August 2008 Archives

A few days ago I was sitting on top of a cliff in the west of Ireland when my heart started pounding, I started to shake violently and I lost the power of speech. No, I wasn't having a heart attack or even a "funny turn" - I was watching a Little Shearwater, an incredibly rare bird in British and Irish waters that is normally found near the Canary Islands! So you may think that coming back to work at Conwy RSPB Reserve might be a bit tame by comparison. Far from it - we've had some very interesting birds here in the last few days, and they're on my own local patch. Whilst going round the reserve I've enjoyed seeing the wading birds which are arriving from their Arctic homes and stopping off on our reserve to fatten up, before continuing the journey south to their African winter quarters. And among the really good numbers of Curlew and Redshank are much scarcer species like Whimbrel, Ruff, and Black Tailed Godwit, which only visit this neck of the woods much more infrequently. And the beauty is you don't have to be an obsessive twitcher to enjoy this bird spectacle. You don't have to get soaking wet on a cliff top, or travel the world on a record breaking "twitch" - one of the best places that I know to see birds, is from our Coffee Shop over the high tide period when large numbers fly off the estuary to roost and bathe in the lagoon. So you can be enjoying a slice of home-made cake while watching Little Egrets fish outside the window! And no need to worry if you don't have any binoculars - we can loan you a pair free of charge. And if you like them enough, you can browse our selection in the shop and have a chat with one of our friendly advisors. A good opportunity to familiarise yourself with some of the special birds we have is on the 13th September when we are having a Wardens Walk. So come down to see us and before you know it you'll be getting that surge of adrenaline as you spot your first Kingfisher.....but be warned - it's addictive!