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With all the dodgy weather about recently, the forecast for this morning looked decent so Georgie and I took the opportunity to get our first survey done. Despite still being early in the season, it is time to start listening for bitterns. A pre-dawn visit ( we were up at 4am) is required but despite...

If you have ever been to Asia, you will have probably been past or even birded a local rubbish dump (I kid you not!) and seen large numbers of gulls, storks and raptors feeding on leftovers. It is an amazing sight watching hundreds of black kites circling in the air together. Well we have something...

This week has seen good daytime conditions. On Monday we had a pied flycatcher, blackcap, yellowhammer and good sightings of bullfinches in the woods between the car park and the (new) East trails. There have also been high numbers of jays on the reserve, with up to 25 being seen in the the same area...

Since the confirmation of an active bittern nest over the Jubilee Weekend we have been fortunate to have the female feeding in the borrow pits by the main path. Attracted by the large amount of rudd that are present in the pools, she has been showing well at times. This photo, taken recently from the...

The weird weather around this spring has played havoc with the breeding season but finally things are starting to happen. The poor weather in April and May has set back the breeding season by several weeks so we are only just starting to see some interesting activity. After last years peak, avocets...

Following the dodgy weather of the Easter break, back to work and conditions improve! Not a bad thing for us as we are now into the thick of the breeding season survey work. With calm conditions this morning we have been able to get out and check the reedbed for bitterns and bearded tits. Unfortunately...

Well It is the end of 2011 so I couldn't resist the obligatory best bits post. Why not let us know your best bit by leaving a comment. Record waterfowl numbers on the reserve This year has seen the highest numbers of waterfowl ever recorded on the reserve. A few years ago I would have got very...

Our reserve has come up with another 13 species to raise my list total to 899. Four new moths - cream wave , white-line dart , square-spot rustic and frosted orange - came via the moth trap. I have always maintained that not enough attention is paid to the wildlife in the car park, and the last few...

Firstly, some advice...don’t go away on holiday as you are bound to miss something! I have just got back from a 2-week birding trip to the US to find out that there has been an explosion in bittern activity. Just before I left, we had been recording an increase in bittern activity and suspected...

Picture taken on guided walk Friday 14/5/10