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I’m sorry to announce that this will be my last blog for Lochwinnoch, as I am leaving to work for the RSPB in the Loch Lomond and the Trossachs national park. Although I am excited about my new role, I will be missing a lot of things about Lochwinnoch, and one of them will be seeing how the works...

I’m sorry to announce that this will be my last blog for Lochwinnoch, as I am leaving to work for the RSPB in the Loch Lomond and the Trossachs national park. Although I am excited about my new role, I will be missing a lot of things about Lochwinnoch, and one of them will be seeing how the works...

At this time of the year, all magazines, mewspapers and TV shows run “Best of 2012” stories (spoilers: this year it’s all about the Olympics). We decided to do our own retrospective and look back at all the things that happened at Lochwinnoch in 2012. I have to say, it’s been...

If you come to the reserve mostly at weekends, there is a big part of our work you might not be aware of. However, if you pop in during the week you will see lots of children wearing muddy wellies over their school uniforms, walking about the reserve, their cheeks pink from the fresh air and great big...

Ever heard of Nature Deficit Disorder? It’s not a medical condition, but a recent phenomenon observed in Western societies: children spend less and less time in nature. Actually, less than one in ten children regularly play in wild places! Most adults remember fondly playing in the wild when...

One could be forgiven for forgetting which season we’re in, given the grim weather we have had over the last few weeks. But if we take a closer look, there are tell-tale signs that despite the lack of sunshine, summer is definitely here. The mild, rainy weather has given a boost to the vegetation...

The team at RSPB Lochwinnoch is not only responsible for the management of this wonderful reserve, but also for that of other, smaller reserves too, including Horse Island. A wee craggy island 1km off the coast of Ardrossan, Horse Island has been managed by the RSPB since 1961. If you have ever taken...

It’s that time of the year again: the season of new arrivals! Migrants have come back from their winter holidays in Africa and southern Europe and, the breeding season being well underway, chicks have started to appear at the reserve! The reserve is home to many breeding birds with 48 breeding...

So, we haven't quite made the 120 species we were looking for, we did get one more though to make us up to 118 in total (woodcock was the 118 species.) But, I still think 118 is a good number for this year and hope we can do even better in 2012! We have had some excellent additions thanks to our...

Wildlife sightings at the reserve have continued to go from strength to strength over the past two weeks, with amazing otter sightings, once in 24 year sightings and the arrival of some of our first autumn and winter migrants. Firstly, our autumn migrant species have started to arrive/pass through...