Gloucestershire reserves

A mixed up season

2013-06-19T14:44:27Z

As I stood in Highnam Woods yesterday early afternoon I was very surprised to hear a Nightingale start up with a burst of song just up the nature trail a little way from the car park. A little later, further around the nature trail I heard a second bird singing in another location. It is unusual to hear them at this time of year, most references I have seen suggests going out to listen for them between mid May and early June, as the males are less often heard after this. Nightingales have 2 broods of young in an average year, and when the first brood of young fledge from the nest the male will spend his time tending to them while the female sits on the second clutch of eggs, hardly surprising he doesn't find time to sing then! I was quite concerned to hear 2 birds yesterday, with my mind automatically jumping to the worst of conclusions - failed nests. Putting it into a little perspective though, the birds we monitor in nest boxes are at least 10 days (if not more) later than they were last year, if we apply that time slip to nightingales it is maybe not unrealistic to think that they are just late this year. Given that they arrived back in April to some very cold conditions and probably not a lot of food available to help them replace their fat stores depleted from the long migration north from Africa that is a likely conclusion and I will remain optomistic for this species at Highnam.

We do have good news for Nightingales this year. We recorded 6 males singing, not a large population, but this is the first year for some time that there has been no decline in numbers at the reserve. In addition to that it was great to record a territory adjacent to some ditch damming work we carried out last autumn. The aim of the work was to hold more water in that area of coppice in order to make it more attractive to this species, it would appear that this was successful, which is great news.

The news for Pied flycatchers at Nagshead hasn't been so good at all this year. Another species which faces a very long migration each year, and this year faced a chilly welcome with a shortage of food available. Not only have we seen a low number of nests being built in boxes, but some of those have remained unoccupied and there have been a number of failed attempts. There have been a few chicks hatch, but we are still waiting to see how many of them survive to fledge.

Other birds in the boxes have had a struggle this year too, as mentioned above, everything seem to be late this year. There are still a few young not fledged from boxes in Highnam, although most have left the nest now and can be seen around the reserve in groups. At Nagshead everything is a little later still, with many nests not even being built until May, the young are just starting to think about fledging now, finally!

Spring?

2013-04-02T10:51:21Z

It is still so cold, but some things are battling through regardless. Seeing primroses in full flower as I walked around Highnam Woods yesterday brought a smile to my face, as did listening to the Ravens and the Buzzards overhead. Thanks to the families who braved the cold to come along to the 'Egg-stravaganza' yesterday, it was great to see people making the most of the reserve on an early spring day.

There are very few insects around yet, despite a little sunshine, so the small birds are still making full use of the feeders, but there are a few Marsh tits moving away towards possible breeding sites. Other signs that spring is around the corner include the Bullfinches whistling as we go past, and woodpecker sounds (both drumming and calling) throughout the woods. We just need a little heat and the season will kick off quickly.

There is a distinct lack of migrants though, this time last year we'd had out first Pied flycatcher at Nagshead, but no sign yet this year, and no Chiffchaffs calling yet either. I'm looking forward to seeing my first Orange-tip of the year, then I know spring is here.

Tracking in the snow

2013-01-31T16:32:00Z

Winter wonderland, RSPB Nagshead (Photo: Lewis Thomson)

During the recent week of snow, it was brilliant to get up to Nagshead and walk the paths looking for animal tracks. I managed to find signs of Fox, Wild Boar, Fallow Deer, Grey Squirrel and a couple of rodent tracks on a stroll around the Long Trail. Fallow Deer prints consist of two simple narrow slots and are fairly easy to identify here as Fallow are the only large deer species present.

Fallow Deer print (Photo: Lewis Thomson)

Wild Boar prints are usually large and wide with two dew claws at the rear.

Wild Boar print (Photo: Lewis Thomson)

Boar can be a real help to woodland birds during these tough conditions. Boar effectively clear the snow from the woodland floor when foraging for food, exposing the leaf litter underneath. This gives birds access to the invertebrates and seeds which they rely on for food.

