Wildlife sightings for 21st June 2012
1 Greenshank - main lake and marsh 1 Green Sandpiper - scrape 1 Curlew - circled main lake, then flew W 1 Redshank - main lake 16 Lapwing 11 Common Tern adults + 3 chicks - main la [...]
1 Greenshank - main lake and marsh
1 Green Sandpiper - scrape
1 Curlew - circled main lake, then flew W
1 Redshank - main lake
16 Lapwing
11 Common Tern adults + 3 chicks - main lake
4 Teal - main lake and scrape (3 drake, 1 duck)
1 Shelduck - main lake
1 Sparrowhawk - male sitting above Sand Martin Bank
3 Whitethroat - sheltered lagoon, resr lagoon, entrance bank
6 Cetti's Warbler
Recent bird highlights: Buzzard, Hobby, Peregrine, Avocet, Curlew, Common Sandpiper, Green Sandpiper, Greenshank, Little Ringed Plover, Yellow Wagtail, Wheatear.
Lapwing are nesting on the main lake/scrape shingle islands, keeping their territory by performing exciting territorial flight displays. Listen out for their loud ‘pee-wit’ calls in flight. The marsh water level is lower now to leave small pools of water where waders like Lapwing can feed themselves and any chicks they have with them. Also look out for Yellow Wagtail on the marsh.
The scrape is drained and wetted on a weekly basis to attract feeding waders. Irregular waders of most species may turn up at any time this month so keep looking out for them. Also on the scrape the Sand Martins are nesting in the artificial bank. Watch them flying in and out as well as feeding over the muddy pools for insects.
Look to the skies on clear, warm days for soaring raptors like Buzzard. Often alarm calls from the Gull flocks or Crows mean that there’s a bird of prey high above somewhere.
There are 3 Mute Swan broods to be found, at least 1 Pochard brood in the main reedbeds, 3 broods of Common Tern on the main lake, Mallard have a few families across the reserve and there’s 1 Little Grebe brood in the middle reedbed channel.
Cetti's Warblers have at least 1 brood in wildside with more familes expected soon. There are 3 Whitethroat territories, 1 Chiffchaff territory and 1 possible Lesser Whitethroat territory.
Flowering plants: Mallow, Marsh Woundwort, Cow Parsley, Field Scabious, Devil's Bit Scabious, Red Dead-nettle, Hop Trefoil, Kidney Vetch, Tufted Vetch, Common Vetch, Grass Vetchling, Meadow Vetchling, Ragged Robin, Great Burnet, Salad Burnet, Herb Robert, Yellow Flag, Bird's-foot Trefoil, Water Mint, Common Spotted Orchid, Southern Marsh Orchid, Bee Orchid, Pyramidal Orchid, St.John's-wort, Purple Loosestrife, Yellow Loosestrife, Hemlock, Yellow Rattle, Wild Parsnip, Basterd Cabbage, Monkey-flower
Water Voles: June sightings include individuals in the canal leading up to Peacock Tower, the reed swamp exhibit in world wetlands and in the main reedbeds.
Butterflies and insects: Green Hairstreak,Comma, Brimstone, Peacock, Small Tortoiseshell, Orange-tip, Holly Blue, Speckled Wood, Small White, Common Bee-fly, 7-spot Ladybird, Large Red Damselfly, Hairy Dragonfly, Common Blue Damselfly.
