Title: - Hale Duck Decoy.

Category: - Wildlife at the Decoy

                                 Spring (March to May)

Our hopes, mentioned in the previous report, have been justified. In early March a grey heron was seen building a nest in the same tree as last year's unsuccessful attempt. Within a week or so, two other pairs had built nests and were also sitting.  Young were first noted in early April, and by the end of the month a further pair was breeding. By now all the nests contain young, with the first birds due to fledge anytime. 

With the unusually warm weather the numbers of duck dropped off rapidly in early March, compared to recent years. However, tufted duck numbers increased and on several occasions reached up to ten birds. They spent most of their time diving and eating what appeared to be water snails.

The local population of shelducks increased to up to fifty birds which spent most of their time displaying and chasing each other, though by the end of April several dominant birds seemed to have taken control of the pond as their territory.

The pool was visited on several occasions by both coots and little grebes but neither found the area to their liking this year and they moved on.

The moorhens have bred and at least one brood of young are present. One brood of young mallard have hatched although several eggs of mallard and pheasant have been eaten by the magpies.

In mid April a very high tide backed by windy conditions flooded the whole of the marsh, washing out all the lapwing nests. Skylarks and meadow pipits suffered the same losses although most birds re-started breeding again very quickly and hopefully will be successful.

The summer migrants appeared early this year, presumably encouraged by the good weather. The woodland rang with songs of chiffchaff, willow warbler and blackcap, while sedge warblers called in the nearby ditches.

In April small tortoiseshell and peacock butterflies were joined by comma, orange tip and brimstone, one female laying eggs on a newly planted alder buckthorn.

Flowers were also well advanced and by May the wood was covered with red campion and wood forget-me-not, with the first flowers of yellow flag showing through.

A vixen had taken up territory much to the annoyance of the shelducks, which spent much time mobbing it whenever it appeared by the pool. The first pipistrelle bats were recorded flying in late April.