Wildlife at Pickerings Pasture - Spring ‘08

In early March up to 20 redwings and 15 meadow pipits were seen feeding on the pastures.  Song and mistle thrush were singing to proclaim their forthcoming breeding territories.

A pair of Shelduck were using the scrape pool and chasing away other birds although a few teal were still dropping in occasionally. Many birds were using the feeders, especially during the period of cold weather with Northerly winds.

By mid March up to 12 Canada geese appeared on the scrape grazing the grass around the edges of the pool and using the pool for bathing. A moorhen appeared to be setting up a territory on the scrape pool. A great spotted woodpecker was enlarging the nest box holes in the vicinity of the bird hide; its drumming could be heard from quite a distance from the hide.

In late March the numbers of birds using the feeding station started to drop off but during a very cold snap the numbers increased again.  Also around this time over 40 greenfinches, many chaffinches and a few linnets, together with good numbers of blackbirds, were feeding on the newly sown cornfield by the visitor centre. A very approachable female kestrel spent quite some time sitting around on the benches or hovering over the pastures waiting for a mouse or a vole to appear.  She was, on one occasion, seen mating with a well marked male. On the 30^th March two male brimstone butterflies were seen by the white bridge. Also 26 teal were in the Ditton brook and a kingfisher was seen by several people.  

The number of Curlew on the upper estuary reached over 100 with good numbers of redshank and a few dunlins seen from the car park.

Redshank   CAC

 On the 3^rd April chiffchaffs were singing at five different locations on the pastures and up to 13 snakes-head fritillaries were flowering. The primroses were flowering in several locations.

On the high tide on the 4^th April 150 redshank, 18 oystercatchers, 3 turnstones, a few dunlin and 3 wigeon roosted on the marsh just behind the scrape pool.  On the same day a male and a female teal, several mallard and two moorhens were the on scrape, while a male & female brimstone butterfly were flying near the bird hide.

The next day at high tide at least 222 Canada geese and 3 cormorants were roosting on the river's edge. A female merlin was very obliging and perched on some dead branches just the other side of scrape pool: in full view from the bird hide.

Female merlin    CAC

By the 9^th April the 2 moorhens were collecting nesting material on the scrape pool and the pair of kestrels was seen mating by the United Utilities entrance path. Another grey squirrel turned up at the feeding station by the hide. The ranger, Rob Smith reported a blackcap singing. Two wheatears were feeding by the scrape pool on 12^th April and swallows were catching insects over the pool and over the pastures, willow warblers were singing at several locations and a common sandpiper was seen on the banks of the Mersey.

Towards the end of the month there were still 15 cormorants roosting on the sand banks. The two moorhens were still showing an interest in the scrape pool while a very dominant male shelduck spent all his time chasing off the male mallard while his mate looked on.

 Moorhen    CAC

The display of cowslips on the pasture in early May was probably the best for many years. A little egret turned up on scrape pool and three whimbrels were seen on the marsh edge just beyond the pool.  An oystercatcher visited the pool on several occasions, probably one of the pair showing an interest in the United Utilities site.

Cowslips   CAC

During early May four Harbour porpoises came up the River passed Pickerings Pasture but unfortunately one was grounded on a sandbank off Wigg Island and died. 

Towards the end of the month the nest boxes were very busy with both blue and great tits carrying food to their young. A brood of young long-tailed tits had already fledged. The meadows are now beginning to flower well, with yellow rattle and ragged robin in the far pastures.

 Primroses   CAC                     Snakeshead Fritillery   CAC