would be no wildlife to see at Minsmere, but that's far from the case. Bitterns, otters, snipe and bearded tits continue to show at Island mere every day. The redhead smew is still favouring the South Scrape. Hundreds of commoner ducks are present - mostly on the Levels. Flocks of tits and finches in the woods include siskins, lesser redpolls, bullfinches and marsh tits. Birds of prey this week have included hen harrier, short-eared owl and peregrine as well as the regular marsh harriers, sparrowhawks and kestrels. While offshore highlights have included pomarine and great skuas, velvet scoter, grey seals and large flocks of red-throated divers and great crested grebes. Not forgetting, of course, many small birds on the birds feeders and groups of red deer in the woods.