Sunday 3 July 2016

Feeling hot hot hot...

Summer is here

Well the sun is out and lets hope its here to stay. Over the last week the temperature has been rising and providing us with more opportunities to see amazing insects on the wing.

With the increase of temperature we are currently at 11 species of dragonfly and 17 species of butterfly.
brown argus © Jim Palfrey
Butterflies and dragonflies continue to impress our visitors at the reserve. Various brown butterflies and skippers are present in good numbers along with favourites such as ringlet, speckled wood and green veined white. Not new to the list but making a reappearance is red-eyed damselfly and the larger hawker dragonflies. With the clear blue skies ans warm weather why not pop along to the reserve.
brown hawker © Ian Goodall 
emperor © Ian Goodall

Kingfishers on the wing

Our kingfishers are doing well with another brood due to fledge in the next few weeks while birds from the first family are being seen regularly. The Double Decker hide and Hawker Pool sites are still the best with regular sightings at the visitor centre pool as well.

kingfisher © Ian Goodall
kingfisher © Ian Goodall

 Are waders going to call Lackford Lakes home?

 Over the last few weeks wading birds have been seen more and move over on The Slough. green sandpipers and a common sandpiper are regulars along with the occasional little ringed plover putting in a brief appearance. Please let us know if you spot any other birds to the centre.

common sandpiper © Joe Jackson 

 Summer holiday fun for all the family.

The summer holidays have started so why not visit Lackford Lakes and get reconnected with nature. There is plently happening from organised events to daily activities (details can be found on our website) Lackford Lakes, or click on one of the links found on the right of this page to find out about the many activities we have on offer.

We have organised events throughout August, please book online  www.suffolkwildlifetrust.org - full details are on the website but here is a slice of what we have to offer.
  • Family Fridays - every Friday 2 - 4pm 
  • Wednesday Family mornings - 3rd & 17th August
  • Activity mornings for 4-7 year olds Tuesday 9th & Tuesday 23rd August @ 10.30am - 12.30pm
  • Activity days for 8-12 year olds Thursday 11th & Thursday 18th August @10.30am - 2.30pm
Dont forget we have our daily activities in the summer, where you can get a spotter sheet and go looking for insects and wildlife. Or why not borrow one of our bug hunting kits and see what you can find.

Special Events not to be missed. 

Beautiful butterflies weekend. Saturday 6th & Sunday 7th August - During this weekend there will be wildlife guides present to help you spot those butterflies.

On Sunday 7th August there will also be a special butterfly themed wildlife wander, where visitors can join a guide to go looking for these butterflies.

Changes on the way.

 In the coming months we will be making improvements to the Kingfisher trail to improve your experience at the reserve. Currently we are also working on two spots - building a bigger hide overlooking the Slough where the old reed hide used to be. This will become Bernard's hide and will offer you closer views across the Slough to look for those waders. We are also building a platform not far from the centre that will overlook Bernard's pool. Allowing you the perfect location to watch dragonflies and butterflies.









 

Summer months.. where are you? 

After the deluges of last week, (rain rain go away come again another day) on Friday it brightened up and the wildlife took centre stage.

With the weather brightening up and the warmth bulding, there has been the emergence of fresh looking butterflies; in addition to last week’s browns, ringlet and speckled wood have joined the roll call. Peacock butterflies are splendid at the moment and all three skippers have been reported (large, small and Essex

peacock butterfly © Greg Veness

 What a site

A broad-bordered bee hawkmoth feeding on viper’s bugloss was one photographer’s highlight, and a nice record.


broad-bordered bee hawkmoth © Bob Chappell

Despite the wet weather the insects have been making lackford lakes their home. Numbers of dragonflies such as hairy and - new this week – emperor dragonflies are increasing. Brown butterflies such as gatekeeper and meadow brown are in evidence for the first time along with small copper and skipper. A notable event is the nesting of tree bumblebees in the Double Decker hide – please take care if using this hide

 

Flashes of blue

In the bird world the kingfishers have fledged, adults and juveniles can be spotted all around lackford. (good spot is the Double Decker hide) Look out for that flash of bright blue across the water, they are such a stunning bird to watch and with the sunny weather on the way the sun makes them even more beautiful.

kingfisher © Stephen Whayman

kingfisher © Stephen Whayman

 

 The sound of summer

The turtle dove is a dainty dove, its smaller and dark than a collared dove and slightly larger than a black bird. The upperparts are mottled with chesnut and black and its black tail has a white edge. The purr of a turtle dove is the sound of summer and its amazing that one was spotted on the wire along our church walk path.

turtle dove © Rich Berry
Turtle dove © Jonny Rankin


 Family fun

A day trip to lackford lakes is perfect for the family to connect with nature, pop into the visitor centre where you can pick up one of our spotter sheets (see how many species you can spot)

On saturday 9th July we have, Summer birds & butterfly ID.    

Explore lackford lakes with local birder and butterfly enthusiast, Paul Holness, and learn to observe and identify the great variety of species.

A chance to spend a relaxed and informative day learning new identification skills or brushing up on those you already have.  The wide variety of habitats at Lackford encourages a great range of bird and butterfly species and you will have the opportunity to see and hear a good number of both. This day is suitable for beginners and those with less experience. Booking is essential for this event so please visit our website for more details. http://www.suffolkwildlifetrust.org/lackfordlakes

It was Naturally Art this weekend with our nature inspired art weekend for 5-10 year olds. This week there was an under the sea feel to it and was enjoyed as always by all who attended. If you would like your child to get involved, then book them onto our next session on the 10th Sept