Pulborough Brooks

Thanks to Johann, who has been spending the week on work experience with us, for his guest blog and photographs

Hi, my name is Johann.

I am a fifteen-year-old nature enthusiast and I have been a frequent visitor to RSPB Pulborough Brooks for nearly two years. As a passionate wildlife photographer I have found that this nature reserve is teeming with biodiversity, with its wetlands bustling with waterbirds, its meadows…

Thanks to volunteer Graham for his wildlife report and photos.

It was a dry, mostly cloudy day at Pulborough Brooks on Sunday. I started by heading to the yurt meadow, where there was a blaze of yellow provided by Ragwort. The flowerheads were attracting a range of invertebrate visitors including a Conehead (bush cricket) nymph,

a Peacock butterfly

and a female Crab Spider (Misumena vatia).

Some Knapweed presented…

Photo by Rob King

The Yellow Loosestrife Bee (Macropis europaea) is dependent on the Yellow Loosestrife plant that grows along just a few of our ditch edges. The female will gather not only pollen but oil from the plant which she mixes to a paste to line the nest chambers that she has dug. This waterproofs the chambers so that her larvae can survive over winter even during flood conditions.

Despite it being a notable…

With thanks to volunteer Graham for his report and photos.

It was a cool day at Pulborough Brooks on Sunday, mostly dry but with the occasional brief spell of drizzle. Nevertheless, there were noticeably more butterflies about than there had been a week previously. Alongside the zigzag path, as well as the usual Meadow Browns there several Marbled whites, and I had a brief view of a Comma. I saw a couple of Ringlets

Thanks to volunteer Graham for his report and photographs

It was dry but cloudy for the whole day at PB on Sunday. A resultant lack of flying dragonflies meant that recent spectacular Hobby displays would not be repeated on this occasion. However, as ever, there were many other wildlife highlights to be enjoyed. 

Quite a few birds were singing as I walked down the zigzag path, including Garden Warbler, Common Whitethroat…

Thanks to volunteer Phil for his report and photos.

"Recent Sightings Friday 14 June – A Tale of Two Warblers"

There are many different species of warbler and by and large they all come into the “Little Brown Job” (LBJ) category, but some are just a little more colourful than others.

Earlier in the week I had become aware that a Savi’s Warbler had been found at Pulborough Brooks – cue lots…

Thanks to volunteer John Underwood for his report from this morning's wander.

It may be June but it was a bit nippy when I arrived in the car park. Being English weather the sun popped out now and again but  the clouds won the day and it was still chilly when I got  back. As a result there were no dragonflies to be seen but I did manage my first Meadow Brown of the year and a Cinnabar Moth in all it's grey and crimson…

Thank you to volunteer Graham for his wildlife report and photos:

After missing the two previous Sundays at Pulborough Brooks it was good to get back to a day of Hides and Trails on 9 June. The weather was fine and dry, although it was quite breezy for much of the time. A brief visit to Upperton’s Pond revealed three Four-spotted Chasers. 

As I approached West Mead Hide I saw my first Hobby of the day. After circling…

Thanks to volunteer John for his article following our 'monthly meander' event on Thursday.

"The grey morning didn't deter the six subscribers to our Monthly Meander nor the birding group from Wiltshire, a school party, the Gay Birders club and many others from coming on a Nightingale hunt.

No-one had to wait long. On the edge of the car park a Nightingale sang loudly all morning and as we went round…

Thanks to volunteer Graham Osborne for his sightings report and photos.

A lot of visitors came to Pulborough Brooks on Sunday, and the weather was dry and bright, but with a stiff breeze.

 A Nightingale was singing loudly near the car park as I arrived. Some visitors had managed to get photos of it, but it was singing from dense cover while I was there. I had hoped to have better luck with a Nightingale singing near the…

With thanks to volunteer Graham Jacobs for his report on yesterday's sightings:

On a lovely dry day (it seems that Graham's regular Thursday slot is usually characterised by rain) visitors were welcomed to the reserve by a Nightingale singing away in the car park, and several more were in full voice at the Zig Zags, Fattengates courtyard and Adder Alley.  Blackcaps were also serenading us all over the reserve and…

Thanks to volunteer Graham Osborne for his report and photographs.

There was fine weather at Pulborough Brooks on Sunday, and a lot of visitors were on the wetland trail.

 As I got out of my car I heard my first Nightingale of the day. An Adder showed briefly from the top of the zigzag path, and as I reached the bottom of the path I heard the scratchy song of a Whitethroat. There was plenty of birdsong to be heard at Fattengates…

With thanks to volunteer Phil for his article and photos

Over the course of the winter and early spring we have become very used to admiring the beautifully camouflaged plumage of Snipe in front of West Mead Hide. Now I am pleased to say there is another camouflage pattern to celebrate and it couldn’t be more different.  This belongs to my favourite butterfly – the Orange Tip.

