Despite the weather, I’ve entered into the spirit of things and shared in the New Year’s Day tradition of starting a bird list for the year. I have to admit though that all of the birds on my list thus far have been ones I have spotted whilst lurking within the confines of the visitor centre. Still, it’s not a bad start; 29 species including buzzard, nuthatch, fieldfare and marsh tit. There are a few ducks on the list, seen with the help of a telescope and the fact that the water is closer than usual to the visitor centre due to the flooding!
A few brave souls did venture out onto the trail today and added a good range of birds to the list – peregrine, treecreeper, water rail, little grebe and tufted duck – the latter two a good indication of the amount of water out there. The reserve list for the day reached 45 species. As I write, the water levels are rising and we may find that Nettley’s hide goes underwater again. You’ve not been able to complete the full loop since we flooded on Christmas Eve with the section of the trail around Winpenny Hide being at least knee deep in water for much of the festive period.
One of the reasons for my reasonable start to this year’s bird list is of course the well-stocked bird feeders in both the courtyard and out on the cafe terrace. Our splendid selection of ‘garden’ birds did us proud with all of the regulars putting in an appearance. All month, we’ll be building up towards the Big Garden Birdwatch (Sat 25 & Sun 26 January) starting with our ‘big build up’ event this coming weekend where we’ll be making apple bird feeders, playing bird bingo, running a mini garden birdwatch and doing some badge making. So if you and your family want a bit of fresh air at the weekend, come along and join in and get your garden ready for the birds. (If it’s all a bit horrid and rainy, we’ll still be running some activities just inside the building rather than out!)
As we head towards the big weekend itself we’ll have a bit of friendly competition between the cafe and shop, with a battle of the feeders – which team will see the greatest variety of birds during a daily 10 minute birdwatch? Come along and join in – whose side will you take?
Happy New Year!