Rye Meads

Rye Meads Sightings Blog - March

2023-04-06T13:00:00Z

March on the Reserve

Spring has definitely sprung, although my final memories of March are of going through three sets of clothes putting all of our Easter activities out in the rain and mud…

Regardless, we’re calling is Spring – blackthorn is in blossom, there’s daffodils around, and we’ve had our first butterflies of the year (Peacock and Brimstone). Before we get to the birds, we’ve also had a stoat make an appearance, and also some frogspawn in the ditch – a surprisingly rare occurrence for Rye Meads!

Blackthorn in blossom - Vicky Buckel

Frogspawn! - Matt Bartlett

Ominous weather - Stuart Fox

Stoat - Dave Warren

Habitat management has finished for the year, and we’re also in a race to finish otter-proofing the Tern rafts and get those out on the lagoons. At Draper, we now have a scrape with the water level much lower, and are already seeing the benefits of last year’s scrub clearance and the raised water level killing off remnant vegetation, with the left hand side in particular providing perfect spots for arriving waders.

On to the birdlife, in March we’ve added another 8 to our total for 2023, up to 86 species for the year. 18 of those sightings haven’t been photographed yet – for anyone reading this, your challenge for April is a Starling and a Pied Wagtail!

Brief visits from a Mediterranean Gull and a Great Crested Grebe have been verified as well as some Greylag Geese, flyovers from a Goshawk and some Sand Martins. Ones we did get photos of though: a record shot of a Great White Egret on the 4^th (over the meadow, but viewed from our turf so it counts!), a Linnet, and the arrival of some Little Ringed Plovers which are still punching above their weight on the Draper scrape as you’d expect.

Great White Egret over the Meadow - Mark Jobling

Linnet - Andre Griggs

Little Ringed Plovers - Allan Burrows

Little Ringed Plover - Paul Townsend

Barn Owls

The pair of barn owls are still with us! Over the course of the month there were a few early sightings the day after a rainy night, particularly when we were a little slow to close the reserve at 5pm sharp… We were also able to run two after-hours sessions before the clocks went forward where most of our photos come from. We’ve had a lot of questions about whether or not we have any other after-hours events. The ones we ran were timed so that they were after a spell of rain, to maximise the chances of hunting during the day, which is why they tend to be last minute – and we also have the fact it means one of our two full-time members of staff having an evening spare to contend with! So, nothing in the plan but keep an eye on our website and social media, and also cross your fingers for breeding!

Barry Lynn

Dave Newbold

David Rudeforth

Graham King

John Lawrence

Linda Gregory

Mark O'Dell

Martin Sepion

Paul Moore

Robert Kitchen

Stuart Fox

Vaishali Shah

Lesser Spotted Woodpecker and Bearded Tits

Things have been fairly quiet for both the Lesser Spotted Woodpecker and the Bearded Tits over the last 6 weeks, but both were seen and photographed briefly. The Lesser Spot dropped in on the 11^th March and was seen by a few visitors and volunteers near the Ashby hide, while members of the Rye Meads Ringing Group also heard it calling close to Rye House train station. Bearded Tits were seen in the reedbed at Draper on 1^st March and heard past the Ashby Hide a few days later.

Distant Bearded Tits at Draper - Steven Coppen

Lesser Spotted Woodpecker - Lauren Kaliff

Lesser Spotted Woodpecker - Sue Holte-Smith

Kingfishers

We are of course into Kingfisher season, and a pair at the Kingfisher Hub has been investigating and clearing holes in the bank since February. Signs of courtship have been ongoing since mid-March with a lot of fish passing, although the jury is out on actual mating. It does seem like they’re a bit behind schedule compared to last year’s pair but for those visiting the Hub, if you can log anything useful in the book on the shelf that’s in there, very much appreciated.

Fish Pass - David Everett

Fish Pass - Steve Nelson

Female - Paul Moore

Male - Rose Newbold

Male - Steve Gibbs

Male - Yoko Chung

Flamingos

Not really. But something that did cause a stir was one or two Black-Headed Gulls with a strong pink tinge to them. This is a fairly loose explanation but the first thing to say is that this is quite natural. The simple answer is that like flamingos, the gulls have gone a bit pink because of what they’ve eaten.

For those that want my vague interpretation of biological science…

Birds maintain their feathers through preening, and the majority of birds have a preen gland (or uropygial gland) which secrets preen oil, and many birds increase their preening as they approach the breeding season. The diet of many birds (including flamingos and black headed gulls) contains plants, algae and invertebrates that contain yellow, orange or red pigments called carotenoids. These carotenoids find their way into the preen oil of a bird. So, a bird with a heavy diet of red carotenoid-rich food will have preen oil with a pink tinge, and with a lot of preening will essentially dye itself pink, particularly noticeable if its feathers are naturally white. Flamingos are an extreme example of this, and with the right sort of diet you can see it in gulls too, like this one.

Black Headed Gulls - Rose Newbold

On the right with a pink tinge

Photo Firsts

Alongside the photos of new arrivals, this is also the first time this year I’ve seen photos of four other species on the Friends of RSPB Rye Meads group. Despite sightings from January onwards, this is the first time someone has managed to catch a Sparrowhawk, as well as a deliberate photo of Common Gulls (there may be some hidden among the Black Headed Gull photos from previous months!). To my shame I did incorrectly identify one of them as a Herring Gull – slap on the wrist for that. This might also be the first photo of a Wood Pigeon, which is often ignored, including by me assuming that its mostly Feral Pigeons around. Finally, although we had a handful of Blackcaps in early January, the summer migrants are arriving and so they are being seen a bit more regularly now.

Sparrowhawk - Mark O'Dell

Sparrowhawk - Paul Moore

Sparrowhawk - Jan Martin

Common Gull - Stuart Fox

Common Gulls - Paul Smith

Common Gull (Left) and Black-Headed Gull (Right) - Paul Smith

Male Blackcap - Steve Dimbleby

Wood Pigeon - Jan Martin

The Rest

Just a bit of a photo dump for everything else. Personal highlights are a Kestrel popping up at the nest box by the Kingfisher Hub which was used last year, as well as Stonechat, Treecreeper, Water Rail, Oystercatchers, and a LOT of Chiffchaffs

Kestrel - Paul Smith

Kestrel - David Everett

Stonechat - Alan Reynolds

Stonechat - Barry Lynn

Stonechat - Diane Dalli

Treecreeper - Sharon Woolcombe

Water Rail - Allan Burrows

Water Rail - Rose Newbold

Oystercatcher - Steve Gibbs

Blackbird - Simon Wilcock

Blue Tit - Sue Holte-Smith

Buzzard - Diane Dalli

Canada Goose - Linda Gregory

Cettis Warbler - Linda Gregory

Chiffchaff - Cliff Matthews

Common Snipe - Martin Sepion

Coot - Robert Kitchen

Dunnock - Steve Dimbleby

Egyptian Geese & Black Headed Gulls - Keith Kendall

Fieldfare - Barry Lynn

Gadwall - Steven Coppen

Goldcrest - Tony Mooney

Great Tit - Paul Smith

Greenfinch - Steve Dimbleby

Green Sandpiper - Sean Gillespie

Green Woodpecker - Mark O'Dell

Grey Heron - Jan Martin

Grey Wagtail - Andre Griggs

Jay (a bit soggy) - Steve Nelson

Lapwing - Mark O'Dell

Lesser Black-Backed Gull - Allan Burrows

Little Egret - Seb Birds

Little Grebe - Paul Townsend

Long-Tailed Tit - Sharon Woolcombe

Magpie - Linda Gregory

Mallards - Chris Wright

Moorhen - Robert Kitchen

Mute Swan - John Lawrence

Pheasant - Robert Kitchen

Pochard (M) - Steve Dimbleby

Red Crested Pochard - Stuart Fox

Red Kite - Martin Sepion

Redwing - Steven Coppen

Reed Bunting - Dave Newbold

Robin - Barry Lockwood

Shelduck - Rose Newbold

Shoveler - Allan Burrows

Siskin - Martin Sepion

Stock Dove - Robert Kitchen

Teal - Andre Griggs

Tufted Duck - Chris Wright

Wren - Rose Newbold

Roving at Rye Meads - Colin H.

2023-03-23T14:31:00Z

Day to day operations at RSPB Rye Meads are run by two full-time and one part-time member of staff to keep the doors open 7 days a week from 9am-5pm. It therefore relies heavily on a brilliant team of volunteers - 79 of them in the last year! One of our more recent recruits, Colin, has been with us every Monday in our 'Roving' volunteer role, heading out onto the reserve as a friendly point of contact for our visitors. Colin has noted his thoughts and observations from a winter of volunteering here at Rye Meads for you all to enjoy below!

If you are interested in volunteering with us at RSPB Rye Meads, visit volunteer.rspb.co.uk to view the variety of different ways you can support us.

Roving Mondays - Colin Hull

In October reaching the age of 65 I reduced my hours of work and so have Mondays and Fridays for extra leisure. Having been involved with the RSPB and British Trust for Ornithology since my younger days I was looking around for things I may usefully do to share my knowledge with others and keep records of species and numbers. I contacted RSPB Rye Meads and so in November started as Roving Volunteer on Monday mornings ready to guide visitors in identification of what species are present, keeping records and species counts on my Birdtrack App. So, a few highlights of my observations from Nov - Feb.

I have always been interested in our winter visiting species and look out for Redwing and Fieldfare. Sadly this season I have encounter very few Fieldfare either at Rye Meads or my other sites I regularly watch. Redwing on the other hand have occurred in small flocks of at least 20+ at Rye Meads along the trails first feeding in the berry bearing trees and then on the ground under the trees.

There were reports in November of the scarce and elusive Bearded Tit but I did not get to see any until 23 Jan. I had a brilliant sighting of 4 in the reeds almost right in front of me near the Gadwall hide. Other visitors coming in the hope of seeing them have been less successful. Sometimes bird watching is a matter of luck. I have not yet been able to see the reported Lesser Spotted Woodpecker, but still hoping.

I have visited the Kingfisher Hub for short periods of time most weeks but only at the start of March did I get a brilliant view of one sitting near the nest bank for about 15 minutes. Other Kingfishers are occasionally seen at the Gadwall hide, flying or perched on a post to the left.

On a few occasions I have heard the short explosive song of Cettis Warbler. More often heard than seen as it skulks around in vegetation near the water side. A small dark brown bird and its song quite loud for small bird. Its one of those species relatively new to the UK that first began colonisation in 1972. Current UK population of about 3400 pairs. Judging by where I have located the singing there may be about 3-4 males currently on site.

Most weeks I have noted more than 200 Lapwing from the Gadwall Hide when water levels have been lower and now water levels have fallen at the Drapper Hide some have noted some there too. As breeding season gets underway I suspect many will be dispersing to breeding grounds.

Among the ducks I noted last week a pair of Red Crested Pochard. Larger than a Pochard, the male has an orange-brown head with a red beak and pale flanks. Females are brown with pale cheeks. There is a large population in Spain and nearer but smaller numbers in France, Netherlands and Germany - and occasional wild birds may come to the UK from the Continent. The UK breeding birds almost certainly all come from escaped birds. UK breeding population about 20-40 pairs.

With the coming months I am looking forward to the arrivals and breeding of our avian summer visitors.

Wild Isles – Making nature accessible in Hertfordshire

2023-03-21T09:25:00Z

Has Wild Isles inspired you to get out and see a starling murmuration or other nature spectacle for yourself? Urban nature experiences are closer than you think.(read more)

Bearded Tits at Rye Meads

2023-03-20T16:53:00Z

Over the last few months there's been a bit of a buzz around several visitors to Rye Meads (of the avian variety, although I'm sure some of you create a buzz too).

One of those species is the Bearded Tits: first spotted in October, we've had peaks and troughs of sightings in various parts of the reserve all the way to March.

Like most species that have visited Rye Meads, Bearded Tits have been tracked and monitored by the brilliant Rye Meads Ringing Group; an organisation that has been on site here at Rye Meads even longer than the RSPB.

