Hello,
Welcome to this week’s snapshot of what the reserve wardens have been up to.
Bittern Survey
First up was the weekly bittern survey. Arriving on site at 5am we were hopeful for some booming bittern action as it has been quite regular but today the bittern had other ideas and opted for a lie in. However, we were treated to two barn owls quartering over the grasslands, a tawny owl calling in willow woods, two great white egrets and some very active marsh harriers. Annoyling the bittern decided to boom the following day instead, oh well.
Beach Nesting Birds
With the spring high tides over this month we spent our time at the end of the week installing the remaining signage at Titchwell and Snettisham in preparation for the season to kick off. If you are visiting these reserves and any other beach this year please read and take notice of the signs to help these vulnerable birds to breed successfully.
It was really encouraging to see quite a few ringed plovers displaying on the respective beaches and venturing into the cordons.
It isn’t all about visits to the beach we also have administrative tasks to complete, which at the moment is about setting up the volunteer teams for the season so we are updating induction checklists, risk assessments and FAQs.
Owl Box
This week have installed a new owl box at our Snettisham reserve which was provided to us by one of our volunteers. Hopefully one of the several barn owls in the area will take up residence.
Security checks
With the warm weather and the easing of lockdown it was my turn to complete a site security check of one of our confidential reserves. Disappointingly our volunteers who had visited the day before collected three large bin bags of rubbish and asked several groups of people who had blatantly ignored our signage.
A talk to the RSPB Frampton team
On Thursday night I was invited to join the RSPB Frampton team get together and share a presentation on what has been happening this side of The Wash. It also gave me the opportunity to hear updates on various projects that are occurring on their reserves. Exciting times for them.
Turtle Doves
This week we have taken delivery of lots of sacks of seed to allow us to supplementary feed the Turtle Doves that occur at both Snettisham and Titchwell.
Turtle doves have suffered a 98% decline in just 30 years. The decline is complex but the changing landscape with the loss of thick scrub, arable weeds and ponds is having a major impact on their breeding success. These birds used to have three broods a year, now they have just one! This is most likely because the birds are unable to get in good enough breeding condition.
By providing supplementary seed we can assist these birds improve their condition quicker, especially when they arrive back, and their food is in short supply. Though what is really needed is a significant improvement to the landscape to ensure their long-term survival.
That’s it for this weeks update from the reserve team.
Lizzie