Latest sightings

Maybe I should become a spider expert?

It feels like I am noticing spider webs everywhere. They seem to be all over the place this year: cast your eyes over any vegetation and you spot them. When I have walked along the summer trail to where the pump is, they are down in the rush. Glancing at

26 September 2023

Pollutants on the merse

I was walking along the Lochar Water on the reserve recently and came across some routine litter for this time of year: shotgun cartridges and plastic waddings.To be clear, the wildfowlers who discard this litter are perfectly allowed to shoot along the n

20 September 2023

Nettles and why you shouldn't hate them

The other day I was wandering down the Saltcot Loaning, a warm autumn sun on my face, a gentle breeze in my hair. There were butterflies flitting all around and birds singing in the trees. And there were lots of nettles.Firstly I noticed that the speckled

7 September 2023

Folly Pond Finds

Sunday afternoon. Warm but breezy. I have been sat inside all day, working away at my desk, waiting for the moment when I am able to head outside. It comes about three o’clock. It’s been quiet all morning and I’ve finished all the jobs I had on my

31 August 2023

Me, a birder?

I am the first to admit that I am not a big birder. I like birds. I’ve got bird feeders in my garden. But that’s about as far as it goes. I’ve got a cruddy old pair of binos that belonged to a long dead relative and mostly use them to frown at birds

28 August 2023

Isaac Fledges the Nest

When applying for my placement at WWT, I was instantly drawn to Caerlaverock. It held the possibility for many new experiences. Being in a new country, living on a nature reserve, learning about a unique habitat and meeting new people with a shared love o

26 August 2023

Lunchtime wonderings

I’m out on the merse carrying out a butterfly transect.It requires a long, long walk out on the saltmarsh, counting every butterfly I see. Often there are only about seven in total so it makes for a boring morning a lot of the time. It’s going well, I

24 August 2023

Reserve Roundup

An exciting week where we got lots done and said goodbye to one of our placement students. Tuesday saw the volunteers tackle the rush in the paddocks. Jake and Isaac had pre-cut the vegetation in the paddocks so that the volunteers could rake up all the p

22 August 2023

Recent Sightings - 20th August

Where to start with this last week's sightings? A good place would probably be the red necked phalarope that graced us with its presence on Saturday afternoon (possibly brought in with the strong wind) and was still hanging around on the whooper pond on S

20 August 2023

JC's placement comes to an end

My time here at Caelaverock has been an unforgettable experience, every second of my year in Scotland filled with highs and lows. Throughout the past 12 months, I have learnt an indescribable amount of new skills and more knowledge than I would have ever

18 August 2023

Reserve Roundup

On Tuesday Bob, Anita, Joan, and Joanna joined the reserve team out on the Folly Pond islands raking up the cuttings from last week. We cut the islands annually to keep on top of the vegetation levels, ready for when the hordes of wildfowl making their wa

15 August 2023

Recent Sightings - 13th August

It's been a "birdy" week with a few sightings of green sandpiper at multiple spots on the reserve.There's also been wheatear, greenshank and peregrine falcon spotted around the Lochar. You can tell there are juveniles and passage birds moving around now.

13 August 2023

Reserve Roundup

On Tuesday we were joined not only Sophie, Bob and Anita but also a couple of placement students from WWT Washington, Ed and Emily. They came to the site to experience a volunteer task and learn about reserve. The team began the day with some volunteer le

8 August 2023

Recent Sightings - 6th August

The highlight of this last week has to be a green sandpiper on the Folly pond and three green sandpipers seen on the Lochar. This signifies that migration, once again, has begun.Other signs of the changing seasons include a wheatear spotted at Powhillon a

6 August 2023

Reserve Roundup

Last week was another busy one for our reserve team. From conducting nest box checks to maintaining pathways and doing saltmarsh surveys, as well as continuing wildflower seed collection. On Tuesday morning the volunteers and the reserve team were out bir

4 August 2023