For those interested in the longer history of Bearded Tits at Rye Meads, check out the Ringing Group website and their article on Bearded Tits at this link

Rye Meads Sightings Blog - February 2023

2023-03-08T10:11:00Z

February on the Reserve

Its a bit odd to write this looking out of the window at snow, but its been an unusually mild February, particularly during Half Term. Its been another bumper month for major sightings, with our highlights from January sticking around and being joined by some other firsts for 2023. Water levels at Draper stayed relatively high for the month but we did bring them down at Gadwall. Both are now reducing further ahead of Spring, so expect some changes to regular sightings at both.

Our 2023 bird species count in January was 71 - in February this is up to 78 with Oystercatcher, Meadow Pipit, Red Crested Pochard, Jack Snipe, Stonechat, Grey Wagtail and Pied Wagtail being seen for the first time this year. Specifically for February there are a total of 68 species in the monthly Visitor Sightings Log in reception

And a challenge for our photographers - we haven't got photographic evidence of 18 of those 78 sightings even though some have been on site every day this year... So, don't just ignore your Wood Pigeons, Starlings and Jackdaws!

It's also not just about birds here at Rye Meads. We've had a lot of entertainment from Muntjacs this month (see the photos later!) and some nice landscape photos of the changing weather, and of course the February snowdrops. We've also had our first reports of Water Voles of the year (confirmed Water Voles, not a rat!), and early Bumble Bees. Plus a Chinook helicopter...

One of few gloomy days at the Gadwall Hide - Mark O'Dell

A February staple: Snowdrops - Graham Charlton

Thank you also to the Charltons for our Rye Meads rock!

It wouldn't be Rye Meads themed without a Kingfisher

The Kingfisher Hub

Worth mentioning here that now we're starting to reach the Kingfisher breeding season, it can get busy in our Kingfisher Hub. In case you hadn't seen already, as we did in 2022, we have some requirements in place from 1st March with restrictions on time and capacity in the Hub to ensure fair and equal access for everyone. You can read more about those here - thanks to all our visitors for their support.

Sightings Highlights

In January our three highlights were Barn Owl, Lesser Spotted Woodpecker and Bearded Tits. Happily we have positive updates on all three, plus a couple more I'm going to throw in...

Barn Owls

Yes, there is an 's' on the end of Barn Owls. With the days getting longer, we had less sightings early in the month, but later when the weather was a bit duller we were back to daily sightings around 4-5pm. On Wednesday 22nd, we were completely spoiled with THREE flying around the meadow! Two have been seen regularly since, usually appearing from the nest boxes next to the Lapwing Hide, flying around the meadow, and perching on the fences and branches. We don't know at this point if we have males and females but all fingers are crossed for breeding...

Alan Reynolds

Andre Griggs (Do you think he and Alan were sat next to each other?)

Graham Charlton

Successful Hunt - Jan Martin

Kevin Blacke

Mark O'Dell

Paul Moore

Robert Kitchen

Mobbed - Steve Dimbleby

Stuart Fox

Yoko Chung

Mark O'Dell

Lesser Spotted Woodpecker

The one-legged Lesser Spotted Woodpecker is an elusive celebrity covering a very wide area - we haven't had a sighting since 12th February but it was seen on five separate occasions in completely different locations so it may still be around somewhere!

Steve Nelson

Stuart Fox

Bearded Tits

Similar story with the Bearded Tits - a fair few sightings early in February and then a period of silence, although they were briefly seen investigating a grit tray we had put out. All the sightings in February came in their 'regular' spot in the reedbed opposite Tern and Gadwall hides. Slipping into March slightly for news, they have also now been spotted in the reedbed at the back of the Draper Scrape

Carly Culmstock

Harry Rice

Alan Reynolds

Reed Buntings

We've had quite a few Reed Bunting sightings in January and February, probably a knock-on effect of people looking out for Bearded Tits in the same place. Its a highlight for me this month though, after we picked up on a quite brilliant photo taken by Paul Wright below of a female that looked to be speeding towards him like a feathery bullet!

Paul Wright

Stonechat and Oystercatcher

Highlights because they appeared briefly at the end of the month - two of our firsts for the year! Oystercatchers were at the Gadwall Hide for less than an hour with the water level dropping, while Stonechats were seen on a couple of days with the best views from the Lapwing Hide.

Oystercatchers

Andre Griggs

Stonechat

John Lawrence

Elizabeth Pendleton

John Lawrence

Steve Dimbleby

Andre Griggs

Wildfowl

Ducks

No frozen lagoons this month! It was a bit of a slow start for large duck numbers but we've certainly seen an increase, as has Mel who returned with some mutterings in late Feb and reported noticeable increases in Gadwall, Tufted Duck and Pochard to go along with the Shoveler and Mallard who were already quite high in number, and a handful of Teal too. We also had our first reports of the year of Red Crested Pochard, which seem to be establishing themselves more every year. Some good photos to contrast with the Common Pochard, as one visitor put it: "their heads are much blobbier"... Thanks to our Half Term activity trail we also had a few photos of our resident 'white duck' who is quite likely an escaped domestic Mallard - its been called an Aylesbury and a Pekin at times but both are essentially Mallards anyway! What we do know is his curly tail feathers mark him out as a male, and he has been christened Harold after a brief poll of visitors.

Common Pochard (M) - Rose Newbold

Common Pochard (F) - Steve Gibbs

Red Crested Pochard (Male ahead of female) - Jan Martin

3 Male and 2 Female Red Crested Pochard - Rose Newbold

Male Mallard, check out the blue speculum on show! - Kevin Blake

Harold and a Friend - Steven Coppen

Gadwall pair, female in front of male - Chris Wright

Male Gadwall - Paul T Smith

Female Shoveler - Steve West

Male Shoveler - Carly Culmstock

Female Teal - Stuart Fox

Male Teal - Robert Kitchen

Female Tufted Duck - Steve West

Male Tufted Duck - Steven Coppen

Swans, Geese and Shelduck

As with last month, Mute Swans, Canada Geese and Shelduck were regulars, with Egyptian Geese also posing for some attention. The Canadian cousins are starting to claim their territory around the reserve though!

Egyptian Geese - John Dymott

Egyptian Goose - David Lee

Egyptian Geese - Robert Kitchen

Canada Geese causing aggro... - Sue Holte-Smith

Mute Swan landing - Steve Gibbs

Shelduck - Elizabeth Pendleton

Around the Lagoons

Kingfisher

Plenty of signs at the Kingfisher Hub that last year's pair are ready to go. They were investigating the bank as early as 4th February (very early!), with our work party volunteers completing some final habitat management work there a few days later and actually being supervised by a Kingfisher sitting on top of the Hub! There were almost daily sightings from the middle of February onwards, with some regular investigation of the old bank nest holes and of course a lot of photos. For anyone looking to distinguish between male and female Kingfishers, look at the beak - the female has a bit of 'lipstick' on...

Female - Seb Birds

Male - Rose Newbold

Female - David Everett

Male - Ruth Watson

Female - Kevin Garrett

Male - Liz Knight

Cormorants and Herons

Little Egrets were seen in February but not frequently, and without being photographed! Cormorants and Grey Herons were of course fairly regular though.

Cormorant having a swim - Paul T Smith

Grey Heron having a fly - Steve West

Grebes and Rails

Again no Great Crested Grebe yet! Water Rails have been spotted occasionally but the main attraction has been Coots getting territorial on the water.

Little Grebe - David Bowron

Little Grebe - Phil Burt

Moorhen - Mark Vale

Immature Moorhen - Rose Newbold

Coot - Allan Burrows

Coot - Steve Gibbs

Pipits, Wagtails, and Gulls

Meadow Pipits are actually pretty regular in the HMWT meadow from the Lapwing Hide but rarely spotted by visitors! They've been mentioned in February though. We've also had out first Wagtails of the year, both Pied and Grey, but only the Grey has been photographed so far. Similar story with Gulls - we've had Common and Herring reported but in February it's just been the Black-Headed Gulls that have popped up in photos. There's usually some Common Gulls hidden among them so keep your eyes peeled as they are starting to come into summer plumage too.

Grey Wagtail - Steve Dimbleby

Black-Headed Gull - Chris Wright

Waders

Aside from the Oystercatchers, our other waders have been the usual suspects. Patient types have been rewarded with views of Common Snipe, and one lucky person (me...) saw both a Common and a Jack Snipe flushed from the meadow at the same time, making it nice and easy to distinguish that it really was a Jack Snipe! Green Sandpiper are around too, and with the water levels now dropping at Gadwall and Draper we will hopefully see more, and some variety! The star of the show though has been the Lapwing at the Gadwall Hide, numbering well over 400 at times and leading to some spectacular aerial displays.

Lapwing - Mark Vale

Lapwing - Kevin Garrett

Lapwing - Kevin Blake

Lapwing - Robert Kitchen

Common Snipe - Andre Griggs

Common Snipe - David Coote

Common Snipe - David Everett

Common Snipe - Melanie Partner

Green Sandpiper - David Bowron

Green Sandpiper - Steve Dimbleby

Looking Up

Birds of Prey

Yet to see a Sparrowhawk picture this year despite sightings in January and February. Over this month we've also had Buzzard, Red Kite and Kestrel but no Peregrine.

Red Kite - Seb Birds

Kestrel - Seb Birds

Buzzard - Steve Dimbleby

Buzzard - Kevin Blake

Finches, Buntings and Dunnocks

Dunnocks are a bird family of their own in the UK (they're not sparrows!) but I'm sticking them here as along with a couple of the finch family (Greenfinch & Siskin) I finally have a first photo of each to show. Reed Buntings I've put in the highlights, and we've also had sightings of Yellowhammer late in the day again with no photos yet. Chaffinch and Goldfinch have also been fairly frequent.

Siskin - Robert Kitchen

Goldfinch - Lauren Kaliff

Siskin - Robert Kitchen

Dunnock - Mark Jobling

Greenfinch - Rose Newbold

Dunnock - Sean Gillespie

Tits, Crests and Treecreepers

Small things have been fun, especially the Blue Tits swinging around on the reeds. Treecreepers and Goldcrests have been spotted again, and keep an eye out for Long-Tailed Tits starting their nests in the brambles.

Blue Tit - Harry Rice

Blue Tit - Paul T Smith

Blue Tit - Yoko Chung

Blue Tits - Ruth Watson

Treecreeper - Allan Burrows

Great Tit - Mark O'Dell

Goldcrest - Melanie Partner

Long-Tailed Tit - Steve Dimbleby

Thrushes, Chats and Wrens

Stonechats already in the spotlight complementing the much more common Robins. Song Thrush, Fieldfare, Redwing and Blackbird are also regulars still.

Song Thrush - Steven Coppen

Redwing - Carly Culmstock

Robin - Rose Newbold

Wren - David Lee

Warblers and Woodpeckers

Winter Warblers are often heard but not seen but we have picked up on Cetti's and Chiffchaff around. Along with the Lesser Spotted, weve also had Great Spotted and Green Woodpeckers, the latter photographed for the first time this year.

Cetti's Warbler - Martin Abbess

Chiffchaff - Mark Jobling

Great Spotted Woodpecker - Steve Dimbleby

Green Woodpecker - Steve West

And Finally...

Plenty of entertainment on several occasions, with Magpies surfing on the back of Muntjac, while check out the determined Grey Squirrel! We've also noted our visitors insistence on photographing anything that flies, whether natural or man-made, and extra points for fungi too - I've tentatively identified this as Coriolus Versicolor... but will happily be corrected!

Grey Squirrel! - Jan Martin

Rose Newbold

Ruth Watson

Steve Dimbleby

Chinook (Winter Plumage) - Steven Coppen

Coriolus Versicolor (?) Fungus - Jan Martin

There you have it! Thank you for browsing the February sightings blog. Many thanks to all our visitors for reporting their sightings, and to the photographers in the 'Friends of RSPB Rye Meads (new)' community Facebook group who share all their photos. If you'd like to contribute to these blogs or have any feedback on what you'd like to see, feel free to comment below, or get in touch with us at rye.meads@rspb.org.uk

Rye Meads Sightings Blog - January 2023

2023-02-02T10:58:00Z

The start of a new calendar year is always a busy time for us here at Rye Meads, with the slate wiped clean and our annual sightings log reset to zero! But the year has started brilliantly with some major highlights for us, as early as New Year's Day.

