23rd September: Geese incoming!

Winter wildfowl have started arriving in droves - approx. 3500 geese have arrived over the last few days, including a passage of 2500 Pink-footed geese and a peak of 200 Greylags noted at Budle Bay.

Barnacle geese have been especially numerous around the Reserve recently. Around 7000 were seen loafing on the mudflats north of the Causeway earlier this week, taking off as the tide came in and flying south to Budle Bay and adjacent fields.

Barnacle geese dropping in (John Dunn)

These Barnacle geese are probably on their way over to the Solway, stopping off here to have a good feed and rest.

A star attraction of the Reserve, the Light-bellied Brent goose, is also showing well with numbers currently at around 1200. The hide at Fenham-Le-Moor, signposted off the A1, is the best place to see and hear these charismatic small geese.

Light-bellied Brent geese (John Dunn)