9th February: Winter duck calls

In the third instalment of our bird  'audio guide', we are showcasing the calls of various duck species seen and heard at Lindisfarne NNR. These can be seen at various points across the Reserve, including Budle Bay, the Fenham-le-Moor hide and also the Lough on Holy Island. Why not spend a day on the NNR to see if you can spot them all before the end of this winter?

Goldeneye



Wigeon



Teal



Tufted Duck



Long-tailed duck



Pintail

6th February: Scots pine regeneration

This time of year is best for spotting tiny Scots pine saplings around the Snook where, if left to grow unchecked, the sand dune habitat would slowly change to become dominated by Scots pine and scrub such as hawthorn. The rest of the dune vegetation is rank and dark brown in colour, making it easy to spot the bright green saplings, which are hand-pulled to ensure root removal.

The 'Mothership' tree, with tiny saplings to the left

Saplings

It is very important to keep the existing cover provided by Scots pine and scrub among the dunes for small birds passing through, using Lindisfarne as a valuable stop-off on migration. This is why the Reserve team only remove new regeneration and not the established tree cover.

4th February: Peak bird counts during January

Some selected peak bird counts from around the NNR during the month of January:

1000 Barnacle geese
1500 Shelduck
150 Dark-bellied Brent geese
2000 Light-bellied Brent geese
32 Whooper swan
3200 Pink-footed geese
350 Greylag geese
300 Mallard
256 Pintail
16 Long-tailed duck
400 Oystercatcher
1200 Dunlin
700 Bar-tailed godwit
600 Redshank

3rd February: Wild wader calls

Last week we brought you the calls of geese that can be heard around Lindisfarne NNR. This week, some wintering wader calls can be heard right here on the blog. Flocks of small waders may flight past quickly as you're watching from the Fenham-Le-Moor hide or near the causeway, so having a sound guide to various waders can be useful for identification.

Redshank


Turnstone


Golden plover


Curlew


Bar-tailed godwit