High winds and plenty of rain means autumn is well and truly here – so much for an Indian summer!
But despite the drab weather, there’s still plenty of colour to see up on the reserve if you look close enough.
There have been plenty of sightings of wheatear in the past couple of weeks, as this sleek and colourful bird starts its journey south for the winter. It can often be spotted on the gravel paths around Newport Wetlands, particularly on the foreshore as it frequently stops off near the coast on migration. Check out the photograph of a wheatear having a stand-off with a blue tit posted on our forum.
Sightings of kestrel, sparrowhawk, hobbies, buzzards and marsh harrier still abound with a peregrine spotted on Saturday 3rd September and our little owls are still putting on a show.
There’s been plenty of colour in the form of a kingfisher on Saturday 3rd, sightings of several yellow wagtails and plenty of bearded tits still being seen.
Another migrant spotted on August 29th was a tree pipit. This ground nesting red listed species will be leaving our shores this month for Portugal before going on to Africa. And the tree pipit wasn’t the only red listed species to be seen, as a wood warbler was spotted just the day before on August 28th. This bird should now have left Britain as it usually sets off on its migration in July and August and may well have been one of the last to leave.