Contact us at
info@fpwnr.org
The British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) were ringing birds in the sanctuary when they found an immature sparrow hawk in their nets! I am hoping they will be posting a couple of the pictures they took on here when they get home! You can find out more about these high performing raptors at the BTO's species page ![]()
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BTW, it was their car, with permission, by the Tower Hide this morning (Sunday)![]()
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www.bto.org/understanding-birds/birdfacts/sparrowhawk
Its very grey out there but we still had lovely walk across the reserve this morning. We focussed on the new information panels that are part of the Wetlands Trail that has recently been put together. You can find a guide to the Wetlands Trail here www.portburywharfnaturereserve.co.uk/trail_downloads/winter_wetlands_mobile_2.pdf
What a transformation from a misty morning to sunny afternoon reflections in the Ecology Park!
Dawn was delayed this morning, it really wasn’t very keen; first all it had to struggle past miles of queuing traffic on the M5, pausing briefly to wish all involved in the crash a speedy resolution and safe home. Then the salt marsh had hidden itself away beneath a comforting blanket of cloud rendered flightless and land-bound by a fit of the doldrums. The wildlife across the reserve and the adjacent marsh had hunkered down and, like the dawn, were in no particular hurry to crack on with the day. ![]()
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Eventually the Light at Battery Point decided enough was enough and started bleating its horn forlornly into the pre dawn gloom, demanding that the dawn got back to business and made more progress in its relentless, if somewhat tardy, march westwards. Ships out in the King Road added their voices, clearly impatient to not miss the morning unloading. ![]()
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Eventually dawn girded its loins and headed off into Wales, hardly aware of the sea slipping in and out between the treasured salt marshes here and along the Welsh coast. People roused, got on with their day - greetings were exchanged, enquiries of health and happiness made and all was well with the world in this little corner of England between the tranquil levels and the dulled sea of beaten pewter.![]()
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Maybe tomorrow dawn will arrive promptly in a rush of colour and sunshine…
*** A special World Wetlands Day trail is coming to Portbury Wharf from next Sunday 19th January until 19th February.***![]()
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Unlike forests, wetlands are rarely talked about and often overlooked. Yet, they are one of the most vital ecosystems on the planet. ![]()
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You will be amazed at what wetlands do for us . . . come and find out!![]()
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PS. The current "What am I?" Christmas trail will run until Friday. So there is still time to test your skills and identify some of our winter wetland wildlife.
A spring sea watch survey is taking place between Porlock and Portishead on March 21 and 23rd. Click on this link to get involved.
Spring Synchronised Sea Watch Survey (1) - Somerset Coast | Somerset Wildlife Trust
www.somersetwildlife.org
Take part in our 2025 Spring synchronised Sea Watch survey, looking out for porpoises, dolphins and other marine megafauna at a Somerset coastal location near you. We aim to have people surveying at e...
The Redwing....![]()
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The Redwing is usually a winter visitor, arriving from Scandinavia in late autumn, often travelling as mixed flocks with the larger, but less numerous fieldfare, and is the UK's smallest true thrush. Look for the creamy stripe above its eye and the orange-red flank patches. They roam across the UK's countryside, feeding in fields and hedgerows, rarely visiting gardens, except in the coldest weather when snow covers the fields. Only a few pairs nest in the UK, up in the highlands of Scotland, round here these birds are highly nomadic and will move around the countryside in search of fruit-laden trees, bushes and shrubs. They are quite skittish and will often take cover if disturbed, but when settled are a joy to watch as they gobble down berries.![]()
Key features to look out for![]()
Redwings are slightly smaller than the Song Thrush ![]()
Dark brown above, with red flanks and underwings ![]()
Bright stripe above the eye ![]()
We usually have good numbers of redwings around the area, and they are really keen on hawthorn berries, so they are often seen on our drifts of hawthorn trees, but, as I mentioned above they are skittish, so you need to travel quietly! Yet again I have drawn extensively from the excellent RSBP Bird Pages, you can find out more about Redwings by following this link. Please let us know if you see any out on your walks by adding a comment to this post![]()
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Redwing Bird Facts | Turdus Iliacus
www.rspb.org.uk
This winter visitor is the UK's smallest thrush, but still manages to reach our shores all the way from Scandinavia. Find out more about these birds.
Happy New Year!![]()
We have really loved walking the reserve this Christmas and introducing our family and friends to the new Nature Trail. Every single one of them has been so impressed and delighted with the new signage. Now they want to come back as the seasons, and the signs, change! And that surely is the greatest thing about a nature reserve, it never stays the same! No matter how many times you walk it, there will always be something new to see, but you do have to be out there to see it…..
Our salt marsh is very sheltered from our prevailing south westerly winds, but as Darragh went northwards the winds turned to the north on Sunday morning and the waves built up .... fortunately after the high tide had passed and the late afternoon was glorious
Dragonfly Survey
How Many Damsels and Dragons at PWNR?
We wondered how many different dragonfly and damselfly species make the reserve their home? We knew from our own experience and sightings by local nature lovers that PWNR supported many species of these wonderful insects, but just how many? So this prompted us to carry out a dragonfly survey at PWNR throughout the 2018 ‘season’. So a small group comprising Iain Macfarlane (PWNR warden), Giles Morris, David Horlick and I set out to answer that question.
The aim of the dragonfly survey at PWNR was to establish:
2018 The Survey Report
Conclusion
Our results proved that there are at least sixteen species on the reserve. Though there could well be more that we missed, or future new additions! We know that Banded Demoiselles frequent a nearby rhyne and Brown Hawkers have previously been seen on the reserve.
We believe that PWNR is a special place for damsels and dragons for two reasons. Firstly, the abundance of different species supported by the reserve compares well with other local sites.
We have submitted our findings to North Somerset Council, local and national biodiversity databases and to the Bristol Naturalists’ Society who have published it in their annual journal.
Published in the Bristol Naturalists’ Society Annual Journal
You can read the 2018 PWNR Damselfly Dragonfly survey report in Nature in Avon (Volume 78, 2018). This excellent journal is produced annually by the Bristol Naturalists’ Society (BNS) to report and publicise projects undertaken by its members. So the report is available by kind permission of the Society.
Here is a link to the full report . . . 2018_PWNR Damselfly Dragonfly Survey Report.
An editorial note was added to the report by a BNS expert (pages 19 & 20). It links the PWNR survey with the considerable and highly informative work carried out by others across our region. So this note adds context to the PWNR report relative to the other extensive studies and adds further understanding of local damselfly and dragonfly populations.
What’s next?
Heartened by our findings, we have planned more survey work for 2019 to demonstrate that PWNR really is an important site for damselflies and dragonflies.
We are fortunate to have such a rich variety of dragonflies, damselflies and other wildlife on our doorstep at PWNR. We should do whatever we can to preserve this precious place.
Michael Brighton
You can see the current species list “so far” at PWNR Dragons and Damsels
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