Catch up post.. Thursday 23rd March 2017

A busy few days, with winter having another go before hopefully letting go and giving spring a chance to break through.

A round up of activities, a leaflet dispenser at the entrance to the reserve has been a huge success and has been filled up three times in just four days, ok so it only hold six of the reserve leaflets due to their size but it shows that people are interested, or they just needed some paper...

The Bumblebee Conservation Trust in the shape of Sinead Lynch has partnered with the Sandy Water Park Residents Association and the council to introduce pollinator areas in Sandy Water Park (SWP), initially just a couple of plots each approx' 3sqm sown with a perennial meadow mix and a nursery mix of annuals. So a morning of sunshine and showers saw the volunteer conservation rangers along with Sinead and Simeon Jones the  county's conservation officer labouring away. opps no photo of any work being done..!

Today I returned to a property in Tycroes where the owner wants a Barn Owl box put up on the edge of his wood overlooking some rough grazing, he tell me that he's had Barn Owls nesting previously, the box he has had made to the specifications of the Barn Owl Trust, was so heavy it took two of us to carry it to the base of the tree, after fixing a bracket we tried valiantly to hoist the box into place...... after 90 minutes of huffing and puffing we reluctantly gave up to return another day with reinforcements... [it was so bloody heavy, at one point it swung like a pendulum and nearly had me off the ladder].

It was never going to be an easy job, top bracket in place

when the box is placed it will have a supporting bracket underneath,

there may be a follow up photo...

The lack of wildlife on the recent guided even is quite ironic, as on the next day I counted 47 Common Snipe, 3 Jack Snipe, Redshank, Wigeon, Teal, Little Egret and a Northern Wheatear, it just goes to show what difference a day and the weather can make.

Northern Wheatear,( a bird I caught and ringed in Autumn 2015 )

Sod's Law Sunday 19th March 2017

This morning dawned as forecast, which is always a surprise living on the coast, to rain and strong winds.....

Today was the last "winter" guided event......

As so happens it stopped raining around 9am, with the walk set for 10am, the wind didn't ease though, but that didn't stop six hardy souls and one dog joining me for a "beach and signs of spring" walk.

We walked east through the reserve turned south onto Cefn Sidan beach and aimed back to wards the east before turning north then west, a walk of 2.8miles or 4.5km.

Determined to make the best of the conditions

Disappointedly we saw NOTHING in the way of migrants and not a wader to be seen, 26 Cormorants, a few hundred Common Gull plus Herring and Lesser-black Backed Gulls, one Stonechat but plenty of singing Skylarks and Meadow Pipits.

There were no vocal complaints but I don't like to let visitors down so two Teal proved a highlight!

Our Spring programme of events starts on April 11th..........

No matter what the weather get outside Saturday 18th March 2017

With overnight wind and rain, the morning was still a bit damp and blowing with a westerly wind, the rain had petered out by the time I arrived at the Pembrey reserve.

I did a couple of quick jobs, including counting the new contingent of cattle now in residence in grazing field 1, 16 present and correct.

With high tide around 0920 I wandered over to the end of grazing field 2 and did a bit of sea watching.

In amongst the 2000+ Oystercatchers I found the leucistic bird that Bernie Beck had seen on 9th March, an odd but attractive looking bird in shades of brown and white, hopefully it will hang  around for tomorrows guided event.

Also on the beach were 100+ Bar-tailed Godwit, 35 Sanderling, whilst offshore,  four

Great-crested Grebes, a handful of Cormorants and Common Gulls.

As I looked eastwards into the estuary I saw a long,pointed winged greyish bird in the gloom flying towards me, as it got closer the dark cap and pointed bill could only be one, likely, bird a SANDWICH TERN. it coped with the stiff headwind as it trundled off westwards. It's the first Sandwich Tern of the year for Carmarthenshire.

Sandwich Tern, not from today as indicated by the blue sky!!

It's been a decent week across the reserve for migrant birds, either lingering winter visitors, or arriving summer ones, with Merlin still present, Northern Wheatear a few days ago,  Two White-fronted Geese yesterday (new bird for the reserve), and todays Sandwich Tern.