Evidence of Wild Boar foraging (Photo: Lewis Thomson)

Recent prints are usually clean and crisply formed and can mean the animals that left them are still in the area.

Wild Boar, Sus scrofa (Photo: Lewis Thomson)

Tracks can also be found fairly easily in the mud along the edges of paths, so even though the snow has gone, why not have a look which species' prints you can identify.

Winter's here!

2013-01-18T14:48:22Z

I've just taken a wander up to Nagshead as I couldn't resist a walk in the snow having sat in the office watching it fall all morning. It was absolutely beautiful up there, and quite amazing how much snow can cling to such small branches!

As you can imagine there was not a great deal of activity up there, either wildlife or human - tracks show a couple of other people had been through the reserve and there were a few deer tracks.

A small flock of redwings were around and a pair of buzzards circled overhead for a while, calling to each other. Very little sign of tits, but there were a few blackbirds and robins braving the elements in search of whatever food they could find. I did my best not to disturb them for too long, they have enough to worry about in these conditions.

As you can see it looks picturesque and tranquil at the visitor centre now and I believe there is more snow forecast for the weekend. The barrier at the entrance to the access drive is closed today, and I suspect it will be for the weekend, so if you are planning to visit it may be best to park in Parkend and walk up to the reserve. Take care on compacted snow though, the paths are going to be very slippy for a while, then really muddy again I guess!

I'm not sure what conditions are like at Highnam, but again please do take care if you go for a wander at the weekend.

All being well there will be work starting at the car park towards the end of next week. We have unfortunately decided that we need to close the car park for some time. If work goes ahead as planned we expect to close and lock the gates from 4th February. This will be a complete closure with access only possible for planned events on the reserve, please see our website for the events we have planned. It will be possible to arrange access for groups wishing to visit the reserve, please contact reserve staff to arrange this.

Happy New Year!

2013-01-02T16:46:00Z

We would like to wish everyone a Happy New Year, hopefully 2013 will be packed with exciting wildlife encounters and will be a little drier than 2012! We hope to see you all out enjoying the reserves in the coming months, don't forget to keep an eye on the Nagshead events page here and the Highnam events page here. Come along and join us on Sunday 6th Jan for our first guided walk of the year at Highnam Woods - a 'winter wander' is the official title, but that might need to be re-named to 'winter splodge' as the trails are quite muddy at the moment - wellies essential! It makes a great opportunity to look for tracks though, with signs of both muntjac and roe deer around!

The rain over the festive period has resulted in more streams appearing in odd places at both reserves and even some pretty impressive waterfalls. The photo below was taken at Nagshead near Lower Hide as flood water poured off the reserve, under the road and into Cannop Brook. I will be clearing culverts again this week no doubt (seems like a weekly job at the moment!), hopefully the current dry spell will last a while giving the paths a chance to dry out.

Woodland waterfalls at Nagshead (Photo: Lewis Thomson)

The wet, mild weather has also resulted in some impressive fungi displays around the reserves. This stunning specimen was found on an oak tree next to Lower Hide at Nagshead just before Christmas and is aptly named Yellow Brain.

Yellow Brain fungi, Nagshead (Photo: Lewis Thomson)

The feeders at Highnam are proving a real attraction as always, with five species of tit seen yesterday along with squirrel. Raven, buzzard, woodcock and peregrine were all seen flying over too, and I got a brief glimpse of a mistle thrush too, as it perched in a tree to look down on me!

