============================================ || || Wildnews Bulletin || 14th January 2026 || News of Lincolnshire Wildlife || LNU: http://lnu.org/ || || Please email Editor on: philporterento@outlook.com || ============================================ In this issue... 1. Information, events, news and requests - mostly local. 2. Wildlife Highlights from Rare Bird Alert. 3. Wildlife reports around the county. Contributions welcome... 4. NNRs, RSPB and LWT Reserves : Saltfleetby/Theddlethorpe. Gibraltar Point, Coastal Country Park 5. Bardney Limewoods NNR: Chambers Farm Wood. 6. Other Reserve Reports - links. 7. Sending in Bulletin Reports - contributors please read! 8. Contact information - recorders and specialists... 9. Notes about these wildlife reports. 10. Bulletin publicity policy. 11. Events Diary - what's on. 12. ...and finally. Mostly national/international wildlife stories. ============================================ To interest new readers please use the "Forward to a Friend" link at the end of every Bulletin, or suggest anyone interested visits the LNU website and signs up that way. https://lnu.org/publications/wildnews-bulletin/ Reports here are open. They are available to county recorders of the Lincolnshire Naturalists' Union; Lincolnshire Bird Club and Lincolnshire Environmental Record Centre [LERC]. Compare earlier years/months. Past Bulletins archive [in text format] from 2009: http://rogerparsons.info/bulletinportal.html Views expressed by contributors are not necessarily those of the Lincolnshire Naturalists' Union or associated organisations. Please copy and paste URLs if/as necessary. ============================================ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 1. INFORMATION, EVENTS, NEWS AND REQUESTS ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Editor writes: Roger Parsons Do you know anyone who might enjoy the LNU Wildnews Bulletin? When we started the Bulletin we discovered that the best way to let folks know about it was through our readers. Personal introductions seemed to to strike the right note. It was a good way to contact people interested in natural history and get them more involved in identification and recording. We get about 60% Bulletin opens every week, which is very good to see! We are keen to encourage readers to tell others about the Bulletin. If you know anyone who seems interested it's easy to send them a copy with an invitation to sign up. There is a "Forward to a Friend" link in every Bulletin. Many thanks. Phil Porter The birds are always well served but it would be good to hear more about the wild or naturalised plants of our local areas. This needn’t mean long lists, although those are also welcome (within reasonable limits of course) and can be about the occurrence of individual species with a few contextual details of site, situation, permanence, associated wildlife etc. I’ll concentrate on this approach next week around the Bardney area. Phil Porter's email is: philporterento@outlook.com Roger Parsons' email is: old.museum@yahoo.co.uk BTO's tracked Cuckoos - Latest updates - south of the Sahel: https://www.bto.org/get-involved/volunteer/projects/cuckoo-tracking Read the latest updates from our Cuckoos on their epic migration https://www.bto.org/get-involved/volunteer/projects/cuckoo-tracking/updates Loch of the Lowes SWT Webcam. https://scottishwildlifetrust.org.uk/things-to-do/watch-wildlife-online/loch-of-the-lowes-webcam/ *** Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust *** “Wilder Lincolnshire Podcast” https://www.lincstrust.org.uk/what-we-do/about/wilder-lincolnshire-podcast "The wisdom of the crowd" The Zooniverse is the world's largest and most popular platform for people- powered research. This research is made possible by volunteers—millions of people around the world who come together to assist professional researchers. Our goal is to enable research that would not be possible, or practical, otherwise. Zooniverse research results in new discoveries, datasets useful to the wider research community, and many publications. Anyone can be a researcher. https://www.zooniverse.org/about https://www.zooniverse.org/projects *** Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust *** Do you know your Bewick's swan from your whooper? Do you have any experience doing bird counts? The International Swan Census takes place next weekend (17-18 January) and there are still sites in Lincolnshire looking for volunteers to cover them, including Thorne Moors in the Humberhead Peatlands, Huttoft Clay Pits on the coast and Kirkby Gravel Pits near Woodhall Spa. If you could help with this important survey, which is only carried out every six years, please visit the vacant site map to request a site: app.bto.org/gsmp/public/vacant-isc.jsp Find out more about the International Swan Census at bto.org/gsmp-isc *** This week's mostly-local news stories: *** RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch 23-25 January https://www.rspb.org.uk/ Foxes caught frolicking with snowman - broken link last week. