A Caspian Beauty and Glorious Mud.

After reed flowers (when the seed heads turn purple) we are  able to begin lowering Radipole's water levels by gradually removing sluice boards at Westham Bridge – thus explaining the recent unveiling of mudflats outside the Visitor Centre.

Through spring and summer we raise water which helps enable reed to flourish at the expense of the fen type vegetation and ultimately scrub which are less tolerant of the drowned conditions. Without penning water higher in spring and summer the succession of reed by scrub would be greatly accelerated which was what prompted the move to our current Water Level Management Plan a decade ago.

In addition to summer penning, reed cutting and scrub clearance are our major contributions to maintain reed as the dominant vegetation type, although this summer we have been hampered by low rainfall and a parasitic insect larvae which has robbed the vigour from much of our reed and allowed, (temporarily) the likes of purple loosestrife and angelica to get a foothold within the beds.

The water levels are less critical once everything has flowered so we can drop the water providing the mud so beloved of waders (and birders!), which also enables us to access the reeds to carryout winter habitat management.

Currently the water is atypically low (but by no means unprecedentedly so) because we are coming off some huge spring tides. Radipole hasn’t been tidal since the construction of Westham Bridge in the 1930’s, however the tides do affect water levels on the reserve. When the tide is high no water can flow from the sluices into the harbour as fresh and sea water meet in equilibrium. It is only when the tide has ebbed a while that the freshwater can begin flowing out - ergo on spring tides, when the tide drops further for longer, we lose more water.

Mud plus LRP with BHG for scale. Luke Phillips.

The mud has already attracted a variety of waders on passage to their wintering grounds including ruff and little ringed plover alongside the more regular long-legged autumnal fare. Also present yesterday (although probably not allured by the acres of gloopy mud) was a Caspian gull causing an understandable flutter in birding circles.

Juvenile Caspian Gull Radipole. Many thanks to Ian Stanley for finding the bird (only the 5th ever for Dorset) and for the photograph.

Juvenile yellow-legged gull.

If not successful in relocating the Caspian there are hours of fun had picking out and ageing yellow legged gulls from amongst the 100's strong throng of herring gulls!