Ice sculptures & sun rays

2012-12-14T11:46:00Z

After all the recent rain a crisp, sunny spell of weather was very welcome on the reserves. Woodlands always look spectacular on frosty, clear sky days, especially at Nagshead with the bare ancient oaks standing proud while sunbeams filter through to the woodland floor. The frosts also meant that wellies weren't required on the Short Trail for first time in weeks! The reserve has seemed very quiet lately, but a bit of good weather and the birds and animals seem to appear as if by magic. Everything in the woodland seems so much happier on days like this! A mixed flock of Redwings and Blackbirds could be seen busily foraging amongst the leaf litter, from a distance it looked like the woodland floor was alive as leaves were being thrown everywhere. Nuthatches and Great Spotted Woodpeckers were calling again making them easy to locate and Jays could be seen darting from tree to tree looking for an easy meal.

The Short Trail at RSPB Nagshead in glorious winter sunshine (Photo: Lewis Thomson)

While walking along the Gloucestershire Way and Long Trail one morning I came across random blobs of what looked like snow from a distance. As I got closer I thought it must be some sort of fungi as it was only present on deadwood. I picked a piece of the wood up for a closer look and was astonished to see the material disintergrate as I breathed near it.......it was ice! It looked like white candyfloss and even felt furry when touched. I pulled a section off and squeezed it, water started dripping from my hand and I was left with a solid snowball, very weird! I took some photos and looked it up when I got back to the office. It is apparently known as hair ice and forms from excess moisture freezing in the deadwood which builds on successive cold nights forming long fine strands of ice. Really quite interesting and not something I have encountered before.

'Hair ice' which had formed on fallen deadwood at RSPB Nagshead (Photo: Lewis Thomson)

Winter Sunshine

2012-12-10T15:49:06Z

There might not be enough sun for our solar panels to kick in and charge the batteries, but it was certainly enough to pull me out of the office at lunchtime. I really enjoyed taking the opportunity to see the reserve in winter, some of it looks so different without all the ground cover and, despite the low level of the sun, it seems brighter with no leaves in the canopy.

The lack of leaves also allowed me some great views of raven in the canopy of a tree further down slope - I followed the sound thinking 'I know I'll never see it...' but I was wrong!

Also was surprised to see a flock of 15 - 20 blackbirds near the bench at the furthest point of the short trail, where it links the Gloucestershire Way to the Long Trail to return to the car park. I didn't get a great look at all of them, but the ones I did see were all males. Unfortunately there was a lack of other flocks of birds. Natural food really seems to be in short supply this year so hopefully most have headed to gardens to find well stocked feeders. The feeders at Highnam are certainly busy now, with blue, great, marsh and coal tit all seen frequently, along with nuthatch, dunnock and robins. Of course the great spotted woodpecker is a regular visitor to the peanuts too!

Walking back up through the meadows I was really pleased to see a small group of bullfinch crossing the path ahead of me, stunning birds.

If anyone is still looking for inspiration for Christmas decorations come along and see us at the Visitor Centre this weekend. We will have a variety of wreaths available to take away for a small donation, or have a go at making your own wreath, colourful bird feeder or gift tags, great for children from 2 to 92!

Merry Christmas

Hannah

Dam ditches and feeder frenzy!

2012-10-10T13:28:04Z

After a peaceful (if wet) summer at Highnam there has been a little flurry of activity in the last couple of weeks. The dams that I have been eager to get installed in one of the coppice plots have finally been completed, and are holding water back nicely. While the contractors were working in the area I also asked them to complete some drainage restoration work on a couple of the paths, so we are hopeful that the coppice plot will become wet and splodgy, but that the paths will be less so - fingers crossed.

Most of the rides have been cut with a tractor and flail too, reducing the grass cover, allowing more space and light for wildflowers to pop up next spring. There will also be some additional work this autumn to trim some of the more woody bushes which are beginning to encroach and cast shadows over what we would like to be warm sunny areas. Some areas of the rides / path are too wet to access with tractors at the moment though and it is likely that even when we can get the necessary machinery in there will be a fair amount of churning up and mud production. I hope visitors will be patient with us and we have planned some restorative work to the worst affected areas with a digger to take place as soon as possible.

