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info@fpwnr.org
Friends of Portbury Wharf Nature Reserve
Been monitoring rainfall etc for 11 years now and never seen such a high rainfall forecast. In old money it’s about and inch and a half - today.
The brazen sun of summer has started to fade from our skies; to become more gentle, more polished, more subtle. Its work in the fields and hedgerows is largely accomplished for the year, the joy and frivolity of wildflowers have passed to leave so many different forms of bounty for the winter ahead. Some will be gone in a trice, whilst others, like hawthorns, and rose hips, will last deep into the hungry months of winter to welcome and nourish our returning fieldfares and redwings from Scandinavia. Goldfinch will gorge themselves on thistledown and the seeds of greater napp weed. Warblers and their fellow travellers from way up in the north will stock up for the journey down to France then onward to northern sub-Saharan Africa. Blackbirds are busy stuffing themselves full of blackberries and service berries whilst they jealously guard their own patch of berries from interlopers. Even so, foxes, badgers and deer will also be foraging the brambles and even the most bombastic blackbird can do little to fend them off!![]()
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Autumn is a season of change. Our wildlife knows deep in their bones and DNA that winter is coming and now, more than at any other time, they are planning ahead, readying, preparing themselves for cold nights when even if they roost together, the outliers may still perish. Winter is a time of challenge and reckoning for wildlife around the world, and it is only the canny ones who make it through to spring. Nature still operates on the principle of survival of the fittest.![]()
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So, it will come as no surprise for you to realise that today I have been investigating the hedgerows for fruits and seeds, and there really is a huge variety out there. Have a look when next you walk across our wonderful wild spaces. Summer maybe over, but the highlights of autumn and winter can rival anything seen in the summer.
Sometimes wildlife can be easy to spot but not always . . .This Little Egret is fast becoming a regular in Portishead Hole. Its white plumage makes it easy to spot on the mud but look closely and you will see something else too! A very special bird with a beautiful call, long legs, a curved beak and plumage which blends it into the background . . . a Curlew.
Huge contrast between todays and yesterday's weather! We had a wonderful walk down to the Lake Grounds Yesterday, but got rained off after only two holes of golf today! BTW, I have named the egret Hilary as that was who first spotted it on the reserve a few days ago. Nature's bounty is everywhere as our resident bird population fatten up for the winter ahead.
The ivy flowers are buzzing with pollinators at this time of year. Look out for them on your next walk and count how many different bees, hoverflies, wasps and other insects you see. I lost count! If you get lucky you might even see butterflies feeding on the ivy nectar too.
Plenty of activity in Portishead Hole, just outside the lock gates . . . I lost count at over 70 Redshank. Always a great sight at this time of year, but they weren't alone . . . a Little Egret came along too.![]()
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Keep an eye out for them on the North Pools, especially at high tide when the salt marsh and mud banks are underwater and they are looking for somewhere to rest up.
You never know who might be out and about on the reserve . . . like this roe deer having a gander at the visitors.![]()
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A young Marsh Harrier was spotted by the South Pool last weekend too, so keep your eyes peeled and let us know what you see.
It's the beginning of July and I have just been down to the Seawall notice board to change the Dog Ranger of the Month Poster. This month Patch is on duty! Whilst I was down there I could hear curlew trilling out on the Portishead Salt Marshes. I think this is one of the most evocative sounds I have ever heard. Have a listen next time you are along the sea front. Haunting isn't in it!![]()
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We are always looking to recruit more Dog Rangers; the duties aren't exactly demanding and we welcome local dogs who may not even walk on the Salt Marsh and Reserve. I have attached this month's poster. You will see a QR Code that will take you to our sign on page - come and join us!
It's a monster tide this morning; 14.5/6 forecast with a westerly wind bringing it even higher onto the sea wall. It is overtopping the steps out of Portishead hole so some seawater will be getting into that end of the rhyne at the back of the seawall - that is what it's therefore. The seawall path is impassable for the next hour or so, and will be very muddy thereafter. Do please avoid putting yourself in danger along there
Portbury Wharf’s Wildlife
Portbury Wharf’s wildlife is very varied because wildlife loves water and there is certainly a lot of that around here. This is a coastal reserve with a series of freshwater ponds and a network of water filled ditches (rhynes).
