Recent Sightings

Reserve The Mallard ducks have been hatching out on the reserve and in the plumbs.  The first Nenes hatched on Sunday 1stApril and another two pairs still to hatch.  New ad [...]

Reserve

The Mallard ducks have been hatching out on the reserve and in the plumbs.  The first Nenes hatched on Sunday 1^stApril and another two pairs still to hatch. 

New additions to the wildfowl collection include pair of Black necked swans, Puna teal, Cape teal, Red breasted geese (5 females), Laysan teal, cinnamon teal, Bufflehead and white headed ducks.  800 Black headed gulls can still be seen on the main Lake.  First chiffchaff was heard on 24^th.  First of this season’s terns were heard on Saturday 31st  March.  Oystercatcher, greenshank and redshank (and black tailed godwits) are dispersing from the reserve to breeding areas further north.  Little grebes are calling every day from the Limestone lake and should nest again this spring.  Little Egret are still around at high water and at dusk but again in reduced numbers.

Refuge

Numbers of bird dispersing.  Still 100 or so shelduck and similar numbers of Brent. First Brent arrived in Iceland on the 24^thMarch. New north easterlies will put a halt on migration for a while. Knot and dunlin have moved on.  Tide line dominated by oystercatcher and curlew with a few bar tailed godwits.

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