We're also recruiting volunteers to a variety of roles at the reserve, so if you have any time to spare, however small, do check out volunteer.rspb.org.uk to find a role to suit you, from hosting at our Kingfisher Hub to supporting school visits and holiday events, to our habitat management work party.

January on the Reserve

It's been another interesting month weather-wise, with a period of freezing temperatures and icy waters leading to plenty of ups and downs in numbers. Water levels at the Draper lagoon remain high for now, to ensure the protection of suitable marginal edges for waders later in the year, and a deeper feeding ground for waterfowl. After some maintenance, the water at the Gadwall lagoon has been lowered with some visible islands and a good variety of species on show as a result. Regular visitors may also have noticed a significant amount of brush cutting and scrub clearance in recent weeks, with winter works prioritising the best possible habitat for our protected breeding and loafing waterfowl (as well as general tidiness!). Despite some interesting weather, there has been a real diversity of sightings, as our 2023 Checklist in the Visitor Centre showed

January Bird Species: 71

Bird species with photo evidence: 52 (Via tagging us on Twitter, or in the Friends of RSPB Rye Meads [new] Facebook group)

Bird species on 1st January: 50

Other Identified Fauna: 5

The Highlights

Bearded Tits

Back in October, we had our first sightings of Bearded Tits all around the reserve, from the HMWT meadow to the Ashby reedbed and everywhere in between! At the end of the month, two were caught and ringed by the Rye Meads Ringing Group, with the group seeing approximately ten in the meadow area at the same time as visitors photographing some on the opposite side of the reserve, leading to estimates of 14-16 in the Rye Meads area at that peak. Occasional sightings followed in November and December, but they were seen with more regularity in January, particularly in the reedbed opposite the Tern/Gadwall ramp where 3 males and 3 females were frequently seen. There may have been up to ten in that area at one point, with six the definite regular tally. Fingers crossed they stick around!

Bearded Tit - Female

Steve Knox

Bearded Tit - Male

Steve Knox

Ruth Watson

Paul Tatman

Mark O'Dell

Graham Charlton

Everton Murray

Jono Forgham

Dave Newbold

Lesser Spotted Woodpecker

Similar to the Bearded Tits, we had Lesser Spotted Woodpecker sightings as far back as October but it had gone pretty quiet. They can cover quite a large territory so may not be sticking to Rye Meads! We have had several sightings in January though in various parts around the reserve. Unfortunately it does appear to only have one leg but seems to be coping pretty well (and is therefore a bit more identifiable if it's seen elsewhere in the area). We've had 8 days of sightings across January (and a flyover on 1st Feb), all in different locations between the Visitor Centre and the Kingfisher Hub. It's also been seen on the other side of the River Lee, and across the road on the Thames Water site.

Gill Price

Taylor Harkness

Kathy Sharman

John Lawrence

Mark Vale

Barn Owl

Just after Christmas, two lucky visitors were in the right place at the right time, as a Barn Owl popped its head out of one of the nest boxes to the right of the Draper scrape. We had one daylight sighting in January, with a Barn Owl flying over the meadow at around 2pm, but in the middle of the month we had about a week where a barn owl would hunt around the meadow between 4.30-5pm (just in time for us to close!). It's been in both nestboxes next to the Lapwing Hide, with some great views of it emerging and flying for a few lucky visitors stood on the first bridge on the reserve looking back at the meadow. With the days getting slightly longer its less likely to be seen during our opening hours but with the help of the Ringing Group we'll do our best to keep an eye on it if anyone is here late! There's a possibility there might be two - like the Bearded Tits we have everything crossed for breeding!

Emerging over the meadow - Vicky Buckel

Graham Charlton (taken at 4.59pm!)

Wildfowl

Ducks

Despite the water levels increasing for the winter, the cold temperatures have meant frozen lagoons a few times! Although overall numbers have sometimes been low, we have still seen most of our usual winter wildfowl visitors, with January a great time to see them in their best plumage. Gadwall haven't arrived in their hundreds like we might expect, and it's actually been Shoveler that are in higher quantities. Tufted Duck and Teal are around too as well as a handful of Pochard and the usual Mallard. Bodes well for our 'Duck Detectives' trail in February Half Term!

Male Gadwall - Allan Burrows

Female Gadwall - Alan Burrows

Gadwall pair - Christine Henry

An entertaining Mallard pair! - Steve Gibbs

Male Mallard - Paul T Smith

Female Mallard (promise it has a second leg) - Jono Forgham

Male (very)Tufted Duck - Mark O'Dell

Female Tufted Duck - Steve Dimbleby

Female Tufted Duck - Christine Henry

Pochard Pair - David Everett

Male Pochard - Steve Dimbleby

Female Pochard - Mark O'Dell

A small group of Teal - Steve Coppen

Teal pair - Paul T Smith

Male Teal - Robert Kitchen

Male Shoveler - Andre Griggs

Male Shovelers shovelling

Female Shoveler shovelling - Steve Dimbleby

Swans, Geese and Shelduck

As normal, several Mute Swans call the reserve home, but one particular immature swan has caught the eye with photos. Canada Geese are ever-present but we also had a couple of Egyptian Geese briefly land too. There has also been a Shelduck braving all weathers, and its been joined by another two as things got slightly warmer towards the end of the month.

Immature Mute Swan - Jan Martin

Immature Mute Swan - Paul T Smith

Egyptian Geese - Andre Griggs

Shelduck pair - Andre Griggs

Shelduck - Andre Griggs

Shelduck - Jan Martin

Shelduck - Steve Dimbleby

At the Lagoons (Usually...)

Cormorants, Egrets and Herons

It took a week until we saw our first Little Egret of the year but they have been regular since. Grey Herons and Cormorants are always a good photo opportunity, often seen on a branch at Lagoon 3, viewable from the Ashby Ramp, but I particularly liked the shot below of a Cormorant on a pylon!

Cormorant on a pylon - Colin Meager

The favoured Cormorant perch - Graham Charlton

Cormorant in a tree - Paul T Smith

Grey Heron - David Everett

Grey Heron - Robert Kitchen

Tench-fishing Grey Heron - 'Seb Birds'

Little Egret (and Mallards) - Jan Martin

LIttle Egret - Paul T Smith

Grebes and Rails

No Great Crested Grebe this month but a handful of Little Grebes around. Water Rails aren't as showy as they were in the December frost but still plenty of opportunities to spot them after the cutting works on the reedbed created some good viewpoints. Plenty of Moorhen and Coot as usual, with the behaviour of the Coot often interesting in the frost! A few good photos showing a key difference between Coots and ducks with their 'finger-like' toes and lack of webbed feet!

Little Grebe - Sean Gillespie

Moorhen - Steve Gibbs

Water Rail - Andre Griggs

Coot (Eating) - Paul T Smith

Coot (Fighting) - Andre Griggs

Coot (Freezing) - Colin Meager

Coot (Perching) - David Lee

Coot (Posing) - Paul T Smith

Coot (Skating) - Steve Dimbleby

Gulls

We're always choc-a-bloc with Black-Headed Gulls (with a white head at this time of year). In among those but not pictured have been Common and Herring Gulls too. We also had a first winter Lesser Black Backed Gull (the last picture in this block) which led to a bit of an ID challenge. Best distinguished from a first winter Herring Gull by the wings - smudgy brown rather than a definitive pattern of brown and white triangles.

Black-Headed Gull - David Coote

Black-Headed Gulls - Paul T Smith

Black-Headed Gull - Sue Holte-Smith

1st Winter Lesser Black Backed Gull - Rose Newbold

Waders

High water levels at the start of the month meant less space for waders but it's all done to ensure perfect habitat later in the year. There have been a few sightings of Snipe and the odd Green Sandpiper, one of which was ringed here a few years ago so it's nice to see it still around! It's been the Lapwing that are the spectacle though. Once the weather settled and the lagoons unfroze, the handful of Lapwing became hundreds, with some amazing flight displays captured and the sound of them 'pee-witting' carrying across the reserve.

Common Snipe among Lapwing - Andre Griggs

Green Sandpiper - Pete Duxon

Green Sandpiper feeding - Steve Dimbleby

Green Sandpiper - Rose Newbold

Lapwing in flight - Helen Dewar

Lapwing in flight - Paul T Smith

Lapwing - Rose Newbold

Lapwing - Steve Gibbs

Kingfishers

It's very rare we'd go a month without a Kingfisher sighting, and we've had a few this January despite being well outside the breeding season. Sightings have therefore generally been away from the breeding banks, often flyovers near the river or at the Gadwall Hide. Two lucky photographers who caught stationary examples though!

Kingfisher - David Everett

Kingfisher - Sean Gillespie

Land, Tree and Sky

Birds of Prey

Many of the birds of prey on site are seen in brief flyovers so its always nice to see when someone's managed to get an in-flight photo, or when something has landed! Peregrine and Sparrowhawk are two that have been sighted but not played ball with a camera in January. Fortunately we have Kestrels and Buzzards that have taken to perching on top of nest boxes, making it easier for some! The buzzard that frequents the owl box at Draper has been a feature, particularly when its been mobbed by Carrion Crows after sitting there too long. We've even got a lovely action shot of it doing its... erm... pre-flight routine.

The highlight here for me though is a Marsh Harrier. Being totally honest, we often get Marsh Harriers reported, with investigation revealing its actually a Buzzard - there's a particularly long-legged Buzzard around that is confusing some. Thankfully, we've got concrete evidence this month courtesy of Andre Griggs who captured it in flight.

Marsh Harrier - Andre Griggs

Buzzard on the owl box - Mark O'Dell

Pre-flight ablutions... - Sue Holte-Smith

Buzzard in flight - Steve Gibbs

Buzzard mobbed by Crow - Everton Murray

Kestrel - Steve Gibbs

Red Kite - Steve Gibbs

Corvids and Starlings

Having ticked off the Crow above, there's a few in the rest of the family too. On one day, there was a far away Raven sat on a pylon, but too far for a meaningful photo! I would be disappointed that no one's photographed a Jackdaw, but we also haven't had any photos of Starlings either - which is mostly my fault as every single day they've been in and out of the nest box just above the Visitor Centre door, and in perfect view of my desk.

Jay - Paul T Smith

Magpie - David Rudeforth

Magpie - Paul T Smith

Many Magpies - Paul T Smith

Finches, Buntings and Sparrows

Greenfinch, Siskin and Yellowhammer do belong in these families and also have been seen but not snapped. Chaffinch and Goldfinch are around, and those of you who are like me and have repeatedly failed to see Bearded Tits, have at least sometimes had a consolation prize of Reed Buntings in the same area. I'll also add Dunnock to this part of the list (in a different family of birds but I'm taking artistic license). House Sparrows haven't drawn the attention of a camera lens - although some sightings have been reported at various parts of the reserve they are actually a quite sporadic sighting for us so please let us know!

