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Have you been enjoying the Bill, Kate and Simon Show on BBC One? It’s also known as Springwatch. I've been really envious of the species Simon King has seen in Scotland, although we've got plenty to shout about here at Minsmere.

We celebrated Springwatch at Minsmere last week too. The weather wasn’t particularly spring-like though. Saturday felt more like November, albeit a little warmer. It only stopped raining late afternoon, so we didn’t see many visitors. Sunday, in contrast, was hot and sunny, feeling much more like summer than spring, and the reserve was positively buzzing.

Our wardens and volunteers stationed themselves around the trails to show visitors some of Minsmere’s special wildlife, from sand martins and dragonflies near the visitor centre to nesting ringed plovers and little terns on the beach. We really enjoyed the chance to chat to visitors about these special species.

On Sunday the wildlife joined in the celebrations too. An emperor dragonfly spent the day stretching its wings and drying out on a reed stem in the pond, having emerged from it’s larval case. It was great to show visitors one of these dragonflies perched at such close range. Later in the day, a swallowtail butterfly was found nearby. This is a very rare visitor at Minsmere. The sand martins seemed to enjoy the attention too.

Many people were out and about with their cameras, so hopefully we’ll get a few more entries for our photographic competition. Entries close on 29 June, so don’t delay. If you’ve taken a picture that sums up the Magic of Minsmere, we’d like to see it. Entry forms are available from our reception desk.

After last month’s record Big Sit total, a stunning stream of rarities further enhanced Minsmere’s claim to the title of “best birdwatching site in Britain” during the last few weeks.

Sadly, I’ve managed to miss all of the rare and scarce visitors. First I was in Cornwall enjoying the delights of the southwest for a short holiday, when the first wave of rarities arrived, then I was busy working at the Suffolk Show for the second cluster.

Most of these rare visitors were southern or central European species, blown across the North Sea on the steady easterly airflow. No fewer than four rare warbler species arrived for short stays: spectacled, great reed, marsh and icterine. With them came two purple herons, a couple of red-backed shrikes, three red-footed falcons and at least one bee-eater over nearby Dunwich Forest.

There were also a few waders stopping off on route to the Arctic. A stunning adult female red-necked phalarope joined regular passage visitors such as little and Temminck’s stints, sanderlings and curlew sandpipers.

All these rare visitors mean that we've already recorded an incredible 211 species at Minsmere this year!

With all this excitement, it was easy to forget that most of our visitors were actually much more interested in seeing bitterns, marsh harriers and avocets. And they’ve been obliging too.

One volunteer had an amazing 15 sightings of bitterns in just a single morning yesterday. At least one female is now feeding young, and courtship flights are continuing. We think, however, that we may have lost several nests due to flooding after the heavy rain over the last ten days. Watch this space to find out if our fears are justified.

Don’t forget to bring your camera on your next visit to Minsmere, as time is now running out to enter our Magic of Minsmere photographic competition. Entries close on 29 June, so get snapping.