18/01/26 - Volunteer support

Last year was another record-breaking year for our incredible volunteer team, who gave up their time to deliver a stunning 918 volunteer days between them, helping us manage the NNRs – everything from clearing scrub, planting hedgerows, repairing hides and footpaths, building Corncrake pens, recording moths and ringing birds, clearing Marsh Ragwort and Himalayan Balsam, planting reeds, litter picking, seed harvesting, hay making and delivering logs - to name just a few 😄

We were also delighted to host another 40 corporate volunteering groups last year, from organisations such as Amey, the Army, Aviva, Britcon, Defra, Drax, the Environment Agency, HSE, Hull University, Lloyds Bank, Natural England, Nestle, Network Rail, Office of Rail and Road, Rural Payments Agency, WSP ecologists and York University – delivering a further 619 volunteering days (and helping pairs of hands) 👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏

Between our regular weekly volunteers and corporate groups, this totals an additional volunteer resource of 1,537 days, and is worth well in excess of £120,000 of additional work undertaken on the NNRs and is hugely appreciated by us, the wildlife and the visitors that come to enjoy the reserves 🦆🦅🦉🦋🐞🐍🦎🪶🍄🪻

So, a huge huge thank you to all those that chose to undertake their companies volunteering allowance with us last year, and those that were happy to spend some of their retirement or little free time that they get in between shifts with us – we cannot thank you enough, and simply would not be able to achieve everything that we manage to without you all - we're incredibly fortunate to have such an amazing group of people who give up their time so freely 🙏 

If any of the work mentioned above appeals and you’re interested in joining our team and fancy helping to manage your local National Nature Reserves, please contact Lucy.Murgatroyd@naturalengland.org.uk for more details about how you can get involved  🛠️🪛🧹🪵🌳🌿🐦🦋🌿

12/01/26 - Ringing summary

As last year came to a close, our team were busy submitting all of the records gathered on the reserve throughout the year to the various data record centres, county recorders and organisations that we work with. This included our moth data, Wetland Bird Survey (WeBS) counts, Rare Breeding Bird Panel (RBBP) submission, BTO heronry census and more. 

We have also finished compiling our end of year ringing data which saw over 5,000 birds ringed in the area during 2025. The top three amongst the 91 species ringed during the year were Swallow (810), Lesser Redpoll (710) and Chiffchaff (626) – although it was our work on waders that proved particularly successful. Of the 19 Black-tailed Godwits ringed (a species rapidly increasing on the reserve), 15 were seen again and reported at sites across the UK as well as in Iceland, whilst a motus-tagged Jack Snipe was the first BTO-ringed bird of its kind reported in Germany on spring passage, and we got a better understanding of Woodcock movements around the site day and night from using GPS tags. One of our Corncrakes made it to Spain, and a Willow Warbler to Morocco was a first for us. 

It’s also been really rewarding to be able to train a few new ringers along the way, as well as hosting various ringing displays and publishing some of the data collected in our new book ‘The Birds of the Lower Derwent Valley’. A huge thank you must go to everyone who has helped to collect all of this data, along with all of the people who have supported our work throughout the year, including those doing the hard work day and night, and those that have kindly granted permission to use their land – it takes a massive team effort to make the Lower Derwent Valley what it is – a truly remarkable place to live, work and enjoy – thanks to all. 

If you're yet to order yourself or someone you know a copy of our new book ‘The Birds of the Lower Derwent Valley’ - please send an e-mail to Lucy.Murgatroyd@naturalengland.org.uk

08/01/26 - White-tailed Eagle

Over the Christmas break those visiting the Lower Derwent Valley had the good fortune to finish the year off with the appearance of an impressive visitor, when an incredible juvenile White-tailed Eagle was found at Aughton Ings on the 26th. Since then it has appeared to be fairly settled in the area and has been seen daily between Aughton and Thorganby Ings, with the best place to get a view from being around Aughton churchyard, whilst records have also been logged from Ellerton churchyard, the viewing platform and hides at North Duffield Carrs and the viewing platform at Thorganby village hall. 

