Story of a Wildlife Pool (1 Viewer)

[Jos Stratford]

Here is the little sister before rudely disturbed by excavator man.

With the reeds/shrubs in the top right attracting Marsh Warblers and the lily pads serving as favoured haul out pads for frogs and resting spots for damselflies, I didn't let the guy do any work in that area ...he wanted to get rid if "all that old reed mess"

Instead I deepened and extended the near end by a metre or so (the area behind not visible in this photo)

 

[Jos Stratford]

Had some doubts about doing this pool - not only were the costs escalating, but I did have to destroy some nice habitat. Will return better, but still a sorry sight to see nice vegetation grubbed up.

 

[delia todd]

Aaaw!! Though I guess it would have all died down soon anyway with the deep freeze due any week now?

Remember you can't make omelettes without breaking eggs Jos

 

[Evan Atkinson]

How have the pools been? Any birds coming yet?

 

[Jos Stratford]

A

How have the pools been? Any birds coming yet?

I didn't see this reply, but in January, as in all winters here, it is safe to say there were no birds ...thick ice and snow, birds all migrated out

 

[Jos Stratford]

Roll on a few months however and the picture is wholly different - will need a year for vegetation to establish etc, but full of tadpoles now and a steady trickle of birds, Green Sandpipers and Snipe occasional at the edges, a Great White Egret sometimes, Goldeneye and Mallard on the pool itself.

Wryneck and Whitethroat singing adjacent, Black Redstart and White Wagtail like the still exposed soil banks resulting from excavation.

 

[Jos Stratford]

Perhaps the highlight of the last month or so however was the arrival of three Moose mid-morning to have a drink ...tracks show they are regular at night, but a daytime visit is an honour indeed.

Photo with phone from my window:

 

[Jos Stratford]

Management still ongoing, added a Goldeneye nestbox, dug a few extra shallow bits at the margins, added a small floating island and this week stocked with Grass Carp, a vegetarian fish that will control weed from becoming too dominant ...and if they survive Grey Herons and Great White Egrets and miraculously get to a decent size, may even become White-tailed Eagle food 🙂

 

[rosbifs]

theres a moose loose....

 

[birdboybowley]

Still too small.....😉😂😂

 

[Jos Stratford]

Still too small.....😉😂😂

I already have that niggling thought

 

[Trinovid]

I already have that niggling thought

Hey, if it takes me less than a day to get around it...

 

[rosbifs]

The other pictures looked to have a bigger expanse of water... This is the smaller of the lakes right? In which case size shouldn't matter....

 

[Jos Stratford]

The other pictures looked to have a bigger expanse of water... This is the smaller of the lakes right? In which case size shouldn't matter....

Just the angle and distance of the photo, it is about 75 metres long. Floated my little artificial island today, complete with submergent vegatation ...an hour later, full of frogs

 

[Jos Stratford]

These fellows

 

[Farnboro John]

A

I didn't see this reply, but in January, as in all winters here, it is safe to say there were no birds ...thick ice and snow, birds all migrated out

View attachment 1445857

What are the tracks from then, Jos?

John

 

[Jos Stratford]

What are the tracks from then, Jos?

John

In that case, Red Fox, very common on my land, tracks zigzag all over the place in winter.

Was however a rather more exciting beast this winter - a Wolf crossed my forest pool on a couple of occasions, a few days apart.

 

[Farnboro John]

In that case, Red Fox, very common on my land, tracks zigzag all over the place in winter.

Was however a rather more exciting beast this winter - a Wolf crossed my forest pool on a couple of occasions, a few days apart.

View attachment 1446652View attachment 1446653

What big feet you've got, Grandma!

TYVM, especially for the extra photos.

Doing the Bear Centre this summer, hoping for all three big predators. And a few birds.

Looking forward to your future reports as well.

Cheers

John

 

[Jos Stratford]

Upon the pool now floats an island, vegetated this weekend, already popular with frogs, a good couple of dozen croaking from its mossy edges.

Made from junk, a couple of photos of the preparation:

 

[Jos Stratford]

And as it launched yesterday, will need a little while to establish, but I am quite pleased with it: