12th Dec: Grazing on Holy Island

Today the grazing sheep were taken off Holy Island. Since the end of summer there have been up to 22 sheep at the Snook as part of the Reserve vegetation management regime. Sheep are put on the sand dunes to graze the grass after the plants have flowered and gone to seed. Keeping the grass short enables orchids to flourish in the spring, including the Lindisfarne Helleborine, which is found only on Holy Island. The sheep have been particularly good at targeting Michaelmas Daisy, a horticultural escape.

The sheep are borrowed from Stephen Comber for about three months of the year as part of the Flexigraze scheme. Flexigraze is a not-for-profit business specialising in conservation grazing on important grasslands in Northeast England. See the Flexigraze blog for more information.

The sheep are enclosed by an electric fence-line, which is moved to target specific areas. The electric fence is usually very effective, but occasionally some of the sheep managed to escape - led on by a particular individual, Shaggy, who seemed to be a bad influence!

After rounding them up with a sheepdog, they were brought back on to the mainland and any Pirri-Pirri burs were removed from their fleeces to prevent it spreading. Pirri-Pirri is an invasive alien species originating from New Zealand, unfortunately it is abundant amongst the dunes on Holy Island and getting rid of it is a challenge. When visiting, please check your clothing and dogs for burs and remove them before you leave in order to prevent it from spreading.

Pirri-Pirri bur

There are also 20 cattle currently grazing on the dunes. As well as grass, they feed on Pirri-Pirri and are making a small impact. The cattle were brought to the island at the start of October and will be taken off early next year. They belong to a local farmer inland who we have worked with since the project began five years ago, 20-40 cattle are used depending on the requirements.

Cows of a placid temperament are chosen, females in-calf. But please respect them and keep dogs on leads. Keeping your dog on a lead also reduces disturbance to birds on the Reserve.

One of the plants that benefit from grazing is the beautiful Grass-of-Parnassus, also known as the 'bog star'. It flowers from July to September. In the above photograph, the Grass-of-Parnassus is surrounded by the invasive Michaelmas Daisy.

Today we also held a birdwatching drop-in event at Budle Bay, the southern part of the Reserve. Budle Bay is a perfect place to watch ducks and waders feeding on the saltmarsh in winter. Close views are possible as the birds have grown accustomed to the traffic noise and so have a higher disturbance tolerance (however, please do not walk on to the marsh as this will disturb them and it is also dangerous). About an hour before high tide is the best time as the birds are pushed towards the shore by the incoming water.

We are holding more birdwatching drop-in events in the new year, so do drop by and borrow a pair of binoculars or look through our scope free of charge, and learn more about the brilliant birds at Lindisfarne. No booking required:

- Friday 22 February, 10.30am - 12.30pm
- Saturday 23 February, 11am - 1pm

At Budle Bay today, 950 Wigeon were counted and a Little Egret was seen. Little Egrets have gradually spread north in the past 20 years when they were a rarity in the UK, they are now a relatively frequent sight in Northumberland and breed in southern England.

Little Egret in flight (John Dunn)

11th Dec: Winter at Lindisfarne

Welcome to our brand new blog for Lindisfarne National Nature Reserve. The Reserve is currently alive with wintering water birds. From the gurgling calls of Light-bellied Brent Geese to the spectacle of two thousand Golden Plover flying together, Lindisfarne truly is a special place to be in the winter. We will be updating the blog throughout the changing seasons with contributions from staff and volunteers.

The Lindisfarne team
Left to right: Andrew Craggs (Senior Reserve Manager), John Woodhurst (Volunteer), Graham Bell (Volunteer), Daniel Richardson (Placement Student), Jo Wilkes (Lead Adviser), Ajay Tegala (Reserve Manager), John Steele (Volunteer)

December has got off to a cold start with northerly winds and temperatures falling below 0C. Light snow fell last Wednesday while we were out on the Snook clearing scrub (mostly Scot's Pine). Reserve staff maintain small areas of scrub primarily for migrant birds, however encroachment is cleared regularly to prevent it from taking over and altering the habitat of the sand dunes and dune slacks.

Scot's Pine on the Snook

Following an exceptionally rainy October, November had several bright and mild days, with the dunes looking golden in the setting afternoon sun. Short-eared Owl sightings have been frequent hunting amongst the dunes with numbers reaching double figures. There have been occasional Hen Harrier sightings throughout November and into December. A small group of Roe Deer can sometimes been seen on the island.

In October there were a number of rare migrants recorded on Holy Island with several sightings of Yellow-browed, Dusky and Barred Warblers as well as a Pied Wheatear. On the 23^rd there was a big fall of thrushes having just crossed the North Sea, hundreds of Fieldfares landed in the dunes along with several Blackbirds and Redwings - it was quite an experience to witness these birds literally dropping out of the sky in the mist.

Throughout autumn there were several sightings of Waxwings along the coast and further inland. These fine-looking, Starling-sized birds have flown over from their breeding grounds in northern Scandinavia and Russia to feed on our berries.

Wigeon numbers peaked at 9,000 on the 2^nd of November. There are around 2,900 Light-bellied Brent Geese on the reserve, but this could increase in the coming days as the cold temperatures in Denmark (-15C) may cause a number of geese to fly to Lindisfarne. Pink-footed Goose numbers peaked at 3,500 in October. Large numbers of Barnacle Geese pass through in autumn, but this year and last, a group has over-wintered at Lindisfarne, at the moment the group is made up of around 270 geese. Small numbers of Whooper Swans are present on the Reserve and on the 6^th of December 42 were recorded just outside the Reserve near Fenham-le-Moor.

Barnacle Geese with Wigeon behind (John Dunn)

Follow our blog to keep up to date with our work and wildlife sightings on Lindisfarne NNR. Throughout the changing seasons we will be reporting on a wide variety of projects including the stock grazing scheme regime and our Reserve events. In the spring and summer we will share our breeding shore bird, small mammal, butterfly and flora data.