Marazion Marsh

Spring is back!

David Flumm — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 08:21:17 GMT

I would say "has arrived" but I said that back in March and then it disappeared! The last few days have seen a welcome increase in bird numbers to the reserve with all the warblers now in: Reed, Sedge, Blackcap and Willow in addition to our resident Cetti's and Chiffchaffs. Hirundines too are back in good numbers with 250 Swallows, 16 House Martins and 80 Sand Martins yesterday. Mind you they still don't look very happy and are spending a lot of time in the cold winds and damp weather just suitting around in the bushes and reeds - some are even resting on the ground. The 24th hosted a male Yellow wagtail and a Blue-headed Wagtail was around the day before with up to 20 White Wagtails. The 20th April was a red-letter day with sightings of Bittern (are they all still here?) Marsh Harrier and 2 Cranes. We've only ever recorded Crane twice previously, the last back in 2004. These two were seen by Cat Lee leaving the reedbed at the back of the marsh - just reward for the work she is doing here with the schoolchildren who all saw the birds too - and the Bittern to boot!

RNAS Culdrose

David Flumm — Fri, 05 Apr 2013 09:19:06 GMT

In my blog last month I raised our concerns about helicopter disturbance over the reedbeds here (see my Hayle Estuary blog for more on this). Well I'm very happy to say that following a meeting yesterday with the local Air Station, RNAS Culdrose, we have reached an agreement. They are to instruct their squadrons not to continue to fly over the two nature reserves in future. Whilst this may be too late this year for the nesting Grey Herons (only 2 of the 7 pairs are still present on nests), this is a major step forwards and I am extremely grateful to RNAS Culdrose for their cooperation.

The continued cold weather is really bad news for our birds at the moment, whether on or off the reserve. I've had Chiffchaffs hopping on the ground around my feet (one lady told me last week one had died right in front of her) and many of the Sand Martins have been sitting on the grass after presumably finding no flying insects over the reserve. Swallows too have been struggling although they have been relatively few in number. Wheatears and White Wagtails continue to arrive and appear to be faring better - no doubt helped by their habit of foraging for flies in the seaweed on the beach opposite. We still have two Bitterns and the pair of Gadwall I mentioned in my last blog. A drake Garganey flew in for a day on 2nd April. With the cold north-easters, we've also had three Adders sunbathing on the south-facing banks of our Cornish hedge which runs parallel to the seafront pavement. So watch where you put your hands if you are leaning against the wall next time you visit!

Has Spring come and gone already?

David Flumm — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 09:22:00 GMT

March has been a bit of a mixture with only a couple of warm, sunny days so far. As I write today, 14th March, winter appears to have returned and it was snowing again when I left the house this morning. We did experience a mini influx of "summer" migrants at one point when 5 Sand Martins turned up on 10th with 10 next day. A Swallow also put in a brief appearance on the latter date but nobody has seen these birds since and we fear they may have succumbed in the sub-zero overnight temperatures. Our first Wheatear of the year appeared a week ago and there were five on the beach two days back with three still here yesterday with a White Wagtail so perhaps they are faring better.

We still have 2-3 Bitterns, 2 Little Egrets and recently a pair of Gadwall appear to be staying. Whether this is due to the cold weather or as we would prefer to think, they are all staying on to breed only time will tell!

The reedbeds are livening up with Cetti's Warblers now singing and our nesting Herons are very active. However, we currently have an issue with helicopter disturbance and so far my liaisons with RNAS Culdrose, the main culprit have fallen on deaf ears - see my Hayle entry for more on this. If anyone witnesses any disturbance from low-flying helicopters over the reedbeds can you please contact me.

Many thanks and good birding.

Four Bitterns

David Flumm — Tue, 12 Feb 2013 09:31:30 GMT

I said four days ago that our four Bitterns had not been seen for a while and with only one bird seen regularly over the last couple of weeks, we assumed they had moved on. Not so! Yesterday all four put on quite a display from the viewing area on the seafront with birds flying up and down over the reedbeds throughout the day. Perhaps the better weather had encouraged them out - or perhaps, judging by the number of observers present, it was just us putting the time in for a change. I also said that the Grey Herons hadn't started to nest yet and consequently our regular Tuesday work parties have been able to continue with the reedbed management for longer than usual at this time of year. Well the Herons are back and we won't be working out there today as a result!

