Right guys, HELLO!!
My first post from Caerlaverock so here goes….right migration…
Well where to start!
The Barnacle Geese numbers here have been growing over the last few weeks with numbers on the reserve reaching a high of 13,800. I know your all thinking “how do you count all them” well simple…. you take them in 10′s. You then carefully work your way around as many fields as you can until the all fly and you curse loudly (but not in public 
), and then start counting all over again.
Numbers on a daily basis remain around 8,000 with lots of the birds feeding in fields just of the reserve throughout the day but then, come dusk, the big flight begins as they all head back onto the salt marsh to roost for the night. I would really recommend coming on one of our early morning or late night flights just to experience it!!
I’m sure you are all also wondering about our Whooper Swans – well they are being a bit of a pain in the bum at the moment to be honest.
Around the local area there are quite a few stubble fields and with the rush to get the crop cut in the short window of nice weather we had up here in bonny Scotland, a lot of grain was spilt. This has led to the Whooper Swans only roosting here on the Folly Pond overnight and then heading off to the nearby stubble fields to fill up on lovely grain and not our grain we throw out for them at feed times.
I do think shortly though our birds will start coming in for the feeds. On a recent count of the local area Whooper Swan numbers were around 160, so we still have more to arrive.
The other wildfowl here at Caerlaverock are building up their numbers nicely.
Wigeon numbers are almost past 1000 here and Teal numbers are at around 1200. All these birds are spread all over our reserve with some of the best viewing to be had on the Folly Pond, Flood Ground and Newfield Hide.
We do however, expect though some little American visitors again this winter. Almost annually we have American Green-winged Teal which looks similar to the Common Teal however, it is distinguished from drake Common Teals by having a vertical white stripe along up the breast and not the horizontal white stripe which Common Teal show.
The waders here at Caerlaverock are also starting to build. We are so lucky to have the Solway on our doorstep and come high tide you can expect to see thousand, and I really mean thousands, of waders lifting off the mud as it gets covered over by the tide.
Over the coming months you can expect to see up to 30,000 Dunlin, 10,000 Knot, 10,000 Oystercatchers not to mention Golden Plover, Grey Plover, Ringed Plover and Curlew. Who wouldn’t want to see that!!?
With all the birds coming in you can sometimes forget about the birds still with us. We still have Swallow, Willow Warbler, Chiffchaff here at Caerlaverock all of which really should be heading south by now and only last week we have a House Martin drifting about.
For now I will leave you in peace but keep reading and will try and let you know what’s changing here at Caerlaverock.
Mike
So far we’ve seen a variety of wildfowl, including up to 150 teal when the Thames tide is in. We’re expecting shoveler and gadwall shortly.
We’ve got around 12 snipe, plus one jack snipe. Three ruff dropped in earlier, and we’ve seen a dunlin, green sandpiper, common sandpiper, black-tailed godwit and curlew.
We’ve seen one osprey, one honey buzzard and a trickle of common buzzards.
There have also been regular sightings of yellow wagtail (up to four in one day), wheatear, whinchat and stonechat. We’ve seen over 100 meadow pipit, and three spotted flycatchers in one day. The first skylarks are starting to come through, and we’ve had good swallow counts and martins are still being seen, although the swifts have moved on.
I must apologise for the tardiness of this diary update. When I last wrote I was heading up to Martin Mere for a couple of days and then I was only back in the office for one day before a week’s holiday to visit my parents so I think I was a little optimistic in thinking I’d have time to tell you all about our trip!
I’m a little distracted writing this as out of the window a little mole is working his way around the base of my bird table, pushing the soil up as he goes. It’s funny to watch as a moorhen is following the mole’s travels, picking out the worms which have been disturbed by his digging!
Anyway, what shall I tell you about our little trip to Martin Mere… well firstly, it’s a fantastic centre so if you haven’t been you must go! I love the fact that our centres are all so different and one of Martin Mere’s strengths is the most incredible sightings of wild birds. In the Autumn, a record 36,000 Pink Footed Geese were recorded, I can’t even imagine seeing this many birds and the noise as they come in to roost must be amazing. During our visit we saw good numbers of Pink Foots and around 1400 Whooper Swans; my eyes were constantly drawn to the sky to watch in awe as thousands of birds circled overhead. The ‘Long Hide’ offers fantastic views of the swan feeds which are twice a day and I was delighted to see several Ruff, a gorgeous little wader, so close up.
Martin Mere – Pink Footed Geese and Whooper Swans by Richard Taylor Jones
Ruff by James Lees
Although our Wet Grassland and Scrape area is smaller than that at Martin Mere, it’s exciting to imagine what we’ll see once it establishes and bird numbers increase. We’re already seeing more activity as the land is greening up and Oystercatchers have popped in to inspect the newly gravelled islands in front of the Sand martin Hide. The other day I stood watching a beautiful Teal swimming just a couple of metres away. If you’re in this hide towards the end of the day keep your eyes peeled for Little Egret flying in to roost in one of the trees. I was fortunate to see one fly right past the window but excellent views can be had from the Ramsar hide of them perching in the tree.
Martin Mere have a great collection of birds too. During our visit a pair of Blue Cranes arrived to join the other species of Cranes, the first time the species has been seen at any WWT centre.
I was fascinated by the Cereopsis or Cape Barren Goose, a handsome bird with a distinctive greenish/yellow bill. Incredibly territorial, they reminded me of our Bronze Winged Ducks which you may have seen next to the Blue Duck pen. They are stunning birds but like other riverine species they defend their patch quite aggressively and many a time Bob, our aviculturalist, has emerged from the pen with bruised legs! Keep an eye out for them on your next visit as we are hoping they will nest successfully this year. Pat and I snuck in to take a photo yesterday and they came charging over displaying their distinctive behaviour; the male has a high trilling voice whilst the female is described as having a dog-like bark. Pat managed to get a quick snap before they reached us but I slipped over and landed on a stinging nettle covering myself in mud… it’s good to get out of the office!
Cereopsis by Graham Maples
Bronze Winged Ducks – Arundel
Other highlights at Martin Mere were the Harrier Hide which looks out across the reserve, a large play area for children, and the new restaurant which has recently been completed. They are also in the process of creating a canoe safari and boat ride similar to Wetlands Discovery following on from the popularity of the boats here at Arundel.
I’m going to head off for lunch now and take a walk in the grounds, several Buzzards have been circling over the Hanger the past few days and a pair of Peregrines have regularly been spotted too so I’m keen to get my bins out and get a better look!
Have a good week, I’m working the next few Sundays so may see you soon.
Best wishes, Liv
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