Warnham Local Nature Reserve

Treecreeper - I. Nicol

A bitterly cold day at Warnham today meant that the feeding station was the place to be for bird activity if you could stick it out in the biting cold notherly wind. Ian Nicol managed to get this lovely photo of a Treecreeper which is often a very hard species to photograph unless near the nest in the breeding season so well done Ian. Not much reported in the sightings diary today but a summary below:

Treecreeper 1, Long-tailed Tit 6, Mallard 36, Little Grebe 2, Black-headed Gull 28, Herring Gull 18, Tufted Duck 9, Sparrowhawk 1, Blue Tit 20+, Great Tit 15+, Mute Swan 2, Greylag Goose 160+, Grey Heron 1, Kingfisher 1, Grey Wagtail 1

Warnham Local Nature Reserve

Sunset over Rookwood

Another clear, cold but beautiful day however a very cold north-easterly wind made it a little uncomfortable to be out in. This time of year gives wonderful light if there is a frost and today was no exception with an excellent sunrise and sunset.

Gatwick Greenspace Project were at the Reserve today helping us with the Willow Carr management and also fixing the second boardwalk at the north end of the Reserve. If you have walked on it over the past couple of weeks you might have noticed it bounced in certain areas and this was due to the legs rotting. Kev Lerwill and his group of twenty or so volunteers managed to jack the boardwalk up and then insert concrete posts to anchor the boardwalk to which has worked a treat. Thanks to Kev and all the volunteers for fixing this, its back to full working order now.

We then got called out to a Herring Gull which had got a plastic bag caught on its foot and had then filled with water and it wasn't able to take off due to the added weight of the bag. The rescue boat was launched and soon Jo, Andrew and I were off across the millpond. As is normally the case we get to within a few metres of the bird and miraculously the bird becomes free and flies off! And that is exactly what happened on this occasion. We decided to have a quick row over to the Swan Island to see if any Snipe were roosting on there and sure enough three flushed from the reedy edges of the island. A summery of sightings can be found below from today:

Common Snipe 3, Tufted Duck 8, Shoveler 2, Mallard 30+, Greylag Goose 160+, Mute Swan 2, Coot 2, Moorhen 4, Cormorant 4, Grey Heron 1, Little Egret 2, Kingfisher 1, Grey Wagtail 1, Pheasant 2, Goldfinch 10+, Chaffinch 4, Magpie 4, Carrion Crow 3, Jackdaw 20+, Robin 4, Blackbird 8, Redwing 3, Blue Tit 30+, Great Tit 10+, Coal Tit  4

Harlequin Ladybird 1

Friends of Warnham Local Nature Reserve Event

Warnham Local Nature Reserve

Warnham Local Nature Reserve - M. Symonds

A wonderful wintery day weather-wise on the Reserve today with hardly a breath of wind which made for some beautiful views over the millpond such as the view captured by Margaret Symonds from the Tern Hide.

Horsham Green Gym were busy in the Millpond Plantation thinning out the Birch regeneration and also clearing some Hazel stands to make way for a new fence line which we hope to install in the spring. It is very important we keep on top the Silver Birch which left unmanaged would take over the woodland. The aim of the thinning is to remove most of the stunted or small Birch to make way for the larger trees to continue to flourish but also to allow sunlight to reach the forest floor which essential for the species which need dappled light such as Bluebells and Primroses. Lots of the timber is left on site with a small percentage used for fire wood and crafts.