Recent sightings

David Flumm — Thu, 07 Feb 2013 11:34:28 GMT

Now that February is here we are expecting the reedbed-nesting Grey Herons to start nest-building any day but at the moment we are grateful the cold weather seems to be delaying this, enabling us to continue with our winter reedbed management across the site - mostly clearing invasive willow scrub.

There have been up to four Bitterns this winter but only one appears to be seen regularly at present. Wildfowl numbers have not been particularly high with Teal peaking at around 60 and Mallard 26 birds. A similar number of Moorhens (27) and one solitary Coot are also here but if the weather turns colder we would expect more. On the passerine-front, winter thrushes have been in very low numbers. Cetti's warblers are starting to sing again and we have half a dozen wintering Chiffchaffs using the reedbeds as is typical at this time of year.

If you are planning a visit, don't forget the Bay. There have been a number of Great Northern Divers on the sea, one of which took flight and flew off inland right over the marsh last week. To the east of the town a number of Red and Black-throated Divers have been present in "Little London" and yesterday I saw four Black Redstarts sheltering from the cold north-wester on the boulders nearer Penzance. Two of these were in beautiful adult male plumage.

For daily updates on bird sightings in general at a county level (and here in particular) don't forget to check the 'Recent Sightings' page on the local birding website: www.cbwps.org.uk

Good birding!

Starlings are decreasing

David Flumm — Mon, 03 Dec 2012 15:16:53 GMT

As often happens at this time of year, the huge numbers of Starlings that we enjoy in November start to disappear; we are never sure why but it may be something to do with the fact that the weight of so many individuals per reedstem and the consequent flattening and finally breaking of so much of the reedbed area, coupled with the rising water levels may be connected! We suspect they have found somewhere higher and dryer than our reserve which, in spite of our efforts to keep the water levels stable, has almost disappeared under water recently - in common with the rest of the county. There are still a few thousand birds but nothing approaching the 200,000 we estimated one evening recently. That's approximately 16 tonnes of Starlings!

We still have a Bittern about the place and a few Little Egrets. Snipe numbers are starting to increase as one would expect with the colder weather. On 30th November, three Goldeneye popped in briefly to settle on Longrock Pool.

In spite of all the rain, our school days have been very well attended and our RSPB Education Officer, Catherine Lee has taken several local primary schools out over the last two months with 34 pupils in October and 106 in November. We have a further 47 booked for December.

If you are planning a visit, don't forget to have a look at the sea opposite the reserve. In the last week, Mount's Bay has held up to 9 Great Northern Divers, 40 Common and 2 Velvet Scoter and, nearer Penzance, a drake Eider.

Starlings are increasing

David Flumm — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 16:42:15 GMT

Following my post 12 days ago I can confirm the Starlings are still here - and increasing in numbers. At the weekend we estimated 200,000 birds coming into roost in the reedbeds at dusk. On Saturday night they were even joined by a Swallow! Oh and the Bittern is still here, if very elusive. Our work party of volunteers saw it flying over the reedbed north of the railway line today. As mentioned before, there are some good videos of the Starling murmurations on the local county birding website: www.cbwps.org.uk under their Sightings page.

Starlings are back!

David Flumm — Thu, 08 Nov 2012 11:30:40 GMT

Over the last few days the numbers of Starlings coming in to roost in the reedbeds at Marazion Marsh have increased dramatically and we now reckon there may be 30,000 birds involved. This is still only a handful compared to the 2-3 million that used to be found firteen plus years ago but sadly this is a reflection of the demise of the European population over this period. Our own British Starlings largely declined before this period but numbers have been augmented each winter by their overseas cousins from places like Hungary and Poland - but we now know these populations are also declining now. So come and enjoy the evening pre-roost murmurations if you are passing this way. They often don't stay long at this time of year, moving on to other places in December or January for reasons we don't fully understand. These "other places" have been Loe Pool, Helston, St Michael's Mount, St Ives, Pendeen and Newquay in the past - to name just a few. There is a good video of the flocks gathering at Marazion on the local county CBWPS website under their 'Sightings' page for 7th November - worth having a look.