Chaffinches - Jan Martin

Goldfinch - Paul T Smith

Reed Bunting pair - Robert Kitchen

Reed Bunting female - Allan Burrows

Reed Bunting male - Paul T Smith

Reed Bunting male - Robert Kitchen

Tits, Crests and Treecreepers

The Bearded Tits are obviously a highlight of the reserve, but it is always nice to see shots of Blue, Great and Long-Tailed around the reserve too. The focus on the reedbeds for the Beardies has led to plenty of other reed-based photos, with Blue Tits also seen hanging from stalks. We have also had some good sightings of Goldcrests, including in the hedges in the car park, as well as occasional Treecreepers, with one great photo below

Treecreeper - John Lawrence

Goldcrest - Graham Charlton

Goldcrest - Steve Dimbleby

Goldcrest - Steve Knox

Great Tit - Paul T Smith

Blue Tit - Allan Burrows

Blue Tit - Rose Newbold

Long-Tailed Tit - Andre Griggs

Long-Tailed Tit - Mark Vale

Long-Tailed Tit - Steven Coppen

Long-Tailed Tit - Paul T Smith

Thrushes and Chats

The reserve has been full of Redwing at times, particularly the Draper area and towards the Turnstile. There's also been the occasional Fieldfare to go along with noisy Song Thrushes and the ubiquitous Blackbirds and Robins

Fieldfare - Andre Griggs

Song Thrush - Ruth Watson

Fieldfare - Andre Griggs

Song Thrush - Rose Newbold

Fieldfare - Mark Vale

Song Thrush - Mark Vale

Redwing - Colin Meager

Redwing - Ruth Watson

Redwing - Steven Coppen

Redwing - Sue Holte-Smith

Blackbird (M) - Allan Burrows

Blackbird (F) - Mark Vale

Blackbird (F) - Steve Dimbleby

Blackbird (F) - Steve Gibbs

Robin - Allan Burrows

Robin - Graham Charlton

Robin - John Lawrence

Robin - Paul T Smith

Robin - Steve Dimbleby

Robin - Steve Gibbs

Warblers

Not many winter warblers at the moment. There were early Blackcap sightings, and a number of Chiffchaff around, and although there are a few about we aren't being deafened by lots of Cetti's Warbler song just yet!

Cetti's Warbler - Christine Henry

Cetti's Warbler - Paul Tatman

Cetti's Warbler - Paul T Smith

Chiffchaff - Paul T Smith

Chiffchaff - Andre Griggs

Best of the Rest

As well as the Lesser Spotted Woodpecker, we have had Great Spotted and Green varieties too. Flyovers from Skylarks and Ring Necked Parakeets have been seen alongside the more common Wrens, Collared and Stock Doves, and of course Pigeons. A pair of Pheasants are knocking around too (we had at least one breeding pair near the Visitor Centre last summer). Plenty of Muntjac, Squirrels and Rabbits, and thumbs up to my favourite person who added Earthworm and Slug to the sightings board, right on my wavelength. The first moth trapping of the year from Vicky and Mel (who's mutterings have stayed on Twitter this month!) brought in a nice example of a Dark Chestnut.

Mrs Pheasant - Jan Martin

Mr Pheasant - Jan Martin

Wren - Paul T Smith

Great Spotted Woodpecker - Andre Griggs

Stock Dove - Allan Burrows

Muntjac - Steve Gibbs

Muntjac - Steve Dimbleby

Muntjac - Allan Burrows

Grey Squirrel - Andre Griggs

Dark Chestnut Moth - Mel Shepherd-Wells

And that is that! Thank you for browsing a bumper January sightings blog. Many thanks to all our visitors for reporting their sightings, and to the photographers in the 'Friends of RSPB Rye Meads (new)' community Facebook group who share all their photos. If you'd like to contribute to these blogs or have any feedback on what you'd like to see, feel free to comment below, or get in touch with us at rye.meads@rspb.org.uk

December Sightings

2023-01-05T14:04:00Z

Rye Meads News

Those of you who visited or read the November blog will have heard about our concerns about the potential for Avian Flu. The good news for us is that there was no further suspicious bird behaviour in December and no bird fatalities beyond the handful to be expected in winter or via predation. Unfortunately though, avian flu remains a huge concern in the wider region and nationally, so please do remain vigilant!

The weather has been all over the place with everything from T-Shirt temperatures to frost, to heavy snow. The volume of snow even meant we had to close the reserve for a few days to make the paths and trees safe - and we're very grateful to the volunteers that travelled in to help us de-ice the car park and the boardwalks! The drop in temperatures meant that despite the raised water levels on the lagoons, much of their surface area froze over, and despite some arrivals we are yet to see the usual large influx of waterfowl that we expect at this time of year.

That said, there's still been some major highlights for us, in particular for those daring to stick around close to sunset, with a Barn Owl, Yellowhammer and Pipistrelle Bats being seen as the light started to fade.

HMWT with a frosty photo

One from Mel of the frost too

The view which greeted Vicky on the morning of 12th December!

Our volunteers hard at work on the car park iceberg...

Mel's Mutterings

Regular blogger Mel's latest offering has been a quiz via Twitter - he's been out on the reserve with a clicker counter, with our keen Twitter followers guessing what he's been counting each day. Not always easy! Check out @RyeMeadsRSPB on Twitter as Mel will be continuing this in January!

1st December - Felt chillier than of late grey dismal dank 3 Egyptian geese flew through & a female Pochard was a drop in surprise at Draper hide and a Pheasant is always interesting. Lots of Water rail activity, both seeing & hearing Green woodpecker, Cetti’s & plenty of Redwing around although still NO Fieldfare on site YET for me … but the outstanding bird was a Lesser spotted woodpecker albeit just off site but would have been visible from the stream by boardwalk

2nd December - Chilly again but stunningly beautiful sunshine today making the reserve look striking 3 Water rail today Teal Shoveler Gadwall & Tufted ducks aplenty 3 Grey wagtail & many Blackbirds Red kite & Kestrel …

21st December …. Still hearing & reliably seeing Water rail, 2 Shelduck were new in Tufted ducks numbers climbing Great spotted woodpecker Song thrush singing …

22nd December … 3 Reed Bunting along the stream by Ashby hide , a single female Pochard was a surprise. Great crested grebe thanks (Matt) , Goldcrest among a roving mixed Tit flock was a bonus

Visitor Photos

Our photos this month are a mix of the common and the not-so-common, but we value everything here! Our major highlights were the continued sporadic sightings of the Bearded Tits at various points around the reserve, as well as a Barn Owl hunting over the meadow and popping up in the box seen from the Draper Hide. The Rye Meads Ringing Group have been making use of their new toy (a thermal camera) which has helped them to net Jack Snipe in the meadow, while photographing a Goldcrest is always a commendable achievement!

Male Bearded Tit.... - David Hutchinson

...Female Bearded Tit! - David Hutchinson

Barn Owl - Robert Burns-Martin

Barn Owl - Steve Dimbleby

One of many Jack Snipe safely caught by RMRG

Goldcrest - Laurence Edwards

At times the lagoons have been frozen over so focus has been more on what's in the trees and reeds. Redwing have been a major presence in December along with Reed Bunting and the classic Christmas Robins. We have also had the occasional Fieldfare sighting, Great Spotted and Green Woodpeckers, Chaffinch and Goldfinch. Birds of prey such as Peregrine, Red Kite and Sparrowhawk are regulars at many points on the reserve.

Collared Dove - Sean Gillespie

Blue Tit - Nick Weston

Redwing - Paul Moore

Redwing - Steve Dimbleby

Robin - Me!

Cormorant - Steve Dimbleby

On the lagoons we haven't had quite the hundreds of wildfowl we usually expect but still a fair bit of variety. Water Rail continued to be more confident in showing themselves, and the Black-Headed Gulls were joined by Common, Lesser and Greater Black Backed at various points. A large flock of Lapwing disappeared and returned either side of the snow, joined by the usual assortment of Gadwall, Shoveler, Teal, Tufted Duck and Pochard. Towards the end of the month a few Shelduck appeared and are still hanging around in early January.

Black-Headed Gull - Robert Burns-Martin

Lesser Black-Backed Gull - Rose Newbold

Coot - Paul Moore

Gadwall - Sean Gillespie

Little Egret - Sean Gillespie

Shelduck - John Branagan

Shoveler - Paul T Smith

Shoveler - Stuart Fox

Shovelers - Christine Henry

Tufted Duck - Rose Newbold

November Sightings + Mel's Mutterings

2022-12-02T11:54:00Z

Rye Meads News

As we're finally getting some winter weather, we're into the time of year of a lot of habitat management on the reserve. Regular visitors may have seen the floating reed cutter out on the Draper and Gadwall lagoons at the start of the month, as well as contractor machinery clearing some of the scrub along the paths. We're very grateful to a generous donation from the South East Herts RSPB Local Group for supporting the scrub clearance works - highlights of that include an additional way of viewing the Tern Lagoon, and the reed cutting at Draper which has created some deep channels and caused a big increase in Water Rail sightings!

At this time of year we raise the water table at the Draper Hide, which will remain high for the winter. This mimics natural fluctuations and helps to prevent freezing, but most importantly it maintains our priority habitat of the reedbed and the scrape. While it may seem counter-intuitive in the short term to have less shallows and islands for wading birds, it is actually very important to the long term maintenance of this habitat. Birds such as Lapwing, Sandpipers and Snipe rely on a healthy scrape for foraging. The most important areas are the margins - if they become too overgrown with plants then wader use declines rapidly as it becomes a lot more difficult for them to find food. So, in the winter we flood some of these areas in order to prevent larger plants from taking over.

Some bittersweet news for us this month too. The major highlight was the arrival of a juvenile Whooper Swan at the start of the month, which kept everyone entertained by constantly moving location over the three weeks it's been with us. Some of its behaviour was concerning us though, and last weekend it had moved into the wet meadow where it stayed for a few days before sadly passing away. Some of you may also know we have a deceased Mute Swan at the Gadwall Hide as well. We are obviously very concerned by these developments, given the well publicised increase in Avian Flu cases across the country. Unfortunately the process for Avian Flu means we are prohibited from moving either deceased swan, and we are not currently at the point where Avian Flu can be tested for on site by DEFRA, who have a 'minimum threshold' for callouts. Staff and volunteers at Rye Meads are monitoring as closely as we possibly can for any further developments, and we would of course ask all of our visitors and friends of the reserve to be vigilant as well. For more information on Avian Flu, we would recommend visiting the RSPB website, or Gov.uk website.

Putting that to one side for now though - its been another good month for bird sightings, and some brilliant photography from our visitors which has been shared on Twitter and on the "Friends of RSPB Rye Meads (new)" community Facebook group. Below is a section of those, but first, another set of Mel's Mutterings - which this month has been shared with me in a style that for some reason reminds me of the shipping forecast...

Mel's Mutterings

01/11 … boy did it rain for 10 minutes shocking even the ducks took cover & a Kingfisher flew into a hole in the bank, Grey & Pied wagtail still on the last of the mud at the Draper hide along with 5 Green Sandpiper … The focus of birds is on Lagoon 3 & from the Gadwall lagoon Lapwing, Gadwall, Teal & Shoveler are in good numbers along with single figures of Wigeon

02/11 …. Puddles too splash in around the reserve after some more rain 4 Egyptian geese were higher numbers than for a while Jay, Magpie & Carrion crow were Corvid species, some Redwing 2 Common gull from Gadwall lagoon an infrequent visitor some Meadow pipit movement with at least 8 flyovers

03/11 …. 3 Female Reed Bunting from Ashby hide were a nice find & calling Water rail. 20+ Long tailed tit around the reserve today with 12+ Blue tit & 2 Great tit, Kingfisher still calling & showing around Draper hide most days A bird perched on the Kestrel box by Lapwing hide was a.... Kestrel. A bird perched on the Barn owl box by Lapwing hide was a …. Buzzard

08/11 … Mild but damp for time of year Shoveler numbers along with Gadwall & Mute swan creeping up, 2 Common gulls were nice to see Cetti’s & Chiffchaff still calling more Redwings arriving with Blackbird also

09/11 …. At last, I managed to catch up with the Juvenile Whooper swan commuting between here & Amwell, Kestrel Red kite & Buzzard hunting 101 Lapwing from Gadwall hide today as were 17 Long tailed tit with a sprinkling of Great & Blue tit plus Chiffchaff still some Meadow pipit & Grey wagtail around

10/11 …. Whooper swan now on Tern lagoon Great spotted & Green woodpeckers, Common gull again Green Sandpiper & 2 Muntjac deer 1 at Warbler hide 1 at Draper …

22/11 …. Some nice sunshine on site today, the juvenile Whooper still, Shoveler numbers still rising Water rail heard daily it was a four (4) Gull Day Black headed, Common, Herring & Lesser black backed. Red kite & Sparrowhawk too, still numbers building of Redwing

23/11 …. Had my personal highest count of Black headed gull 278 today. Great view of a Goldcrest preening, Egyptian goose pair, Whooper still showing well Green Sandpiper still hearing & seeing Chiffchaff

24/11 … Grey wagtail, little egret, red kite & Kestrel with a Jay scouting for acorns along the path by the canal. Meadow Pipit passing through. There are plenty of Lapwing on site, tufted duck numbers rising a lovely female Chaffinch was feeding on the path with 2 Dunnock.

