Our coach left Lymington on time for the RSPB’s Ham Wall reserve on the Somerset Levels west of Glastonbury, whose iconic Tor could be seen from the reserve. On arrival some the party enjoyed elevenses, whilst others began walking the trail that had formerly been the railway line between Glastonbury and Bridgewater. The elevated path offers views across reedbeds and lagoons once formerly part of a thriving peat extracting industry. Now it is a haven for wildlife.
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| Greater Yellowcress along a drainage ditch |
From the
ponds by the picnic area Marsh or Green Frogs croaked, out in the reedbeds Reed
Warblers sang and Bitterns boomed, whilst hidden in the sallows that grew in
places along the track the songsters included Blackcap, Chiffchaff, Cetti’s, Garden
and Willow Warblers.
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| Tree Bumblebee |
Great Yellow-cress
lined the banks of ditches and waterways with their golden flowers attracting
many insects from Early and Tree Bumblebees to butterflies that included
Brimstones, Orange-tips and Green-veined Whites.
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| Hobby |
Overhead wheeled Swifts,
Swallows and martins, but the Hobbies that circled amongst them were more
interested in dragonflies. We saw Hairy Dragonflies as well as several species
of newly emerged damselflies and at least two species of moths – Clouded Border
and Nettle Tap.
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| Great Crested Grebe - fish supper |
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| Great Crested Grebe - nest and eggs |
Along the
track were two viewing platforms and several side-tracks that led to hides, so
there were plenty of opportunities to walk and/or sit and watch resulting in a
good collective bird list. Of course not everyone saw everything, but we all
had highlights of one kind or another. In addition to those species already
mentioned the bird tally included Great Crested Grebes – one pair with eggs in
the nest and another with downy chicks, Great White and Little Egret, a pair of
Garganey, Greenshank, Whimbrel and great views of the locally breeding Marsh
Harriers over the marshes.
This trip
was arranged by Adrian and we were admirably driven by Solent
Coaches – our grateful thanks to them both.