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The first Dragonfly survey of the year was done on the reserve on Thursday. Quite a few Damselflies about, but not many dragons yet!
Oh, and one strange looking Shield Bug! (possibly Verlusea rhombea). The Dragonfly is a Broad-bodied Chaser, the Damselflies are a Blue-tailed and an Azure.
The uplifting power of cranes?
This was the amazing sunrise that greeted me as I walked by the nature reserve. A flight of Canada Geese completed the picture.
There was a roebuck snoozing in the North Pool field while out on the salt marsh several curlews, many shelducks, a number of teal, a pair of oystercatchers, a duo of gadwalls and a common sandpiper was the icing on the cake.
It was so worth getting up early!
It was a lovely afternoon for a wildlife count with plenty to see from swallows and martins to orange-tip and peacock butterflies. Plenty of birdsong too including the joyful song of a skylark drifting down from over the salt marsh.
Though this kestrel hunting across the reserve stole the show. His hour long search for food ended successfully and he flew off to the salt marsh with his prey.
The ponds on the edge of Portbury Wharf (Fennel Road side) are amphibian breeding ponds and hundreds of frogs and toads, plus some newts, have migrated there from the nearby housing estate during January-March to deposit spawn. Some of the toads were filmed by student, Yazz Ellis, for this film about migration.
This film was made by student Yazz Ellis with help from Portishead toads during this year’s migration.
I hope you enjoy it as much as we have.
With landing gear down these redshanks were among 60 that came to North Pool Island during our wildlife count yesterday.
It was another high tide covering the salt marsh and reaching almost to the top of the sea wall. So waders like redshanks had few safe places to hold up until the water receded.
The hedgerows were also full of life from wrens to green and gold finches and cuties like this long-tailed tit. With larger birds cropping up in unexpected places. This heron was in the rhyne next to the sea wall. So engrossed in hunting it was ignoring the walkers, runners, cyclists and dogs three metres away on the sea wall.
So much March blossom surrounding the North Pool Hide! Such a wonderful sight . . . a sign that spring has arrived perhaps?
Map of Portbury Wharf Nature Reserve
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For information on how to get to Portbury Wharf please see the visitor information page. You might also find the nature reserve page useful so you know what to expect when you arrive.