Water rail and snipe arriving for winter
Water rails are being seen and mostly heard around the site this week.
Their contact call is a pig like squeal. We see a few water rail onsite year around but numbers increase in autumn with birds arriving from mainland Europe to winter on our wetlands. They are related to moorhens, but smaller and thinner with a lovely red bill.
Another wintering wader are common snipe – numbers are rising with the birds historically coming in from Northern Europe and Russia to winter here.
Cetti’s warblers are making themselves heard all around the site. The warm red brown warbler gives a loud blast of song usually while hiding in dense branches. They look similar to a reed warbler but have a slight peak on their head and often raise their tail. Reed warbler’s flatter heads form a line to their outstretched flat tails.
Kingfisher sightings are at par with last week. Photo above taken by regular visitior Alec Pelling. Staff have begun to see these flashy fishers at the Willow Sphere as well.
Our Reserve Manager Suzi Lanaway reported a firecrest flitting around while working in the Wood Loop yesterday.
This is not a comprehensive list of current wildlife onsite. Our Reserve team observes different sections of the site on a rotating basis.
Wed 11 Oct
Long path: 2 Cetti’s warblers
Scrape hide: 1 Cetti’s warbler, 6 mute swans including 3 juveniles flying over.
Tues 10 Oct
Arun Riverlife lagoon: 1 kingfisher
Wood loop: 1 firecrest
Ramsa & san Martin hides: 3 little egrets, 3 Canada geese, 1 pochard, 11 mallards, 73 gadwall, 1 grey heron, 1 cormorant, 2 teal, 6 coots,1 moorhen, 5 tufted ducks, 60 black-headed gulls, 2 shoveler, 1 herring gull, 4 Egyptian geese, 2 wood pigeons.
Mon 9 Oct
Lapwing hide: 1 Cetti’s warbler, 1 grey heron, 1 magpie, 2 snipe.
Ramsar hide: 8 cattle egrets, 1 kingfisher, 1 Cettis Warbler, 10 tufted ducks,4 shoveler ducks, 50+ gadwall
Wetland Discovery area: 1 Cetti’s warbler
Sand martin hide: 1 Cormorant
Scrape hide: 1 snipe, 1 water rail, 1 Cetti’s warbler, 9 shoveler ducks, 1 little egret
Willow sphere: 1 Cetti’s warbler
Arun Riverlife lagoon: 1 grey wagtail
Sun 8 Oct
Wetland Discovery: 2 mute swans, 1 coot, 7 mallards, 1 black-headed gull
Ramsar & Sand martin hide: 3 little egrets, 2 pochards, 1 kingfisher
Tranquil trail: heard water rail squealing
Scrape hide: heard water rail squeal
Sat 7 Oct
Arun Riverlife lagoon: 3 mute swans, 2 kingfishers - one male flyby chased off by another perched there, 1 moorhen, 44 mallards 32 males and 12 females, 2 Canada geese, 21 tufted ducks, 33 coots, 8 black-headed gulls
Lapwing hide: 2 stonechats
Ramsar hide: 2 little egrets
Fri 6 Oct
Woodloop: 1 mallard, 2 blue tits, 2 great tots, 1 coal tit, 1 robin
Reedbed boardwalk: 1 water rail
Thurs 5 Oct
Wetland Discovery: 1 pochard
Sand martin hide: 2 grey wagtail
Ramsar hide: 1 teal, 3 shoveler ducks
Lapwing hide: 2 stonechats
Sand martin hide: 1 kingfisher, 1 water rail
Scrape hide: 1 Cetti’s warbler, 2 teal
Willow sphere: 18 mallards, 1 kingfisher
Reedbed boardwalk: 4 male mallards, 3 blue tits
