Well the Xmas season is well and truly upon us by now and these cold winter days sees the reserve looking beautiful with mists rolling across the still lakes, the lovely sunrises and sunsets, Lackford really is the place to spend a little quality time with a long quiet walk around our beautiful reserve.
 |
| Still morning sunrise |
 |
| The view from the Double-decker hide |
Bring your binoculars along with you, or hire some from our visitor centre to use around the reserve. There are plenty of winter ducks spread across the several lakes such as Goosander, Goldeneye and Pintail and most are visible from our 11 hides.
 |
| Tufted duck by Ian Goodall |
We currently have Bullfinches showing on the paths and around the centre as well as Siskin and new this week, Redpoll's have also arrived.
You might even get to see a Nuthatch like this one taken by Rich Berry:
 |
| Nuthatch finds a tasty little morsel by Rich Berry |
If you want to see something a little different, why not look out for some Snipe on the Slough.
 |
| Snipe by Peter Rutt |
And on the way back, look to the sailing lake for our 10,000+ gull roost. If all this hasn't quenched your thirst, then why not finish your walk in our lovely warm visitor centre where you can sit down with a nice warm drink and slice of cake and watch the birds on our feeders, you may even get a chance to see our regular visitor, the Kingfisher, like this one snapped by Ellie Stones.
 |
| Ellie Stones first ever shot of a Kingfisher, and what a shot too! |
There's still one more wonder to see whilst in the visitor centre and that's our wonderful Starling murmuration which happens right outside the centre and can be viewed from the comfort and warmth inside. Last week the murmuration reached around 17,000 birds, but as the reed bed the Starlings are roosting in becomes more and more unsuitable (several thousand birds create a lot of waste) the numbers are beginning to drop. So make a visit soon before this amazing natural spectacle comes to an end.
Christmas shopping all done?
Not many shopping days left now and for those of you who are still struggling to find that special something to give as a gift this Christmas, you need look no further than our on site shop.
 |
| Our selection of bird feed and feeders ideal for any garden. |
We have plenty of bird feed and feeders for any bird loving gardener, or books for the nature lover in your family.
 |
| A fine selection of gift ideas for Xmas |
And for the younger members of your family, we also have a fine selection of soft cuddly wildlife toys, or face masks, or for the more intrepid young explorers, we also have bug hunting kits.
 |
| Some of our cuddly owls |
If you would like to give something just that bit more special, why not give a Suffolk Wildlife Trust membership? For a minimum monthly direct debit donation of £4 a month, you can give a gift of our beautiful members book by Steve Alyward that details all our beautiful reserves, a regular magazine that keeps our members up to date with all that is happening within the trust, a wildlife project and spotters book for our younger members in the family membership is also included. ALSO, this special offer also includes The Mammals of Suffolk Book by Dr Simone Bullion which details all of Suffolk's mammals with detailed colour pictures and distribution data and a lovely cotton bag to take it all away in.
The new hide
As many of you will know, the path down to Steggall's hide has been closed for the last week whilst the reserves team finish off the new hide and remove the old one. The new hide will be officially opened on 18th December from midday, please come down and have a look, the reserve's team of volunteers have done a wonderful job.
Highlights of 2014
Well, as 2014 comes to an end, it's time to look back at some of the highlights over the last year at Lackford.
We had a great number of fledging birds on the reserve with many numbers of birds having 2nd and 3rd broods and 7 Barn Owl's also fledged, which is a great number for this species. Also 11 Great Crested Grebe's also fledged.
Nightingales and Turtle Doves were recorded breeding on the reserve.
A Great Reed Warbler stopped over for 24hrs
9 Black Tern were recorded using the Sailing lake
6 Cuckoo's were recorded egg laying on the reserve too.
We had a great butterfly year this year with Grayling being recorded for the first time at Lackford.
Dragonflies and damselflies also had a good year with 18 species being recorded.
And last but not least, a brand new, fantastic looking hide was built which will be opened this week.
Looking forward to 2015
We have lots of exciting new ideas for 2015 including a bit of a revamp for the centre as well as some new live wildlife cameras and a Bioblitz are just a few things happening at the reserve. Keep an eye on our blog for more updates about latest events.
Xmas opening
The visitor centre will be closed from 24th December to 31st December.
Frozen Festive Fun!
There are still few spaces left for this event on 22nd December 1-3pm, but places need to be booked in advance. Cost is £4 per child (4-10 year olds), there will a winter trail and they will be able to create 'Frozen' inspired festive crafts and other Xmas decorations. This is a good opportunity to finish the Christmas shopping whilst the kids have some fun!
No comments:
Post a Comment