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| the meadow in late February |
I missed my weekly visit to the Reserve during the half term break and also missed the work party last Saturday, so I was expecting to see a few differences on my Tuesday morning visit. Although a chilly wind was blowing, the sun had some warmth on my back, the sky was blue and the birds were singing. The "meet and greet" Robin was in full voice by the gate, and moreover there were signs of spring everywhere - fresh green foliage on the Hemlock Water Dropwort, Celandines in flower, catkins on the Hazel and Alder, Snowdrops near the entrance and Frogspawn in the pond. Here is my report:
Birds:
SC210694 Robin singing; 2 x Goldfinch.
SC209694 ( hide) Heron; Blackbird.
SC209694 ( elsewhere) Blackbird; Chaffinch heard not seen; 2 x jackdaw flying over; 2 x Great Tit; Robin feeding on the ground; 8 x Woodpigeon flying over; Wren.
SC208694 2 x Long-tailed tit (seen in Alder by boardwalk and again under the willows); Robin; 3 x Great Tit together; Woodpigeon; Chaffinch heard not seen; Magpie flying over; Blackbird foraging on the ground.
SC208695 ( on or near feeders) 2 x Long-tailed Tit; Coal Tit; 3 x Great Tit; 5 x Goldfinch; Wren; Robin; 2 x Blue Tit; 3 x Chaffinch ( 2 male, 1 female).
SC208695 ( elsewhere) Greenfinch; Blackbird.
SC209695 female Chaffinch preening; another Chaffinch singing nearby; Goldfinch; Great Tit; 6 x Goldfinch; 2 x Blue Tit.
Other:
SC209694 3 balls of Frogspawn.
SC209694 Marsh Marigold in bud.
SC210694 2 x clumps of Snowdrops in flower.
SC209694 Celandines in full flower.
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| Blackbird |
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| this Chaffinch paused to preen and listen to a male Chaffinch singing |
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| Coal Tit |
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| Great Tit |
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| Long Tailed Tit |
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| They were in the Alder by the boardwalk |
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| foraging Robin |
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| Frogspawn at last! |
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| a full month later than in my own garden pond |
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| Marsh Marigolds in bud |
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| Hazel catkins and fresh Hawthorn leaves |
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| Celandines |
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| Hemlock Water Dropwort is back! |
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| Snowdrops |
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| Willows in bud |
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| a new dead hedge near the boardwalk |
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| usual view from boardwalk |
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| this view is now quite different |
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| dead hedge made from storm casualty willow |
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| looking back |
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| usual view of the bird hide |
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| usual view from the hide ramp |
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| looking through the hide shutters |
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| no wildfowl today, but my arrival disturbed a Heron |
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| the dragonfly pond |
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| and from the opposite direction |
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| looking along the gorse boundary |
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| with gorse in flower |
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| under the willows |
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| looking towards the compost area |
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| looking across the reed bed |
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| usual shot of the reed bed bend |
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| additional work has been done on dead hedge by feeders |
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| a final glance over my shoulder as I leave |
With March now in sight the amount of biodiversity on the Reserve is set to escalate!
please click on photos to enlarge them
