Nagshead Reserve










Hannah Morton - Site Manager


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Image reproduced with kind permission of Ordnance Survey
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RSPB Images
K Garner
Pied flycatcher
RJC Blewitt    Redstart


VOLUNTEERS

 I would like to say a big thank you, as well, to all those who have helped in the visitor centre this year. Having spent time in there myself I know how much people appreciate an opportunity to talk to staff and volunteers, tell us about what they have seen and ask us to tell them more about what is at the reserve and what we do. I find this contact with people is invaluable and helps them remember that the reserve is a special place and needs to be looked after. Of course they are often glad to see the toilets open too!

 Plans for the winter are being thought through now, so if you are interested in helping out with the practical work on the reserve, preparing us all for next season or helping with events through the winter, please do let me know.
Home|Highnam|Symonds Yat|CWP.
The Royal Forest of Dean has been famous for centuries, first as a Royal hunting ground and later as a source of good English oak for building the ships of the Royal Navy. This importance was such that in 1802 it was visited by Admiral Lord Nelson who found only 250 acres of useable naval oak. As a result a major replanting programme was carried out between 1810 and 1860. 14,000 acres of oak were planted, but by the time they were mature they were redundant as warships were being made of iron and steel. The 2,000 acres that remain today are an important conservation resource.
One of the features of the reserve is it's nestboxes, which were first introduced by the Forestry Commission in an attempt to encourage more birds which they hoped would reduce the numbers of caterpillars which were damaging the trees by eating the foliage. What they didn't know was that it is the caterpillar numbers that control the numbers of birds.


378 acres became a nature reserve in 1974 when the Commission asked the RSPB to manage the nestboxes. The boxes are used by many woodland species, in particular the pied flycatcher. Here it is at the extreme eastern edge of its British range and these birds have been the subject of a special study on the reserve, unbroken since 1948. If you want to see these attractive flycatchers you must visit the reserve between mid-April and the end of June as once they have fledged they disappear. Where they go before migrating to Africa remains a mystery!
Please call Hannah Morton on 01594 562852 for further information.

RESERVE UPDATE AUTUMN 2011

Let me first introduce myself to those who don’t know me yet, I’m Hannah and I joined the reserves team in May. Many of you will already be aware that Barry Embling left RSPB at the end of last year to take up an exciting new post with the Woodland Trust in Wales. I was delighted to be offered the post, and an opportunity to move back to the South West (I grew up in Devon). The Forest is a new area for me to explore and woodlands are a new challenge to me, but the organisation is one that I know and love, having moved from Loch of Kinnordy and the Tay Reedbeds to be here. I have already learned a lot about my new responsibilities, and the habitats in general, and look forward to learning more as the seasons change.

Shortly after my arrival, Dhruti Bell was offered a post as Assistant warden at Rainham Marshes (RSPB) reserve. As it is not only a full time post, but also closer to family she obviously jumped at the chance, and we wished her farewell in June. To keep me on the right track for the remainder of the season, Lewis Thomson agreed to join the team. He has been volunteering at Nagshead for 3 years already, and has helped Dhruti with much of the survey work, so he has made a welcome and experienced addition to the team.

The breeding season seemed to start a little earlier, by up to a week for some species. The pied flycatchers settled down quickly at Nagshead, with numbers being slightly up after last years successful breeding season and high productivity. As well as more nesting attempts in boxes around the main reserve area, there were also pairs recorded on the Russell’s Enclosure side of the reserve, which must have found themselves natural holes - great news, although it’s not so easy to get an idea of productivity of those.

Although we have also seen an increase in spotted flycatcher breeding numbers this year, other species only appear to be holding their own, which at least is better than declining. Tree pipit, wood warbler and redstart all bred on site, but it was often a case of knowing where to go to find them. Once the young had fledged tree pipits in particular became more obvious though, with many being seen around the meadows.

The rowans on the short trail have been a veritable snack bar for many birds recently however. Hawfinches have been the main attraction for visitors, although the best time to catch them is in the morning before too many others head down to catch a glimpse. But even when the hawfinches weren’t to be seen, there were bullfinches, nuthatches, tits and even a few flycatchers to be seen there.

Other species have delighted visitors too, with reports of crossbills frequently seen in the conifers, kingfisher and grey wagtail reported from lower hide and one morning I watched a family of goldcrests feeding on the path.

Nightingales continued to be the main attraction at Highnam Woods, but again with the dry weather they seemed to start singing slightly earlier and by the middle of May were already fairly quiet and difficult to find. Point counts confirmed that a good variety of other woodland birds were breeding this year, including possibly 2 pairs of lesser spotted woodpecker.

At both reserves it has been a good year to see invertebrates too, and there are still plenty around. Silver-washed fritillary have been a common sight in the car park at Nagshead, purple hairstreak butterflies have rewarded those willing to gaze up into the upper reaches of the oaks, and it has been a bumper year for small pearl bordered fritillaries at the ‘barracks’ site. White admirals, hairstreaks and brown argus have been the main attractions at Highnam Woods. There are still plenty of butterflies, dragonflies and damselflies around at both reserves, so why not come and have a look for them?

Even if you have been up to Nagshead recently you may have missed some of the little changes which have taken place in the last couple of months. There is now a secure wood store at the back of the centre which will allow us to safely and securely store dry wood for burning in the stove through the winter. The outside lights have now been fitted, and all the lights are controlled on timer switches to make our life easier. All this means that when schools go back we can now hold Wildlife Explorer meetings at the reserve in comfort. It is hoped that in September there will be 2 groups, catering for both 4-7 and 8-13 year olds. This is a great opportunity for us to inspire the children who live in the forest and help them understand why this is such a special place. We are keen to find more volunteers to help run these groups, so please if you, or someone you know, can spare an evening a month, please get in touch. 

Page updated August 2011