Every week 2 members from the WVBS take a walk around Pensthorpe Natural Park and record every species that they have seen / heard and how many they have seen. This is submitted into our recorder, David Gibbons, and he collates all the data and sends it on to the County Recorder.
Below are the results from the recent monitoring visits, including a short summary from members.
Saturday 3rd February
It was a surprisingly mild morning for early February. As I turned into the drive, I was greeted with the sight of a Buzzard on the ground eating a rabbit. I was barely out of the car and there was a solitary Greenfinch calling, along with both Mistle and Song Thrush singing. A scan of the far hedge yielded Yellowhammer and Reed Bunting, another Buzzard in a tree, a large flock of Barnacle Geese in the field and a Red Kite flying over. A walk up the drive and a female Marsh Harrier flew out of the reeds to the left and right over us. It had the promise of a good day! The Farmland Hide was unusually productive and included a single Brambling among a fairly big flock of Chaffinches. The sight of a Great White Egret greeted us as we entered the Wetland Hide along with two Grey Heron. There were more Barnacle Geese and a handful of other waterfowl. Old Squaw Lake gave us a pair of Goldeneye and an Oystercatcher and a lovely view of a Sparrowhawk flying over. Checking the field on the right just before entering the woodland we were really pleased to see 5 Bullfinches – 4 beautiful males - in the scrub on the left-hand side. This was followed by a flock of Fieldfares flying over. The Woodland Hide itself was busy with Great and Blue Tits but no Marsh Tit, but as we walked further into the woods, we saw two. Neither appeared to be ringed. We also watched a flock of Siskin having a bath in a small pool before flying up to the trees to dry off. There was a single Redpoll among them which was lovely to see. The water at the scrape is still high but there were a number of Lapwing present and the usual Ducks and Coots. All in all the day didn’t disappoint. Everywhere we walked we could hear Blue and Great tit singing and we probably underestimated their numbers. Along with the snowdrops and warmth from a watery sun it definitely felt like Spring is in the air! Mammals: Grey Squirrel 7, Muntjac Deer 2. Mandy & Nick E
Monday 5th February
It was a cold, windy day throughout, with the sun only making brief appearances. The water levels in the lakes are still high but going down slowly, small amounts of mud appearing on the Wader Scrape. We battled on and managed to record 58 bird species and 4 mammals. Looking at the hedgerow first, which runs down from the open barn, 51 Reed Bunting and 5 Yellowhammer. They were nicely grouped together with the help of a Ranger walking down the hedge. There was also numerous Corvids and Stock Dove in the adjacent field with a Stoat making a brief appearance. The Wetlands was fairly quiet, a number of Teal, plus Shoveler, Pintail, Great White Egret, bonus bird was a female Stonechat. Farmland hide produced a Mistle Thrush, Skylark, Red- legged Partridge and a passing Peregrine Falcon. The feeder was busy with various Tits including a Marsh Tit. Five Red Kite together, soared across the top end near the road. Steve searched the wood primarily for Woodcock with his thermal camera, but to no avail. The Woodland hide feeders were busy as is customary, a nice Nuthatch also made a show. One Grey Wagtail was seen on the edge of the wood. Old Squaw Lake gave us a four Common Snipe, Lapwing, Tufted Duck, Gadwall, Great Crested Grebe, Oystercatcher and more Pintail. The Wader Scrape was similarly low on numbers, in attendance were Teal, Pochard, Lapwing, Tufted Duck, Coot and Little Egret. Other species noted, Cetti’s Warbler, Redwing, Song Thrush, Buzzard, Barnacle and Greylag Geese. Mammals: Stoat 1, Brown Hare 2, Grey Squirrel 6 and Muntjac Deer 2. Steve C and Mark
Friday 16th February.
74 species recorded today. Hilghlights included: 5 Red Kite, 1 Marsh Harrier, 1 Sparrowhawk & 19 Buzzard in relation to Raptors. Good numbers of Duck with 85 Teal, 76 Tufted Duck, c50 Mallard, 42 Shoveler, 37 Gadwall, 22 Wigeon & 12 Mandarin Duck. Tits were in large numbers recording 3 Coal, 4 Marsh, 11 Long-tailed, 23 Great & 30 Blue. 98 Lapwing, 23 Stock Dove, 45 Linnet, 11 Redpoll & 31 Reed Bunting were other notable sightings. Besides numerous Jay, Jackdaw & Rook a single Raven was noted. Mammals: Muntjac Deer 2, Roe Deer 6, Grey Squirrel 8, Brown Hare 4. Cath & Nick P
Saturday 24th February
Although the day started with freezing fog and poor visibility until mid-morning, it turned out to be a quite pleasant sunny day. Water levels were still high, with a number of the trails closed due to flooding but there was definitely the feeling of spring in the air. As expected, there were few waders present apart from Lapwing and some very vocal and flighty Oystercatchers. Also, the number of Buntings in the farmland hedgerows had dropped, with only 1 Yellowhammer amongst 15 Reed Buntings. Winter Thrush numbers had also decreased, with only 3 Redwing seen. Singing birds included Mistle Thrush, Song Thrush, Treecreeper, Nuthatch, Goldcrest, Cetti’s Warbler, Greenfinch, Skylark and Dunnock. Highlights of the day included 4 Cattle Egret, 7 Red Kite (3 at one end of the reserve and 4 at the other), a fresh Chiffchaff in, 5 singing Cetti’s Warbler, 3 Goldeneye, 3 Pintail and 5 male Pochard. 68 species recorded. Mammals seen included 4+ Muntjac, 3 Roe Deer and 3 squirrels. Steve Ch
Thursday 29th February
The last day of February was, not unexpectedly, damp! But at least there was no wind to speak of, and although it drizzled for most of the time it didn’t rain too hard for the rest. The real shame is that the birds didn’t like it any more than we did. The car park area was pretty quiet, producing only the occasional Blackbird and Robin along with the usual Jackdaws and Black-headed Gulls. A Song Thrush was singing but not seen, and there were Red-legged Partridges in the ‘glamping’ field. The distant hedge that has recently been full of Reed Buntings and Yellowhammers sported a perched Buzzard, which along with the rain must have discouraged the smaller birds. When we reached the farmland hide there were Chaffinches with the usual Blue and Great Tits, and a couple of Greenfinches. Also, we did finally see a few Reed Buntings. On the field was a group of 72 Barnacle Geese, determinedly making their way out of sight to the left. A couple of Marsh Tits were good to see, and there were more of them at the woodland hide, which also produced a Nuthatch. As we walked around there were plenty of singing Wrens and Robins, and flocks of Siskin and Redwing around the edges of the wildflower meadow. Waders were in short supply with the exception of a good-sized flock of Lapwings and several Oystercatchers, but there were plenty of water birds. We did manage to spot 4 Common Snipe, a bird I am always pleased to find. Among the many Teal, Shoveler, Mallard, and Greylag Geese we did see 5 Pochard, 3 Goldeneye and also 5 Wigeon. There was also a further flock of Barnacle Geese, 144 this time. Our best find was saved until almost the end, when we noticed 5 Egrets lurking in the reeds, which turned out to be Cattle Egrets. A total of 55 species recorded. Sue G, Alan H