Birch Thinning - R. Allison

Not much by way of sightings reported today as we were all busy but of note the Cetti's Warbler was again seen from the Tern Hide it seems to favour the reedbed in front and often flies between that and the reedbed in front of the dam wall. Below is a summary of the rest of the species noted:

Grey Heron 1, Cormorant 3, Mallard 24, Shoveler 2, Coot 2, Moorhen 1, Black-headed Gull 100+, Wren 1, Pheasant 4, Blue Tit 10+, Great Tit 10+, Coal Tit 1, Nuthatch 1, Redwing 1, Pied Wagtail 1, Grey Wagtail 1, Greylag Goose 160+, Tufted Duck 6, Goldfinch 12, Chaffinch 10+, Cetti's Warbler 1

Grey Squirrel 4

Warnham Local Nature Reserve

Egyptian Geese - L. Lockyer

Liza Lockyer spent the morning on the Reserve and manged to photograph the pair of Egyptian Geese which have been a regular feature since last spring. Egyptian Geese are a native of sub-tropical Africa it was brought to Britain in the late 17th century as an ornamental bird for benefit of wealthy folks wildfowl collections.

The Egyptian Goose has struggled to establish itself in Britain for the past 300 years due to the cold winters we experience. Egyptian Geese breed very early in the season with young often being seen from January onward. This obviously means they are very open to the elements, and due to this they often succumb to poor weather.  Another factor which leads to poor success rate of rearing young is the fact they nest in tree holes. The cavity in the tree therefore needs to be quite large to fit the bird in and due to health and safety issues with tree safety cavities of this size, nest sites are often limited in availability!

The pair at Warnham today seemed to think that the weather was suitable and love was in the air and Liza was luckily on hand to photograph the incredible mating ritual of the Egyptian Geese. They will continue to mate for a while yet until the female will begin to lay eggs in the new year so fingers crossed we will have little goslings trundling round in January or February.

Egyptian Geese Mating - L. Lockyer

Warnham Local Nature Reserve

Mill Meadow - P. Shergold

Another frosty start greeted the Reserve and once again made everything slightly more photogenic than usual. The cold snap also brought plenty of birds into the feeding station and it was no surprise when our first Brambling was seen with the ever growing Chaffinch flock. Ian Redman and Jim Glover managed to get some fantastic photos of the bird which is a male and they can be seen below.

Brambling - I. Redman

Brambling - J. Glover

Duck numbers continue to build as the water level rises and the temperatures drop and the two drake Shoveler seem to be a regular feature now and hopefully they will winter with the Mallard flock. We are still waiting for any Wigeon or Gadwall to join the group but fingers crossed as the winter progresses they will. Paul Shergold carried out a full bird count around the Reserve which can be found below as well as a photo of one of the drake Shoveler. Other visitors also added some species to the list so apologies if your name is not attributed to the list.

Brambling 1 (♂), Woodpigeon 60, Green Woodpecker 2, Great Spotted Woodpecker 1, Grey Heron 6, Cormorant 7, Robin 15, Little Grebe 5, Great Crested Grebe 1, Mallard 38, Kingfisher 3, Goldfinch 40+, Common Buzzard 5, Red Kite 1, Mandarin 2, Shoveler 2, Egyptian Goose 2, Black-headed Gull 60+, Herring Gull 40+, Water Rail 1, Grey Wagtail 1.

Red Fox 1, Roe Deer 4

Shoveler - P. Shergold

Owlbeech Woods

Eddie Bew visited the site and carried out a bird survey of the heathland which produced the following:

Magpie 3,  House Sparrow 2, Woodpigeon 20, Blue Tit 12, Robin 4, Carrion Crow 2, Nuthatch 2, Treecreeper 1, Blackbird 2, Great Tit 6, Coal Tit 1, Long-tailed Tit 8

Grey Squirrel 4, Roe Deer 4

Warnham Local Nature Reserve

Frosty Leaves - P. Shergold

A frosty start to the day lent itself to some wonderful photography conditions later in the day and there were plenty of birds around the reserve. Paul Shergold, John Wilks & Neil Henry sent in bird counts from today, a summary of which are below: Woodpigeon 60, Green Woodpecker 2, Great Spotted Woodpecker 1, Grey Heron 6, Cormorant 7, Robin 15, Little Grebe 5, Great Crested Grebe 1, Mallard 38, Kingfisher 3, Goldfinch 40+, Common Buzzard 5, Red Kite 1, Mandarin 2, Shoveler 2, Egyptian Goose 2, Black-headed Gull 60+, Herring Gull 40+, 1 Water Rail, Coal Tit 3, Nuthatch 2, Jay 1, Little Egret 1

