Sightings at Rush Meadow near Scarning (16th April 2017)

I decided to have a quick walk down to Rush Meadow, near Scarning, at 7.10am and take a look at my local patch.

A view of Rush Meadow from the pathway, alongside the stream.

The weather forecast stated that it would be around 8°C, but with the spring sun and very little cloud, it felt considerably warmer. As a result, the following was seen throughout the morning:

Goldfinch x 4

Greenfinch x 2

Blackcap x 3 - A pair were seen together in the woodland, alongside the pathway, on the north eastern corner of the reserve.

Pied Wagtail x 2 - A pair were seen outside the entrance to the sewage works. Significantly lower numbers than had previously been seen here.

Swallow x 7 - All of the birds were perched on a wire suspended above the entrance to the sewage works.

House Martin x 1 - A single bird seen perched with the Swallows. 

Songthrush x 1

Little Egret x 1
Kingfisher x 1 - It was seen flying south along the stream, approaching the sewage works.

Grey Heron x 1

Wren x 2

Jay x 2

Kestrel x 1 - It was seen hovering high above the woodland, then drifted north.

It was also interesting to see that the Norfolk Wildlife Trust had been spending some time on the reserve trying to recover some of the species-rich vegetation, after extensive scrub growth over the years.

According to the WREN website, who are providing funding, they will be carrying out a combination of urgently required restoration work and the development of more sustainable site management practices. 

This would include the:-

• Restoration of the central dyke and the removal of scrub encroachment
• Introduction of water-level management
• Introduction of a sustainable grazing regime

There is also similar work being carried out at Scarning Fen, in an attempt to secure the future condition of these two sites on the Dereham stream corridor. 

Further information can be found here: http://www.wren.org.uk/projects/dereham-stream-fens