Over the last few weeks we have been starting to see and
hear about a lot more Barn Owls around the valley and wider area, which is
great news following last year’s dismal breeding season. Hopefully after a year
off last summer and a relatively mild winter, these sightings are now a
reflection of more positive things to come this year. In comparison to last
year when it was suggested that the owls were hunting during the day and
struggling to find food, these recent records don’t appear to be in response to
a significant food storage. The bird pictured here was photographed hunting
successfully by local wildlife photographer Terry Weston, making four
successful catches during his observations. Many thanks to Terry for sharing
his wonderful photographs.
Whilst out and about Terry also managed to capture the following two images, the first being of one of our breeding pairs of Mute Swans at North Duffield Carrs. The ongoing and extensive floodwater that continues to
linger throughout the valley initially delayed the onset of breeding for our
resident swans, however the first eggs were spotted at North Duffield Carrs on
the 18th April, with the first completed clutch of five having been
laid by the 26th. Once all the eggs have been laid the female starts
incubating to ensure that they will all hatch at the same time – approximately
35-40 days from the last egg being laid. If all goes to plan and hatching is
successful, we’ll hopefully see the appearance of this year’s cygnets towards
the end of May.
The lingering floodwater in the valley may have created an
unwelcome impact on both the meadows and breeding wader populations, however some
species are clearly benefiting from the ongoing conditions - Coot being one of them. Numbers of Coot usually build up from December through to late March, birds will then move
through the site on spring passage from sites further south in the UK. However,
with conditions as they are many of the birds have remained - last week our
NNR staff counted 635 birds - including 104 incubating nests. With Coots laying
a large number of eggs (typically 8-11) it could be a bumper breeding season
for them. Many thanks to Terry for another stunning image, taken recently at North Duffield Carrs.
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