The reserve is building up momentum as a range of birds are returning from further afield for the spring and summer breeding months. These willow catkins were blossoming last week -
The migrant birds which stay and also the migrant birds that pass through the reserve as a resting stop are well on their way to Saltholme some have begun to arrive. As you may have seen in Dean’s blog the sand martins are back and gradually the numbers are increasing as they search for the right home. If you want to see them you get a great view from the Visitors Centre windows looking out onto the main lake. At this moment in time the pairs of sand martins are going from one hole to another and inspecting the position of each in order to choose the best one so they can successfully raise their chicks (at the end of May and June.)If the sand martin picks a nesting hole too low on the artificial bank at the reserve (or any bank that it chooses in the wild) they risk the water levels changing, if they choose a nest too high up they have a risk of predators reaching into the nest and if they choose a nest somewhere in the middle they are most likely to have been one of the first pairs to return and take up the accommodation they choose. Those birds are likely to have returned in the last week and gets a good selection in what nesting sight they want to use. As more arrive to the reserve the best selection sights are running out and they have to take up the remainder of the holes, the bank holds a large number of nests and most of the holes are occupied by the end of spring.
When you leave the visitors centre (after looking at the sand martins) you can walk into the garden which is being well maintained to bring out some lovely spring flowers, around the corner I have heard a grasshopper warbler – this sound is a continuing drill that merges into the surround bushes. The lush and fresh new leaves on the hawthorn and blackthorn bushes bring out a lovely green screen that makes seeing the grasshopper warbler even more difficult as spring continues!
The lapwings are performing some great displays in the blue sky with the sounds of curlew and skylark in the background. At the same time the lambing live event is underway and you can hear lambs bleating in the field to their mothers. The event allows you to see and get up close to the busy action as we continue to see more lambs being born and roughly 40 ewes still expecting.
- Josh McGowan