Highest count of the winter at Slimbridge!
Yesterday we counted 276 wild Bewick’s swans on Swan Lake at Slimbridge, the highest count of the winter so far! This already surpasses last winter’s top count of 198 birds and the five-year average of peak counts for the reserve (242 birds). As the cold weather persisted this week, we saw a mixture of new arrivals – 50 over the last seven days – and birds returning from frozen roost sites in surrounding fields. Fortunately the bubbler system on Swan Lake has kept the main water body ice free and with several barrows of grain being provided daily, it’s proving very popular! There’s nothing quite like seeing 2,000 birds eagerly feeding right in front of you! You can take a look at this winter wildlife spectacle from the comfort of a heated observatory by dropping in on our commentated swan feeds at 4pm each day.
Severe weather on the continent has also caused ‘reverse-migration’ for some birds. Swans that kick-started their spring migration early by heading to Germany were seen returning to the Netherlands and Denmark as the weather worsened (W. Tijsen). It looks as though the Bewick's will be with us for a while longer yet..
