Our first ducklings of the year were sighted this week, with 14 Eider ducklings spotted in front of the Visitor Centre on the 29^th and today’s count is 58. There were also 9 Mallard ducklings in the Salt Pans this morning. Common Terns have also returned to the tern raft, with numbers increasing to 38 by the 28^th. With courtship displays still in full swing we should hopefully have sightings of eggs soon. There continues to be regular sightings of an osprey hunting at the Basin, with it being spotted on the 25^th, 30^th and today.

A Water Rail was seen at the Salt Pans on the 27^th and there are still daily sightings of a Moorhen in the same area, with a pair being spotted on the 25^th. A more unusual sighting was the pair of Gadwall spotted in front of the Visitor Centre yesterday, with one being spotted earlier on the 27^th.

The 25^th was a good day for viewing small birds, with a Sedge Warbler at the Sand Martin wall, a male Reed Bunting seen singing on the reeds in the Salt Pans, and a pair of Linnets near the feeders.

Other sightings on the reserve this week include 5 male Red-breasted Mergansers and 9 Goldeneye spotted today in the centre of the Basin, a female Marsh Harrier on the 27^th, and a Stoat being chased by a male Pheasant outside the Visitor Centre window on the 25^th.

Georgina Bowie, Visitor Centre Assistant