Mel Out!

Visitor Photos

There are still Bearded Tits on the reserve. The Rye Meads Ringing Group estimate that there could be as many as sixteen! Proving quite elusive for our visitors though, mostly heard rather than seen - but right at the start of the month we did have one lucky photographer, congrats Ruth! As mentioned, we're also getting a lot more sightings of Water Rail which hopefully will continue.

Female Bearded Tit - Ruth Watson

A less elusive than normal Water Rail - Lauren Kaliff

The signs of winter are finally here - even though they're with us all year round I've noticed a surge of Robin photos (you're obviously all in the christmas spirit already!). We've also had a huge influx of Redwing this month.

Jan Martin

Dave Newbold

Robert Kitchen

Redwing - Nick Weston

Redwing - Rose Newbold

Redwing - Steve Dimbleby

We're obviously incredibly sad to lose the Whooper Swan - as you can see it had plenty of character and we could have used dozens of photos.

Swimming Whooper Swan - Allan Burrows

Mooching about - Mike O'Hanlon

Coming in to land - Rose Newbold

This was actually the very first sighting on the reserve - congrats to Steve Liptrot!

Making friends with a Mute Swan - Stuart Fox

And for comparison, a Mute Swan - Dave Hughes

With some of the unseasonably (or maybe less unseasonable these days) warm weather, some of our winter migrants are a bit slow on the uptake! But we've still had some good winter wildfowl shots

Gadwall - Simon West

Male Teal - Rose Newbold

Teal pair - Rose Newbold

Male shoveler - Andre Griggs

Female shovelers - Linda Gregory

Shovelers in flight - Stuart Fox

Moorhen close up! - Paul Smith

Coot - Sean Gillespie

Despite the raised water levels we still have plenty of waders. A lot are shifting to the Gadwall lagoon where it's slightly shallower

Green Sandpiper - Allan Burrows

Lapwing making the most of the clearance work - Stuart Fox

Snipe and Magpie stand-off - Robert Kitchen

Grey Wagtail - Alan Revell

There have been plenty of birds of prey around this month, but the best photos were of Kestrels

Mobbed by a crow! - Steve Dimbleby

Dive, dive, dive - John Lawrence

This time of year feeding patterns often change - berries become a hive of activity:

Blackbird - Steve Gibbs

Female Blackcap - Allan Burrows

Blue Tit - Michael Leinweber

Cetti's Warbler - Ruth Watson

It's not a Rye Meads Sightings list without Kingfishers...

Jarek Modest

Michael Leinweber

Dave Newbold

Steve Gibbs

And finally some of our other favourites from this month - rare bird or common, it doesn't matter, we love them all!

Long-Tailed Tit - Rose Newbold

Reed Bunting - Simon Wilcock

Song Thrush - Martin Abbess

Common Darter - Dave Newbold

Little Grebe - Sean Gillespie

Goldcrest - Dave Newbold

October Sightings - Mel's Mutterings

2022-10-29T11:08:00Z

October’s been an interesting month! At times we’ve finally had the rainfall we desperately needed, but in general its been incredibly mild. Over the last couple of weeks, we’ve been able to do some large scale habitat management, cutting back much of the scrub along the paths and on the Draper scrape, both with a contractor and our excellent volunteer work parties. That possibly combined to lead to some different species landing at the reserve this month. Although I think its because I dared to have a week off that a Bittern and some Bearded Tits immediately arrived…

Thankfully Mel was back with some more mutterings, here they are alongside the rest of the sightings around the reserve, and as ever, a selection of photos from our great community over at the Friends of RSPB Rye Meads Facebook group.

Moths, Butterflies, and Odonata

After a little holiday I was back at the reserve on the 6^th, and the change in season was pretty noticeable although its still warm! Very few plants flowering now but the ivy is bursting and alive with insects. Red Admiral and Speckled Wood butterflies were on the wing along with several Migrant Hawker dragonflies. I also saw some Peacock butterflies later in the month. We also put the moth trap out a couple of times, on the 12^th a lovely Luna Underwing was a nice surprise, and on the 19^th Red Line Quaker, Yellow Underwing and Shuttle Shaped Dart. These were all blown out the water though, at the end of the month the trap gave me some brand new species (White Point, Green Brindled Crescent & Rush Veneer), and the showstopper, potentially the first ever trapped at Rye Meads, a single Merveille du Jour.

Luna Underwing Moth - Mel Shepherd Wells

Merveille du Jour Moth (Wonder of the Day) - Mel Shepherd Wells

Special Visitors & The Ringing Group

Matt was on leave for a week from the 12^th onwards – so of course the special visitors turned up. Three meadow pipits were seen from the Draper Hide, and then (HURRAH) a bittern high in the reeds from the far bank of the Gadwall Hide – yes I was the first to report it! There were regular sightings of the bittern from the 13^th to the 23^rd October, all at Gadwall. It went quiet for a while after that but as of today (the 29th) we're hearing reports that its still around!

The meadow pipits had been reported by the Ringing Group as early as the 12^th, alongside some water pipits just to confuse everyone totally! Both stayed put in the Draper area despite the scrub work ongoing around them, with the water pipits more visible and the meadow pipits often hiding further back. Both stuck around until late October but with the Draper needing to be filled with water for winter management they have moved around. Meadow pipits were caught by the Ringing Group on Saturday 29^th and are still being seen by them in the HMWT meadow from the Lapwing Hide.

That’s not all though, every few years there is an eruption of Bearded Tits and it looks like 2022 is the year. They were first spotted at the back of Draper on the 11^th, and have also been seen at Ashby and in the meadow on occasional days. They were also caught by the ringing group on the 29^th so we’re hopeful they will stick around!

The bittern was a long way off! - Mark Vale

Plenty of zooming in required

Male Bearded Tit caught, ringed and photographed by Rye Meads Ringing Group

The first Water Pipit photo - Steve Dimbleby

And a water pipit a week later - Mark O'Dell

Curious water pipit - Rose Newbold

After the scrape was cleared we had some photos of the Meadow Pipits - Mark O'Dell

Your photos are incredibly helpful for novices to tell some birds apart! Spot the difference between these meadow pipits and the water pipits above - Dave Newbold

Waterfowl

Strangely my return on the 6^th was the first time I’d seen Greylag Geese on the reserve. At the Gadwall Hide, numbers of Wigeon and Teal increased, as are Shoveler and Gadwall. All are coming into their fantastic plumages. I counted 260 coot on the 11^th and by the 19^th I counted 46 Shoveler, 40 Wigeon, 70 Gadwall which had relocated to the Gadwall Hide during the management works. Teal are the most regular report from visitors throughout October, which will probably continue as the water level rises at Draper.

Gadwall in flight - Stuart Fox

Gadwall with more friends - Mark Vale

Little Grebe making a bid for freedom - Rose Newbold

...and coming in to land - Steve Knox

One of many Teal on the reserve! - Allan Burrows

A pair of wigeon - Andre Griggs

Wigeon in action at the start of the month - Rose Newbold

And at the end - Rose Newbold

Waders, Wagtails and Lapwings

Common Snipe have been visible at the Gadwall Hide as well as the Draper Hide, with the ringing group lucky enough to stumble upon a Jack Snipe out of view of the public. There was still a Common Sandpiper around on the 8^th but its all about the Green Sandpiper now with 6 moving between Draper and Gadwall. Grey and Pied Wagtail have showed well throughout the month and mostly didn’t seem to care about the digger re-sculpting the scrape at Draper, with Grey Wagtail being the most reported sighting of the month by visitors!

A highlight for me in the middle of the month was two Water Rail at the Ashby Hide. They’ve been reported six times this month, mostly at the Gadwall Hide but also at Ashby and Draper. Finally lapwing – not rare, but certainly an amazing number! I counted 118 on the 11^th, and we’ve had similar reports over the month and up to 150 on the 26^th.

Reflecting Green Sandpiper - John Lawrence

Green Sandpiper - Mark O'Dell

Grey Wagtail - Mark Vale

Pied Wagtail - Jan Martin

Sometimes there was one Lapwing - Mark O'Dell

Sometimes there were many! - Robert Kitchen

Common Snipe - Rose Newbold

Andre Griggs got lucky with a Water Rail

Kingfishers

The warm weather might be accounting for some interesting Kingfisher activity with them seemingly clearing out holes in the bank and moving around as a pair down at the Kingfisher Hub. On the 20^th I was joined by a couple of friends from the Essex Birdwatching Society who visited for the first time, and they were treated to the female kingfisher at the Hub fishing from the closest sticks. Kingfishers are being reported from almost every hide still!

...Flying - Andre Griggs

...Preening - James Ball

...Drying - Paul Tatman

...Investigating - Rose Newbold

Other Sightings

We’re seeing a lot of photos of herons still although Little Egrets are moving away. In the trees there are plenty of Chiffchaffs, Wrens, Robins, Dunnocks, and flocks of Long Tailed Tits. We’ve had the usual birds of prey but its Sparrowhawk which has been reported most (9 times), followed by Buzzard, Kestrel, Red Kite, and two Peregrine sightings. Goldcrests were reported on consecutive days along the path, and Stonechats and Reed Buntings have benefitted from the scrub work churning up food!

This buzzard was feeding on the ground for a while! - Allan Burrows

Red Kite - Robert Kitchen

Grey Heron in flight - Stuart Fox

...and closely followed by a Little Egret - John Lawrence

Mute Swans - Andre Griggs

Wren - Mark O'Dell

Long-Tailed Tit - John Lawrence

Cormorant - Allan Burrows

Blue Tit - Steve Knox

Male Blackcap - Mark Vale

And Finally…

The reserve has a Halloween feel to it, with the wonderfully named (or not) Dog Sick Slime Mould making an appearance alongside the Visitor Centre dipping pond. There’s also rumours of a few ghosts about….

Dog Sick Slime Mould

It might not look pleasant but its great for the soil!

Some say the reserve is haunted...

Rose Newbold

Rye Meads Sightings Blog - September

2022-09-30T09:09:00Z

This month has come and gone in a blur it seems! Hot weather continued for a while but we are now seeing the signs of the changing seasons as our summer species reduce in numbers. Habitat management work is also picking up with the Wildlife Trust doing plenty of work in the meadow, and our volunteer work party tackling some of the vegetation at the Draper and Gadwall Hides. We've also had a major sighting for us at the reserve. Normally in the Visitor Centre we're asked about otters several times a day and have to manage expectations. But recently we've had an increase in early morning sightings on trail cameras in the "deeper" parts of the reserve, and a few weeks ago a male was spotted during opening hours sprainting underneath the start of the Kingfisher boardwalk!

Sticking with the ‘non-bird’ species, the start of the month was also a good time for Water Voles, with a couple of very photogenic examples. There was also a lovely Elephant Hawkmoth Caterpillar on the steps down towards the Ashby area. Odonata species have included Willow Emerald Damselfly, Green-Eyed Hawker Dragonfly, and Common Darter. Mel has also spent weeks muttering about these species, as well as the colourful flora on the reserve at the moment, particularly the Dogwoods with stunning russet’s & purple leaves, and the Guelder Rose with its shiny red berries along the walk to Warbler hide.

A hungry Water Vole - Sharon Woolcombe

Caught in the act - Andre Griggs

Common Darter dragonfly - Rose Newbold

Elephant Hawkmoth Caterpillar - David Lee

Migrant Hawker - Mark O'Dell

Willow Emerald - Sharon Woolcombe

A few from Muttering Mel Shepherd-Wells

Mel also converted the "Go Big Or Go Home" mantra to "Stick Small and Stay Here", focusing heavily on the flora and the insect species they were attracting. There is lots of fleabane in flower, as well as Orange Balsam - much nicer than its Himalayan bully! He spotted lots of Ivy bees & Common carder bees, however the best find were 2 Southern Green Shieldbug during their 3rd instar phase, 7 spot & Harlequin ladybirds & a very large Hornet Hoverfly.