Orange Tips emerge in early April…

With thanks to volunteer Graham for his report and photos.

Although it was windy at Pulborough Brooks on Sunday it stayed dry, and there were plenty of visitors on the wetland trail throughout the day.  At the top of the zigzag path at least two Adders could be seen, and I shared scoped views with some visitors.

 As I approached Pipe Pond I heard my first brief burst of Nightingale song of the year. A little further on I…

With thanks to volunteer Graham for his report and photos.

After missing the previous two Sundays at Pulborough Brooks the reserve looked a lot drier than during my last Hides & Trails visit.

 A quick visit to Upperton’s Pond revealed that all three newt species were readily viewable, and I made a mental note to allow enough time to attempt a few photos on my return in the afternoon. As I left the pond area I met a…

Update 8 April

Our wardens conducted a survey on Monday ahead of work commencing and as this showed an influx of spring migrants in the area overnight we have decided to delay this work until after the breeding season.

Back in February I wrote about some upcoming habitat management work to be carried out in front of Hanger View. The second phase of this work – installing the deer fence – will be starting next week.…

With thanks to volunteer Graham Jacobs for his report from last Thursday.

It is amazing how much the water level has dropped in the last week or so. Once again the Adder was curled up in the wildlife area at the top of the Zig Zags which was a little surprising as the sun did not really break through all day - peer over the gate and scan the hedge line at the end of the gully with your binoculars.

At the Pipe Pond (next…

With thanks to volunteer Graham Jacobs for his report.

Could Spring be on the way?  A warm dry day, plenty of visitors, and butterflies made a welcome return. Apart from a number of very smart looking Great-spotted Woodpeckers there was nothing much to report from the yurt, but a large Adder was sunning itself in the wildlife area at the top of the ZigZags.

Adder by Anne Harwood

Fattengates Courtyard was also rather quiet…

With thanks to volunteer Graham for his report and photographs.

With heavy rain forecast for the afternoon I was grateful for some cool dry weather in the morning at PB on Sunday. Distant mist provided an atmospheric view from the Visitor Centre.

A cock Pheasant posed near the top of Upperton’s Field.

On the way down the zigzag path groups of Greenfinch, Goldfinch and Lesser Redpoll proved to be too elusive for…

With thanks to volunteer Graham for his wildlife sightings report and photos.

Although a fair amount of rain was forecast for the morning I was pleased to find that it stayed dry for almost the whole of Sunday. 

 I soon reached Fattengates Courtyard where I put out some seed. The only companions I had during my short stay there were some hungry birds, including a smart male Chaffinch and a Great Tit. 

Chaffinch

Great …

Thanks to volunteer Phil for his article and photos.

The Shoveler is one of the duck species that frequent Pulborough Brooks in winter and  being fairly common at this time of year is not one to which we pay a great deal of attention.   However, I have started to think it is the most fascinating of our wintering wildfowl species.

The Shoveler drakes do draw attention to themselves by their bright colours with green head…

Habitat management update mid February

 Heathland management

Woodlark by Ben Andrew (rspb-images.com). Listen to the Woodlark's song here

A contractor will be working on the heathland next week (w/c Monday 19 February). They will be working in the central fenced area of the heath so there will be no path closures. They will be doing Birch clearance and bare ground creation.

Birch clearance

Birch trees rapidly colonise…

With thanks to volunteer Graham for his wildlife sightings report and photos.

It was a bit of a shock to see the reserve completely flooded again.

 After retrieving a lens hood from outside West Mead Hide for a regular visitor, and apologising to the other visitors in the hide for putting up the nearby Snipe (9 of them as counted by Mike, another regular visitor), I briefly enjoyed a distant view of one of the resident…

Brown Hairstreak (Photo by Rob King)

Hedgerows for hairstreaks

You have a chance of seeing more than half of all the 58 species of British butterfly here at RSPB Pulborough Brooks (although not all in one visit!). The number of butterfly species found on the nature reserve is a reflection on the variety of habitats and in particular the range of plants that are present on site.

Caterpillars often have very specific foodplants;…

With thanks to volunteer Graham for his wildlife sightings report and photographs.

It was fairly quiet as I went down the zigzag path, and I soon found myself at West Mead. As I entered the hide a regular visitor pointed out our resident White-tailed Eagles in two different trees on the far side of the Arun. There were a lot of wildfowl on the pond and in the air, including Teal,

and I counted five Snipe on the nearest…