Pochards pairing up
Warden Suzi Lanaway sent in these sightings from the past few days. Suzi is one of the dedicated team that are still working onsite for wildlife and managing the fragile wetland habitats. In the photo above Reserve Manager Paul Stevens photographed these three male pochards in line formation all displaying for a female earlier this week.
Friday 27 March
Arun Riverlife: The lapwing pair are still on Arun riverlife with the female sitting tight, also a pair of pochard and a flyover from a kingfisher.
Wetland Discovery: 3 pochard on wet disco (1 male:2 females)
Lapwing hide: 6 lapwing from the lapwing hide and also a carrion crow seen gathering nesting material.
Ramsar/Sand Martin hide: there were 3 lesser black-backed gulls, 3 male pochard, 94 common gulls, 4 lapwing and the greylag parents still have all five little yellow fluffy goslings!
Woodland Loop: 4 mandarin (3:1), 2 coot, 2 male
mallard, 3 moorhen, 8 goldfinch squabbling over the big feeder and swearing at
anyone else who tries to get near!, 9 blue tit, 3 great tit – 1 seen taking
nesting material into box 12, 7 chaffinch, 3 wood pigeon, 1 dunnock heard
singing and also a wren singing his heart out!
Thursday 27 March
Reedbed: 3 chiffchaff singing loudly!, 2 blue tit, 2 goldfinch, 8 mallard (6:2), 1 wood pigeon, 2 Cetti’s warbler, 1 snipe flushed as I walked along the boardwalk (long path end), 1 coot, 4 black-headed gull, 1 greylag, 2 moorhen.Arun Riverlife: pair of lapwing on Arun riverlife – female sitting tight, heard the kingfisher flying across
Wetland Discovery: 1 kingfisher flying over
Offham hangar: 3 buzzards from the hanger
Lapwing hide; 6 lapwing from lapwing hide – (3 males squabbling like school kids)
Ramsar hide: 2 oystercatcher, 1 cattle egret, 6 lapwing and 1 med. gull
Insects: a few hairy-footed flower bees on the wall of Sand martin hide and bee flies seem to be all over the place! As yesterday, butterflies around are peacock, red admiral, brimstone and orange tip. Several different bee species - honey bee, buff-tailed bumblebee and tree bumblebee
Wetland plants in flower now: Marsh marigold, ground ivy, red dead nettle, white dead nettle, primrose, cowslip, snakes-head fritillary, coltsfoot, daisy, common field speedwell, lesser celandine, blackthorn and of course daffodils by the million!!
Paul Stevens photo below shows one of the male pochards with a female.
