Friday, 19 March 2021

Visit to Noak Bridge Nature Reserve – 19th March 2021

Date: 19th March 2021

Time: from 8:15 a.m.

Weather: dry, sunny, light wind, 5°C to 8°C

Having already recorded my first Blackcap and first Chiffchaff of the year at my St. Nicholas Church local patch site (see here and here), I hoped that my visit to Noak Bridge Nature Reserve this morning would also provide my first records of these summer visiting warblers. I also hoped that the first Brimstones of the spring would possibly be flying, traditionally one of the earliest butterflies to be seen.

I was disappointed at the absence of all 3 species. In fact, this proved to be a relatively quiet visit in terms of bird song and I struggled to see many species.

The only highlights were a male Mallard that flew in to Willow Pond whilst I was sat there, a pair of Moorhens on Meadow Pond which scuttled away in to the undergrowth as I approached and a briefly calling Great Spotted Woodpecker which I heard from the boundary path adjacent to the A127.

Finally, I saw 6 Grey Squirrels during my visit: 2 individuals in the wooded area along the track between the storage shed and Puckles Pond, 1 around Puckles Pond, 1 around Meadow Pond and 2 in the wooded area around the Spanish Steps.

Species recorded during this visit were as follows (heard only records in italics):

Blue Tit
Great Tit
Robin
Wren
Dunnock
Blackbird
Great Spotted Woodpecker
Woodpigeon
Jay
Magpie
Carrion Crow
Mallard
Moorhen

Grey Squirrel

Here are some photos from my visit:













Photo: male Mallard













Photo: Woodpigeon














Photo: a disappearing Moorhen bum :-)






































































Site totals to date (2021 totals in brackets):

Birds = 40  (26)
Mammals = 2  (1)
Butterflies = 18  (0)
Dragonflies and damselflies = 9  (0)
Reptiles = 1  (0)
Amphibians = 0  (0)

💚🦆 🦉🦋🐝🦊🦡🌼 🌳💚
Stay safe, stay well, stay strong, stay connected with nature



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