Knayton Nature Club

Knayton Nature Club visited us today. They watched the bird ringers ring a Great Spotted Woodpecker, found out about the bees and had a nature walk around the Discovery Trail. They then spent the afternoon finding fish, water boatmen, tadpoles and mayfly nymphs in the dipping ponds.

Susan came to volunteer and spent the morning pruning Silver Birch from the area before the wet meadows.

The bird ringing today was the first of the year for the Constant Effort Site (CES) scheme run by the British Trust for Ornithology. The programme has been part of the ringing agenda on the reserve for 17 years and many of the other CES sites around the country will be ringing birds this same weekend. The ringers processed Treecreeper, Willow Warbler, Mistle Thrush, Bullfinch and Siskin and other birds of more common species. After the poor breeding seasons of the past two years the numbers of adult birds were found to be significantly down.

Bird Cherry and Ladies Smock are in flower and Bogbean, with its starry pink and white petals.