All of this water makes it an ideal home for birds, water voles, amphibians, dragonflies and so much more.
In the summer warblers nest in the reeds while swifts, swallows, and house martins wheel over the ponds and oystercatchers strut their stuff on the island. In the winter hundreds of migrating wading birds and ducks arrive here.
Because it is only just a few wing beats from the Severn Estuary it is a safe haven for wildfowl coming from the channel. Keep a look out as sometimes even rarities come to visit the reserve adding to Portbury Wharf’s wildlife.
Mammals
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Birds
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Plants and Trees
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Dragonflies and Damselflies
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Amphibians
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Butterflies (coming soon)
Wildlife Posts
How to help our spring wildlife
It’s spring and lots of our wildlife is beginning to breed. At this important time we can all do two easy things to help the wildlife here; keep to the paths and keep our dogs on leads. These… Read More
Murmuring starlings or whispering dunlins?
It was twilight. The stars had faded away but it was not yet sunrise when hundreds of pairs of wings purred past my shoulder. What were they? Where had they come from and where were they going? I… Read More
Roe Deer Antlers
Roe deer antlers regrow each year Only the male roe deer have antlers. Each year, in late autumn they shed their antlers and grow new ones. It doesn’t take long, after casting off the old ones, before these… Read More
Keeping water voles safe
Keeping water voles safe at Portbury Wharf is very important. So the warden and his Portbury Wharf Nature Reserve Volunteers have been busy repairing the hurdles alongside the rhynes. You may have noticed them along Water Vole Lane,… Read More
Gordano Valley Lapwings
This morning at sunrise I watched 18 lapwing lift off from the North Pool. Once upon a time you would have seen flocks of a hundred strong. Sadly over the last 20 or so years, numbers have fallen… Read More
OCTOBER – What to look out for
Welcome to October! We are well into the autumn and this can be a lovely time of year with lots going on. Birds While the summer birds have gone south to find warmer climates, the winter birds are… Read More
SEPTEMBER – What to look out for
September is here! By the meteorological calendar, the first day of autumn begins on 1 September and ends on 30 November. So autumn is officially here. The weather may be sunny and warm at times, but nature is… Read More
AUGUST – What to look out for
Whilst for us August is the height of summer, for much of our wildlife it’s almost the beginning of autumn. The breeding season’s over, lots of plants are ripe with fruit and some bird species are even starting… Read More
JULY – what to look out for
July is the start of high summer. The flowers and insects are at their best and busiest, but many of the birds will have finished nesting. In July and August many birds are winding down and moulting into… Read More
JUNE – what to look out for
June is the month when the meadows and verges are full of flowers and the breeding season for the birds is in full swing. The emergence of butterflies, damselflies and dragonflies is also in full swing. On the… Read More
MAY – what to look out for
Listen out for cuckoos in May. Cuckoos fly all the way here from Africa and beyond to lay their eggs in other birds’ nests. Did you know it is only the male bird that calls “cuckoo”? A cuckoo… Read More
March and April – what to look out for
While some winter birds are yet to fly back north to their nesting sites, spring fever is definitely on its way. March and April is such an exciting time of year with plenty of spring wildlife to look… Read More
February – What to look out for
Look out for FROGS and TOADS! This is their mating time and they are on the move. February and March is the time when we are most likely to see them as large numbers converge on their… Read More
January – What to look out for
Happy New Year! This is the time of year when the winter birds are here, so next time you go down to the reserve look out for thrushes in the hedgerows and on the ponds the ducks and… Read More
December – What to look out for
IT’S DECEMBER! December is the month of CHRISTMAS and that makes it hard to avoid references to mistletoe, robins, holly and ivy! Let’s learn more about these Christmas symbols which you might spot on a walk around the… Read More