Autumn highlights at Martin Mere
Autumn is one of our favourite seasons at Martin Mere. Everything around us changes to breathtaking colours, and thousands of migratory species join us from Iceland.
Experience incredible views, see wildlife up close, and create unforgettable memories. Here are just some of the things we don’t want you to miss:
Migratory stars
We have seen the arrival of the pink-footed geese, with the first flocks arriving at the end of August. Each year, they travel from Iceland in family flocks to spend the winter here. They’ll join us for a few weeks before continuing their journey south.
They bring the mere to life and create a breathtaking spectacle each morning and evening as they leave and return to the roost. To celebrate, we have a series of events such as our early morning Dawn Flight event, and late-night openings.
The whooper swans will join us as we enter November, as they return from their summer in lands afar. Listen out for their honk honk noises and take a look on to our mere to see how many you can spot.
North West Bird Watching Festival
On 19 & 20 October, celebrate the annual arrival of thousands of pink-footed geese with guest speakers, exhibitors, and a range of wildlife-related activities such as guided walks and bird ringing. Book your tickets.
Dawn Flights
Visit our reserve before opening hours and take a seat in our Discovery Hide and experience our mere as it's packed full of migrating birds and have the expert knowledge of our team to find out more about their amazing adventures. Then, finish it off with a delicious full English breakfast! Book your tickets.
Late Night Openings
Visit us for one of our late-night openings on most Wednesdays and Saturdays in October to see the pink-footed geese as they come back to roost on our mere. It will be free to enter our nature trail after 17:30 on these days. Find out more.
Fungi
Mushrooms come in all shapes and sizes. Spotted tops, pointed caps, giant domes and miniature clusters. One of our favourite fungi to find at Martin Mere, fly agaric, looks like it’s straight out of a fairytale. Head down to the Raines Observatory for the chance to see the shaggy ink cap, or take a closer look at our trees for some birch bracket. How many different fungi can you spot?
Autumn sights, sounds, and colours
The fresh autumn breeze and mesmerising colours of reds, oranges, yellows and golds will brighten even the dampest of days. Look out for blackberries, hawthorns and sloes in the hedgerows and the birds that they attract.
Spend some time simply stopping and listening and enjoy being immersed in nature within our reedbed walk. The species in the reedbed can be very elusive and are often heard and not seen, so you need to take your time and simply listen whilst out there.
