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…

Wigeon by Graham Osborne

Tomorrow (Friday 2 February) is World Wetlands Day so it’s the perfect time to tell you about some of the upcoming work that our wardens and work party will be carrying out on the wetlands. Our volunteer work parties join us on Tuesdays and Fridays, so if you’re planning a visit in the next week or so you may see them out on the North Brooks.

One of the main tasks ahead of the breeding…

With thanks to volunteer Phil for his article and photos.

Five years ago I wrote an article for the blog entitled “When the water freezes”. This followed a spectacular early morning at the reserve doing the monthly Wetland Bird Survey (WeBS) following a clear and very frosty January night. The article can be found at this link.

When the water freezes... - Pulborough Brooks - Pulborough Brooks - The RSPB C…

With thanks to volunteer John for his lovely report from Saturday 27 January.

It was too nice a morning to stay at home and count the garden birds, that can wait until tomorrow. With the temperature still at zero I set off for Pulborough and couldn't help noticing the large number of Woodpigeons clinging to wires and perching in trees trying to keep warm. I passed a Red Kite scavenging on the roadside and felt that it…

Thankfully, the water levels have been dropping and all of our hides are now open and can be reached without waders!

In the cold weather the small birds have been enjoying the treats that we've been putting out at our feeding stations. The Long-tailed Tits quickly found the suet balls and half a dozen Robins eyed each other up, seemingly wondering whether to quarrel with one another or adopt a feeder each.  A Marsh…

Upcoming habitat management work on the trails and on the wooded heath

The wooded heath photo by David Andrews

You may notice a few changes when you next visit us at Pulborough Brooks – here’s some information on upcoming habitat management work around the wetland trail and especially on the wooded heath.

Tree safety work

 A recent tree safety inspection, along with the recent storms, has identified a number…

Thanks to volunteer John for leading our special guests around on Tuesday and for his lovely sightings report.

Our three guests chose the right day for their guided walk - not a cloud in the sky and no cold wind. What was on their wish list? A Firecrest would be nice and perhaps a Bullfinch in the sun.  The previous day's list included a Firecrest seen at the Hanger and there was always the chance of seeing Bullfinch so…

Appearing mysteriously overnight in the dank and dark places of the earth, it’s no wonder that there are so many magical tales about fungi. In Britain we’ve always been a bit suspicious of mushrooms and toadstools (there is no real difference between the two), associating them with malevolent magic – there are Devil’s Fingers, Witches’ Eggs, Green Elfcups and Fairy Bonnets.

Green Elf Cup…

With thanks to volunteer Graham for his report and photos.

I visited PB on both days of this particular weekend. On Saturday I was with the Pulborough Brooks Dragonfly Survey Team, while on Sunday I carried out my usual Hides and Trails duties. 

 Saturday 23 Sept

The dragonfly survey started on the heathland on Saturday morning. As the team finished surveying the first pond a Kestrel flew into a nearby Pine tree to provide a…

Thanks to volunteer Graham for his sightings report and photos from Sunday 17 September

With thundery showers forecast for later I made the most of the dry start with a brief stop at Upperton’s Pond. I barely had time to spot several Swallows feeding low over the field before a Merlin came swooping in and flew down the slope, dispersing the Swallows before disappearing from view. It took several minutes before the…

Ivy, with its clambering stems, glossy leaves and clusters of black berries is a familiar sight but wander past on a sunny day in early autumn and it is the subtle yellow-green flowers that will be causing a frenzy!

Flowering later than most of our nectar-rich wildflowers, Ivy flowers are a lifeline for insects well into the autumn. Their sweet honey-scent attracts hordes of bees, hornets, hoverflies and butterflies to…

Thanks to volunteer Graham for his sightings report and photos.

The early morning mist at Pulborough Brooks on Sunday made the numerous spider's webs easy to spot around Upperton’s Pond.

Various flowers were also covered in dew droplets, including Forget-me-nots and Narrow-leaved Birdsfoot Trefoil.

The mist soon lifted and the sun came out for the whole day. By the zigzag path a Dandelion clock caught my eye…

Thanks to volunteer Phil for his article and photos.

One of my favourite sights of Pulborough Brooks in summer is the splash of magenta colour provided by the tall flower spikes of Purple Loosestrife.  These can be seen in profusion mostly fringing the ditches of the North Brooks between June and August.   This photo was taken from Nettley’s Hide in mid-July, perhaps the peak of the season.

You can enjoy this display…

Thanks to volunteer Graham for his report and photos:

It was warm with sunny spells at Pulborough Brooks on Sunday.

 I started with a quick visit to Upperton’s Pond, where I found some Common Centaury.

Along the zigzag path the Fleabane was in full bloom, the occasional flowerhead serving as a platform for an insect, such as this Ichneumon.

In contrast to to the bright yellow of the Fleabane some more subtle colour…

With thanks to volunteer Graham for his report and photos.

It was another dry but breezy day at Pulborough Brooks on Sunday. 

On the zigzag path I came across an Eristalinus sepulchralis hoverfly.

I decided on a brief visit to Fattengates Courtyard, but I ended up spending most of my time on the access path by a clump of Hemp-agrimony that was attracting a wide range of insects. Apart from the more common butterflies,…