The Past Year at Sherren (GGW home base)

For first time recipients of a newsletter it may be of interest that GGW owns and manages two private nature reserves. One, extending to 220 acres, is situated in the uplands above Loch Ness, while the second (35 acres) is at our home base at Sherren in Orkney. Previous newsletters have alluded to wetland developments at Sherren, reporting on the extension of flooded meadows by damming watercourses. Although during September 2008 and March of 2009 we greatly extended the water-surface area by contracting our local excavator-machine operator to build more dams, an unanticipated drought during the past summer negated the potentials for real reward.

The projected build-up of a Black-headed Gull colony did not happen (just four pairs raised broods), but it may take a couple of years before the required vegetation develops. The new water area attracted seven Whooper Swans that stopped by for a few days. A pair of Mute Swans subsequently took up residence but failed to nest, however a pair of Greylag Geese settled and raised a brood of five young. Similarly a Wigeon raised five ducklings and a Shoveler had a brood of ten. Early broods of Mallard and Tufted Duck were predated by Hooded Crows, Herring Gulls and feral cats, as were Curlew and Redshank families. Second broods fared much better, with several pairs each of Oystercatcher, Lapwing, Redshank, Curlew and Snipe successfully raising young to fledging. Five Coot pairs plus a single pair of Little Grebes all fledged families, as did two pairs of Common Gulls. Arctic Terns visited regularly but thus far have not nested, and a pair of Dunlins were seen performing courtship display.

A pair of Short-eared Owls either nested within the reserve boundary or very close by, the family (up to five birds) was seen hunting our fields daily. These were doubtless drawn in by the exceptionally high numbers of Orkney Voles, 2009 seemingly having been a peak year within their cyclic population trend.

Predictions for the future are for Pintail, Gadwall, Arctic Tern, Water Rail, Dunlin and Black-tailed Godwit to add to the list of nesting species, and there will doubtless be items of an unexpected nature.

The low water levels of late summer proved a real draw for passage waders, with Greenshanks, Spotted Redshanks and Green Sandpipers all arriving during August. October rainfall delivered the much awaited volume of water that re-flooded the greater surface area, just in time for the main arrival of incoming migrant geese from Iceland. Of the many thousands of Greylags that flighted over Sherren at dusk each evening, up to 1500 descended on our ponds to roost.

Being away leading tours for much of the spring and summer my observations are inevitably just a snapshot of the overall picture, with many events doubtless passing unnoticed. During these absences my car often remains idle on our driveway – proving an irresistible invite to local Starlings which love to build nests in the engine compartment. We provide lots of nestboxes and when constructing drystone walls leave plenty of suitable nesting cavities, yet the Starlings still find my car engine an irresistible nest-site option.

Knapdale Beaver Update

For many years we have attempted, with just token success, to promote Argyll as a wonderfully rich wildlife region – one that is greatly overlooked. The title Kintyre was familiar to some, but Knapdale meant very little to most. The project to reintroduce the European Beaver back to Scotland has, however, changed all that – Knapdale now receiving regular mention on TV and in the press as the site where free-living beavers are at large. Since their release at the end of May 2009 I have made frequent visits to two of the release sites and duly discovered the most reliable locations for sightings.

During the first half of November we operated two unscheduled back-to-back tours with a view to finding and viewing Knapdale’s beavers, and to see their handiwork as nature’s ultimate constructional engineers. Both events were resoundingly successful, not just for the sightings of beavers and their habitat, but also for the experience of Argyll’s magical land and seascapes. Incidental wildlife included excellent viewing of Otters, Red Squirrels and deer – Sika Deer were still uttering their wailing rutting calls. Among birds there were unexpected sightings of White-tailed Eagle and Smew, while more regular fare featured Golden Eagle, Peregrine, Merlin, Hen Harrier, Long-tailed Duck, Velvet Scoter, Slavonian Grebe and all three divers.

I have already visited Knapdale this year, at a time when the lochs were still frozen over and snow patches lingered. Beavers had been active regardless of the freeze, leaving lots of fresh tree-felling evidence. The photographs above were taken 22nd January. This year we are operating two programmed tours (9 & 20) on which beaver watching features.