The first Swallows swoop in and Great Crested Grebes put on a show
New arrivals, spectacular plumage and displays... there's nowhere we'd rather be!
Here's what's been stirring our hearts in the wetlands this week: featuring fresh arrivals, glittering flocks, and swoon-worthy dance displays from Great Crested Grebes.
Wildlife sightings from 7th to 15th March 2026
Highlights: Great Crested Grebe, Swallows, Siskin, Cetti's Warbler
Around the Lily Pond and above Black Poplar Wood, 12 Swallows scissored low over the water and treetops, our first arrivals of the year, spotted by visitor John Hole on 9th March. That first flash of blue-black and the swift, joyful chatter is such a milestone; you can almost feel the season turn with every swoop. If you’ve been waiting for the moment spring truly begins, this was it.
On 11th March, volunteer Stephen Chambers logged some good totals. On the Dafen Scrapes, 115 Wigeon dabbled and whistled in tight rafts of pairs, their cinnamon heads glowing in the soft light. Between the Freshwater Lagoon and Deep Water Lake, 220 Knot and a remarkable 608 Black-tailed Godwit roosted and fed, the majority gathered on Freshwater Lagoon, creating that breathtaking, restless seam of grey and cinnamon along the edges. Among them, a single Bar-tailed Godwit stood out, a beautiful bonus for careful eyes.
Also at the Freshwater Lagoon, 165 Black-headed Gulls fussed and called, their breeding hoods sharpening by the day as courtship kicks in. And beside the Peter Scott Hide, two pairs of Bullfinches glowed like dropped embers in the hedgerow, those soft, rosy chests are pure magic against the March blossoms.
Out on Deep Water Lake, the magnificent Great Crested Grebes stole the show with their elaborate weed dance, neck plumes ruffed, bodies lifted in a mirror-still duet. We’ve embedded a gorgeous video from BrummieInCymru so you can catch a flavour of that courtship spectacle before you come; but nothing beats seeing this in real life.
By the Michael Powell Hide, a dart of russet and white betrayed a tiny Weasel; blink and you’ll miss that liquid coil of movement weaving between tussocks. In the Millennium Wetlands, flocks of Goldfinch and Long-tailed Tit trilled through willow and alder, with bright little Siskin and neat Redpoll also spotted in recent days, and the earthy tick of Reed Bunting from reed-edge perches. It’s a living soundtrack you feel in your chest as much as your ears.
And all around the trails, the soft, metronomic chiff‑chiff‑chaff of Chiffchaff is back, threading through willow scrub and hawthorn, occasionally punctuated by the rich, explosive phrases of Cetti’s Warbler from deep cover. These voices stitch the site together, from Black Poplar Wood to the Millennium Wetlands, promising nest-building days just ahead.
Whether you’re scanning the islands and banks at Freshwater Lagoon, lingering quietly by the Peter Scott Hide, or letting the boardwalks guide you into the hush of the Millennium Wetlands, bring your binoculars, your curiosity, and a little time... there’s wonder waiting at every turn.
