With the recent spell of warm weather there has
been a distinctive Mediterranean feel around the valley during the temperatures of 20 degrees last weekend. The much needed spell of
warm weather brought out a range of butterflies and reptiles, whilst the
bird life has been a little on the exotic side - recent sightings include three
Common Cranes and two Great White Egrets, as well as up to sixteen Little
Egrets, two Avocets, an adult Little Gull, a singing Cetti’s Warbler, the
first returning Whimbrel and 34 Black-tailed Godwits. Our resident
breeding Mute Swans have also starting laying clutches around the valley and
we’ve just seen the first brood of eight Mallard ducklings at North Duffield
Carrs.
Barn Owls are one of the favourite visitors to the Lower
Derwent Valley, with the local birders fortunate to enjoy regular sightings,
particularly during the summer months. We haven’t seen that many so far this
year which is probably a good sign – hopefully meaning they have been finding
enough food to survive the winter, which will help get them into good breeding
condition for the forthcoming season. With the days now drawing out, we are
likely to see more birds appearing on the wing at dusk in order to start
hunting – Bank Island and North Duffield Carrs are often the best sites to view
them, whilst the Pocklington Canal area is another good
location. Later in the year we’ll be checking the progress of our local
population, hopefully it’ll be a good season for them – the last couple being
rather poor and linked to a dip in the vole cycle on which they depend.
However, we have recently heard about one of the few young birds we ringed in
the summer of 2015, from a nest box on North Duffield Carrs. This individual
had wandered all the way down into Norfolk where it was found in November 2016,
unfortunately having been hit by a car – hopefully we’ll receive more controls
from the birds ringed that year – and with a happier outcome.
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