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cn0y8rreq2do Landmark mast marks 60 years of broadcasting- Belmont https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c4grx32k8y1o Detectorist faked 'Roman brooch' he bought on eBay https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cly544d1eg1o Council eyes start date for £200m bypass - North Hykeham https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvgp8z9d8nno US dog tag found buried in garden after 70 years - Gainsborough https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c3ed199323vo High hay prices 'leaving horses malnourished' https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/ce9yz4j52n2o 'Incredibly rare' ancient gold coin found in field - E Yorks https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/crkrend7051o Humber Bridge tolls to rise as booths close https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c78exergxndo Row over repairs to badger-damaged road resolved - East Halton https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cgm41d0180yo Estate appeals to dog owners after deer is killed - Burghley House https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvgpn4le1lyo Food waste collections to be rolled out in county https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c74vx7xnky4o Potholes map rates council road repair progress https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/ckgj1m1ze8go *** Weather News and Forecast *** https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/ https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/warnings-and-advice/uk-warnings#? East Midlands weather forecast Thursday 15 Jan - Sunday 18 Jan Headline: Dry and bright by day, cloudy and damp overnight. Thursday: Patchy cloud and a few lingering showers over the Derbyshire hills. Otherwise, bright with sunny intervals and winds falling light. Turning cloudy with rain arriving from the south later. Maximum temperature 7 °C. Outlook for Friday to Sunday: Generally cloudy, with a chance of outbreaks of rain or showers, but also a few brighter spells. Light to moderate winds, with temperatures around average for the time of year. UK long range weather forecast Sunday 18 Jan - Tuesday 27 Jan Slow evolving weather patterns in the vicinity of the UK are most favoured through this period, with low pressure often to the west or southwest and high pressure near or over Scandinavia. Areas of rain or showers will attempt to push into some western and southwestern parts of the UK in particular, but possibly making limited eastwards progress. Longer, drier interludes are most likely in the east and northeast, though potentially rather cloudy at times. A gradual trend towards colder conditions is most likely through this period, especially in the south and east. As such, whilst wintry precipitation will be more reserved for hills initially, this may become more likely to lower levels later in the period. *** For Astronomers and Sky-watchers *** Astronaut's 'serious medical condition' forces Nasa to end space station mission early https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cd9e2y7nkv8o Why 2026 looks bright for Northern Light sightings https://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/articles/ce8nz3m3k10o Partial Solar Eclipse August 12th 2026. Put in in your new diary! https://theskylive.com/solar-eclipse?id=2026-08-12&cc=GB Night Sky Highlights - January 2026 https://www.rmg.co.uk/stories/space-astronomy/astronomy/night-sky-highlights-january-2026 Full Moons - 2026 https://www.rmg.co.uk/stories/space-astronomy/full-moon-calendar-2026 Spaceweather.com https://spaceweather.com/ Comet Watch https://www.cometwatch.co.uk/ AuroraWatch UK for geomagnetic data: https://aurorawatch.lancs.ac.uk BBC Sky at Night Magazine website https://www.skyatnightmagazine.com/news *** For the Geologists *** Please copy and paste URLs if/as necessary Lincolnshire Geodiversity Group: https://www.lincswolds.org.uk/discovering/geology-1 Geology of the Lincolnshire Wolds: https://www.lincswolds.org.uk/special-features/geology