Blogs

Pack away the barbecue, the sunshade and the suntan lotion - the promise of a hot and sunny summer is disappearing quicker than you can put your umbrella up. But for one seabird visitor to our shores, the recent cooler temperatures have been just the ticket.

The kittiwake colony at Seaford's Splash Point, one of the most important in the South East, suffered a loss of around 200 chicks in 2006, due in part to the relentless heat that year.

This year's heatwave hit just as the chicks were starting to hatch, leading to fears that a similar situation could occur if the hot weather persisted. But the return to cooler temperatures over the past fortnight means the majority of chicks survived their crucial first few weeks in the nest.

Many are now flying high over the cliff-face colony just like their parents - perfecting their flying and fishing skills, and getting used to being young adults.

Kate Whitton, Date With Nature organiser at RSPB South East, let me know the latest from our viewpoint, 'When the tide comes in, the kittiwakes gather to bob up and down on the water. When something disturbs them, they'll rise up and wheel around back towards the cliffs, it's an incredible sight.'

And it's one that you can see too, but you'll have to hurry! Our viewpoint is only open until next Sunday. After that, there won't be much to look at as the colony begins to migrate across the Atlantic to spend the winter in seas off the Canadian coast. The adults won't be returning to Splash Point until next spring.

Kate added: 'If parents are looking for something to entertain their own brood now the school holidays are here, watching these youngsters soar across the cliffs is great fun.'

'I love going out on the boat at this time of year and talking to people about the brilliant wildlife you can see off the coast of Wales,' enthused Becky Clews, our People Engagement Manager in Wales, when I chatted to her recently about how the Wildlife Island cruises had gone.

According to Becky, this year the wildlife spectacle that is Puffin Island didn't disappoint, 'The ever-popular competition to spot the first puffin got everyone's eye in early on - I hope the owners of the puffin squeaky toys are looking after them!

'Harbour porpoise and grey seals made up our mammal sightings, while we were spoilt for choice with seabirds - kittiwakes, black guilliemots, razorbills, and puffins (of course) were just some of the birds busy bringing in food to feed their growing young.

'For only the second time in the five years we've been running these cruises did we have to cancel one. It was just too choppy to take the boat out, so the puffins and other seabirds had a day off from performing for the passengers!

'Every cruise was thoroughly enjoyed, even though two of our volunteers lost hats in the drink, and we all got at least one thorough soaking!

'By now, the crags will be empty of auks, with the kittiwakes, fulmars, shags and cormorants soon to follow with their newly fledged young.

'I'm already looking forward to next season - hope you can join me.'

With our Firth of Forth Seabird Cruises over for another year, I caught up with Angela Newton, Seabird Cruise Co-ordinator, to find out how they went:

'2009 has proved to be yet another successful year for our seabird cruises. Over 1,200 passengers joined us onboard the MV Maid of the Forth for spectacular views of seabirds and other wildlife.

Nine 3-hour cruises were held between May and July - the best time to view seabirds breeding on the inner Forth Islands of Inchgarvie, Inchcolm, Inchkeith and Inchmickery.

We were blessed with fabulous weather,  giving us perfect conditions for plenty of memorable wildlife viewing experiences!

Despite '09 being another poor year for breeding seabirds in many parts of Scotland, there was still plenty to see on the Firth of Forth - fluffy gull chicks on Inchgarvie, shag and cormorant chicks on Inchmickery, and crèches of eider chicks with their adult minders swimming in the sea around all the islands.

Passengers on one of the cruises were also treated to a rather unexpected, but brilliant, sight of a spoonbill on Inchcolm and on another, passengers were lucky enough to see a pod of Bottlenose dolphins. As you can imagine, this caused great excitement as everyone was eager to get a glimpse of them, without tipping the boat over!

We saw plenty of common and grey seals, gannets, common terns, razorbills, guillemots, kittiwakes, fulmars, great skuas, a common scoter and manx shearwater, but the bird that everyone had come to see was, of course, the puffin and passengers weren't disappointed.

Plenty of these fabulous little birds were seen around the islands, much to the relief of our commentator ('I'll jump overboard if we don't see a puffin') who was once again saved from a dunking!

We had a great time showing everyone the wonderful wildlife of the Firth of Forth - see you again in 2010!'

The good news is that the three fluffy young kestrels we first saw huddled up in their nestbox at Wat Tyler Country Park have all left the nest as sleek, agile hunters and are now completely independent.

The bad news is that we aren't getting many views of them from the hide, so have had to pack up our very popular viewpoint early.

For the past month we've had some brilliant views of kestrel family life and its dramas. There were squabbles between siblings, brawls with crows and magpies, and feeding frenzies whenever mum or dad delivered a tasty morsel.

Now that the youngsters are out and about hunting, they are experimenting by catching lots of different prey - the other day one flew in with a slow worm and devoured it right in front of the hide!

Our viewpoint might be closed, but you can still catch up with us at the visitor centre. And the kestrels are still around too, hovering and hunting in the sky above you while you're out and about discovering the rest of the park.

If you've been watching our live hobby nestcam, you'll have noticed that the first chick hatched last Wednesday, and that the male is now busy bringing in food for his ravenous youngster.

