Hello. You may have seen a new face out and about on the reserve or welcoming you at Reception. I am the new residential volunteer, Adrian. I will be living on the reserve until October, and while I am here, I intend to regularly update you on my life at the reserve.
I recently left my career in data management for visual effects, for my real passion, nature. While working in the UK and New Zealand, I volunteered for several wildlife and conservation organisations. Through this volunteering I realised I enjoyed this far more and started to think about how I might be able to work in conservation full time. I also realise we are swiftly reducing habitats and species all over the world and I want to do something to help reverse that. I decided working on nature reserves was where I wanted to be.
As a member of the RSPB, I found out that I could apply to be a residential volunteer for a few months and as part of this role I could live and work on a nature reserve. My dream life! Over the last few months I applied to the various positions I saw pop up on the volunteer pages of the RSPB website. Eventually, I was lucky enough to get the position here at Strumpshaw Fen (thanks to the Strumpshaw Team for choosing me for this opportunity!). I have loved my first few weeks and can often be found chuckling to myself with joy at how lucky I am to be living and working on a nature reserve. Most days at 6am (ish), I rocket out of bed, eyes barely ready, and get out on the reserve to see whatever the morning has to offer. The reserve is a beautiful place to wander at any time of day. So to live and work here, I think you can imagine, is a wonderful experience.
On my first day it did hail and snow and I wondered if I had brought the right clothes. Since then, the weather has been very favourable, with incredible skies, sunsets, mist and fog. The people at Strumpshaw have all been lovely and so welcoming, staff, volunteers and visitors alike. My time here will be split between the more practical side of conservation and habitat management and the visitor experience side, which will hopefully get busier as covid restrictions lift and we arrange more events on site. So far, I have enjoyed sitting at reception, chatting with people before and after their visits, listening to their encounters on the reserve. I often have to traverse the reserve checking all the little details that make Strumpshaw a great experience for any visitor. I am loving this place! I have spent days with volunteer work parties, filling in potholes, making a rabbit proof fence, installing a bench, trimming nettles and brambles.
I also had to fix this gate the other day very near to these horns…
Outside of my volunteer time, I often take my phone, camera and binoculars out on the reserve to see what I can see and record. The reserve can surprise you at any time of day. Only the other day I was met by two greylags and their goslings on the sandy wall. As the goslings could not get over the wooden barrier I had to step into the brambles to let them pass without the parents hissing.
On my wanders so far, I have seen many marsh harriers, often harassed by lapwings or crows.
I have heard and seen a lot of sedge warblers, (spotting the difference between reed and sedge will hopefully become easier).
I have heard grasshopper warblers too, but very tricky to get a photo.
I saw a fog bow one foggy morning on the pumphouse track.
I have seen many beautiful sunsets and skies.
I have seen the barn owl a few times out hunting in the meadow.
And I have felt very lucky to see otters twice so far - here is one I saw earlier this week out fishing in the river.
I am sure that these are just the start of my adventures at Strumpshaw and I look forward to updating you again next month with my experiences and wildlife sightings.
So if you see me around, feel free to say hello and let me know what you have seen.
Bye for now!