So....the first full week as a warden has come to an end...a week of confusing rain, post hammering and being searched for by the police....Oops! The weather has made life complicated to say the least....fog, wind, foggy rain, ridiculously horizontal rain, a teeny bit of sun and SNOW!! Needless to say, visitors have been a bit thin on the ground on the Common!!
The birds on the other hand are out in force! :) Its that wonderful time of year again, where the first signs of nesting behaviour are starting everywhere and territorial displays can be seen all over the Common. At least 2 pairs of Ringed Plovers appear to be settling in nicely (and loudly!) on an area known as the 'Fireplane' gravels, named as such due to the presence of a 'fireplane'; a large metal plane once used by the military for fire practice. The gravels in front of the Fireplane and many others within the Common provide a wonderful habitat for ground nesting species, such as Little Ringed Plovers, Woodlark and Lapwing. Over 50 Golden Plovers have also been seen on many occasions on these gravels on their passage further north.
Much to my excitement, I saw my first Dartford Warbler of the year on Thursday in some deep gorse, on an area called the 'Runway Cross', several have been spotted since which is encouraging. A Northern Wheatear also made an appearance on Monday!! Elsewhere, Skylarks can be heard everyday, along with plenty of Stonechats, Dunnocks, Green Woodpeckers and even the occasional Great Crested Grebe :)
Sounds lovely. Do tell us more about being searched for by the police!
ReplyDeleteHaha....a misunderstanding thankfully!! Security at Greenham is really good for the wardens and we call in to them every two hours to make sure we are safe. I failed to do this on my first day! Argh!! I had about 4 layers of waterproofs on so didn't hear my phone going for about an hour and, assuming something was wrong after not being able to get hold of me, the police were out looking!! Embarrassing to say the least!! Needless to say I won't be failing to call again!! ;)
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