Hi Everyone,
Woweee well July has been the hottest month RSPB Rainham Marshes has ever experienced. As I am sure you must be aware this has affected the Marshes. However we have survived one severe heatwave, and there may be more yet to come this year. It’s worth reflecting how fortunate we are to have been unscathed by the Wennington fire which blazed just a stone’s throw away from the reserve. Our thoughts go out to our local neighbours who were severely affected by the fires. Only the prevailing wind and the A13 protected Rainham Marshes. However, we have still had some wonderful wildlife within the reserve with our ornithological highlights being as follows. I think the stars of the show this month has to be the spoonbills, the big debate is are there two or four. I think there’s four which are visiting quite regularly as one pair contains an adult who is ringed and the other pair are un-ringed. The ringed bird and partner are seen most regularly.
Spoonbill carrying nesting Material - Pic Credits Dave Newbold
They have remained on site throughout July and have been seen to be carrying reeds and nesting materials around, its very late in the season but maybe they’re planning ahead for 2023! Black tailed godwit have grown in numbers to a flock of around 20-30 with their lovely tortoiseshell plumage. The marsh harriers have fledged two juveniles. Two little ringed plover families have stepped out of the reeds, bearded tits are showing well and the first common sandpiper and green sandpiper have arrived back on the reserve. Our starling flock are gathering and warming up for hopefully some nice murmuration’s soon we estimate the flock to be around 1500 in number. The photo below shows the green sandpiper on the left and the common on the right clearly shows the size difference between the two.
Green sandpiper and common sandpiper – Pat Hart
Grass snakes have been showing more regularly recently and especially around the Purfleet Bridge zone. Such beautiful creatures, and such awesome swimmers. Jason Hicks was in the right place (the Purfleet Bridge) to capture this fabulous image of one of our grass snakes staying cool.
Grass snake pic by Jason Hicks
For the lepidopterans amongst you insect life has been very busy. We were very excited to see a clouded yellow butterfly back in the reserve. Lesser emperor dragonflies and also willow emerald damselfly are gracing us with their presence again. Truly beautiful. Annual migrant, first recorded 1996 in Gloucestershire; sightings are becoming more common, especially in England. Breeding first proved in Cornwall in 1999; further scattered breeding sites have been identified since then.The insect life within the reserve is amazing at the moment, we have a few spaces left on our Insect Discovery walk on 14th August, which you can book online or give us a call on 01708 899848 to book a ticket over the phone. Our team of expert guides will help you to enjoy and identify the mini wildlife here at Rainham.
Pic Credits: Rose & Dave Newbold Lesser Emperor mating
An update on the boardwalk: Many of you will be aware that our boardwalk is not in a good state, especially through the woodland and the north section of the loop. I want to reassure everyone that we are well aware of the situation and the level of repair that is needed. The aim is to completely replace the areas which have started to rot in larger sections rather than patching up broken boards as they appear. This will take a bit more time but will grant us much more resilience in the long term.
The children are enjoying the summer holiday and many are enjoying our weekly pond dipping sessions, a big thank you to all the volunteers who help with this activity. They have discovered a lot of dragonfly nymphs, water boatmen, bloodworms and Pond Dipping has been sold out for the last few weeks which is great to see so many happy children. We are also taking part in RSPB Big Wild Summer and have a fun activity box and a trail based on animals around the clock.
Sponsor A Sparrow is continuing to be a popular way for people to easily donate and help our lovely flock of sparrows. By the end of August the first group of newly donated terraces will hopefully be added to the front wall. Finally we have seen this harbour seal quite regularly now in Aveley Bay, he is a wonderful shade of red, pigmentation which I believe comes from the iron content in the Thames Estuary.
Harbour seal pic by Rambling Man
Have a fabulous month everyone, stay cool and we hope to see you here at Rainham Marshes soon
Caroline
Visitor Experience Manager RSPB Rainham Marshes