WTE - Thorganby - 27/12 - James Byatt

This species is the largest bird of prey in the UK, with a massive wingspan of 2.4 m, 'fingered' ends to its wing tips and a distinctive wedge-shaped tail 🦅 White-tailed Eagles went extinct in the UK during the early 20th century due to persecution, but the species has since been reintroduced back into north-western and eastern coasts of Scotland, and more recently into the Isle of Wight and now has a total population of c150 pairs. The individual currently present on the reserve here is un-ringed and may well be a juvenile wandering from the continent where some populations have been rapidly expanding. 

WTE - Thorganby - 26/12 - Duncan Bye

Whilst this is not the first White-tailed Eagle to have occurred in the area, it is the first to have lingered and has been regularly seen feeding on geese carcasses on the floodbank, as well as hunting ducks and even taking fish from the river, whilst attracting a steady stream of birders and interested local residents alike. If you haven’t had chance to get down for a visit yet and would like further updates, keep an eye on our Twitter and Bluesky accounts, and if you'd like to read more about other White-tailed Eagles that have passed through the reserve, pre-order our new book 'The Birds of the Lower Derwent Valley' by e-mailing Lucy.Murgatroyd@naturalengland.org.uk

28/12/25 - New book!

After five years in the making, the first two copies of the new ‘Birds of the Lower Derwent Valley – a Historical, Conservation and Migration Review’ have finally arrived 😃 This book has been published by the Friends of the Lower Derwent Valley, and contained within its 550 pages is everything we know about the 294 bird species that have occurred on the reserve and surrounding area – historically, along with more detailed trends from the 1960s up to the end of 2024. 

As well as the status, counts and trends, this book also summarises the results from the ringing of over 100,000 birds since the late 1980s, with species maps, selected recoveries, and longevity records. Perhaps more significantly, it also identifies where we know we have gaps in the knowledge for certain species, as well as predicting what species might be the next to occur.  With 294 individual species accounts, 40 maps, 344 colour-photographs and 35 line-drawing and artworks, it’s a must-have book for serious local birders, nature conservationists, land managers, or indeed anyone with a passing interest in the area, the Ings, its birds and wildlife. 

The rest of the copies will be arriving in mid-January, and will be available to buy from then on, with all funds going directly back into supporting more conservation and research projects on the reserve, as well as land acquisition in the area – more details on how to buy one to follow, but if you’d like to place an order in the meantime to secure yourself a copy, please send an email to Lucy.Murgatroyd@naturalengland.org.uk

16/12/25 - December WeBS

Recently our team carried out the monthly WeBS (Wetland Bird Survey) which monitors the UK's internationally important non-breeding waterbird population, and following a tradition which started in 1947, volunteers and surveyors count wetland sites once a month on set dates, providing data for population and trends in abundance and distribution.

The Lower Derwent Valley has been counted since the early 1960s, and as such we have a fantastic data set on the changing fortunes of the ducks, geese, swans, wading birds and gulls over that period of time. Due to the recent return of the flood water, accompanied by the return of the wintering birds, the team spent last Saturday working their way around the whole site counting the wintering birds. Despite the challenges of getting around the reserve during such conditions, the team logged an impressive 44,497 wetland birds, including 22,328 wildfowl (ducks, geese and swans) and 8,239 waders. The most numerous species, as is often the case, was Wigeon with 9,870 recorded, followed by good counts of 7,624 Lapwing and 7,418 Teal. A total of 2,240 Greylag Geese was also notable (including a gathering of over 1,400 at Melbourne Ings), whilst 160 Whooper Swans were also recorded across the site (mainly concentrated around Ellerton). The churchyards at both Ellerton and Aughton provided good viewing of large numbers of birds, so it's definitely worth visiting at the moment if you’re in the area. Many thanks to our team for their efforts in helping to build up this valuable data set.