The Geology of Lincolnshire: downloadable LNU book https://lnu.org/publications/books/the-geology-of-lincolnshire/ UK Fossils in Lincolnshire https://ukfossils.co.uk/category/lincolnshire/ *** EVENTS *** *** LWT LINCOLN AREA GROUP TALK *** 15th January: Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust chairman Libby John will take us on a tour of all the Trust nature reserves with a difference. “On Her Bike!” Which she undertook to find out more about wildlife in Lincolnshire and raise money for the Trust's Nature Recovery Appeal. The event is at Whisby Nature Park in the Lafarge Education Building starting at 7.30 pm. Admission is £2.50 which includes refreshments in the interval. *** LINCOLNSHIRE WILDLIFE TRUST ** Book Talk and Signing, ‘The Cuckoo’s Lea’ by Michael Warren Whisby Education Centre, Saturday 7th February, 1.30 to 3.30pm. Meet the author of this fascinating book and hear more about the Stories and secrets of birds in our ancient landscapes Suitable for adults. Booking essential. No dogs. https://www.lincstrust.org.uk/events BOSTON AREA GROUP LWT Thursday 12th February at 7.30pm Talk – “Eastern Seaboard: Wildlife from Maine to Florida” by Alan Knight Venue - Centenary Methodist Church, Red Lion Street, Boston, PE21 6NY Free parking in the car park on the right hand side of the church. Interval refreshments will be served. Non members welcome and entry is free but there will be a retiring collection. *** SOUTH LINCS RSPB GROUP *** "Bird and Seal Watching Cruises" aboard The Boston Belle into The Wash estuary. Dates for their 2026 programme from Easter 2026 Full details including availability, dates, costs, booking etc. will be on the website. in due course. STAYING SAFE Please copy and paste URLs if/as necessary... The Cold-Health Alert Service in England runs from 1 November to 31 March each year. You can register for alerts on this link. https://forms.office.com/pages/responsepage.aspx?id=mRRO7jVKLkutR188-d6GZn06Ss-xPLpCuYeyOZ-eFiFUMEVIMDRTOE5FVzFFM0NXNjFMWUlWMkJVMCQlQCN0PWcu The Heat-Health Alert Service in England runs from 1 June to 30 September each year. You can register for alerts on this link. https://ukhsa-dashboard.data.gov.uk/weather-health-alerts/heat Bird flu: Defra advice to the general public is to leave corpses alone and report the findings - but landowners should dispose of birds themselves. https://www.gov.uk/government/news/bird-flu-latest-situation-avian-influenza-prevention-zone-declared-across-great-britain Lyme Disease reminder https://www.hse.gov.uk/agriculture/zoonoses-data-sheets/lyme-disease.pdf Road works and hold-ups https://roadworks.org/ Met Office Severe Warnings https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/warnings-and-advice/uk-warnings Met Office Severe Weather E-mail Service - sign up http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/about-us/guide-to-emails EasyTide http://easytide.ukho.gov.uk/EasyTide/EasyTide/index.aspx Environment Agency Flood Warnings - Lincolnshire https://www.google.com/search?q=government+flood+warnings+lincolnshire Environment Agency Flood Information/Floodline - sign up https://www.gov.uk/sign-up-for-flood-warnings ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 2. WILDLIFE HIGHLIGHTS ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ *** Bird News from Rare Bird Alert *** Rare Bird Alert has kindly given permission to reproduce their pager reports. A big thank you from us all. Readers interested in a pager - look at the RBA website: http://www.rarebirdalert.co.uk/ For RBA's excellent articles: https://www.rarebirdalert.co.uk/RealData/Articles.asp Abbreviations Juv = juvenile Ad = adult 1s/w, 2s/w = first/second summer/winter (age or plumage) 7/1/2026 Cleethorpes Coast, Glossy Ibis on saltmarsh by chalets. Deeping St James, Snow Goose ad white morph in field north of Crowland road with Whooper Swans. 2 Bewick's Swans. Deeping Lakes. Frampton Marsh, 5 Snow Buntings on east side of sea wall east of East Hide. Horseshoe Point, 3 Russian White-fronted Geese. Stalingborough, 5 Russian White-fronted Geese flew NW over. 8/1/2026 Baston Langtoft Pits, Russian White-fronted Goose ad at North Pit. Cleethorpes Coast, Glossy Ibis on lagoon SE of Buck Beck. Deeping St James, Snow Goose ad white morph west of Gull House Farm, Deeping Lakes, in beet field north of Welland Bank with 200+ Whooper Swans and 7 Bewick's Swans. Gibraltar Point, 2 Tundra Bean Geese. Snow Bunting, 2 Shorelarks on foreshore. Little Stint, at Greenshank Creek, 3+ Water Pipits from Fennella Hope Hide. Frampton Marsh, 6 Snow Buntings on east side of sea wall east of East Hide. Mablethorpe, 3 Caspian Gulls on beach near seal sanctuary Nocton Fen, 2 Bewick's Swans. Rimac, 10 Russian White-fronted Geese just south, in 1st cereal field. 