If you missed it first time around, or just want to watch the moment again, our friends at Carnyx Wild have put together footage of the first feed between mum and her new arrival. We hope you enjoy the moment - we did!

At Malham, the peregrines have been successful once again and, in the stunning surroundings of the Cove, all four chicks are flying well and gaining independence.

And it isn't just peregrines that are on show. Tawny and little owls have both been regular stars, and we've also been showing folks at our viewpoint green woodpeckers, redstarts, spotted flycatchers and dippers.

Seriously, this is the place to be for stunning views and stunning wildlife...

Now that the first chicks have hatched, things are getting busy for the 700-odd kittiwake pairs at Splash Point.

At other colonies in the UK kittiwake numbers are declining, so it's a big relief to see lots of healthy chicks at Seaford, with some nests even containing two youngsters.

The declines are thought to be connected with a lack of sand-eel fish (the kittiwake's main food source) in the seas around the sites, most likely linked to climate change. These population declines have led to the kittiwake being amber listed as a species of conservation concern - something we should all be worried about.

Getting serious

It's that point in our relationship where we need to talk! You see, this is currently an important time for our marine wildlife, and you can help protect it.

A Marine and Coastal Access Bill is currently being debated by Parliament and is due to pass into law later this year. Through our Safeguard our sea life campaign we are asking for a network of marine zones to be created and given legal protection. This will ensure the continued health of the sea, plus the survival of the wildlife that depends on it.

Visit our viewpoint to see firsthand what's at stake if we don't get the Marine Bill right. You can also find out how seabirds are doing at other sites across the UK with our safeguard our sea life blog.

Keeping us in as much suspense as an episode of Torchwood (with less aliens, admittedly), the peregrines of Cardiff have been teasing us for weeks about starting a new family.

But despite courtship behaviour from both birds, there is no second clutch of eggs for our peregrines on the Cardiff Clock Tower.

The birds can now be found sitting in the more shady spots of the tower, keeping out of the brilliant sunshine we've been enjoying recently. And even though they have often (annoyingly) been just out of sight of our telescopes on City Hall Lawn, we've still been getting some great views of them. A recent highlight included the pair tucking into a pigeon - at one point fighting over it!

Although they have no young to look after, the pair will stay around for the whole of the summer. We'll be watching the birds until the end of August, so if you haven't yet seen the peregrines 'in person' what are you waiting for? We promise you won't fall into the Cardiff Rift!

The Manchester peregrines have left their high-rise nest for another year, so I caught up with the Manchester Date with Nature Team who told me how they got on:

'Well, another breeding season has finished in Manchester for the now-famous peregrines. A big thanks to everyone who visited us - 11,500 of you in just ten weeks, plus many thousands more watched the live footage on the Big Screen. Even celebrities love our peregrines.

All four chicks fledged and have been improving their flying and hunting skills over the past few months, with one even trying to hitch a ride on The Wheel of Manchester!

This year, the birds left the nest 11 days earlier than in 2008, and an incredible 19 days earlier than in 2007.

We think much of this is down to the increased experience and parental skills of the male who, quite frankly, didn't seem to get the whole father thing in the early years! Thankfully, his attitude has smartened up somewhat - he is great at providing food, and often feeds the chicks rather than just leaving it all to the female.

Thanks once again for all your support - see you in 2010.'

The New Forest goshawks may have flown the nest, but the fun's not over yet as we turn our attention to another New Forest bird – the hobby.

Hobbies fly from Africa to the UK every summer to breed, and at least 12 pairs nest in the New Forest.

The nest currently has two eggs in it, which are expected to hatch middle of July.

Get down to the New Forest Reptile Centre, near Lyndhurst, any day until 1 September, or follow the family online.

Sharon Boardman, People Engagement Officer for the Midlands, tells me how the peregrines of Worcester got on this year:

'With four chicks successfully hatching high above our heads on St. Andrew's Spire, we couldn't have hoped for a better start to this project.

We met hundreds of people, and covered all sorts of queries and questions from wildlife gardening advice, to what can be done to stop the illegal killing of birds of prey in the UK. We definitely weren't just talking about the peregrine family!

Worcester City Council's webcam was also a big success, with thousands of people from around the world logging on to follow the latest action at the nest.

As the young peregrines got more mobile, they had a rocky introduction to flying - everytime they took to the air, the local gulls took to hassling them.

But that wasn't the only excitment - the first young peregrine to fledge ended up at the police station! After being mobbed and ending up on the ground, it was saved from going under the wheels of a lorry by a local lady, who then handed it to the police. Luckily the young peregrine was fine, and was returned to the nest site later that day.

After such a great start, our project didn't end so well. It was with great sadness that we heard one of the youngsters had to be put down - a tumour in her mouth made it difficult to eat and the vet felt it was inoperable. Very sad news for everyone who had seen her go from fluffy chick, to bold and adventurous adolescent.

Finally, I'd just like to say a huge thanks to our partners at Worcester City Council and all our volunteers - without their help we wouldn't be able to show anyone the peregrines of Worcester.'