First signs of spring at WWT
Winter is without doubt a spectacular time to visit a WWT centre if numbers are what you’re after. Tens of thousands of ducks, swans and geese have spent the last few months with us and many of those birds are now preparing for long journeys back to their breeding grounds of Iceland, northern Europe and Russia.
If you haven’t managed to visit us over the winter, now is your last chance to see our migrant visitors. With westerly winds forecast over the coming days, the conditions will be perfect for their return journeys and many will be leaving – get here quick!
The behaviour they’re currently exhibiting is typical of birds that are restless to leave and push on with the task of breeding – they’re spending a lot of time resting and conserving energy in preparation for flights that are often over 1,000 miles in distance in complete contrast to how they were when they arrived back in October.
But just because the swans and geese are ready to make their return journeys doesn’t mean there isn’t plenty to see at our centres over the coming months.
In fact this time of year, when the signs of spring are just beginning to show themselves, is a fascinating one for wildlife watching. Many of our centres will be seeing new birds arriving on a daily basis. As they head east or north across the country on their migrations, many will stop off in unexpected places.
And of course there’s the opportunity to see the first incoming songbirds, which will be arriving here from central Africa for the summer. The first spring birds will include sand martins, chiffchaffs and wheatears – one of the first wheatears was spotted in Cornwall last week. March will also bring with it the first swallows and willow warblers.
Other signs of spring are already apparent at some of our reserves – the first snowdrops for instance. As the first trees begin to flower we’ll start to see a number of insects and, in turn, they will provide food for our arriving passerines.
Of all the seasons, spring is arguably the most inspiring and dramatic to witness. Keep up to date with the natural highlights at your local centre by visiting their wildlife sightings pages.
