Potters Bar & Barnet Local RSPB Group

Rye Meads Nature Reserve

from Louise Moss, RSPB Information Officer, Rye Meads Nature Reserve.

It’s been wildlife galore on the reserve recently!  Birds, butterflies, mammals and much, much more!  Excitingly, and unusually, Rye Meads has seen its first bittern of the winter! 

                                                                        Andy Hay   rspb-images.com

It was spotted on Thursday 13 September from the Tern hide, where it flew up and circled the reserve along with other wildfowl, and was seen going down towards the Draper hide.  The bittern is one of the UK’s rarest birds, and over the past few years there has been lots of conservation work to help this fascinating bird.  There has been a lot of wildlife seen all over the reserve, including snipe, common and green sandpipers, gadwall, mallard, teal, shoveler, wigeon and tufted duck.

This year the story of the Rye Meads kingfishers has been very dramatic.  After a slow start we thought the pair were not going to breed but they began investigating the bank and eventually began to lay eggs.  Then tragedy struck when the young were predated, but the adults have been seen regularly all over the site.

                                                                Mike Richards  rspb-images.com

The terns have had a fantastic summer!  They spend winter in West Africa and travel all the way here to breed on our specially made rafts that can be seen from the lagoon hides.  Up to ten pairs can breed on one raft.   This summer the CCTV camera placed on one of the rafts (on the middle raft there is a post with a white bulge on the top - that’s the camera), has been giving us fantastic views of the terns, their eggs and the chicks.

A pair of little grebes made a nest right next to one of the rafts.  The nest was a creation of floating weed and luckily we had a great view due to the cameras.  The pair had four eggs and excitingly on Thursday 23 August they hatched.  Four little fluffy bundles were seen, and later that day the young were seen sitting on their parents’ backs.  The nest is a fabulous creation of weed and both parents took turns incubating.  There was the occasional time when both adults left the nest - but to keep the eggs safe they covered them with a layer of weed.

Operation Redshank 

For the first year, redshanks have nested on the Wildlife Trust wet meadow outside the Lapwing Hide on the reserve.  It's been great to hear redshank calling from the office this summer.  When a redshank moved onto one of the tern rafts on Lagoon 2, we were delighted to confirm breeding on the RSPB part of the reserve.  Delighted, that is, until we started to wonder how the chicks would get off the raft after they had hatched.

RSPB  Powell

We were able to monitor the progress of the family because, by chance, the redshank nested on the raft which held the CCTV camera beaming photos back to the visitor centre and web site.  The redshank was nesting safe under housing on the raft, and from time to time, when she shifted position, we could see that she had laid four eggs.  If left on the raft they would be hammered by the aggressive terns or starve to death, whichever came first.  But they couldn't get off the raft because of a mesh fence around the perimeter, and even if they did get off the raft, how would they cross the lagoon to get to dry land and food?

We started to hatch a plan to save the chicks.  How were we to catch them on the raft?  How were we to avoid being attacked by the terns?  How would we ensure that the female would follow the chicks and remain with them once rescued?  Finally, a plan materialised, involving a boat, netting bags and nervous staff.  On 11 June, about lunchtime, one of the eggs hatched.   By close of play there were two fluffy chicks tucked under the housing.  We knew it was imminent.   On 12 June, there were still only two chicks, but now they were outside the housing, trying unsuccessfully to find food on the raft with the female bird.  The chicks were being attacked by the terns, but there were still two eggs unhatched.  What to do - go ahead with the rescue or give it a bit longer to see if the other two eggs would hatch? 

At 11 am, to our surprise, the female and one of the chicks hopped over the low fencing on the perimeter of the raft onto a lip running around the outside, where they were safe from the terns, but the second chick wasn't able to get over the fencing.  Finally, after a lot of squeezing and struggling, it made its way through the mesh.  Mum started to brood the chicks - they were both safe for the moment, giving the last two eggs some breathing space.  But, we couldn't relax for long - a little grebe started to attack the chicks on the outer rim.  Next thing we knew, chicks and mum were gone, and we assumed the worst.  It was with a huge sigh of relief that we finally located mum and the chicks on the bank of Lagoon 2, foraging on the edge of the reedbed, without any interference from us.  A success story!  I guess that redshank really did know what she was doing after all !

Wonderful Winter Wildlife - Sunday 30th December 1:30 - 3:30 pm

See out the old year by joining us on a walk to discover the reserve’s winter wonders, and then warm up with free tea and biscuits.  For more information and to book, please contact the reserve on 01992 708383.

Volunteers

More volunteers are always warmly welcomed at Rye Meads, either for the regular Potters Bar and Barnets Group rota day on the 4th Sunday of each month, or indeed for our daily rotas throughout the year.

Rye Meads Nature Reserve, Rye Meads Visitor Centre, Rye Road, Stanstead Abbotts, Hertfordshire, SG12 8JS.

Tel 01992 708383. e-mail rye.meads@rspb.org.uk