Orange Balsam (Mel)

Now to the birds.... Kingfishers continue to be seen pretty much every day throughout September; at the start of the month four were regularly seen at the Draper Hide or fishing at the Gadwall Hide. There are few sightings now at the Hub, but still very regular at Draper.

Kingfisher expelling a pellet - Dave Newbold

Aggro at the Gadwall Hide! - Stuart Fox

Much more serene - Mark O'Dell

Battle Champion - Mark O'Dell

Garganey and Shoveler were regular sightings in the first couple of weeks of September at the Draper and Gadwall hides. As ever the reserve is home to plenty of Gadwall, and we’ve also had regular recordings of Wigeon (35 on the reserve recently) and an increase in Teal numbers. Little Grebes have also been mentioned regularly at most hides, as there are now plenty of young around.

Gadwall in a flap - Jayne Gorman

....and in flight - Mark Vale

The Teal are returning - Dave North

Female Tufted Duck - Dave North

Wigeon - Rose Newbold

Shoveler - Sean Gillespie

Feeding Juvenile Little Grebe - Andre Griggs

...back with a parent - Steve Dimbleby

A feature of this month has been Cormorants sunning themselves at the Tern and Gadwall hides as well as Lagoon 3 (from the ramp down to Ashby), along with the usual extroverted Herons, Little Egrets and Swans. We also had another brief visit from a Great White Egret last week. Not much to speak of in the plover family, except for three separate visits of very large lapwing groups!

Cormorant. Doing what cormorants do. - Andre Griggs

The 'usual' from the Grey Heron at the Kingfisher Hub - David Everett

Lapwing - Andre Griggs

...copied by a Little Egret - Mark Vale

Caught... - Andre Griggs

...and eaten - Mark O'Dell

Green Sandpiper caused a fuss this month as a ringed example was photographed recently. Rye Meads Ringing Group have confirmed this is a regular visitor to Rye Meads and was ringed in 2016. At the start of the month there were between one and five, but we peaked at 11 recently and now there are regular reports of at least eight. Common Sandpiper were a regular sighting at the start of the month but seem to have dropped away a bit now and have been somewhat replaced by Snipe with anywhere between 5 and 10 being seen each day over the last week or so, and they have taken over at the Draper Hide this week with several great photos.

Common Sandpiper - Janet Martin

Can be distinguished easiest from the Green Sandpipers below by its white wing bar

The ringed Green Sandpiper - Mark O'Dell

Double Green Sandpipers - Mark Vale

Snipe - Robert Kitchen

One Snipe... - Mark O'Dell

Two Snipe - Mark O'Dell

Draper Hide has also been a good place for bird of prey flyovers. Buzzards have been seen there throughout the month as well as over the meadow from both the Lapwing and Warbler hides, and Kestrel flyovers are still regular after the pair fledged from the Kingfisher Hub nest box. We’ve seen some great photos of hobbies on the wing, and sparrowhawks perched too. Peregrines have been around over the meadow and on the pylons. Towards the end of the month we’ve also seen our first Red Kites for a while.

Buzzard in flight - Steve Dimbleby

Sparrowhawk - Paul Nesbitt

Brilliantly captured Hobby - Mark O'Dell

Hobby having lunch on the go - Steve Dimbleby

Starlings have been regularly sitting on the pylon in the car park, with someone keen counting 86 of them. Stonechat have twice been recorded from the Lapwing Hide this month, while at Draper and Gadwall we have also seen Green Woodpeckers and a Treecreeper. Dave North was also the lucky photographer capturing a Water Rail, while we’ve also seen both Greylag and Egyptian Geese a few times this month.

Egyptian Geese - David Everett

Green Woodpecker - Mark O'Dell

Greylag Geese - Steve Dimbleby

Mute Swans - Rose Newbold

Water Rail - David North

The unmistakable sounds of Cetti’s Warblers have increased, as well as sightings of Chiffchaff and Reed Warbler which is encouraging for us. A grasshopper warbler was heard reeling on the 1^st September near the Ashby Hide and Willow Warblers recorded three times at various points along the path. Flocks of Long-Tailed Tits and Goldfinches are also regular, as well as Grey and Pied Wagtails

Chiffchaff - Andre Griggs

Long-Tailed Tit away from the flock - Dave Newbold

Grey Wagtail - Dave North

Grey Wagtail - David Everett

Pied Wagtail - John Lawrence

Pied Wagtail - David Everett

That's pretty much everything for September! Thank you everyone who contributes to our sightings reports in the Visitor Centre, as well as providing your images to us and in the community Friends of RSPB Rye Meads facebook group.

Rye Meads Sightings Blog: 14th-31st August

2022-08-31T10:53:00Z

Its been another good season for the Rye Meads Kingfishers, although at times they've really kept us guessing! At the Kingfisher Hub, a new male arrived and was quickly put in his place by the female, leading to three successful broods. Although they took a little while to get going, once the first brood hatched, there was a short crossover with the second - so short that they hatched a week before we were expecting! A third followed and fledged this week, and there have been lots of great sightings of youngsters learning to fish at the Gadwall Hide. At the Draper Hide we know of at least two broods. Its been interesting at this hide, with mixed reports of what's been going on from our visitors. At one point there appeared to be three adults, and possibly some of the juveniles who had fledged from the Hub, which may have caused some disruption for a while. Still, a couple of successful broods, and at looks as though the two pairs of adults are all fit and healthy. The kingfisher breeding season is pretty much over, but there are still sightings around the reserve both of the adults and the fledglings. At the hub, they continue to use the old breeding bank but there was a lot more interest in the new bank so we are hopeful that they will give it a go soon! Roll on 2023...

Elsewhere we've had lots of good sightings in August, backed up by some of the fabulous photos we've seen over the last few weeks! Plenty in this one so I'll mostly let the photos do the talking this time. Sort of.

The best action shots have been from the heron family, with Grey Herons and Little Egrets putting on some aggressive displays! In contrast we've seen a few photos of a very stoic Cormorant on site. For all you fans of scientific classification, despite sharing a lot of characteristics and originally being grouped in the same order of birds (Pelecaniformes), DNA studies have shown that they are not closely related at all and have since been separated out. But back to the sightings. Little Egret numbers have been higher than Herons, pushing double figures at times whereas the Herons are either solitary or in pairs.

"COME ON THEN!" - Grey Heron - David Bowron

"YOU WANT SOME?" - Little Egret - Martin Abbess

Much calmer from the Cormorant: John Lawrence

Little Egret in flight: Alan Reynolds

With the Kingfishers fledging, the Draper Hide has been the most popular, and there are plenty of signs that Autumn is around the corner. Water levels have been fairly low which has helped wader numbers, but even so we've barely had a day without a Green Sandpiper, with six being the peak over the last couple of weeks. A couple of Snipe have also stuck around, while Common Sandpipers have been less... er.. common... but still sighted fairly regularly. On the 15th August a dozen Teal even showed up around the Draper scrape which has also seen both Grey and Pied Wagtail flitting around along with the occasional Lapwing.

Green Sandpiper: Alan Reynolds

Green Sandpiper: Rose Newbold

Double Snipe - Steve Dimbleby

A wading Snipe - Stuart Fox

Pied Wagtail at the Draper Hide - Mark O'Dell

Lapwing on the Draper Scrape - Mark Laffling

There's also a few of our late bloomers around, with Rose Newbold snapping Moorhen chicks and a very tufty Tufted Duck. Up to six Garganey have also stuck around but have remained frustratingly out of range of many of our photographers until John Branagan took the photo below. For a few days, the Garganey were joined at the Gadwall Hide by a solitary Wigeon too.

Moorhen and chick: Rose Newbold

A Young, Tufted (and Fluffy) Duck - Rose Newbold

Garganey in eclipse plumage - John Branagan

Kingfisher at the Gadwall Hide - John Lawrence

There's been plenty to see on the paths too, helped out by the Elder trees which have bore fruit and attracted a variety of birdlife, including Garden Warblers, Long Tailed Tits, Lesser Whitethroat and Spotted Flycatchers. Whinchat are also around on the meadow, spotted at both the Lapwing and Warbler hides. We also had reports of a Lesser Spotted Woodpecker which stayed true to its name and was seen only once! There were flyovers from both swallows and House Martins, the latter of which was brilliantly caught by Steve Dimbleby below.

Garden Warbler enjoying the elderberries - Andre Griggs

Long-Tailed Tit also sampling the berries - Rose Newbold

Garden Warbler guarding his dinner - Mark Laffling

Goldfinch - Janet Martin

House Martin on the wing - Steve Dimbleby

The Kestrels still aren't totally ready to leave the nest box! - Rose Newbold

Away from the birdlife, we're still getting plenty of butterflies, as well as Willow Emerald damselflies around the Visitor Centre. On the first bridge, for a couple of days it was possible to see a very large Elephant Hawkmoth caterpillar, but some of our favourite photos have been of the Water Voles over the last few weeks!

White Spotted Rose Beetle (Oxythrea funesta): Caroline Leonard

Speckled Wood: Caroline Leonard

Elephant Hawkmoth Caterpillar: Paul Tatman

Migrant Hawker - Steve Dimbleby

Willow Emerald perched in a tree - Stuart Fox

And on a twig - Steve Dimbleby

A soggy Water Vole climbing from the algae - Clive Davies

And now for a swim! - Janet Martin

Thank you for reading the latest Sightings Blog, and thank you to the community in the Friends of RSPB Rye Meads Facebook group for their contributed photos. Please help us to keep this running by reporting your sightings at the Visitor Centre and writing them in our log!

Mid-August Sightings Blog

2022-08-14T10:51:00Z

It's been relentlessly hot and dry over the last couple of weeks - I actually spent a week in Menorca to go somewhere a bit cooler! Water levels on the reserve have been pretty low and the total lack of rain isn't helping, and yet there's still been plenty around to keep us occupied while we're trying to find some shade. Kingfishers are of course the highlight of the reserve and we're flooded with hundreds of photos of our Hub pair who are close to fledging their third brood of young - but there's so much more out there!

Mel's Mutterings - Big Wild Sleepout (29th-30th July)

Recently we had the return of the Big Wild Sleepout, with families joining staff and volunteers camping overnight on the reserve. As part of the event we had a long pond dipping session, which led to an encouraging volume of juvenile newts, whirligig beetles and some enormous water scorpions. Daubentons and Pipistrelle bats were picked up with detectors during a twilight walk, before the reserve's moth trap was set up overnight. Those we identified in the morning included Elephant Hawkmoth, Jersey Tiger, Canary shouldered thorn, Spectacle, Bright Line Brown Eye, Common Wave, Crescent, Dingy Footman, Marbled Beauty, Pebble Prominent and Rivulet. We also had a few Vestal; a migrant moth from Southern Europe & North Africa.

Backswimmer, Water Scorpion and a juvenile Newt all caught by one lucky pond dipper!

One of many Jersey Tiger Moths that occasionally find their way into the Visitor Centre

Feeding time! Feet up for aerodynamics... (John Lawrence

Visitor Sightings - 31st July-6th August

You'd be forgiven for thinking the only bird on the reserve was a kingfisher this week judging by the sheer volume of photos doing the rounds! But the Daily Sightings logbook in the Visitor Centre reception told a different story from those who jotted down what they saw. The last day of July was a bird of prey extravaganza with Sparrowhawk, Buzzard and Kestrel all recorded, along with a Hobby which was brilliantly captured by Steve Dimbleby below. On the ground, a Grass Snake was seen by the Draper Pond, and the two Garganey remained on the Tern Lagoon but out of photo range for most!

On the Draper scrape, four Oystercatchers were seen mixing with the common and green sandpiper, plus Lapwing, Shoveler, and both Grey & Pied Wagtail. Briefly on the 1st a Dunlin appeared before flying off. We've also had Chiffchaff and Blackcaps flitting and foraging among the elder trees in the area. The latter part of the week saw the numbers of Little Egret picking up, a sign of greater things to come...

