It seems like everyone I know managed to see the Northern Lights last night - except me! Even though I was driving north for an hour, after giving a talk to the RSPB Ipswich Local Group, the only lights I could see in the sky were stars. I know that they were seen here at Minsmere, as one of our volunteers who lives on the reserve managed to photograph them. Maybe next time. Tonight even?
Anyway, I may have missed one of nature's greatest light shows, but another volunteer, David Naylor, did witness another truly spectacular light show this week when he photographed this fabulous rainbow of Island Mere.
This is a great reward for David, given how many hours he spends in that hide. As he said when he sent me the picture, "This proves there's a pot of gold at Island Mere." I've known that for years. After all, it is my favourite place in England just to sit and wait. You never know exactly what you might see there, but you can be pretty sure that with a bit of patience you have a good chance of seeing one or more of the following species: Bittern, Great Egret, Marsh Harrier, Hobby, Bearded Tit, Reed Bunting, Great Crested Grebe or even Otter. All of these have been seen regularly this week, as well as Pochard, Tufted Duck, Coot, various ducks, Kestrel, Buzzard and Sparrowhawk. Wardens have also cut the reeds in front of both Island Mere and Bittern Hides now, improving your chances of spotting some of this reedbed wildlife.
A smaller speck of gold, or rather yellow, put in a frustratingly brief appearance on Wednesday when a visiting birdwatcher, Samantha Richardson photographed this gorgeous Serin. Frustratingly, it's true identity didn't come to light until after we'd closed, when she posted photos on line, and there was no sign of it the following morning. Serin is a scarce visitor to the UK, despite being a common garden bird throughout much of Europe. The photographer initially mistook it for a Siskin, which would certainly be a more expected visitor to our bird feeders, but as the photo shows, Serins are greyish above and lemon yellow below, rather than yellow, black and white in Siskin. Well done to Samantha for finding and photographing this beautiful bird. If only it had stayed around.
Continuing the golden theme, the Waveney Bird Club ringed a lovely Firecrest yesterday, as well as Nuthatch and many commoner species of tits and finches. They also ringed one of our Kestrels. Which leads me nicely on some interesting, if rather sad, news about another of the Kestrels that has been seen at Minsmere recently. One of our wardens found an emaciated Kestrel that had already been ringed. Sadly, the bird was so weak that it died shortly after being found, but as it was ringed, Ian sent away the ring details. He was surprised to find out that this bird had ringed as a chick earlier this year in Norway. The long sea crossing may have proved just too much for this youngster, which was the first Norwegian ringed Kestrel ever to be found in Suffolk.
Another bird which may have flown from Norway (or perhaps Iceland) is a Purple Sandpiper that been feeding around the Sluice Outfall for the last couple of days, in company with three Turnstones. Purple Sandpipers favour rocky coasts around the north and west of the UK, and are found in just a few places in eastern England during the winter, including Ness Pint in Lowestoft, but they remain notable sightings at Minsmere.
I've mentioned in recent blogs that wader migration is more or less over, although five Green Sandpipers remain on the Scrape, but October always has a surprise or two in store. The Little Stint that remains on the Scrape is rather late, while other sightings this week have included Ringed Plover, Grey Plover and Dunlin. Half a dozen Avocets remain, too.
It's been quite quiet on the gull front recently, but a Caspian Gull has been spotted among the Herring and Great Black-backed Gulls today, and numbers of Common Gulls are starting to increase. Similarly, a few Pintails have returned the Scrape, joining the regular Wigeon, Gadwall, Shoveler, Mallard and Teal, as well as flocks of feral geese.
Away from birds, the Water Voles continue to put on a show at the pond, and there have been several sightings of Slow Worms this week. Our volunteer, Les Cater, sent us his usual superb photos of both species this week, so I have to share them with you, too.
Finally, we still have one or two Red Deer Safaris available at weekends this month, so if you haven't booked yours yet, there's still to get close to the action, with the rut in full swing. Book your tour at www.events.rspb.org.uk/minsmere.