Another cloudy but dry morning on the reserve. The Great Egret is on the merse at the moment, usually to the west of the Saltcot Merse Observatory. A Sparrowhawk has been using the Saltcot Loaning and a Kestrel hovering over the Corner Field. Curlew, Lapw
27 December 2018
The mist of yesterday has cleared so we can at least see the reserve this morning. It's a dry start to the day, with plenty to see. Barnacle Geese are all around the site, duck numbers are high in the Flood Ground and Folly Pond. Waders have returned to t
26 December 2018
A frost last night has frozen many of the ponds and fields. Whooper Pond, Folly Pond and the Flood Ground are mostly ice free and that's where most of the birds are at the moment. A Mistle Thrush in the Avenue this morning is a fairly unusual species f
24 December 2018
A bright and sunny morning on the reserve. The Folly Pond is very busy this morning, plenty of ducks and waders to see. Two Ruff have been reported in front of the Newfield Hide at 11am. Named Whooper Swan arrivals: YHS - Solway Siren Lost Darvic - Hagar
22 December 2018
We still have restrictions on our network which means our webcams will not be online until January at the earliest. We apologise for this and are working to restore the system. Thankfully we are now able to take card payments in the visitor centre. It's
19 December 2018
A cold and overcast start to the day. If the forecasts are correct, we could expect some travel disruption in the area later today so please be prepared if you plan to visit today. The ponds have thawed out a bit from yesterday so the wildfowl have more o
15 December 2018
We apologise for the lack of recent sightings updates, we have been experiencing problems with our internet connection. Although we are now able to make website updates, we are still unable to take card payments in the Centre, so if you plan to visit befo
14 December 2018
We're currently experiencing internet connectivity issues on site and therefore apologise for the lack of recent updates. We're hoping for service to be restored by Thursday 13 December.
7 December 2018
Passerine activity remains good around the site with two Brambling spotted on the Peter Scott Trail feeders yesterday and a male down with the Yellowhammers and Reed Bunting opposite the Peter Scott Observatory. They have been heard again this morning a
28 November 2018
Good morning all! It's a very frosty morning on site today and the 130 Whoopers on the pond have had to spend their first feed breaking through sheets of ice; winter has truly arrived. And with this arrival of the colder weather there are plenty of bird
26 November 2018
So another lovely flypast of the male hen harrier again today. This time flying across Teal Pond and heading south towards the merses. It could be it's presence that was causing all the Lapwing to keep taking flight with up to 100 in the air at any ti
23 November 2018
Lovely fly past of a male Hen Harrier at Saltcot. It then decided to tuck itself away down on the ground in amongst the gorse to the east of the Observatory but of course was still visible! Whooper numbers are creeping up now we progress through the win
22 November 2018
The ducks, waders and geese are loving the Lochar field this morning down at Avenue Tower. Over three hundred each of Wigeon and Lapwing feeding around (and in!) the flooded grassland. They are joined by good numbers of Barnacle Geese and over 50 Curl
21 November 2018
Happy news from the Whooper Pond today, a swan that has not been seen for 10 years has shown up so we are all very pleased. It's interesting to think what it may have been up to for the last decade! Teal and Wigeon numbers are still high, with 1000 of e
19 November 2018
Following the strong wind and rain yesterday we have been left with quite a few waders on the Folly pond. There are also large numbers of Teal and Wigeon so it's well worth checking them out for any peculiarities. The Saltcot Merse Observatory was brill
15 November 2018