Hi everyone!
It's been a blog-tastic week! So many things to say!
Today I'm going to update you with what we have seen so far in April, and perhaps tomorrow I will tell you all about the Easter holiday activities for kids (the Wacky Wildlife Adventures for 7-13 year olds still has spaces if you want to book your children in!), and possibly share the next 'people of Rye Meads' story!
So far this month we have seen:
Visitor Centre Grounds - song thrush, blackbird, robin, blue tit, great tit, green finch, chaffinch, dunnock, wren, blackcap, linnet, whitethroat, kestrel (a pair seem to be investigating the box), buzzard (4 were seen flying over on 8 April), pheasant, mallard, magpie, orange tip butterfly, brimstone butterfly and small white butterfly.
Draper hide - pochard, tufted duck, mallard (including a female with 13 young!), gadwall, shoveler, teal, shelduck, duck hybrid (the mystery duck - we think baikal teal cross), little grebe, coot, moorhen, mute swan, Canada goose, snipe, lapwing, green sand piper, little ringed plover, oystercatcher, chiffchaff, reed warbler, sedge warbler, cettis warbler, blackcap, and green woodpecker.
Mystery duck picture by Michael Haagman - we think its a baikal teal hybrid
Ashby hide - gadwall, mallard, teal, pochard, tufted duck, mute swan, Canada goose, great spotted woodpecker, chiffchaff, cettis warbler, sedge warbler, blue tit, great tit, robin, and blackbird.
Great action shot of a pochard by Matthew Foakes
Lagoon hides (Tern and Gadwall hides) - garganey (male and female on 9 April), pochard, teal, shoveler, shelduck, mallard, gadwall, mute swan, Canada goose, cormorant, little grebe, great crested grebe, cettis warbler, reed bunting, black headed gull, common gull, lesser black backed gull, yellow legged gull, and two comon terns were spotted on 14 April.
Little grebe picture taken by Matthew Foakes - aren't they great lil birds!
Kingfisher hide - kingfisher (we think the pair are sitting on eggs, although they have been seen quite well), gadwall, mallard, teal, Canada goose, coot, moorhen, grey heron, blue tit, great tit, robin and kestrel (the pair were also spotted hanging around and investigating both boxes on the pylon).
This lovely shot of the grey heron is by Peter Hewitt
Trails - reed bunting, song thrush, bullfinch, chaffinch, green finch, blue tit, great tit, chiffchaff, robin, blackbird, wren, dunnock, blackcap, cettis warbler, sedge warbler, green woodpecker, great spotted woodpecker, sparrowhawk, kestrel, comma butterfly, brimstone butterfly, small tortoiseshell butterfly, red admiral butterfly, small white butterfly, speckled wood butterfly, and orangetip butterfly.