Trip reports

Frampton Marsh and Freiston Shore

RSPB Images

Friday, 3 December 2010

Freiston Shore and Frampton Marsh were the topics of the talk on Friday 3rd December. Lewis James, now reserves manager for RSPB Cymru was once manager of these two reserves on the Lincolnshire side of the Wash. In 1982 there was a moratorium on further land reclamation from the sea and in 2001, at Freiston Shore, three breaches in the sea wall were made and the land began to return to its original condition. Now that there are saline lagoons and wet grassland the birds are coming back. 60 pairs of avocets breeding there, common terns nesting, along with ringed plover, knot, oystercatcher and black tailed godwit which all nest there.
As the facilities improve so the number of birders increase leading to a reporting of more species. These include curlew sandpiper, white rumped sandpiper, gannet, arctic and long tailed skua, sabines gull and little auk have all been seen.
With the creation of scrapes and ditches habitat for voles and other small mammals has improved and the healthy population of these animal has led to a growth in the number of predators such as marsh harrier and barn owl.
As for Frampton Marsh this is a very old salt marsh with a proliferation of winding creeks and a varied population of plantlife. Samphire is present, an important food supply for twite.
With the change in land use from oil seed rape and wheat to marshland, marsh harrier numbers have increased from 1 to 16 pairs in 15 years. There is a winter roost for hen harriers. Also short eared owl and skylark are seen as well as rarities such as buff bellied pipit
A new visitor centre has been built with a hide offering a 360 degree view of the site helping you to see wigeon, shoveller, yellowhammer, grey partridge, water rail, bearded tits, avocets, common sandpiper and oystercatcher .1500 people twitched oriental sandpiper so the reserve is on the list for good birding.
This was a fascinating talk covering the development of the reserves and showing great images of the birds that can now be seen there..