Image Credit: Ben Andrew, RSPB Images.
Good afternoon and welcome back to the best blog on the internet. You will sense a water theme running through this week’s blog…as we are a wetland reserve, water does of course usually affect everything we do. This is particularly true of this week, where it has been involved in our conservation work, visitor operations and species sightings. Intrigued? Read on for more!
News from the Estate:
A view from our Saltholme Pools hide.
Saltholme Pools have been less pool-y and more muddy this week. So it’s really the lack of water rather than the presence of it that we’re mentioning. Instead of getting into the nitty gritty of talking about/proving a negative, we’ll instead just tell you what’s been happening…
The reasons Saltholme Pools has less water are twofold. Firstly, we always drop water levels at this time of year to create lots of food-rich mud for incoming wading birds (more on these wading birds later). Secondly, we’re extending the existing islands and creating some new ones! By creating more nesting habitats for Black-headed Gulls and Common Terns, we’re hoping to encourage more individuals to nest on our site and therefore boost the breeding population of these species. In order to get diggers and other heavy, not very buoyant equipment over to these islands, we have had to drop water levels further than usual. However, this has meant that the birds have all been gathering directly in front of the Saltholme Pools hide (well away from the diggers), giving visitors fantastic views of various species that will be mentioned later…
What’s On:
What’s On? The water!
From Friday last week until Tuesday afternoon, a broken pump led to a distinct lack of running water in our Visitor Centre. Thanks to the rainwater harvesting system, the toilets were still fully functional. However, everything else was distinctly ‘off’. Skipping over the irony of no running water on a wetlands reserve, this lead to several things:
BUT thanks to a wonderful electrician who fixed our plumbing issue (yes, we know what we said) there has now been running water restored to our Visitor Centre! This means ‘What’s On’ now includes the café, drinking water and pond dipping!
Recent Sightings:
The presence of less water (read that again…we dare you) at Saltholme Pools has led to some incredible sightings this week. Here are some of the highlights:
Peregrine Falcons are often seen perching on the Middlesbrough Transporter Bridge or nearby cooling towers. Image Credit: Ben Andrew, RSPB Images.
Drawn in by the masses of wading birds, a young Peregrine Falcon treated visitors to spectacular aerial displays on Wednesday afternoon, stooping (diving through the air, reaching speeds of up to 200 miles per hour) several times over the course of an hour. The young female even landed right in front of the hide to have a rest! Incredible views of an incredible bird.
Bar-tailed Godwits visit the UK in the autumn and winter, breeding in Scandinavia and Siberia. Image Credit: Ben Andrew, RSPB Images.
Of course, many of the birds that the Peregrine Falcon came to see were waders. These included Green Sandpipers, Greenshanks and Black-tailed Godwits. But the one we will spend a bit more time on is the Bar-tailed Godwit. As you may have gathered, the two godwit species are very similar. You can also probably guess from the names that the main difference for identification purposes can be found by looking at the tails of these species. Bar-tailed Godwits are a sign of the changing seasons, as these birds visit the UK in the winter. The individuals seen this week may well be simply resting here before carrying on their migration journey.
Water Rails are very secretive and therefore are not seen frequently. To survey Water Rail, we play Water Rail calls and see how many actual Water Rail reply! Image Credit: Ben Andrew, RSPB Images.
Just in case you thought Saltholme Pools was getting all the attention, we have to finish by mentioning the Water Rail that have been seen from the Wildlife Watchpoint hide. After the theme of water running through this blog, it also seems particularly appropriate to finish with a species with 'Water' as part of their name. These, normally secretive, birds have been strutting their stuff in front of the hide windows, delighting photographers, children, birdwatchers and faintly worn-around-the-edges parents alike. Here’s hoping they hang around for the last week of the summer holidays!
Well, that’s all we have time for this week. With the water issues solved and one more week of the school holidays to enjoy, next week (and therefore next week’s blog) promises to be a good one! So, make sure to visit us soon!
References and Additional Reading
Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (2024). Bar-tailed Godwit [webpage]. Accessed through https://www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/bar-tailed-godwit [last accessed 22/08/2024].
Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (2024). Black-headed Gull [webpage]. Accessed through https://www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/black-headed-gull [last accessed 22/08/2024].
Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (2024). Black-tailed Godwit [hyperlink]. Accessed through https://www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/black-tailed-godwit [last accessed 22/08/2024].
Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (2024). Common Tern [webpage]. Accessed through https://www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/common-tern [last accessed 22/08/2024].
Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (2024). Green Sandpiper [hyperlink]. Accessed through https://www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/green-sandpiper [last accessed 22/08/2024].
Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (2024). Greenshank [hyperlink]. Accessed through https://www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/greenshank [last accessed 22/08/2024].
Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (2024). Peregrine Falcon [webpage]. Accessed through https://www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/peregrine-falcon [last accessed 22/08/2024].
Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (2024). Water Rail [webpage]. Accessed through https://www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/water-rail [last accessed 22/08/2024].