Speedy Voles

Last week saw me make my first visit to Martin Mere WWT since the site reopened. Outside of the peak winter waterfowl season and at the back end of the summer nesting season the Mere always has a slightly different pace of life in the mid and late summer and even more so at present with the social distancing measures in place. In intermittent spells of sunshine the main mere was busy with well-grown black-headed gull chicks and groups of scruffy-looking mallard as this year's ducklings cling on to the remnants of their down and the adults go through their moult. A dabchick making its way busily through the crowds was an unexpected sighting whilst a juvenile shelduck dozed on one of the islands. 

One of my favourite hides at Martin Mere is the Kingfisher Hide, a little fortress perched on the crest of a slope with dazzling views over the marshes and closer to hand a row of bird feeders along the hawthorn hedgerow. One of the site's specialities is a healthy population of tree sparrows and this year's brood had done well with fledged youngsters scrapping for the prime perches on the feeders. Sparrows always strike me as cheerful characters and once the hierarchy had been established they settled to eat contentedly and give good views with their distinctive cheek spots and the richer chocolate brown cap marking them as different to house sparrows. Young great and blue tits, goldfinch and chaffinch also put in appearances. 

      

 

Bank Voles                                                                                      Tree Sparrows

The messy eaters above had ensured a plentiful supply of scattered seed on the ground below and joining the blackbirds, dunnocks and two mallard were a number of hyperactive bank voles. There were more of the little creatures speeding through the vegetation and rapidly shooting across any exposed areas of ground than I have seen here before, and they are wise to take care with kestrels, barn owl and grey heron all enjoying vole on the menu here. Occasionally one would break cover and remain still for long enough to fire off a photo or two but most of my efforts were like the first picture above. 

The flower beds around the reserve are planted up with a wide mix of rare and pollen-rich wildflowers and in mid-summer blue is the colour with devil's bit scabious, bellflower and knapweed all in bloom and attracting a range of pollinators including white-tailed bumblebee, marmalade hoverflies and even an earwig. At the second feeding station on the opposite side of the Mere a different cast of characters had assembled including a juvenile great spotted woodpecker and a posse of pheasants. 

   

Devil's-bit Scabious                    Bellflower and Earwig        White-tailed Bumble on Knapweed

For the final leg of my visit I set off on the Reedbed Walk, first stopping to enjoy a prehistoric view from the United Utilities Hide with a herd of English longhorn cows grazing the marshy meadow behind the mere. With meadowsweet and purple loosestrife in bloom and oystercatchers calling overhead this was a tranquil contrast to the frantic winter spectacle from this same viewpoint. Likewise the Reedbed Walk was perhaps at its quietest today and even the swifts and house martins hawking overhead were muted. Only reed buntings, with their song which sounds like a malfunctioning piece of mechanical equipment, and the odd reed warbler broke the quiet and on the water coot, greylag and Canada geese joined the mallards. It's exciting and also very perturbing to think that in just a couple of months' time we'll be looking north to see the first of our winter waterfowl visitors beginning to return here. 

 

Longhorn Cattle                                            Purple Loosestrife