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After an incredible holiday in Arizona, adding plenty of colourful new birds to my life list, I'm fighting the jet lag and noticing through hazy eyes that spring has erupted while I've been away. It seemed quite strange coming home to see our gloves and winter clothes laying around from the cold...

The daffs are done, the bluebells are blooming - lovely! - it's well worth a visit this weekend. It will be fantastic if the weather stays warm and sunny as forecast, and since trees are late coming into leaf it should be a great opportunity to actually see our woodland birds in full song. We have...

Our chainsaw sculptor Patrick is busy creating an amazing sculpture in the bluebell wood. This will mark a small and beautiful corner of the reserve where people can remember their passed loved ones. If you pop down this week, you will see it all happening. Once it's all cleared up, it should look...

With the winds turning to the south and a warmer feel to proceedings, the first spring migrants have slowly been appearing. After last weeks chiffchaff, several swallows were over the reserve at the weekend and sand martins have been in the local area as well.We are just waiting for our first willow...

Just a whisper....I think spring is in the air at last! We've had two days of almost unbroken sunshine and its arrived just in time for the children and youngsters to come up and enjoy being outdoors in their school holidays. After the success of the weekends Easter Trail, I decided to leave the...

Easter is nearly here, the sun is shining at last and it looks like a decent weekend ahead! Our Easter Trail will be on from Good Friday to Easter Monday ( 10am-3pm- £2 per trail sheet) for the youngsters to take part in, with a little chocolate treat as a reward. Come along to The Lodge and enjoy...

Having just returned from a week in the West Country, where torrential rain and gale force winds battered the area, I returned on the train on Sunday and watched as the fields turned from miles of flooded land to a landscape of frozen winter white countryside. The first sight I had at The Lodge this...

With winter still in the air the mixed flock of finches is still keeping us and our visitors and photographers well entertained. The cacophany of finch song greeted me this morning and good numbers of siskins and redpolls were still around and feeding on and under the feeders. The weather looks pretty...

With winter still in the air the mixed flock of finches is still keeping us and our visitors and photographers well entertained. The cacophany of finch song greeted me this morning and good numbers of siskins and redpolls were still around and feeding on and under the feeders. The weather looks pretty...

I took a walk around the reserve yesterday and it was hard to think we are still in January. Great tits, robins, goldcrests and even a mistle thrush were singing, the snowdrops are coming up and it felt just too mild for a winters day. I noticed that the temperature at 8pm last night was around 10 degrees...

Just a reminder that The Lodge Food Fayre that was scheduled for this weekend is regrettably cancelled.However, with the wisteria blossoming,cuckoo's calling, hobbies on the wing and The Lodge looking its very best in its spring finery, it will be a great weekend for a visit.

Another day of blue skies, hot sunshine and lots of visitors.....just perfect! We have been watching a splendid male wheatear from the Easter bunny watch point on Sandy Ridge this afternoon.It must have arrived overnight as we didn't see him yesterday. It's a remarkable thought that it's...

After a seemingly long, dull spell of weather,The Lodge has burst into Spring with blue skies and bright sunshine over the last few days. Although we had a sharp frost last night, with temperatures down to -5 degrees, it's sunshine all the way again today.The first daffodils have appeared along the...

It's my first day in for a few days and just taking a quick check around the reserve I notice the first buds are peeping through on the willow outside the Gatehouse.It doesn't feel like Spring on a cold, wet day, but for nature, new life is well underway. I heard at least two noisy nuthatches...

After the windy, dull weather of the last week,everyone seems to have a smile on thier face today . Following a hard overnight frost the sun came up and we have clear blue skies and it even feels warm! The birds are singing away, I can hear a robin, coal tit and great tit chattering away outside the...