If August was the month of the Kingfisher, September is the month shared by 2 species. In the first half of the month it was the Common Sandpiper as there was one seen on the reserve almost every day. The second half belonged to the Snipe that were always showing very well at the Draper hide.
We have been lucky over September to be treated to some ‘mini murmurations’ from some Starlings that often gather on the pylon in the car park. Not quite what you’d call a murmuration but on 1st September we had 4 Green Sandpipers at the Draper hide a long with a Great White Egret that stuck around for a lot of September. The Garganey were also still sticking around and the Egyptian Geese were continuing to show off the parenting prowess with all 7 of their young still doing well and looking healthy. The Teal were still hanging around at the Draper hide with their numbers fluctuating between 40+ and 2, which is like the Shovelers which have been seen almost every day in September at the Draper hide although their numbers peaked at 112! The pair of Garganey have been hanging around at the Draper and Gadwall hides throughout September, but with the masses of Teal around it’s still tricky to pick them out.
Joining the Teal and Shovelers at the Draper hide were a couple of species of Sandpiper, Green and Common. The Common Sandpiper were here for most of the month but there were a couple of days where they weren’t here so whether it was the same birds or not remains to be seen. The Green Sandpiper is always a regular visitor at Rye Meads, and their numbers have been holding fairly steady at between 1 and 4 which is fairly common for the reserve.
The Kingfishers were, of course, a big draw for people coming to visit with the number of sightings increasing over August. This continued into September with sightings remaining fairly regular at the beginning of the month but they did dwindle slightly later as we headed towards October. This isn’t to say that they aren’t still around though because they are still being seen, so don’t give up hope! It’s also difficult to say where they’ve been seen as they really have been seen everywhere, from the (purpose built) Kingfisher Hub to the first boardwalk (just after the Visitor Centre) they’re keeping us on our toes, so make sure you keep your eyes peeled.
Birds of prey were also seen quite often on the reserve with sightings of Kestrel, Buzzard, Red Kite, Hobby, Sparrowhawk, and a handful of Peregrine sightings too (in fact, the writing of this blog was delayed as we went to see a Peregrine that was perched at the very top of the pylon in the meadow outside the Lapwing hide). The presence of these, quite simply, incredible birds may be a joy for us but not so much for the Swallows, House Martins and Sand Martins that are still around. They are mostly being seen from the Gadwall and Tern hides but there have been a group of between 20 and 30 seen from the Draper hide as well. Catch them while you can, as they’ll be heading off on their migration very soon.
The Warbler hide is also still proving popular with both birders and warblers alike. Reed Warblers and Cetti’s Warblers are still being seen both from the Warbler and the Draper hides. Not only have we had Reed and Cetti’s, but we’ve also had a Willow Warbler that was seen from the seasonal trail. The Chiffchaff’s are also still out in force singing their hearts out, so make sure you listen out for them the next time you’re here.
September saw a species that we didn’t have in August, which was a couple of Wigeon. It started off as a couple but word must have spread among the Wigeon population as we have seen the numbers increase to, at most, 12 from both the Tern and Gadwall hide. On top of the Wigeon turning up, we have also had some Ravens flying over (this blog being delayed for a second time today as we went and watched a couple fly over) which isn’t unheard of but it certainly doesn’t happen very often. Going from the large, black Ravens to the smallest bird in the UK, the Goldcrest. We had a few tit flocks flying through the reserve over September with lots of Long Tailed Tits, and in amongst them Goldcrest. They’re very zippy so it’s almost impossible to get a picture of them, but if you can get them in your binoculars you will see the gold streak they have on their head which is very cool.
So why was the Snipe the second bird of the month? On top of the fact we had at least 6 at one point is one reason, a second reason is that they weren’t a shy group so they were happy to stand out and let people take as many pictures as possible. Thirdly, they’re just kind of funny looking birds with a gold-like streak down their back (we’re sensing a theme of gold here…) but they are very interesting birds with their super sensitive beak allowing them to sense insects, earthworms and crustaceans which they can also move the end of.
It’s been another month of interesting sightings and with autumn now fully here, we should be seeing some more migrants dropping in. So make sure to pack you binoculars (or you can rent some here for £5) and your camera and see what is around, and keep an eye on our events page as we get ever closer to the August half term as we will have plenty of activities to keep the little ones occupied.
The Rye Meads Team.