NORWICH LOCAL GROUP IN THIS ISSUE Autumn 2015 Group Leader’s page 2 Lakenheath Fen 3 Strumpin round the Fen 4 Outdoor meeting reports 5 - 9 Committee 9 Programme 10 All drawings by Mike Langman unless otherwise stated. The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) is a registered charity: England and Wales no. 207076, Scotland no.SC037654 Website: www.rspb.org.uk/groups/norwich/ Group Leader’s page I hope you have all enjoyed the summer break. During the break we visited the Titchwell reserve; Ray Kimber had a table full of specimen jars containing a selection of moths. The children were absolutely fascinated by these. It reminded me of my granddaughter who is six years old. Right from an early stage she has always been interested in creepy crawlies; she would closely watch ants crawling across our path. As she has got older other insects such as Dan Powell ladybirds, moths, flies, spiders and On my birthday I received a card with a picture bees, to name a of a barn owl; she immediately knew what it few have got her was. She lives in the country and sees more attention and she birds in her garden than we do in Norwich. I eagerly catches point out these birds are the pretty ones like these and studies goldfinches, or the ones making a lovely them in her bug box. sound like a blackbird. Now despite the Her school arranges for various animals or weather before she goes to school she has to birds to be brought into her class. They have go and feed her birds. A pigeon had a nest in had small farmyard animals, a hedgehog and a bush in her garden; she loved to watch the a barn owl. She absolutely loved seeing the progress from egg to fledging. barn owl; she told us all about it. On her way We must find a way to harness this home one night in the car with her dad she enthusiasm in young children; she is not saw a barn owl flying in the wild she was so alone, as witnessed by all the children who excited as soon as she arrived indoors she attended the Big Castles event in Norwich. As phoned us to tell us what she had seen. If we they get older, whether it’s the pressure of see a barn owl we have to tell her. school and exams or the opposite sex, or more probably mobile phones or computers and social networking, this interest seems to wane, possibly to return in later years. Is this the reason we do not have many younger members? On that note our membership is giving us some concern. We need these younger members to carry the flag and fight for nature. It is their future to give nature a home. Happy Birding David Porter Page 2 News from Lakenheath Fen Welcome to the summer news from than ever! We do leave a bit of ragwort Lakenheath Fen! scattered around the reserve though, as it is a really good nectar source for insects. Nesting season is almost past and there seem to be chicks and newly fledged young every- Another survey we’ve been doing is the annual where at the moment! Our biggest news is hunt for marsh carpet moth caterpillars! They that both pairs of cranes have fledged young feed on the developing seed heads of this year – hurray! One pair fledged twins (a common meadow rue, which is a fairly first for here), and the other pair fledged a common plant of Fenland areas. The moth single young. They can currently be seen with itself is quite rare (classified as being their parents foraging on reserve grassland Nationally Scarce) and only found in certain and occasionally taking short flights over the fens and marshes across seven counties in river. They’ll hopefully spend the next month the south-east of England. The caterpillars are or so around the reserve honing their flying small and very camouflaged, but this year our techniques before heading off, with their intrepid counters have found 145, which is 46 parents, into the wider Fens area. more than last year! Wildlife sightings May to July – The main highlight was the long staying little bittern, which turned up on 16 May, and was apparently still present through- out June, although very few actual sightings are being reported. More excitement in June Proud parents with their twins! Photo by Dave Rogers was caused by the arrival of a collared pratincole, which was present on and off for Bitterns have also had a good year, with five about a week from 7 June. Other good rec- booming males and four nests being recorded. ords have included red kite, spotted flycatcher, Of these four, we know that at least three of black tern and a random Arctic skua! them have fledged young. Marsh harriers have also done well, with lots of fledged young Otters have been seen regularly on the river. around, though the final tally has yet to be The fenland flowers are all out in bloom at the worked out! moment, from the deep purple of purple loose- strife, to the paler hemp agrimony, and the Most of our work recently has been focussed bright yellow of yellow loosestrife. There are around visitors and bird surveys. A lot of time plenty of butterflies to see too, and if you’re is spent keeping the visitor infrastructure in really lucky, we’ve also had several sightings good order, which generally involves of a hornet mimic hoverfly, Volucella zonaria – strimming and mowing paths! It’s a never- the largest hoverflies in the UK. ending job at this time of year. We’ve also begun the thankless task of removing ragwort That’s all from me for now, hope to see you on from the grazing marshes. We thought last the reserve soon! For more sightings check year was bad, but despite all our hard work out our blog on the website www.rspb.org.uk/ from previous years, there seems to be more lakenheathfen. Katherine Puttick Warden - Lakenheath Fen Marsh carpet moth larvae Adult marsh carpet moth Photos by Lee Gregory Page 3 Strumpin’ round the Fen We’ve seen a wide variety of weathers this went back to Siberia or North America. summer from hot sunny days through to unseasonably cool conditions with heavy rain. A week later the wet grassland hit back again The range of weather conditions have produced with a Temminck’s stint; unfortunately it was only a good variety of wildlife sightings, a summary of on the reserve for a matter of minutes to refuel which follows. and then it was off again heading north. To start with the breeding birds had a good More routine scarce species at the fen through- season. The waders on the wet grassland had a out the summer period have included a pair of very good year with 81 lapwings, 92 redshanks, garganeys, which most probably bred at 16 snipe, eight oystercatchers and 12 avocet Buckenham. Regular red kite sightings including nests. The snipe numbers are particularly three together on one day and a good passage impressive as this is a rare breeder in Norfolk, at of yellow wagtails. Wheatears had a good pas- dawn and dusk they could be heard drumming sage with at least 12 logged throughout April/ all over the reserve. May; this species occurs in variable numbers each year. At the fen, the territory mapping surveys produced 86 reed warblers, 127 sedge warblers, The non avian highlights: swallowtails had a 53 reed buntings, 31 Cetti’s warblers and five relatively late emergence on 17 May, although grasshopper warblers, and we only survey a they remained on show until far later than small percentage of the reserve! Other note- expected, with the final butterfly being seen in worthy breeders include two barn owl nests, a mid July. The second brood of swallowtails have spotted flycatcher nest, a hobby nest and 16 first just emerged as I write on 2 August, these are brood bearded tit nests (a very large increase far less predictable and less numerous than the since the crash year of 2012). first brood. White admirals have had yet another good year with many butterflies being seen The final two breeding species certainly worthy along the woodland trails. of mention are the two booming bitterns and the two bittern nests that have been active at the fen I have been moth trapping regularly this year this year. Marsh harriers have also had a good and have added quite a lot of species to the season with a total of 16 nests found this year. reserve list; the best of which have been small It’s amazing to think this species was down to dotted footman; a moth that only occurs in the one pair in 1971; it shows how some species Broads. This is the first record for the Yare can really bounce back with the creation and Valley and is a very exciting find. A splendid management of wetland habitats. brocade caught on 10 July was a first for Norfolk, this is always a special accolade, although the The non breeding avian highlights have been second and third were caught elsewhere on the slightly limited this year; however as always following nights at Eccles! there have been plenty of species to get excited by. Cranes once again paid multiple visits to the Dragonflies have had a good year (seems to be fen and wet grassland throughout April with a a theme here!) with scarce chasers, Norfolk peak of eight being seen on one occasion.