Hello all, apologies for not blogging sooner! Here is a bumper recent sightings blog to make it up to you all.
All trails are open now but the river path near Tower Hide is incredibly slippery and muddy, as is Lackford Run.
Bitterns - we had 8 sightings today from Reception Hide alone which really shows you how easy these birds are to see at this time of year.
Starlings - yes they're back! They must have been waiting for the temperature to drop as we now have 3-4,000 starlings coming in to roost in the reeds outside Reception Hide.
Otters sightings haven't been as regular as they were a week or two ago but they're still popping up here and there.
Waxwings seem to have moved on to better feeding grounds now that they have stripped the last berries from Strumpshaw's bushes! Keep an eye on supermarket carparks for these fancy little chaps.
Kingfishers are continuing to be seen daily from all hides.
Hen harriers are now being seen flying over the reserve. Lots of visitors are being duped at the moment by a deceptive escaped harris hawk however! If you think you've seen a hen harrier with bells and jesses (leather straps hanging from its feet) then I'm afraid it's our resident escapee rather than a hen harrier!
Water rails are squealing all over the place at the moment.
Nuthatches are still visiting our feeders regularly/
Since the 16th of November we have had sightings of hawfinch, mealy redpoll, snipe, jack snipe (at Tower Hide), tawny and barn owls, water pipit, siskin, goldeneye, sparrowhawk, reed bunting and a goldcrest.
Buckenham and Cantley sightings from 18/11/2012
Rooks are still building in numbers and it is already a pretty impressive spectacle when they come in to roost.
Golden plover - 3,500
Ruff - 60
Curlew - 70
Black-tailed godwits - 40
Pink-footed geese - 960
Egyptian geese - 80
Peregrine - 1
Canada geese - 80
White fronted geese - 87
Snipe - 50
Tower Hide roost watch sightings from 14/11/12
Wigeon 2
Gadwall 46
Teal 66
Mallard 24
Shoveler 7
Little grebe 3
Marsh harrier 19 (4 males)
Hen harrier 1 fem/juv (most likely the regular 2nd year female)
Sparrowhawk 1 fem/juv
Kestrel 1 male/juv
Water rail 22+ heard calling
Jack snipe 1
Common snipe 37+
Woodcock 1
Goldcrest 8+
Marsh tit 2+
Bearded tit 8+
Cetti's warbler 9 males
Blackbird 25+
Fieldfare 24+
Song thrush 3+
Redwing 3+
Robin 24+
Pied wagtail 11+
Meadow pipit heard calling
Water pipit 6
Brambling 3+
Siskin 15+
Lesser redpoll 6+
Mealy redpoll 1
Bullfinch 4+
Reed bunting 17+
Many thanks to M.Chipperfield for these roost-watch survey results
LotteBroads Area Team Administrator