The arrival of these winter visitors coincide with the departure of our summer visitors of course but we still have the odd Swallow about - one here on 6th November. We've also had a single Bittern over the last few weeks but it has only been seen a couple of times so far. The beach has also held Wheatear and Black Redstart in the last few days and offshore a few Dark-bellied Brent Geese, a couple of Great Northern Divers and a Slavonian Grebe have been seen.

Good birding!

Latest sightings

David Flumm — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 09:29:54 GMT

After the excitement of 6th October with the seven Glossy Ibises and seven Red-rumped Swallows, things have returned to normal! The seven Glossy Ibises may still be in west Cornwall, however, as four birds continue to be seen in the Sennen area and a couple have been found at Carn Euny, Sancreed with a single bird seen sporadically at a number of places - including back on the marsh here on 16th October. The Red-rumps were around for a couple of days only but Barn Swallows continue to be seen occasionally. We are now nearing the end of October and as usual at this time of year the first Firecrests are turning up with their commoner congeners, Goldcrests. Our first Bittern of the autumn has been seen a couple of times since 16th but generally remains elusive. Water Rails can now be heard calling from the reedbeds at various places and there are one or two Kingfishers about. It has been a poor autumn here for the latter and I wonder if they've had a bad breeding season up-country (they don't nest in west Cornwall) as a result of the heavy rains. Perhaps their nests were flooded out?

If you are visiting, don't forget to check the beach for waders and the Bay for Common Scoter and other waterfowl. Slavonian Grebes are often seen towards the Penzance end of the Bay from around now and yesterday, 23rd there was a beautiful Great Northern Diver in full summer plumage just offshore opposite the marsh.

Red-rumped Swallows and Glossy Ibis

David Flumm — Mon, 08 Oct 2012 14:51:12 GMT

We've had a particularly exciting autumn at Marazion Marsh this year. It has probably been one of the best for catching up with Spotted Crake, as mentioned in my earlier blog, with up to three birds and one on show for 40 days. They appear to have left now but this last weekend has been just amazing with the arrival of 7 Red-rumped Swallows and 7 Glossy Ibis! Unfortunately the Ibis only flew over (on Saturday, 6th October) before being relocated at Sennen Cove, Land's End 45 minutes later but the swallows stayed two days, Friday and Saturday with a single bird lingering to Sunday, 7th October.

We have witnessed multiple arrivals of Ibis before, although the last record at Marazion involved just a single individual, 27th - 28th September 2009 and they remain of course a very rare bird to Britain from southern Europe. We are wondering whether this species may stay and breed in Britain one year, following in the footsteps of related 'herons' such as Purple Heron, Great White and Cattle Egret and Little Bittern all of which have bred successfully in southern England in the last few years - and all on RSPB Nature Reserves!

Red-rumped Swallows are another one of those rare, southern European species which occasionally reach our shores - although not usually in flocks like this! At Marazion, we have just one previous autumn record - of a single bird on 19th August 1998. Very occasionally 2-3 may turn up but in my nearly 50-years of birding, I've only ever seen a handful of singletons so to have a whole flock on our reserve takes some beating. They were sharing the airspace with 120 Barn Swallows on Saturday and a handful of House Martins. All these birds are really quite late in the year to be seen in such numbers - but then it has been a late breeding season and I've had Barn Swallows in the nest at home which only just fledged last week! Red-rumpeds don't breed here of course but will have arrived on the strong south-easterly winds which have been such a feature of late. If you are here birding at the moment, you are probably in for a treat as the winds are set to continue - goodness knows what else is out there!

Good birding!

Crake update

David Flumm — Wed, 29 Aug 2012 09:10:00 GMT

As of 28th August we still have the juvenile Spotted Crake that our volunteer ringer, Margaret Rawlins trapped on 14th August. As it was first sighted on 11th August, it has been present at least 18 days now and is reported most days - when visitors have the patience to wait long enough! It has now been joined by an adult (since 25th) and although they can both be elusive, an early morning visit seems to be the best time to see them. If you are visiting the marsh in the next few days it is certainly worth a look - from the public footpath at the standing stone by the bridge. Please stand behind (not on top of!) the bank we have made to prevent disturbance. Unfortunately we don't have any more ringers coming until 8th September so it is unlikely we will have any more reports of Aquatic Warblers until then.

