Latest sightings
Latest Sightings
After all the rain we have had it finally feels like summer at Martin Mere! The newly exposed mud at the back of the mere is still proving productive for waders with a large variety of species seen. The species list so far is lapwing, black-tailed godwit, avocet, green sandpiper, common sandpiper, redshank, dunlin, ruff, oystercatcher and ringed plover. The mud on Woodend Marsh and at Ron Barker hide is also proving good for waders as well. Elsewhere on site we now have 7 juvenile marsh harriers across the site. This includes the 4 juveniles that have fledged from the nests in Vinson's reedbed near Ron Barker and 3 that have fledged this week from a nest on the far side of the reserve at Doehyles. They are very active at the moment with the adults doing food passes on a regular basis. The reserves English longhorn cattle have been on the move again with the large herd now in the fields nearest to Ron Barker hide which is a good place to see cattle egret. Our other herd is now near to Woodend Marsh so there is a good chance to see cattle egret here too. A count earlier in the week saw 11 egrets with the large herd and 6 egrets on the mere so our numbers are hovering 16-20 individuals. Look out for the kestrel chicks near Long Meadow barn as well between Gordon Taylor and Tomlinson. A pair has nested behind the barn owl box in the barn and they are nearly ready to fledge so do look out for them in the coming days as well as the adult visiting regularly to bring in food.
26 July 2024
Latest Sightings
It is a mixed bag at Martin Mere with birds coming and going. On the mere there are only 2 avocet left, one being a juvenile with the parent ferociously defending it still. It's almost ready to fledge so they won't be around much longer! The reserve team
22 July 2024
Latest Sightings
After a few days of dry warm weather the water levels at Gordon Taylor Hide and Woodend Marsh are reducing leaving some great muddy areas which is attracting more waders - Ruff, Common Sandpiper, Green Sandpiper, Redshanks and Little Ringed Plovers. Ron B
18 July 2024
Latest Sightings
There has been lots of sightings at Ron Barker including a Green Sandpiper, 2 Little Ringed Plovers and a Greenshank. The Black Tailed Godwits are showing well at Ron Barker too, with 78 recorded there last week. A Kingfisher has been heard over the reedb
15 July 2024
Latest Sightings
It's been another soggy week out on the reserve, but this hasn't put the birds off! As the breeding season draws to a close, there have been a number of migrating birds passing through on their way to their wintering grounds. In terms of waders, there hav
12 July 2024
Latest Sightings
A barn owl has been seen hunting quite a lot this week, mainly over woodend marsh to bring back to its nest in Harrier Hide. 2 juvenile cuckoos were spotted recently; one at Ron Barker hide and the other on the outer reedbed walk, which is also where a gr
8 July 2024
Latest Sightings
Half of our herd of English Longhorn cattle have been moved onto the mere this week, and some cattle egrets have moved with them! The rest can still be seen at woodend marsh. A common tern was seen opposite Discovery hide, and plenty of swallows and swift
5 July 2024
Latest Sightings
60 black-tailed godwits have been seen from Rees hide this week, along with 2 little-ringed plover, 7 green sandpipers, and 1 common sandpiper. A stoat was spotted at Gordon Taylor hide and a hobby was also seen flying overhead.4 cattle egrets were seen i
1 July 2024
Latest Sightings
The hobby has been seen yet again at Ron Barker hide, as well as the occasional bittern. Also from Ron Barker, a flock of 22 black-tailed godwits have been sighted, along with 3 little egrets, 75 teal, and 10 little ringed plover. Some avocets and common
28 June 2024
Latest Sightings
It's been a busy week at Gordon Taylor hide as 4 green sandpipers, 1 common sandpiper, 2 snipe, 1 wood sandpiper, a juvenile ringed plover, and a little ringed plover have all been spotted there since Saturday! It also may be the spot to see the 8 cattle
25 June 2024
Latest Sightings
It looks like we are going to have some nice weather this week and hope to see more Butterflies and Dragonflies appearing.A Bittern has been seen 2 days running flying from the Ron Barker Hide to the reedbed. Also on the path to the Ron Barker Hide a Barn
20 June 2024
Latest Sightings
The sunshine and showers have continued over the weekend, but this has not stopped the reserves usual customers! A hobby was from Ron Barker yesterday morning. Marsh harriers have been showing well in the main reedbed, as well as the reedbed that can be s
18 June 2024
Latest Sightings
Rain hasn't stopped play this week at Martin Mere and we've still been seeing a lot of activity. Some black-headed gull chicks have started to fledge on the mere, and 3 of the 5 common tern nests have hatched. The med gulls currently have 2 nests on the m
14 June 2024
Latest Sightings
The juvenile kingfishers are still showing well at Ron Barker hide with good daily sightings. Ron Barker also offers good views of cattle egret at present with them amongst the large herd of cattle as well as getting up close to the bull!We are also conti
11 June 2024
Latest Sightings
There have been quite a few marsh harrier sightings this week, with at least 6 having been spotted. Three juvenile kingfishers can now be seen at Ron Barker hide. We have had more and more reports coming in of water vole sightings on our Canoe Safari, alo
3 June 2024