Victoria Guinan sent the following release about the Avocets coming back to Martin Mere (and the pic above by James Lees) on Friday...they were at Marshside at the weekend too.
Typically the first birds have returned to the marsh in the second week of February over the last two years, and are often there before turning up at Martin Mere.
There'll be plenty more soon no doubt...
A record return of Avocets at WWT Martin Mere
"Four Avocets returned to Martin Mere on Friday 8 February, at least three weeks earlier than usual, making this the earliest record in Lancashire of a returning group of summer wading birds for breeding. This is yet another indicator that birds are coming back earlier due to changes in weather conditions.
Reserve Manager, Chris Tomlinson, said: “It is great to see the Avocets back this early. Working at Martin Mere we do notice the changes in migration patterns and it is more common now for birds to arrive earlier as we see changes in weather conditions. We are very hopeful of a successful breeding season for the summer wading birds and we will potentially have another record year for Avocet breeding�.
Avocets can usually be expected to return to Martin Mere from the end of February, early March but these birds have travelled from the South almost a month earlier than usual.
Avocets first bred at Martin Mere in 2001 once the new land had been completed on the reserve. In the first year only three pairs bred but numbers have gradually increased to seventeen pairs in 2007 which was a record for the Centre. Work will soon begin on the duck and wader marsjes adjacent to the Ron Barker Hide to create more nesting habitat for the Avocets.
Last year WWT launched a waders campaign because populations of breeding waders have fallen dramatically in recent years as wet grasslands are lost to agricultural drainage. British wading birds need wet grassland to live and breed, yet it is one of the fastest disappearing habitats in the UK. A high proportion of breeding waders are therefore concentrated in just a few sites, so it is vital that these areas are protected and maintained.
Martin Mere has been able to introduce a number of initiatives in the past couple of years to help manage it’s wetlands to ensure the habitat is perfect for summer wading birds in the hope to raise the number of birds breeding. These initiatives have included the purchasing of rare breed cattle and sheep who act like lawn mowers with their selective grazing patterns, hay making in late summer and early autumn once all of the youngsters have hatched and left their nests, and by controlling the water level we can adapt the habitat for the needs of summer and wintering birds. "
Eyes to the skies everyone, eyes to the skies.....
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John E wrote...
Hi John,
It's good to see Martin Mere is going to increase the nesting habitat for waders near the Ron Barker hide but I'm wondering why the islands in front of the Ron Barker hide where a few pairs of Little Ringed Plover used to nest was allowed to become so overgrown that the plovers no longer breed there?
I'm not knocking Martin Mere or the staff I think they do an excellent job though I do wonder about some of the reasoning behind their actions for instance the removal of the Barn Owl nest box several years ago?
Posted by: John E | February 12, 2008 11:25 AM