Ballachurry Reserve: Tuesday afternoon, 16th September, 2025.

Apologies for late posting of this account - I did not have time to organise the photos before going away on holiday.

shutters open and a sense of expectation!

  I was busy on Tuesday morning but after a hasty lunch I headed down to Ballachurry Reserve, anxious to make the most of a sunny afternoon. What anticipation as I approached the hide knowing that there was now a lovely expanse of water just outside the shutters! Would there be any wildlife after just 24 hours? Unfortunately not! At least nothing on the water, although I eventually saw a few birds in the hedge at the back. Here is my report:

Birds:

SC208694 Robin; Blackbird; Wren. 

SC208695 Robin; Chiffchaff; Goldfinch.

SC209695 Song Thrush, male and juvenile Blackbirds all in the popular Rowan tree taking berries; Robin.

SC209694 ( from hide)  4 x Goldfinch in hedge at the back of the pond; 2 x Wren  flew in together, 1 then worked along the edge of the pond in the vegetation; juvenile Blackbird.

SC209694 ( elsewhere) Blackbird on Rowan berries; 2 x Blackbirds near dragonfly pond.

Butterflies & Moths:

SC209694 Speckled Wood; 2 x Red Admiral; Small Copper.

SC208694 Small White; Red Admiral; Comma; Large White; Speckled Wood x 4.  

SC208694 unidentified moth in grass. (possibly Flame Carpet, tbc)

SC209694   2 x very small moths on Cushag/ Ragwort.

Other:

SC208694 2 x Common Darter on boardwalk, male and female 7 planks apart.

SC209694 unidentified blue Hawker over main pond.

SC209694 Green Shieldbug on bramble leaf.

SC209694 Sulphur Tuft fungi on path.

SC208695  4 x Pestle Puffball fungi under willows and birch.

SC209693  Redlead Roundhead fungi and also unidentified brown fungi.

SC208695 unidentified orange fungi on path.

SC208694 funnel fungi still there.

SC208694 white fungi on path.

SC209694 footballer Hoverfly on Cushag /Ragwort.

SC209695 Common Oak Spangle Galls ( caused by Neuroterus quercusbaccarum gall wasp)

Blackbird taking Rowan berries

this one is a juvenile

I Spy with my beady eye!

Song Thrush

definitely the favourite tree on the Reserve at present

 

Blackbird and Thrush happy to share

Speckled Wood

 

Small White

Small Copper

Comma

the white comma that gives it its name just visible

this may be a Flame Carpet - checking

 

tiny moth on Cushag

male Common Darter

female Common Darter

 male and female Common Darters just a few planks apart

Green Shieldbug

Oak Spangle galls

2 species of fungi growing together

the funnels are long lasting

there are fungi on most paths at the moment

biro shows scale  of this Pestle Puffball

Redlead Roundheads

Sulphur Tuft fungi

Sulphur Tuft gills

unknown White fungi

the "usual view" of the hide now looks quite different!

this view will eventually be screened from the footpath

my final photo from this angle to avoid future disturbance

inside the hide

new view through the shutters looking left

through the shutters looking right

through the shutters looking straight ahead

through the side shutter

usual view from the ramp

usual view looking towards the boardwalk

looking back along the boardwalk

view from the boardwalk

looking back to the hide across the meadow

near the compost area

the dragonfly pond

but no dragonflies seen there today

the view from the bench

the reed bed near the boardwalk

and the main reed bed  near the hide

the meadow as last I saw it

Since my last visit to the Reserve the meadow has been cut and there has also been a Work Party undertaking various tasks, so I am looking forward to my next visit to see all the changes.

please click on the photos to enlarge them 

Ballachurry Reserve: 15th September, 2025 - Pond Renovation. Part Two.

 Here are some video clips of the pond renovation work last Monday. It would be lovely to join them all together into " Ballachurry - the Movie" but unfortunately the Blogger program restricts each clip to a few seconds only.

A few days later a report came in of Reed Warblers and Water Rails . Although I have returned to do some wildlife recording there I was not lucky enough to see them. Small birds such as Wrens, Goldfinches and Chiffchaffs quickly returned to the vegetation at the back of the pond however and I hope to post my sightings of these in the not too distant future. 

Ballachurry Reserve: 15th September, 2025 - Pond Renovation. Part One.

 Monday, 15th September, 2025 was a significant day in the history of Ballachurry Reserve! 

Since it was originally dug in 2007 the pond has silted up with mud carried down by it's feeder stream. "Natural succession" was taking place with plants colonising the mud and, although it was always planned to have a large reed bed, in eighteen years the reeds have advanced halfway across the original pond area. The area of open water has been steadily decreasing over the years and if any was left during 2025 it was certainly impossible to see it from the bird hide! 

All that changed rather dramatically on Monday when a JCB and owner-driver, Steve Maddrell, arrived on site not only to dig out part of the original pond but to change its profile completely and extend it into the area to the side of the bird hide as well. 

Firstly, let's just remember what the area looked like only last week;

 Now, let's watch the work unfold on what was a miserable day with gale force winds and persistent rain.

8.30 a.m. JCB ready and waiting

gates off

rain started just at the wrong moment

reversing in

those spots are raindrops on the lens

off through the glade towards the pond

the grass will soon recover

in position, MWT's David Bellamy capturing the moment

the first scoop!

the pile grows steadily larger

water again visible!

starting to look like a pond again

a change of direction

no going back now!

working on steadily through the rain

a river of mud!

all spectators keeping safe and dry in the hide

work progressed very rapidly.......

watched by MWT's David Bellamy, Southern Group's Karen Griffiths, and myself

will he ever get out again?

buckets of vegetation........

give way to  buckets of mud and water

about to turn the corner

right down to the original clay base now

the JCB has a very long reach

about to start on the new area

Unfortunately  another commitment meant I had to leave at 10 o'clock. Just as I left the JCB had a minor breakdown so I left on a bit of a cliffhanger!  12.30 saw me back again to see what progress had been made. The answer was - quite a lot!  Minor breakdown overcome, I'm glad to say. 

still raining on my return so I headed for the hide

 

this looked like progress indeed - a bespoke mud flat!

new view through the shutters

water goes nearly to the path junction

 

a final consultation

then work continues

when the rain eased off I took some distant shots from outdoors

It was hard to tear myself away but after an hour or so I headed home for some lunch. When I returned  the job was finished and I was just in time to see Steve leaving the Reserve.

past the noticeboard.......

out through the gate......

and homeward bound around 3.30ish - a very good day's work!

 Of course I  was excited to return to the hide to see the final result of all Steve's hard work.  Yes, it looks raw without the greenery but I couldn't keep the smile off my face! The new pond profile has brought the water almost up to the hide itself and should be wonderful for bird watching in future. With the reed bed still in situ the pond now looks almost like a meander in a river and once screened from the footpaths once more should become a haven for wildlife. 

Here are my final photos: 

Congratulations to the Manx Wildlife Trust and its Southern Group Committee for "grasping the nettle" to undertake this work and many thanks to Steve Maddrell for making their vision a reality.

 

I hope to post some videos of the work in Part Two eventually, but that will take me a little longer. Meanwhile here is my favourite photo of the reserve. Once the water clears and the greenery comes back this will be a wonderful place for wildlife and people alike. 

 

 

 please click on photos to enlarge them