village voice 70.pub - Dersingham Parish Council

Bog News
Spring has finally sprung on the reserve and the trees are now coming into leaf
and the dark colours of winter seem to have disappeared.
This month has seen the arrival of many spring migrants to Norfolk and
Dersingham Bog NNR. Woodlarks are still displaying on the reserve and continuing to delight
with their hovering display and call.
Another of Dersingham's key heathland species has
arrived back on the reserve and can be heard calling
and singing from various points on the reserve. This
bird is the Tree Pipit. Although it is called a Tree Pipit
its nest is located close to the ground near trees or
scrub. This bird again is vulnerable to disturbance.
Many of you will have noticed that species such as
Swallows and House Martins have begun to arrive
back. They have not arrived in great numbers as yet
but they can be seen hawking over surrounding fields
Tree Pipit
and the villages. One of our volunteers also saw a
Sand Martin on the site with a group of swallows
maybe they will return to breed here this year? Sand
Martins used to breed in the old quarry and cliffs but they haven’t nested for a good few years.
Whether this is down to population decline or changes in the cliff face or whether nesting pigeons
have put them off using their previous nesting areas we are just not sure but maybe they will
appear back to nest one year. Off the reserve the warm weather will probably be making life hard
for Swallows and House Martins as they will be finding it hard to build their nests with such dry
ground.
Other Spring Migrants which can be heard on
the reserve now, include Chiffchaffs and Willow
Warblers as well as in certain areas of the site
Sedge Warbler and Grasshopper warblers. These
birds all nest and forage in different habitats and
Dersingham Bog NNR is ideally placed and
contains a wide variety of habitats suitable
including: Reedbed, heathland, scrub and mature
woodland. This variety of habitat allows these
species to thrive together and we carefully manage
the scrub to provide habitats for these warblers.
As I write this article we will be expecting the first Nightjars to return if they haven’t already to
the site. They normally begin returning in small numbers at the end of April with the largest
migration in mid May to early June. Soon the reserve will be filled with the unique churring of
Nightjars a sure sign that summer is almost here?
The main practical jobs that we will be involved with at the moment are the control of the
Swallow - Another spring migrant
to Dersingham Bog
46
Sand Martins - A former breeding
species at Dersingham Bog
rhododendron. Although pretty the
rhododendron is an invasive plant which given
time will change the habitat structure of the
mire and heathland. We are beginning to get on
top of it but it will take many hours of
painstaking work to completely get on top of it.
This time of year we concentrate on the smaller
bushes and seedlings as birds may be nesting in
the larger bushes. The best way to remove