....deserves another, or in this case, 3. Yes, for the first recorded time in Sandwell Valley we are proud to announce the birth of not one but three common tern chicks! What terrific news for the reserve after what we've been through recently. The icing on the cake is the fact they're all visible from the hide.
We've held our breath over the past few weeks as we guessed the terns were laying, hatching and brooding due to their very aggressive behaviour. We can now breathe a collective sigh of relief as these three chicks made their debut yesterday. Already their parents are busily catching fish and feeding the chicks with increasing regularity.
Local experts have confirmed this is the first time common terns have successfully bred in Sandwell Valley. To enable reserve visitors to witness this great event, we've opened the Lakeside Hide on weekday mornings from 10.30 to lunchtime, Tuesday to Friday. The hide continues to operate all day at the weekend. See you there.....
See you on the reserves,
Best regards,
Chris Edwards