News
National Nest Box week starts on Feb 14
Female reed bunting on bramble Walk on Feb 4 2013 The air has a spring-like quality today and carries the songs of blue tits and chaffinches as I walk towards the Woodland Loop this morning. I hear the repeating no
11 February 2013
Today's sightings
WeBS count The monthly count revealed 11,300 wetland birds present. Including 2460 Lapwing (see below) Image-MJMcGill Holden Tower 0900 ish. Immature (appears to be a juvenile/1st winter) Glaucous Gull- flew in from south and landed with Great-blacked Gu
11 February 2013
Conservation update: Red-breasted geese
The wild goose chase is over! The WWT team in Bulgaria has caught 93 Red-breasted and 28 White-fronted Geese! We have fitted 11 tags to Red-breasts to follow their movements. We have also x-rayed 20 birds to assess the level of illegal hun...ting of this
11 February 2013
Today's sightings
British Steel hide: 3 black tailed godwit, 50 lapwing, 100 wigeon, 4 snipe, peregrine, buzzard, sparrowhawk and water rail. Estuary: 6 grey plover, 56 curlew, 11 brent goose, 167 shelduck, 22 shoveler, 80 pintail and 20 redshank. Millennium
11 February 2013
Wildlife sightings for 11th February 2013
2 Bittern - main lake N shore, resr lagoon N shore 1 Smew - sheltered lagoon 5 Snipe - marsh, resr lagoon 61 Cormorant - main lake (a.m. count) 32 Fieldfare - sheltered lagoon (a.m.) 8 Meadow Pipit - marsh 14 Siskin - sheltered lagoon Recent b
11 February 2013
TODAYS SIGHTINGS
WADER LAKE/AM/LOW TIDE Shelduck - 16 Grey Heron - 13 Greylag - 1 Mallard - 12 Canada Goose - 11 Curlew - 1 SALINE LAGOON/AM/LOW TIDE Shelduck - 1 HAWTHORN WOOD/AM Bullfinch - 12 Blue Tit - 4 Coal Tit - 1 Pheasant - 3 Chaffinch - 2
11 February 2013
Weekend sightings
As water levels drecrease there is a greater variety of birds on the reserve. Main observaotry to Friends hide is accessible and the Welney causeway on the A1101 is now open and flood free. Lady Fen Complex - next to the visitor centre Barn owl - 2 Sheldu
11 February 2013
Today's sightings
Holden Tower White-fronted Geese 21 (the main flock, c200 appear to have been in a remote field to NE, another party fed in the 50 Acre to the N and had a single Tundra Bean Goose among them) Tundra Bean Goose a single adult fed in the pools with 50 Bewi
10 February 2013
Barn Owls
Another good day for Barn Owl watchers with birds showing til 10:30 and from 2pm onwards. The Ron Barker Hide is probably the best spot but birds are also seen from the Harrier Hide, Reed Bed Walk and more distantly from the United Utilities Hide. A Merli
10 February 2013
Wildlife sightings for 10th February 2013
2 Bittern - marsh and sheltered lagoon 1 Smew - sheltered lagoon, then flew to marsh 1 Pintail - marsh 59 Wigeon - grazing on Thames bank 7 Mandarin - collection 81 Teal - site count 105 Cormorant - shingle bank on main lake 1 Peregrine - over main lake,
10 February 2013
Snipe and Bittern
Yesterday reports of the Bittern from the scrape hide and the reedbed hide, confirming he is still around and doing a great job at keeping hidden for most of the time! Good numbers of Snipe this morning with 34 from the Sand Martin Hide and 28 from the sc
10 February 2013
In the pink (bad pun I know...!)
February is upon us and spring is getting closer. The birds seem to sense this change in the weather and have been showing signs of breeding behaviour and courtship. Whilst it is obviously (too) early doors for the flamingos to be actually nest-building
9 February 2013
Green-winged Teal
A calm if slightly murky day. The drake Green-winged Teal on show towards the back right hand side of Vinson's Marsh from the Ron Barker Hide. It occasional sits a on log near there out in the water. Peregrines showing well throughout the day with 3 birds
9 February 2013
Saturdays sightings
RESERVE; Bullfinch, Chaffinch, Green finch, Goldfinch, Coal tit, Blue tit, Long tailed tit, Great tit, Robin, Blackbird, Dunnock, Great spotted woodpecker, Water rail. LAPWING HIDE; 9 teal, 7 Gadwall, 2 Shelduck. SAND MARTIN & RAMSAR HIDE; 4 Lapwing,
9 February 2013
Today's sightings
Barn owl - 1 Marsh harrier - 1 Wigeon - grazing the river banks and sitting on the water on the reserve Pochard, mallard and tufted duck at the swan feeds Shelduck More waders are using the spits of land on the main lagoon such as lapwing, black-tailed g
9 February 2013