As autumn colours begin to dominate, the feeders have been returned, with some outside the hide and others by the carpark. As there is still a reasonable amount of natural food around in the area these are attracting a relatively low level of activity at the moment, it won't be long before they are busy though. I already frequently hear marsh tit by the car park and there are definitely a few great tits enjoying the seed at the hides.

Now is a great time to look for fungi, exactly what we will be doing on Thurs 11th October with a local enthusiast. If you are interested in joining this event please have a look at www.rspb.org.uk/highnamwoods and we look forward to seeing you there.

Winter work parties also start this month, with the first being at Highnam on 17th October, so if you fancy joining us for a little work and a bit of a natter come along to the carpark for 10am.

Hannah

Wet and Soggy Nagshead

2012-09-25T13:14:34Z

With all the rain and some strong winds we have had over the last few days I took an opportunity to walk the main trails at Nagshead this morning. I was greeted with a real feeling that autumn is in the air (as if the weather hadn't told me). The bracken is receding and revealing the diggings of the wild boar around the reserve, and there is a very peaceful feel, possibly partly as I was one of the first on the reserve at that time of day. Leaves are beginning to change colour and drop already, but it may be a slow process this year. The woods most definitely aren't devoid of wildlife though, I delighted at watching little wrens darting in and out of brash piles and brambles, nuthatches called their warnings as I approached and tits flitted around in the tree tops. I also caught sight of a fallow deer as it bounded across the path someway ahead of me as I followed the 'long trail'.

I was pleased to see that not only had no trees been brought down by the winds, but also the paths have held up well. We have been aware of muddy patches and even running water on some pieces through the summer, but today there were signs that a lot of water had flowed over the paths, but left them relatively firm meaning that they are possibly even more accessible now than they were in July and August!

I didn't have enough time to go in search of fungi, but there are some around, and I look forward to getting out to explore more in October.

Hannah

Kingfisher surprise at Nagshead

2012-08-17T09:31:21Z

We regularly get a post breeding Kingfisher visiting the ponds at Lower Hide from mid-July through to autumn. Undoubtedly it just takes a short D tour from the Cannop Brook across the road around 100 metres away. This year I was looking forward to bumping into the Kingfisher on the reserve again as summer approached, but July came and went and August was marching on with no sign. Yesterday I was working at the Visitor Centre when I heard a familiar call, it was a Kingfisher! I crept up to the 'Nursery Meadows' pond next to our car park and had fantastic views of the bird perched on the pond dipping platform (more like a diving board in this case!), I decided to return to the Visitor Centre to avoid frightening the Kingfisher away. I know the bird stayed around the pond for at least half an hour after that as I could hear it calling occasionally. The thing that amazes me is just how far away this pond is from any other water. How did the Kingfisher know the pond was there? I find it difficult to believe that a Kingfisher would just fly blindly through woodland in the hope that there is a pond out there somewhere, fascinating really. Presumably the late appearance of this bird is linked to the poor weather which may have disrupted breeding. Hopefully the Kingfisher will be a regular visitor again now until autumn, if you are lucky enough to see one at Nagshead then please let us know.

Hawfinches have again been feeding on the abundance of Rowan berries at the furthest point of Short Trail, as last year. Early mornings are best when looking for this species as the reserve is still quiet. Four post breeding Tree Pipits have been feeding on the lower section of the meadows for a week or so. Not the impressive flock of 13+ that we had in the same spot last summer, but it does go to show that birds appear in the same areas at roughly the same time year after year. Many of our migrant breeding species have moved off now with only the odd Spotted Flycatcher, Chiffchaff and Blackcap around the Short Trail. A few birds have been moving through however, a Pied Flycatcher seen on the Short Trail on August 3rd was presumably a migrant from elsewhere.

