Hi,

The first flurry of fledgling birds were spread across the reserve with three hungry dipper chicks keeping their parents busy at the Mill Weir (12^th) and another set of dipper chicks heard below the Peregrine Watch throughout. Grey wagtails also had fledged young at Bonnington Linn (16^th), three song thrush chicks hopped around the boardwalk (15^th) and young robins zipped across the road in New Lanark.

On the migrant bird front our first swift record of the year consisted of a single bird flying over Bonnington Pavilion (15th). A common whitethroat was heard singing upstream of Bonnington Weir (12^th). There was also an obvious midweek arrival of blackcap with a number of new territories established across the reserve.

Scarce Prominent was a good catch in the moth trap during the week (C) Adam Jones

Top mammal sighting of the week has to go to five badgers which showed well on our volunteer badger watch (16^th), with one individual particularly busy collecting bedding material throughout the watch. The group also enjoyed listening to lots of bat activity along the boardwalk with soprano pipistrelle and daubenton’s bats observed.

Other interesting sightings included, our female peregrine grounding herself with blackbird prey after crashing through the tree canopy along the blue trail (11^th), a female mallard with seven freshly hatched ducklings (boardwalk, 15^th), 2x jay (Peregrine Watch, 15^th), 1x greenfinch (Mid Lodge, 15^th), a flyover oystercatcher (Peregrine Watch, 18^th), 2x roe deer (Bonnington Pavilion, 15^th), 1x American mink (Bonnington Weir, 16^th) and 532 globeflower plants near the boardwalk (certainly glad I had my tally counter with me on that occasion!).

Weather Watch

Spotted flycatcher was a no show here on the reserve during the past week; however I did enjoy watching a pair frantically feeding in nearby Douglas. For my final weather watch instalment of the spring I’m afraid it’s another week of less than perfect weather for bird migration. However new migrants should still filter through onto the reserve and visitors should look and listen out for sedge warbler along the River Clyde, upstream from Bonnington Weir.

Adam Jones – Scottish Wildlife Trust, Falls of Clyde Seasonal Ranger

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