Red Fox 1, Roe Deer 4, Grey Squirrel 4

Chesworth Farm

Meadow Pipit - M. Ayling

Mike Ayling carried out a bird survey of the Farm today which produced the following list of species:
Blackbird 6, Bullfinch 2, Dunnock 2, Goldfinch 20, Great Tit 3, House Sparrow 2, Magpie 3, Nuthatch 1, Song Thrush 3, Woodpigeon 17, Blue Tit 4, Carrion Crow 3, Fieldfare 1, Great Spotted Woodpecker 2, Herring Gull 20, Jackdaw 4, Meadow Pipit 5, Robin 7, Stock Dove 1, Wren 1

Warnham Local Nature Reserve

Sparrowhawk - L. Lockyer

Not much coverage of the Reserve today due to lots of meetings and the volunteer group working down at the Country Park but Liza Lockyer did manage to get this excellent photo of the male Sparrowhawk which is regularly seen hunting in front of the Woodpecker Hide. Unfortunately he hardly ever perches for long enough to get a photograph, so well done Liza for putting so many hours in to finally grab a snap!

Of interest you might have noted this bird has a ring on his right leg, it was in fact trapped and ringed at Warnham on the 8th March 2017. It is great to see that it is still on the Reserve and using its old winter haunts in which to hunt from. This bird also bred on site this year and raised three young successfully however all of the young have now been chased off by the resident pair. Below is a photo of when the bird was ringed.

Other birds noted around the Reserve today can be found below:

Cormorant 2, Pochard 1, Little Grebe 5, Great Black-backed Gull 1, Grey Heron 2, Herring Gull 100+, Tufted Duck 2, Mallard 27, Long-tailed Tit 5, Goldfinch 2, Coal Tit 1, Pheasant 4, Dunnock 1, Moorhen 2, Lesser Black-backed Gull 2 (Judith Alford & Neil Henry)

Warnham Local Nature Reserve

Please check this Core count species list Site Name: Warnham Local Nature Reserve  Date: Sun, 19 Nov, 2017 Time: 08:30 - 10:00   Species counted Count Comment Points to check Black-headed Gull 31     Buzzard 1     Coot 1     Cormorant 4     Egyptian Goose 2     Grey Heron 2     Herring Gull 132   Kingfisher 3     Little Grebe 3     Mallard 33     Moorhen 3     Mute Swan 2     Shoveler 2     Tufted Duck 4     Total number of species: 14 Individuals: 223

Owlbeech Woods

Eddie Bew carried out his regular wildlife survey of the heath which produced the following:
House Sparrow 3, Magpie 5, Robin 10, Woodpigeon 20, Blue Tit 6, Carrion Crow 4, Goldcrest 4, Treecreeper 1, Great Tit 4, Jackdaw 3, Blackbird 7, Common Buzzard 1, Coal Tit 2, Great Spotted Woodpecker 1, Nuthatch 1, Long-tailed Tit 1

Roe Deer 2, Grey Squirrel 8

Owlbeech Woods

Mike Ayling carried out his regular survey of the heathland at Owlbeech Woods which produced the following list of birds. It is very nice to see plenty of winter thrushes starting to appear:

Blackbird 4, Bullfinch 2, Chaffinch 2, Dunnock 2, Great Tit 2, Jackdaw 5, Kestrel 1, Nuthatch 2, Robin 2, Woodpigeon 48, Blue Tit 6, Carrion Crow 1, Coal Tit 2, Great Spotted Woodpecker 2, Herring Gull 1, Jay 1, Magpie 2, Redwing 15, Song Thrush 1, Wren 1