Finally, on the 4th, we had a first for the site, a Purple Hairstreak butterfly on the oak at the start of the seasonal trail!

Great shot of a Hobby from Steve Dimbleby!

The Grey Heron is earning itself some fame for its poses down at the Kingfisher Hub

Wasps and bees are in residence at the Kingfisher Hub, looks like someone was getting a bit frustrated by them! (Stuart Fox)

A female blackcap among the elderberries (Andre Griggs)

Mel's Mutterings - 7th-13th August

This week will henceforth be known as Heron Week. Mr Personality is still posing down at the Kingfisher Hub, but attention was diverted to the Draper Hide with at least six young herons strutting their stuff. They were pretty quickly flushed out by the Little Egrets which were defending their territory vigorously. But the big draw was on the 9th at the Gadwall Hide, with a Great White Egret perching for a while on the far side of the lagoon!

Elsewhere on the reserve in the early part of the week it was a good time to stand still and listen to lots of small passerines calling, including Reed warbler, Chiffchaff, Cetti’s & Wrens along with a Great spotted Woodpecker. There's lots of Gadwall on site & more Shoveler, and I decided to count the Coot numbers, with over 150 on site! By Thursday there were 16 Mute Swans too, and a Sedge Warbler could also be seen by the Kingfisher Hub.

Butterflies are all around Green veined white, Speckled wood & Red admiral, Common Blue and Holly Blue. The reserve is resplendent in yellow with huge numbers of Common Fleabane in flower. Honey, Common carder and Red Tailed bees are really enjoying the nectar source! There's also plenty of Orange Balsam around - much prettier than its aggressive Himalayan cousin.

Late in the week, highlights included a Willow Warbler and a flyover from some House Martins, but there has also been an interesting spell of sightings for both stoats and weasels around the reserve, including outside the front door of the Visitor Centre! Meanwhile, the two Garganey are still hanging around, occasionally moving to the Gadwall Hide, but seemingly always a long way off!

Migrant Hawker (Rose Newbold)

One of our increasing numbers of Common Blue Butterflies (Rose Newbold)

The Great White Egret at the far end of the Gadwall Lagoon (Kevin Garrett)

Territorial displays from the Little Egrets (David Everett)

A vain Little Egret admiring itself! (Caroline Leonard)

Kingfisher proud of its catch (Alan Revel)

Thank you for reading this edition of the sightings blog and to Mel and our roving team for their contributions. Thank you also to our visitors who have recorded their observations in our sightings logbook and for all the great photographers who share their work!

End of July Sightings

2022-07-31T10:52:00Z

The record high temperatures this month did send some of our wildlife (and staff!) hunting for shade and shelter but there has still been plenty to see. We’re also heading into the Summer Holidays, meaning we’ve got six weeks worth of young explorers joining the ranks for our sightings guides coming up!

Here we cover the last three weeks of your records from our sightings book, and contributions from our regular rovers Mel and Paul. Plus, a selection of photos from the Friends of RSPB Rye Meads Facebook group.

Mel’s Mutterings 12^th-14^th July:

Very hot and humid on the 12^th but there were plenty of this year’s fledglings to see, particularly Shoveler, Chiffchaff, Moorhen, Coot, Black-Headed Gull and the brave Tufted Duck mother who still has fifteen ducklings! Three teal could be seen from Draper and the Kingfishers were still whizzing around for fish. By the 13^th they had been rejoined by Green Sandpiper and Canada Geese along with the regular Gadwall.

A duo of Little Egrets were at the Gadwall Hide with a Grey Heron for company, but my highlight of the day was finding a Water Vole in the dyke by the Ashby Bridge for a great close-up view! It was quiet for birdsong, but the Black-Headed Gulls as usual didn’t get that memo…

I had an early start on the 14^th, meeting Vicky at half 6 in the morning to help empty the moth trap. Forty-plus species were attracted including Scalloped Oak, Jersey Tiger, Dingy and Scarce Footman, Reed Dagger and Silky Wainscott. I returned later in the (very hot) day to see a variety of butterflies and Odonata (Dragonflies and Damselflies). Broad Bodied Chaser and lots of Green-Eyed Hawker were the fairly normal dragonflies, but a Willow Emerald was a new species for me on the Seasonal Trail. Butterflies included Brimstone, Speckled wood, Small white, Large white, Meadow brown, Comma, Peacock, Red admiral & a first Common Blue of the year.

A feeding Comma Butterfly (Rose Newbold)

Green-Eyed Hawker (Steve Dimbleby)

Visitor Sightings 11^th-17^th July

After the second brood of kingfishers fledged on the 10^th, we were as usual flooded with brilliant photos of the youngsters. They’re not the only entertainment at the Kingfisher Hub though, along with the kestrels (more in a moment) there’s also been a very charismatic Grey Heron!

At the Tern Hide, several cormorants were seen drying their wings, with another along the river pike-fishing. At the Draper Hide, its been a competition between Green Sandpiper, Oystercatcher and Lapwing, with 5 being the highest count on one day for all those species. Late in the week a Wigeon also appeared in the Lagoon opposite the ramp to the Ashby Hide, while there were flyovers from Swift, Sparrowhawk, Red Kites and Buzzards.

Grey Heron very happy with its catch! (Gary Turner)

A juvenile kingfisher from the second brood at the Hub (Rose Newbold)

Oystercatchers are hanging around! (Andre Griggs)

Kestrel Watch

Another of our friendly roving volunteers, Paul, has been regularly stationed near the Kingfisher Hub. A highlight for many here has not been just the signature blue flash of a Kingfisher, but the Kestrels nesting in the box on the pylon that can be seen from the Hub. Paul has kept a regular eye on the fledglings, thanks to him for this blog and the photos:

After a few days of waiting, the two kestrel fledglings ventured out of their nest box for the first time on 9^th July. The first made its way onto the top of the nest box and leaped into the trees on the right hand side, only remembering to flap its wings at the last moment. After an hour or so, its sibling, probably feeling lonely, also made its way onto the top of the box, but this one navigated its way along the pylon, nearly slipping and dropping to the floor a few times! After a couple of hours, the first kestrel scrambled its way back up the pylon to be reunited with its sibling – try again another day!

When I next saw them on Wednesday 20^th, the juvenile Kestrels were much more confident, exploring the area around their nest box. They are beginning to master their flying skills and gliding over the pond area with such grace. But not flying away too far for too long as l can see they still have a close bond to each other. Both the Male and Female kingfisher are keeping a close eye on them as they venture onto the top of their nesting area and walk along the top. On a personal note, I have never felt so close to nature as I have this year being a guide in the Hide and roaming around the reserve watching all that l have seen and photographed. I hope to be able to see more of what Rye meads has to offer me in the coming months.

Thank you Paul!

Mel’s Mutterings: 20^th-21^st July

Following the hottest day ever, I helped to lead a group walk with other lovely volunteers from Fowlmere & The Lodge. The reserve played ball, showing our highlights which included 4 Little egret, 2 Grey heron, 15 Common tern, plenty of Gadwall, Greenfinch and a singing Reed warbler which despite being no more than two metres from us, remained frustratingly out of sight!

The 21^st was mercifully cooler & overcast, offering butterflies with new for year & plenty of them Green veined white, Ringlet, Meadow brown, Gatekeeper, Peacock, Common blue, Speckled wood & also a showy Jersey tiger moth by the VC pond dipping pool sunning on some Hemp agrimony … birds including Kingfisher, Green Sandpiper, 4 Lapwing, Chiffchaff, Blackcap a couple of Teal still at Draper hide .

Greenfinch (Alan Revel)

A streamlined kingfisher - excellent action shot! (Paul Wright)

Visitor Sightings 18^th-24^th July

No less than five Little Egret appeared this week, splitting their time between the Gadwall and Draper hides. As well as the waders, there are plenty of Gadwall, Teal, Pochard and Shoveler at various points of the reserve, with Common Sandpiper joining the earlier arriving Greens at the Draper Hide.

The butterflies and moths being attracted to the hemp agrimony around the pond dipping station have been a big feature over the last week. On the Saturday, Stuart and Caroline from the excellent South East Herts Local Group were stationed there greeting our visitors and had prime position for some excellent shots of Jersey Tiger Moths, Common Blue, Meadow Brown, Comma, and more.

There’s also been a few regular sightings of Water Voles with one in particular playing ball for photography over the course of the week.

Common Blue Butterfly (Caroline Leonard)

Gatekeeper (Stuart Fox)

Female Shoveler (Peter Woods)

Water Vole swimming in the algae (Dave Newbold)

Visitor Sightings 25^th-31^st July

On the Tuesday we saw evidence of eggshells once again falling from the Kingfisher Hub bank, so a short crossover in broods and a good chance of a successful third this summer. In the meantime the kestrels and herons are keeping everyone occupied!

With the Summer Activity Trail starting, there has been more focus on the Herb and Wildflower Gardens at the front of the Visitor Centre. Emerald Beetles, Painted Ladies and Mint Moths are among the sightings in those areas. The presence of families taking part in pond dipping hasn’t stopped red admirals, commas, Jersey Tigers, Small White, Gatekeeper, Common Blue, Small tortoiseshell, Banded demoiselle, Willow Emerald and Blue Tailed Damselfly all being attracted to the area, while in the pond itself there are an encouraging quantity of newts, water scorpions and backswimmers.

Where Mel and I failed last week, regular visitor Andre Griggs did manage to spot and photograph a reed warbler, while we’ve seen a nice increase in sightings of Green Woodpecker too., had regular sightings of Long Tailed Tit flocks, and the return of Egyptian geese. Also this week, a pair of Garganey have been spotted at various points around the reserve – often elusive and no photos that I’ve seen so far, but they are around I promise! Finally, for the first time in a while, a Peregrine has been seen perched on a pylon.

Much more determined about this catch (John Lawrence)

One of many Long-Tailed Tits flocking round the site (Hazel Rowlands)

Always nice to see a reed warbler and not just hear it! (Andre Griggs)

Juvenile Green Woodpecker (Andre Griggs)

Thank you to Mel and Paul for their blogs, the rest of our roving team, visitors who have recorded their observations in our sightings logbook and for all the great photographers who share their work. Thank you for your support!

June/July Sightings Blog + Mel's Mutterings

2022-07-10T11:09:00Z

It’s been a packed month, so much so that we missed an end of month blog! Away from the species sightings, our work party have been busy painting and repairing the handrails and fences around the site, we’ve been preparing for the RSPB’s upcoming Big Wild Summer events, and we’ve had school groups visiting almost every weekday. It’s been amazing seeing so many enthusiastic kids taking part in the curriculum-based activities our Schools on Reserves team have worked so hard on!

But anyway, here’s a bumper edition of the sightings blog, complete with pictures from the Friends of RSPB Rye Meads Facebook group and our regular visiting photographers who we are grateful to for sharing their photos with us. And of course, after a little holiday, there’s some more of Mel’s Mutterings!

Swimming grass snake captured by Stuart Fox

Visitor Sightings Log: 13^th-19^th June

Casting our minds back a month, our roving volunteers were mostly on holiday so we were grateful to visitors filling out our daily sightings log sheets for these! Please do write down what you see on a visit, even if its ‘just’ a pigeon…

We did have a very brief visit from a Redshank at the Draper Hide, and a small grass snake, probably a juvenile, which caused a stir down at the Kingfisher Hub. The occasional Lapwing was still hanging around too. We still have Red Crested Pochards, including one slightly sleepy one below, pictured by Robert Kitchen.

It’s a fantastic time for dragonflies too, with our newly cut viewing points working a treat. Black tailed skimmers, broad-bodied chasers and Green-Eyed (Norfolk) Hawkers are among the good sightings.

Sunday 17^th was a really good day for vole-spotting with many visitors reporting back some reed munching going on in the Draper Dipping Pond. Rose Newbold captured this great shot.