Nightjars return

2012-05-28T09:12:00Z

All of our migrant breeding birds have now returned to Nagshead. Spotted Flycatchers arrived in early May and finally the first Nightjar was heard 'churring' on May 14th. We currently have three male Nightjars on the reserve, hearing their eerie churring song as darkness falls is a real highlight of the year at Nagshead! The males tend to arrive from Africa a little earlier than the females to set up territories on heathland and clear-felled areas, they begin churring from prominent perches at dusk to proclaim their territory to other males and attract a female for breeding. As well as churring, the males perform wing clapping displays in flight, clapping their wings loudly above their backs and flashing the white patches on their wings and tail. Nightjars are mostly crepuscular, meaning they are active at dawn and dusk. They have large eyes to help pick out prey items such as moths and beetles which are caught on the wing, but eyes have their limits and can only be used before total darkness falls or if there is a full moon which may allow night time hunting. Nightjars have incredibly cryptic plumage and spend the day roosting on logs and other debris on the clearing floor.

We are running three guided Nightjar walks this summer, 16th June, 27th June and 7th July. If you would like to hear and have the chance to encounter these wonderful birds please do get in touch to book your place. There is also a good chance of encountering other exciting wildlife on the walk, such as roding Woodcock, Tawny Owls, Wild Boar, Fallow Deer, and if you are really lucky, Glow Worms. Details of all of our events this summer can be found here. The following video was filmed at Nagshead last week; listen out for the wing clapping display as the Nightjar flies......

(Please visit the site to view this video)

Churring Nightjar at RSPB Nagshead, May 2012 (Film: Lewis Thomson)

Breeding season in full swing

2012-05-17T15:50:58Z

The cold wet weather hasn't made the best of starts to the season, but I think all the species have now been ticked off on the reserve lists, with one nightjar so far recorded at Russell's Inclosure. An unexpected bonus for Lewis when out looking for these over the weekend was a barn owl hunting over the area - too say he was pleased is an understatement!

Pied flycatchers seem to have settled down to breed, and there are good views of them to be had from the paths around Nagshead. Redstarts seem to be thin on the ground this year, but wood warbler have returned in better numbers than last year, and I was even listening to one singing near the car park this afternoon. There are plenty of records coming in of tree pipits, and garden warblers and spotted flycatcher have also returned around the site. All of this means that on those fine days there is plenty to be heard, even if catching a glimpse may be hard now the trees are almost fully in leaf now.

If the birds prove too hard to spot there are always the bluebells to be admired, although the carpets at Highnam are slightly more impressive than Naghead. When the temperature rises a little we should get a few more butterflies around too, at the moment it is just too cold unfortunately, but a few can be seen making the most of sunny spells around both reserves. Highnam is adorned with plenty of flowers ready for the butterflies when they emerge, including wood forget-me-not, ground ivy, garlic mustard and bugle, the general colour has blended from the white / yellow of early spring to a mass of blues now - quite spectacular.

Nightingales at Highnam have, as always, proved to be a draw to visitors. We have confirmed 6 males singing this year, mostly close to the path, and one in particular seems to not be shy and is frequently seen near the first bench along the nature trail if you follow it in a clockwise direction. A single willow warbler is also singing in that area, it is lovely to hear it singing in amongst the sound of the chiffchaffs and the blackcaps.

Woodpeckers seem to be doing very well this year, and yesterday Lewis and I hear at least 3 broods chattering from holes, probably great spotted, but we know of a few other holes which we hope might be in use by green woodpecker which are still active through the woods.

The paths in both sites still have some wet and muddy patches, but in the main are now firm again as they dry out.

Spring has Sprung at Highnam Woods!

2012-04-25T11:41:52Z

The weather may not back up such a claim, but if you venture out in the sunny spells or simply ignore the sky you will find that Highnam Woods is in the midst of spring. The bluebells are out, so it must be true!

The cuckoo flower (lady's smock) has been out for a while now too, and is providing much needed food for the orange tip butterflies which are easily seen when the sunshines. Other butterflies seen in the last week include peacock, holly blue and small tortoiseshell, all showing that the general temperature is beginning to rise a little.

