π¨ π§ ⛅️19C ~
Wind ↗SW@15mph Gusting 20mph Saturday 22nd August 2020 ~ The past week has been spent birding locally and volunteering at Brandon Marsh. Since returning all of the work at Brandon has revolved around clearing the paths and the final big job was completed on Thursday when a small 'bubble' of the team broke through the central marsh. For those who are aware of the geography, this is the area between River Pool hide and the wooden bridge over on West Marsh.
 |
| Whats to come! |
 |
What's been done ~ Central Marsh
|
It's been hard work with over four months of growth to clear but very rewarding and we begin clearing the Islands and hides in the coming weeks.
 |
Marsh Harrier takes a Teal from West Marsh!
|
Of course, while on-site and in between working birding takes front stage and I must say that recently it's been very rewarding. Non more so than the appearance of a
Marsh Harrier, one of the less frequent visitors to the reserve. In fact, I was lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time when something happened that in nearly fifty years of birding I'd never seen before! Amazingly the
Teal escaped but I never got to see what condition it was in after the attack. That one will live in the memory for a considerable time, another one to cherish when I leave Brandon in a few months time.
 |
| A young Whitethroat in front of John Walton hide |
Another feature has been the sheer amount of warblers feeding on the ripening fruits around the reserve, it seemed that every elder, bramble and hawthorn contained either a
Chiffchaff,
Blackcap,
Whitethroat,
Reed Warbler,
Lesser Whitethroat or
Willow Warbler, the latter often singing.
 |
| A juvenile Reed Warbler |
Other species of note have included:
Raven,
Hobby,
Snipe,
Common Sandpiper,
Green Sandpiper,
Greenshank and
Yellow Wagtail. Both
Green and Great Spotted Woodpeckers have also been a feature, along with the occasional passage of
Swallows with the odd
House Martin but still a distinct lack of
Sand Martins, although a late
Swift was a bonus.
I've posted below a few more images of my time volunteering at Brandon over the past week.
 |
| Green Sandpiper ~ John Walton hide |
 |
| Small Red-eyed Damselfly |
 |
| Greenshank on West Marsh |
 |
| Great Spotted Woodpecker |
