Things are getting louder!
Spring is a time for new sightings but also new sounds. The familiar sound of the Cetti’s Warbler has been ever increasing, even with the visitor centre doors shut they can be heard “shouting” at each other from the reed beds that surround the building. Very impressive for such a small bird.
Cetti's warbler, Mike Lane (rspb-images.com)
Is that someone laughing at me? Probably not! More likely to be Little grebes giggling at one another in the high pitched chattering way that they do.
If you come to Newport Wetlands and you don’t hear at least one Chiffchaff, I will be very surprised as they continue to be vocal with their unmistakable “Chiffchaff” call.
Chiffchaff, Mike Lane (rspb-images.com)
New arrivals this week have included a Willow warbler on Tuesday 1st April (Confirmed by sound of course) and Blackcaps are being seen more regularly now that spring is in the air.
The message here is that you are more likely to hear things before you see them so keep your ears “pricked” and you never know, you might hear the “pinging” of a Bearded tit. Better still, you might even see one or two. Early in the morning as you walk towards the lighthouse seems to be the best opportunity at the moment.
There are still more birds en route from warmer climes, so brush up on your bird calls, especially the Warblers because if like me, you struggle to tell the difference by sight, knowing the sound can make things a lot easier.
A couple of interesting sightings from the past week included a Red-legged partridge, Whimbrel and possibly a Jack snipe.
Of the non-bird variety, Grass snakes, Tree bumblebee, Buff-tailed bumblebee and some very loud frogs.
Butterflies are very good at giving a sense of relaxation and bliss so we have been very pleased with the number of Small tortoiseshell, Brimstone and Peacock butterflies that are flitting around at the moment.
Full list
Avocets, Bar-headed goose, Bearded tit, Blackbird, Blackcap, Blue tit, Bullfinch, Buzzard, Canada goose, Cetti's warbler, Chaffinch, Chiffchaff, Coot, Curlew, Dunnock, Gadwall, Goldfinch, Great crested grebe, Great tit, Green woodpecker, Greenfinch, Greenshank, Grey , heron, House sparrow, Jack snipe, Jay, Kestrel, Little egret, Little grebe, Long-tailed tit, Magpie, Mallard, Marsh harrier, Meadow pipit, Moorhen, Mute swan, Peregrine, Pheasant, Pochard, Red-legged partridge, Redshank, Reed bunting, Robin, Sand martin, Shelduck, Song thrush, Sparrowhawk, Tufted duck, Whimbrel, Wigeon, Willow warbler, Wren.
Brimstone, Buff-tailed bumblebee, Common frog, Grass snake, Peacock, Small tortoiseshell, Stoat, Tree bumblebee
Please note that we take our recent sightings list from the visitor sightings board that anyone can contribute to. This is great as everyone can get involved, but obviously can lead to potential errors too as they aren’t always verified! We try to keep this list as accurate as possible but if you see something unusual feel free to comment here!