A glorious, crisp, sunny day and a huge flight of recently arrived pink-footed geese come waffling in to land, looking every bit a Peter Scott painting, their enigmatic calls filling the air with a deafening crescendo. Up to 18,000 have been on the reserve recently and they are a truly breathtaking spectacle. A Wilson's phalarope spins energetically on Sunley's Marsh in front of the Ron Barker hide, the first whooper swans are back for the winter, flocks of lapwings and ruff are gathering on the Mere, teal and wigeon numbers are increasing by the day and a Merlin shoots across in the distance. Nothing much to report here, just a typical October day at Martin Mere.
"Err, just go back a bit," I hear you say, "what did you say was spinning energetically on Sunley's Marsh?". A Wilson's phalarope, a North American wader which has been present for about three days, and what fabulous little bird it is. They've become a lot scarcer in recent years and this was only my 9th ever, but amazingly four have been at Martin Mere in autumn, and three of those were in October. Todays bird followed others in 1990, 1991 and 2009! As I said, a typical Martin Mere October day.
What is not typical though, is that if you want to go to see this spectacle, you need to book your entry to the reserve in advance and through their website, even if you are a member. Numbers of visitors are being restricted due to the Covid-19 pandemic. When you get on site, numbers allowed in the hides are also restricted and you must wear a face mask inside.
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