DAVID'S NATURE BLOG

2 APRIL 2025 - WESTLETON HEATH and MINSMERE (SUFFOLK)

A 7.45 a.m. start from my house and a relatively easy journey saw us (John; Mike and myself) at Westleton Heath at around 9.40 a.m. John had suggested we begin here to try and get Dartford Warbler; Woodlark, and Stone Curlew.

Despite pristine clear blues skies and bright sunlight, there was a moderate to strong NE wind that was deceptively cold. Whilst John heard and then glimpsed a Woodlark atop a Birch, further observations weren’t forthcoming, as the Stone Curlews apparently just hadn’t arrived on migration, although it was only a matter of days perhaps before they were here. But we had much better luck with the Dartford Warblers, where excellent (binocular) views were achieved amongst the blooming bright yellow gorse, where a beautiful summer plumaged male was seen in a nearby Birch (with an accompanying singing Chiffchaff) and a much drabber female nearby. And then on to Minsmere.

The car park at the reserve was moderately full, so the place was not overrun with visitors, so after checking in at the Centre and checking out the sightings board, we made a beeline for the Sand Martin colony where a handful of migrants were soaring overhead but not yet entering the nest-holes. But we were more interested in trying to find any signs of Adders on banks below the colony.

Initially, all seemed quiet, but at the right-hand side of the bank I detected a movement, and suddenly and quite unexpectedly I was staring at a pair of male adders writhing and twisting round each other on the top of a frond of bracken, clearly engaged in the ritual ‘adder dance’ which I’ve never witnessed before. Regrettably, I wasn’t quick enough to get a photograph, but this was only the start of a period of activity the likes of which none of us had experienced previously. In that hour - leading up to midday - we must have seen at least four or five green-coloured adders with at least one black adder and one brown adder - all varying sizes, with at least one that was approaching 3 feet in length. In previous years we’d had good close views of (probably) female adders tightly curled up on the bank, with little if any movement; but these were extremely active – undoubtedly recently aroused from winter hibernation. And it was a truly wonderful, unforgettable spectacle.

At the nearby ponds the only sense of any activity were the whirligig beetles circling on the surface, with no signs of any Large Red Damselflies which we were hoping to see. There didn’t seem to be much activity on the Scrape (according to the sightings board in the visitors’ Centre) so instead, we thought it best to try for a Bittern either from the Bittern Hide or Island Mere Hide, where recent sightings had been reported.

The woodland on the way to the Bitter Hide was extremely quiet, with just the odd calls of Blue Tits and Chaffinches echoed out. A Muntjac deer was munching on vegetation, giving quite close views, and the opportunity for a photo or two. At the Bittern Hide, a climb up a steep wooden stairway brought us to panoramic views across the massive reedbeds into the sun towards the Sizewell Nuclear facility. There wasn’t a lot of activity, other than two-three male Western Marsh Harriers hawking the reedbeds in front of us and where a female joined them temporarily. I managed a few decent shots before the activity subsided.

Suddenly, a Stoat was seen bounding along the grass below the hide, and I managed a token photo before it was lost to view. Minutes later, and a distant Bittern was giving flight views at the back of the reedbeds (though John missed it) but that too was soon lost to view.

We returned to the car to consume our lunches, before attempting more views of the adders - only one obliged properly - before the guys wanted to try and see what was on show from the East Coastal Hide. I wasn’t so keen as I was becoming rapidly exhausted (due to a health predicament which I won’t go into here) but reluctantly - and very slowly - followed, taking the newly installed wooden walkway that avoids the often difficult sandy coastal path.

There was a lot hive of activity on Scrape - lots of Black-headed Gulls; a couple of Lesser Black-backed Gulls and a Herring Gull or two - but surprisingly no Mediterranean Gulls; over 50 Avocets; a small number of Northern Shoveler; a pair of Pintail; several Shelduck; Lapwings sporadically over the scrape; a pair of Oystercatchers; 100 plus Black-tailed Godwits; Gadwall; a lone Dunlin; two Ruddy Turnstone; a single Redshank; a Ringed Plover; a newly arrived Little Ringed Plover; a few distant Marsh Harriers, and a distant Sparrowhawk (which looked small, so was probably a male; a female was to be seen later from the car park).

John and Mike wanted to go on to the South Hide so I left them to it, choosing to make my way back to the pools and the adders - and promptly missed out on seeing at least three Mediterranean Gulls, and a couple of Sandwich Terns. Back at the pools, it was becoming too cool for adders, and the Sand Martins had disappeared - Mike and John soon joined me, but I missed out on a Kingfisher that circled high over the pools before exiting the area.

But I couldn’t complain, I’d increased my yearly birdlist to 101(though still way less than the guys); we’d had a super time watching the adders (definitely the highlight of the day - we all agreed on that); with lovely views of the Dartford Warblers at Westleton Heath. And despite a relatively quiet day bird-wise at the reserve, there was a lot to look forward to here later in the year.