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After a seemingly endless winter we all long for a proper spring to finally come. Unfortunately, the weather can’t make up its mind and keeps alternating spells of bright sunshine with the wintry showers. However, there is a little light of hope as the spring migrants start to arrive and the reserve...

It’s been a while since our last blog update and a lot has happened in the meantime. The works on the Aird Meadow are now completed and three new channels are slowly being colonised by wildlife. Mallards , greylag geese and mute swans were all seen in the area, as well as a lapwing , a moorhen...

It’s nearly the end of March but winter doesn’t seem to be giving up. We all miss these long, warm and sunny spring days, but it looks like we will have to wait for a little longer. In the meantime, visiting Lochwinnoch brings some new wildlife surprises each day and we are never bored! We’ve...

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...

After a short spell of wintry weather the spring is back on track, with beautiful sunshine and pleasant temperatures. New channels at the Aird Meadow are now taking shape as the works are due to be finished in a couple of weeks. And there is plenty of wildlife of course! Highlights of the week include...

To be honest, our habitat work so far seemed to be an arduous, time-taking, meticulous enterprise. Diggers and dumper trucks have been working very hard and the habitat work had been progressing slowly but surely. However, this all changed when the new kid in town arrived. For four days only, we...

After a long, cold and gloomy winter we can finally say – spring is in the air! Some parts of the reserve are carpeted in snowdrops and first daffodils have started to come out. Other sure signs of spring are the catkins on willows, first green buds on dog rose bushes and, off course, a beautiful...

Most of us would have forgotten -or never realised-, but the little patch of scrubs and bushes behind our feeding station was originally a pond. Over the years though, soil and fallen leaves have built up enough substrate to sustain the shrubs and reeds that now hide the little amount of water remaining...

It’s been another fantastic week at the reserve with beautiful weather, loads of visitors and some “first of the year” bird sightings. The number of species seen this year is now up to 85. The highlights of the week include a drake smew , which finally arrived on 21 February and is...

Hello from snow-covered Lochwinnoch! It’s beautiful today – everything is covered in a white layer and there’s a lot of birds on the feeders. Despite the snow, our brave contractors are working hard to finish habitat project on time. The rest of the week was very exciting too, with...

A week of grim weather slowed down the habitat work slightly, but thankfully it wasn’t to last and the contractors have been back hard at work almost as soon as the rain stopped. The temporary tracks They have progressed well since then, and even started working on the northern side...

It’s been raining a lot recently and water level at the Aird Meadow is very high, giving us a taste of what it is going to look like when the habitat work is completed. If you haven’t been to the reserve recently you might be very surprised how quickly the works are progressing! It was also...

What an amazing weather we’ve been having the last few days! Granted, not all of us enjoy freezing temperatures; but a cold, dry spell is best for our habitat work. Low water levels and hard ground meant that the contractors have been able to make a lot of progress. One of the new water...

It was another very exciting week at Lochwinnoch, with sparkling new shop re-opened on Sunday, a lot of work done on the Aird Meadow and a temporary crossing (which will be used to move spoil to improve the bund) completed. Cold weather has forced birds to seek food provided by humans, which means that...

It is a beautiful, crisp and frosty day here at Lochwinnoch, one of the days that are perfect for wildlife watching. There has been a lot of movement around the reserve, with diggers working on our new pond and contractors sprucing up the shop. We also had some amazing bird sightings in the past week...

After an amazing 2012, with 124 bird species recorded, it looks like we are set off for another record breaking year! Between 1 and 8 January 2012 we have recorded 52 species, this year it’s already 63! Barr Loch is still teeming with waterfowl – several hundred of wigeons were seen most...

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...

We've all had a very welcomed Christmas present this week - the diggers have been in action on the Aird Meadow! It has mostly been preparation work so far, but it seems like we've waited so long for this to finally happen, we should be popping the cork on the champagne to celebrate! Digger...

What a beautiful, frosty and crisp weather! Sun is shining brightly and all vegetation is covered in a layer of sparkling frost, turning the reserve into a really magical place. There is a lot of action on the lochs and at our feeding stations. Even though the weather was not always that good this week...

The first snow of this winter has fallen this week and the lochs are now frozen. Our Young Volunteers have decorated the visitor centre with the Christmas tree and colourful garlands, getting us all into a festive mood. On top of this the wildlife is not disappointing us. What else would we need to start...

What a cracking week at Lochwinnoch! Sun is shining brightly, lochs are deep blue and very calm, and the morning frost paints grasses and reeds white. Lochs and feeders at the reserve are absolutely bursting with birds – the big and the small. A place that at the moment is particularly good for...

Last week of November starts tomorrow and we can feel the winter drawing nearer and nearer with every day. Mornings and evenings are dark and gloomy, and the rest of the day is not much brighter, especially when low clouds are shrouding the entire area. But if you think it’s not worth to visit...

What an exciting time for RSPB Lochwinnoch! Our long-awaited and ambitious habitat redevelopment work is finally underway! Some of you might remember that, last summer, we asked you to support this project by responding to the planning application consultation. The response was amazing: We received...

It’s been raining almost constantly since Monday – not a perfect time for both people and wildlife. Heavy rainfall, fog and high winds may affect migrating birds, causing death of individuals, exhausted by the journey and struggle with the elements. At this time of year, it’s particularly...