Our first migrant Aquatic Warbler & Spotted Crake have arrived

David Flumm — Wed, 15 Aug 2012 13:52:00 GMT

Photo of juvenile Aquatic Warbler at Marazion Marsh 12th August 2012. Photo courtesy Paul Freestone.

Right on cue, the weekend 11th & 12th August produced our first Aquatic Warbler (trapped and ringed Sunday morning) and Spotted Crake of the autumn. Last year the volunteer ringers caught two Aquatics but no Spotted Crakes were discovered so lets hope these birds are the first of a flurry. The Crake was found in one of the mist nets on Tuesday morning by Margaret Rawlins, a ringer from Cheshire who also helped out last year for a week. Unfortunately the weather has now taken a turn for the worst so Margaret's efforts have been suspended at the moment until calmer and dryer conditions return.

We lower the water levels at the front of the marsh at this time of year to "mimic natural drawdown" as we say in the trade i.e. to allow air into the system to help with reed litter and other vegetative decomposition. By allowing water levels to drop in late summer this aeration process helps address the build up of compost-like material which collects during the year. It also helps the ringers wade out to access nets set deep within the reedbed which they would otherwise normally only be able to reach by boat! it was in one of these that the Aquatic Warbler was found. The muddy areas are also attracting other birds too: Water Rail, Moorhen, Green and Common Sandpipers, Redshank, Ruff, Greenshank and Dunlin. Today a lone Wood Sandpiper turned up, our first of the year.

If you are planning a visit and are fortunate enough to see one of these, please check the legs and let us know if it is ringed or not - you may have found another!

Good birding.

May & June update

David Flumm — Fri, 22 Jun 2012 09:00:48 GMT

In spite of the awful weather, our breeding birds appear to have done quite well and there are now numerous broods of Mallards and Moorhens on the marsh. The reedbed-nesting Grey Herons also seem to have done okay but as always it is difficult to see the young birds in the nests at this time of year (most have already fledged) with the tall reed growth.

An Otter has been paying regular visits to Longrock Pool at the western end of the reserve, much to the delight of visitors. We know we have a number of Otters around the reserve but Longrock Pool is really the only area big and open enough to actually see one, the meandering and overgrown channel network in the reedbeds making similar observations there difficult to say the least.

With all the rain, our water levels have remained high in contrast to this time last year and this should help our dragonfly and amphibian populations. We already have Broad-bodied Chaser and Common Darter dragonflies on the wing and a number of frogs and toads emerging. If you are visiting soon keep a lookout for migrant Hummingbird Hawkmoths, a number of which have been reported recently in the neighbourhood, if not yet on the reserve.

Good birding/dragonfly/moth/amphibian & Otter watching!

Dave Flumm

Site Manager

Guided Walk at Marzion Marsh Monday 14th and Saturday 19th May

Jenny Parker — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 16:24:51 GMT

At this time of year the marsh comes alive with the sound of birdsong as migrant warblers return from Africa to breed. The Warden will spend the morning showing visitors the best places to see sedge warblers, sand martins and much more.

Meet: Marazion Marsh (SW514312) opposite small private car park
Time: 9am - 11am
Bring: Suitable outdoor clothing, binoculars.
Cost: £3
Booking: Essential

For more information contact Jenny Parker on 01736 360624 or email jenny.parker@rspb.org.uk

Visit Steve Rogers website to see beautiful photos of a migrant black-tailed godwit

Jenny Parker — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 14:35:57 GMT

This adult Black-tailed Godwit has been present at Marazion Marsh for the last few days. The species is not normally seen at this site. This individual is presumably tracking north towards Iceland, where the majority of Cornish wintering birds breed. This bird is not quite in full summer plumage but nonetheless, a smart looker. The best places to see good numbers of wintering Black-tailed Godwits in Cornwall are the Camel Estuary, Tresillian and Truro Rivers.

http://www.swopticsphoto.com/2012/04/migrant-black-tailed-godwit.html