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Wow how timely was the end of our sea defence improvements? On Sunday 27 th November, with very little notice, a tidal surge came down the North Sea and created a huge increase in the height of the tides along the Norfolk and Suffolk coast. This did have an impact on the reserve with dunes eroded, certain...

On Sunday a celebration of the Coastal Change Project to thank our funders turned out to be amazing day for all. The two characters that sum it up are not characters of the alphabet like O and K (OK) or B and I (the shorthand code for bittern) but the unique characters of Titchwell Marsh and Chris Packham...

I think I had such a good turn out on Thursday morning because most people thought I had said BEACH party and wondered where the cold beer and BBQ was! In fact, it was a unique opportunity for the staff and volunteers to get up close and personal with the new breach. Earlier in the month (see Rob’s...

No, I don't mean Sir Trevor McDonald. Nor Matt Baker off The One Show. I am, of course, referring to Chris Packham! The BBC Springwatch/Autumnwatch presenter also happens to be the RSPB's Vice-President, and will be paying Titchwell Marsh a visit on Sunday 16th October. Don't get too excited...

Yesterday saw us breach the brackish marsh sea wall and all my excitement and nervousness came to a head. It was an early start so just after 7am, I was stood on the wall as the digger started to remove the planned breach. Preparations earlier in the week meant that it was quite a quick affair and...

Four days until the breach and I’m feeling excited but a little nervous. It’s not a huge task and I have every faith in our contractors Lancaster Earth Moving to do it well, but it is going to be a big deal. I may have only been the site manager for six years but I have been birdwatching...

Our contractors are cracking on a great pace and at the moment I’m finding it hard to keep up. Although this years work program is less complicated there are a lot of smaller but no less important jobs. The completion of the new sea wall along the Parrinder line is almost there and work on improving...

We are trying something new. Shingle has been placed on one of the islands on the fresh marsh hoping to encourage ground nesting birds. This in itself is not a new idea but in addition we have put some shingle in an usual location - on top of our new sea defence. Little terns used to nest regularly...

When we were creating the new west bank last summer, the final job was toput down a layer of topsoil to allow the vegetation to regenerate. As part of the process we lightly seeded the banks with a grass mix but we have been pleasantly surprised by the other species that have established themselves....

Last week, the first avocet nest, (‘Twiggy’ as she was affectionately called for her nest DIY skills), hatched 4 fluffy little chicks. There is now a grand total of at least 26 avocet chicks loose on the freshmarsh. Parent avocets (with 8 legs) can be seen close to the Parrinder hide brooding...

From this... On Saturday 18 September the new Parrinder hides will open and we can't wait to show you what we have done with the place. The new hides have been a long time coming and I don't mind admitting I've had a few sleepless nights. It has taken a few years and a lot of work from...

Well it's day 204 of the coastal change project and we are starting to see the hides take shape. The walls are coming up and the north hide has a roof. Despite the good progress we have lost some time due to the weather but hopefully everyone will feel it was worth the wait. The views from the hide...

The sight of a thirty ton crane is pretty impressive but thankfully it is not of the avian (Grus grus) kind. A thirty ton bird would be pretty devastating to the foodchain of the reserve. So why do we have a large crane on site? Well its the next exciting phase of the coastal change project which will...

At long last, we are starting to see the new Parrinder Hide take shape as the contractors start to construct the concrete retaining walls. Although I have never built my own house, I get the same sense of excitement trying to work out where the steps and ramps will be going and what the view will be...

When you walked along the west bank path, you may have heard bubbling water going under the path. Locally know as the ‘coffeepot’ because of the noise it makes, this pipe allows all the water that we don’t need to leave the site. As part of the improvement works, we are replacing the...

While out on site at the end of last week with one of the RSPB ecologists, we ‘re-discovered’ a colony of small red-eyed damselflies on the new reedbed area. This is a very exciting find as it shows that after only one year, this new habitat is starting to be colonised. Small red-eyed...

No it's not a bittern booming from the reedbed but mortars booming from the brackish marsh. It would appear that battles have always occured at Titchwell and always will. Some of these battles are subtle like the small mites that lay their eggs in the leaves of trees so that their young have a...

T he floating excavator has been doing its worse over the last couple of weeks. Now that the reed has been cut, the main job of removing it can start. Reed can be a very invasive plant species if the growth is left un-checked and unfortunately that is what has happened on the fresh marsh. The reed has...

After a long wait, Year 2 of the Coastal Project started in earnest today. The floating excavator rumbled into life this morning and headed out through the reedbed onto the fresh marsh. I must admit, it was a slightly surreal sight sat in the hide watching a 30 tonne machine crossing the lagoon and...

What is the beast appearing out of the reedbed? Well it's the first weapon of choice in our battle against the reed encroachment on the fresh marsh. As part of this years coastal change project we are improving the habitat on the fresh marsh. To do this we are employing some very specialist...

The last few months have flown by and the second phase of our coastal change project is about to start. The build up has involved lots of planning as this year is probably the most complex with work taking place in three locations and the replacement Parrinder hide being constructed. Similar to last...

During the past few months the Brackish marsh at Titchwell has been fully drained of water. This has been done to allow the construction of a new sea wall, preparing for the breaching of the current seawall in 2011. This breaching will mean that the brackish marsh will be open to the sea and on most...

Well the sun is truely shining upon us. The weather is so good in fact that the contractors have been complaining that it's a bit dusty! Work on the project is firing on all cylinders in fact if you tot up the machinery on site it would probably shock you how many cylinders. The main job is focusing...

No we're not having a concert, but hopefully the birds will make a bit of a song about the work when it is finished. The Titchwell Marsh Coastal Change Project has been on the go for 32 days, and things are moving fast. The latest monster machine on site is the piling rig. This is no ordinary...

Blimey! Back in the office today after a pretty exciting day on the reserve yesterday seeing all the work going on. Having spent the past five years working on the Coastal Change Project it is quite difficult to put into words what it is like to finally seeing it all happening. There have been so many...