Visitor Sightings Log: 20^th-26^th June

Sandpipers started to return this week with a pair of Common Sandpiper taking up position at the Draper Hide among the Little Ringed Plovers which continue to punch above their weight in defending their territory! Andre Griggs with one of many LRP photos below.

At the Kingfisher Hub, the star of the show once again wasn’t always the Kingfishers. Kestrels chicks could be seen in the nest box and a Tufted Duck was regularly seen escorting seven chicks around the pool. Among our more elusive sightings were Whitethroat, Long Tailed Tits, Reed Warbler, Sedge Warbler, and a flyover from a B17 Flying Fortress…

Plenty of insects around again, and my favourite photo of the week is this brilliant close up of a bee from Mark Laffling

Roving volunteer Paul had a busy day on the 25^th in each of the hides (to go with Mel’s Mutterings, maybe we also have Paul’s Prattling?). At the Kingfisher Hub, there was plenty of fish being taken into the nest bank, the kestrels showed well, and there were several Gadwall parents with young. Paul and several visitors reported the first returning Green Sandpiper, which actually caused confusion by landing at the Gadwall Hide and then moving to the Draper Hide! A couple of Teal also arrived at the Gadwall Hide to join the usual Little Grebe, Gadwall and Geese. Finally, a Hummingbird Hawkmoth landed for a while on the Minibeast hotel near the Ashby Hide!

Kestrels in the nest box! (David Gowing)

Mel’s Mutterings: 28^th-29^th June

Having been absent for a few weeks it seems the reserve has exploded in colour & the quantity of flowers is amazing! It’s mostly resplendent in yellow with Tutsan (Hypericum androsaeum) & Ribbed melilot (Meliotus officianlis) and Ragwort (Senecio jacobaea). A Garden warbler was singing from the undergrowth by the kingfisher loop boardwalk and 57 ginger & brown coloured juveniles Black headed gulls squawked on the Draper scrape and didn’t panic at all when a Sparrowhawk flew over. I spotted a Green-Eyed (Norfolk) hawker on the wing which is a first for me! Large numbers of Coot & Gadwall are on the reserve at present. On the 29^th my sighting of the day was a family party of 6 Goldcrest by the 5-bar gate near Draper hide as well as Green Sandpiper and Little Ringed Plover showing well. There are still Red Crested Pochard at the Gadwall Hide and a courageous mother Tufted duck towing 19 ducklings! There’s also a huge variety of butterflied around now including Commas, Ringlets, and a Red Admiral.

A Green-Eyed (or Norfolk) Hawker, photographed by Peter Woods

Visitor Sightings Log: 30^th June-3^rd July

We started the day with several types of beetle in the flower beds near the visitor centre, Thick-Legged Flower Beetle and Mint Leaf Beetles were IDed. For the first time in a while, and fairly late for us, a Cetti’s Warbler was heard near the Ashby Hide. We also had the first evidence of the Kingfishers preparing for brood no.3 at the Kingfisher Hub, with a lot of feeding happening simultaneously. Reed Bunting, Reed Warbler, Sedge Warbler and a Hobby were the midweek sightings, and a Little Egret arrived in time for the weekend. On Saturday, Alan from the Rye Meads Ringing Group arrived excitedly in the morning to announce a Mediterranean Gull hiding among the Black Headed Gulls on the Draper Scrape. On the Sunday we were also pleased to hear that there were several Greenfinches around, and a Shoveler with ten chicks continuing the successful breeding on the reserve.

Kingfisher bringing fish into the bank (Sukhdev Singh)

Visitor Sightings Log: 4^th-5^th July

The week just gone has seen a run of highlight sightings. Monday 4^th started with the usual Draper Hide sightings of Little Ringed Plover, Lapwing, Green Sandpiper, and returning Teal and Little Egret, but the buzz was created by a Black-Tailed Godwit which stuck around all day before disappearing in the evening - not before being photographed by Peter Woods!. Elsewhere on the trail there was a Great Spotted Woodpecker, several types of Hawker dragonfly, and a lonely Egyptian Goose.

Mel’s Mutterings: 6^th-7^th July

It was then the turn of three Oystercatchers to steal the show at the Draper Hide, starting with two adults and a juvenile. They hung around for a few days before we were left with a single Oystercatcher for the day.

It’s pretty dry on site, but lots of flowers are enjoying the warmth: Vetch, Tufted Vetch, Selfheal, Water lilies, Ragwort, Purple loosestrife all well in flower. Lots of butterflies, my 1st Gatekeeper of the year joined by Large white, Red admiral , Small skipper & Speckled wood. A Shoveler family are feeding from the Gadwall hide with Little & Great crested grebe. There are still nine Common Tern holding their patch of shingle on the rafts.

On the 7^th the reserve seemed to be taken over by Canada Geese juveniles, although they’re probably the equivalent of teenagers now (with the attitude too!). Today I went up to the Warbler Hide and saw plenty of Stock dove plus a few Reed Bunting singing there monotonous song alongside the Reed and Sedge Warblers. Whilst walking back to the VC, at the wooden steps from the Ashby Hide I lucked into a party of 6 Chiffchaff, a singing Blackcap & a Long tailed tit flock. Heron & Little egret were nice to see along with the Egyptian goose & wheeling Lapwing at the Draper Hide.

One of the three Oystercatchers who paid us a visit (Claire Charlson)

Visitor Sightings Log: 8^th-10^th July

Our roving volunteer team has been growing recently, and we’re already seeing the benefits, as we were able to find out very early about the four Greenshank pottering about right at the back of the lagoon at the Gadwall Hide thanks to our Hide Guide Chris. Another single-day visit but a great one for us! Elsewhere on the day it was a good day for raptors with Sparrowhawk, Kestrel and Buzzard seen regularly.

The four Greenshank at the Gadwall Hide (Rose Newbold)

The next day was another highlight, and for two days in a row the Kingfisher Hub wasn’t the focus of the reserve! Three Black-Tailed Godwit settled at the back of the Draper Scrape to join the last remaining Oystercatcher, and were photographed brilliantly by several visitors. It was also a fledging day but for the Kestrels rather than the Kingfishers, with some lucky visitors witnessing two young Kestrels bobbing around on top of the box before flying off.

Today though it did end up all about the Kingfishers. Roving guide Derek gave us a call mid-morning to report two fledglings from the bank – our second successful brood from there this year, and the Draper pair won’t be far behind. All signs point to a third clutch of eggs already!

The kestrel chicks preparing to fledge (Martin Abbess)

Thank you to Mel, Paul, Chris, Derek and the rest of our roving team, and to everyone that has recorded their observations in our sightings logbook. Please do make use of it to help us with these blogs, and send us your photos!

One of a few Greenfinch seen around the reserve lately (Steve Dimbleby)

Mid-June Sightings Blog - Mel's Mutterings & Visitor Photos

2022-06-12T15:12:00Z

Strangely mixed weather on the reserve over the last few weeks, but summer is very much here now – between myself and our volunteers we could definitely have a good ‘Knobbliest Knees’ competition. Over at the Kingfisher Hide we finally have signs of incubating a second brood, after a lot of confusing behaviour! For plenty of variety, you don’t even need to reach the Visitor Centre, as our herb garden and Wildlife Garden, maintained by our fantastic volunteers Graham & Janet, is attracting all sorts of insects. I’m constantly distracted by trying to identify the latest beetle from the office window. Enough about me not working hard enough - here are the highlights from the last couple of weeks and the next instalment of Mel’s Mutterings!

Painted Lady Butterfly in the Visitor Centre Herb Garden (Vicky Buckel)

Visitor Sightings Log: 2^nd-5^th June

We had plenty reported in our sightings log despite some interesting weather and a relatively quiet reserve! The Egyptian Geese are sticking around and helping to fight off the advances of a Lesser Black Backed Gull which has unfortunately accounted for some of the chicks that have hatched around the reserve including some of the Red Crested Pochard young. Little Ringed Plover are still scuttling round the Draper Hide among some of the Common Terns that haven’t found a spot on the Tern Hide rafts. Eagle-eyed visitors spotted a Mediterranean Gull among the Black-Headed Gulls at the Draper Hide as well. Reed Bunting, Whitethroat, Blackcaps and Garden Warblers were dotted around the trail paths, and on the gloomy Sunday a Grasshopper Warbler could be heard from the Visitor Centre, reeling in the meadow.

One of our Little Ringed Plovers that have been at the Draper Hide for several weeks (Credit: Steve Knox)

Mel’s Mutterings: 7^th-9^th June

It was hot and sunny on the Tuesday, so Vicky and I set up a pheromone lure for moths which attracted two beautiful Red-Tipped Clearwing! On the bird front there was plenty of song from the likes of Sedge & Reed Warblers, Chiffchaff, Blackcap, Common Whitethroat and Cuckoo.

Both pairs of Kingfishers were showing well, with the Hub pair clearly incubating eggs. It was a bee-utiful day, particularly with lots of industrious Honey Bees around all the bramble flowers (fingers crossed for lots of blackberries). Tree Bumblebee and Common Carder Bees were also flitting about, and I also saw my first Small Skipper butterfly of the year.

On Thursday I was told of a Painted Lady Butterfly in the herb garden but sadly it didn’t show up for me! However there were some iridescent Green Dock Beetle and Longhorn Beetle. Also new for me was the Water-Forget-me-Not flowering in the stream on the boardwalk. There are still lots of bees buzzing, some Holly Blue Butterfly, & a Grass Snake spotted at the Tern Hide

Visitor Sightings Log: 10^th-12^th June

Early on Friday morning our first visitor of the day was kind enough to race back from the Draper Hide to let us know about the two Dunlin foraging around at the back of the scrape. We all took turns to go and confirm they were around for our first Dunlin of the year! This was the main highlight of the day, along with the lovely flock of Long-Tailed Tits flitting around the trees near the Visitor Centre.

Saturday was a good day to be around the Visitor Centre with a Ruby-Tailed Wasp joining the Red Admiral, Small Tortoiseshell and Brimstone butterflies joining the buzz around the flowering gardens. There were also flyovers from Hobby and Kestrels.

The hottest day yet (or at least it felt like it in the office) saw our first water vole sighting in a little while, as well as a glimpse of the kestrel chicks in the nestbox at the Kingfisher Hub. Two pairs of Little Ringed Plovers are still chasing around and displaying at the Draper Hide.

A ringed Wren having breakfast at the Draper Pond (Credit: Steve Dimbleby)

Thank you to Mel for his Mutterings, to our roving team for their support, and to everyone that has recorded their observations in our sightings logbook. Please do make use of it to help us with these blogs, and send us your photos!

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Rye Meads Sightings Blog - February 2023

February on the Reserve

The Kingfisher Hub

Sightings Highlights

Wildfowl

Around the Lagoons

Looking Up

Rye Meads Sightings Blog - January 2023

January on the Reserve

The Highlights

Wildfowl

At the Lagoons (Usually...)

Land, Tree and Sky

Best of the Rest

December Sightings

November Sightings + Mel's Mutterings

Rye Meads News

Mel's Mutterings

Visitor Photos

October Sightings - Mel's Mutterings

Moths, Butterflies, and Odonata

Special Visitors & The Ringing Group

Waterfowl

Waders, Wagtails and Lapwings

Kingfishers

Other Sightings

And Finally…

Rye Meads Sightings Blog - September

Rye Meads Sightings Blog: 14th-31st August

Mid-August Sightings Blog

Mel's Mutterings - Big Wild Sleepout (29th-30th July)

Visitor Sightings - 31st July-6th August

Mel's Mutterings - 7th-13th August

End of July Sightings

Mel’s Mutterings 12th-14th July:

Visitor Sightings 11th-17th July

Kestrel Watch

Mel’s Mutterings: 20th-21st July

Visitor Sightings 18th-24th July

Visitor Sightings 25th-31st July

June/July Sightings Blog + Mel's Mutterings

Mid-June Sightings Blog - Mel's Mutterings & Visitor Photos

Mel’s Mutterings 12^th-14^th July:

Visitor Sightings 11^th-17^th July

Mel’s Mutterings: 20^th-21^st July

Visitor Sightings 18^th-24^th July

Visitor Sightings 25^th-31^st July