White-fronted Geese, (not my photograph, just for reference:

the birds yesterday both had dark patches

but not as much as the left hand bird here)

It just shows if you make the effort you never know what will turn up, the bird list for 2017 now stands at 82 species recorded.

The job list is not getting any shorter........ Monday 13th March 2017

I was on site at Pembrey LNR at 05:30hrs for a ringing session, it was a cold slightly frosty morning with sunrise at 06:40hrs, I was concerned that with, limited opportunity to ring in 2017 due to bird flu restrictions and poor weather, that my numbers would be significantly adrift to 2016. How the memory fades it was as tough at the beginning of 2016 as it has been in 2017 and I'm only 10 birds down.

Reed Bunting ♂

Quite a lot going on today, sign boards to be weatherproofed, "wildlife breeding season" advisory signs going up, continued improvements to the information shelter, the cattle being taken off by the grazier for TB testing and new  Herp' refugia to put out around the edge of the marsh.

Ready for the off

An impromptu meeting with "the boss" and the job list grew.......great to share ideas and be on a similar wavelength.

What was a decent enough afternoon, weather wise, gradually turned cold and very foggy; however while the sun was out a found the first Common Lizard adult of the year on top of one of the refugia

Common Lizard

Lingering winterers Thursday 9th March 2017

On a day which has been the most "spring like" so far it was interesting to record a trio of wintering birds in evidence at Pembrey Burrows LNR.

A Male Merlin which sat on a post for c1hr on the edge of the marsh, bizarrely surrounded by Meadow Pipits, not mobbing it at all and seemingly oblivious to its presence.

Merlin, distant and cropped

Then A Short-eared Owl flushed from the foredunes at the eastern end of the reserve, the bird made it's way across the estuary towards the Gower accompanied by a couple of mobbing Herring Gulls, there was a Spring record in 2016.

Short-eared Owl, record shot

This afternoon with the fine weather continuing and high water at around 16:00hrs a short sea-watch produced a Long-tailed Duck and c2000 gulls, mostly Common Gulls loafing on the sea.

The much hoped for early Hirundine did not appear neither did a Northern Wheatear, patience patience.............

Also on the incoming tide was a bouy with a great colony of Goose barnacles attached.

Goose Barancles spp?

More signs of Spring Tuesday 7th March 2017

A very early morning visit to Pembrey Burrows was uneventful, although I did catch a Reed Bunting and a Dunnock! the first birds I have ringed at Pembrey in 2017 due to a combination of Bird Flu restrictions and the weather. A Greenshank, in the Swan Drain, reported by Adam Dare, never appear too far into the marsh.

An afternoon visit to Morfa Berwig was no more exciting however some Primroses (possibly of dubious origin judging by the size) and Hazel catkins did make it feel spring like.

The scourge that is off road vehicles is making an appearance at Morfa Berwig, with tyre marks across the site I suspect that they were there at some point over the weekend.

Hazel catkins

Honest mr ranger, I was just walking my dogs! Saturday 4th March 2017

When I arrived on site this morning I  noticed a red Land-rover Defender which I had not seen before and thought mmmm!

A well intended member of the public stopped me about an hour later and told me that they had seen two men in camouflage jackets, with two Lurchers and two terriers, acting suspiciously.

Sure enough after a bit of searching I could see the Lurchers hunting around the dunes and the two men. Although I never saw them actually chase any Rabbit or Hare I had seen enough to think they were up to no good.

I drove over to them and sat in the van waiting for them to walk to me which they did, I've heard all the excuses before but they were reasonable guys and when told to put all the dogs on leads they did.

They were not happy being "hassled" but didn't argue, I always try and engage people first let them know why the conversation is taking place, then if appropriate educate them, so the education this morning was

"its a nature reserve, with a  zero tolerance policy on hunting and shooting, its not about hunting as a sport, its about hunting on a nature reserve...don't do it if you don't want hassle".

There was no need for enforcement as they left, oh plus I have their vehicle registration number it was the red Land-rover!

On a different note I was at Morfa Berwig yesterday to meet Simeon on site, the contractors have been in clearing the ditches, WOW what a job they've done.

It looks drastic but it has improved the drainage to alleviate flooding further down the water course as well as opening up areas for invertebrates and of course the Water Vole will have more range to expand. In a few months time the vegetation will have recovered and it will be looking good.