The definitive example that spring is here though is, without doubt, the birdsong. The first nightingale was reported on 16th April, and I found 5 before the weekend. Yesterday was a real treat though, standing on the path in the sunshine at around 11am, listening to a single nightingale calling. We also had a willow warbler singing right over our heads, as well as blackcaps and chiffchaffs a little further away. The green woodpeckers are still active, although a little less vocal than they were a couple of weeks ago.

With the blue tits, great tits and nuthatches now tending nests in boxes, and marsh tit still active near the hide there is always something to be seen at Highnam at the moment. Nagshead is an equally exciting place to be too, with the bluebells about to burst, and many of the migrant birds settling down to breed, even the wood warblers have returned now.

Record breaker!

2012-04-10T15:35:00Z

Well, it has been a very exciting start to spring at Nagshead. Our first Chiffchaffs arrived on March 21st followed by Blackcaps on the 26th. We were all pretty shocked by the early arrival of a male Pied Flycatcher on March 31st though! This is the earliest ever record for Gloucestershire! Congratulations to Ann, one of our dedicated volunteers who found him on the Short Trail. This beats our previous earliest by five days, which remarkably was the Nagshead April 4th bird from last year. It will be interesting to see what the arrival date is in 2013. The first Willow Warblers arrived on April 1st followed by a Tree Pipit on the 2nd. The poor weather since then seems to have caused migration to stutter a little, but we currently have at least one singing Pied Flycatcher, four Willow Warblers, two Tree Pipits and lots of Chiffchaffs and Blackcaps around the reserve.

Summer migrants haven't been the only cause of excitement though, some of our visitors have been treated to fantastic views of Lesser Spotted Woodpecker, a stunning and elusive little bird which is high on every birders 'must see' list.

Male Lesser Spotted Woodpecker, RSPB Nagshead (Photo: Lewis Thomson)

We have also managed to prove breeding by Crossbills on the reserve, I was lucky to witness a pair feeding a very recently fledged youngster which could barely fly on March 26th.

Male Crossbill, RSPB Nagshead (Photo: Lewis Thomson)

What a place!

2012-03-06T13:35:00Z

It has been a fantastic week on the reserves and looking at the list of sightings you would be forgiven for thinking we were in a remote area of Eastern Europe or Scandinavia rather than Gloucestershire! Hawfinches performing courtship displays, Brambling flocks feeding on beech mast, nest building Crossbills, displaying Goshawks, drumming Lesser Spotted Woodpeckers and Wild Boar sows with tiny piglets have all been seen recently.

We ran two successful Hawfinch walks at Nagshead last week, both of which were fully booked. It was great to share some rare views of Hawfinch courtship behaviour with people on the first walk and knowing some had never seen the species before made it even more exciting. We had tantalising views to start with and then eventually everyone managed to get good scope views of eight Hawfinches at the top of tall lime trees. As if that wasn't enough we were then treated to views of a pair lower down around 15 metres away. As we watched, the male faced the female, drooped his wings, snaked his head from side to side with his crown feathers raised and then gently fed the female...... brilliant! Suffice to say everyone was chuffed to bits and with the pressure off we managed to see a Goshawk, three Bramblings and two Crossbills as we continued the walk.

I walked into Campbell Hide at Nagshead at the end of last week only to be told by a couple who were already in there that I had just missed three Wild Boar sows with 11 small piglets. Just my luck I thought, but I got my camera ready just in case. I had only sat down for a few minutes before the boar returned. The piglets were indeed very young and it was great to watch them playing together and lined up to drink from the pond before the sows led them away once again. The return of these animals to Britain is still a very controversial subject, but when the young are like this it is very hard not to fall in love with them......

Wild Boar piglets - Sus scrofa, RSPB Nagshead 2012 (Photo: Lewis Thomson)