9/1/2026 Bardney, 5 Tundra Bean Geese north of Branston causeway at Branston Fen. Cleethorpes Coast, c30 Snow Buntings at Outer South Beach. Glossy Ibis in ditch at Buck Beck. Deeping St James, Snow Goose ad white morph west of Gull House Farm, Deeping Lakes, in beet field north of Welland Bank with 200+ Whooper Swans. 3+ Bewick's Swans. Immingham, Little Stint on Humber. Middlemarsh Farm, west of Skegness, Caspian Gull. 10/1/2026 Covenham Reservoir, Black-throated Diver, Great Northern Diver. Deeping St James, Snow Goose ad white morph west of Gull House Farm, Deeping Lakes, in beet field north of Welland Bank with Whooper Swans. 3+ Bewick's Swans. 4 Long-eared Owls at Main Lake from main hide. Glossy Ibis by River Welland on south bank. later 2 Glossy Ibises on Folly River. Frampton Marsh, 6 Snow Buntings on east side of sea wall east of East Hide. Ingham to Fillingham - Great Grey Shrike Late report. Middlemarsh Farm, west of Skegness, Caspian Gull 1w. opposite Sid Dennis' scrapyard in field. Sandtoft, Hoopoe in garden at Belton Road/Clouds Lane.- late report 11/1/2026 Cleethorpes Coast, c30 Snow Buntings at Outer South Beach. Glossy Ibis in ditch at Buck Beck. Deeping St James, Snow Goose ad white morph west of Gull House Farm, Deeping Lakes, in beet field north of Welland Bank with Whooper Swans. 2 Bewick's Swans, ads. .4 Long-eared Owls in ivy at Main Lake from main hide. Frampton Marsh, 6 Snow Buntings on east side of sea wall east of East Hide. Marston Sewage Works, Dark-bellied Brent Goose. North Hykeham, probable Siberian Lesser Whitethroat [form blythi] in garden at Mulberry Avenue. Sandtoft, no sign of Hoopoe in garden at Belton Road/Clouds Lane Tallington Lakes, Scaup ad fem at Main Lake. Entry £5. 12/1/2026 Cleethorpes Coast, c 30 Snow Buntings by lagoon, Glossy Ibis in ditch at Buck Beck. Covenham Reservoir, Black-throated Diver, 2 Great Northern Divers,. Deeping St James, Snow Goose ad white morph in field west west of South Drove, with Whooper Swans + 6 Bewick's Swans. 2 Bewick's Swans ads. at East Pit, Deeping Lakes, then flew off .Long-eared Owl in ivy at Main Lake by hide. Frampton Marsh, 2 Waxwings at west end of Crossbank near pillbox. 6 Snow Buntings on east side of sea wall east of East Hide. Gibraltar Point, Red-necked Grebe, Slavonian Grebe, Nocton Fen, 2 Bewick's Swans. Ingham to Fillingham - Great Grey Shrike between, in tree east of road bend at. Willingham Road. Willow Tree Fen, 2 Tundra Bean Geese flew over. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 3. WILDLIFE NEWS FROM AROUND THE COUNTY ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Find the Grid Reference - don't forget - it's important Grab a Grid Reference: https://www.bnhs.co.uk/focuson/grabagridref/html/index.htm UK Grid Reference Finder: http://www.gridreferencefinder.com/ ROAD KILLS? PLEASE LET US KNOW. Every drive is a transect! Hedgehogs? Badgers? Otters? Reports welcome. Request from Cleethorpes Wildlife Rescue Can You Help Us? We’re mapping wildlife fatality hotspots on roads to help improve safety for both animals and drivers. Over time, this data could support efforts to work with local authorities to make high-risk areas safer. If you come across a deceased animal or are aware of one, please report the location—when it’s safe to do so—by: Dropping a pin on the map provided Sharing a What3Words location Providing the street name While we are unable to collect deceased wildlife, your information could help prevent future incidents. Thank you! Please share to help spread the word. Report deceased wildlife on the link below: https://form.jotform.com/.../report-roadside-deceased... *** County Wildlife Reports from Readers *** We rely on readers to send in observations and welcome records from everyone, experts to beginners. Please keep your reports coming. BARDNEY - The Green TF120694 A & R Parsons 12/122026 House Sparrows. 12+ Starling flock of 12+ at fat feeder. Pied Wagtail f. . Blackbirds - 5+ visiting. Dunnock 1 Collared Dove 3. Robin 2 Woodpigeon 3 Domestic pigeon 4. Flock of patrolling black-headed gulls - 20+ BARDNEY GARDEN TF117700 Phil and Mary Porter 7th January 2026 7-8 Redwings today, Great Spotted Woodpecker, female Blackcap, female Greenfinch, Wren. 8th January 2026 Virtually all of the winter thrushes have now left, having stripped the apple tree and Cotoneaster of all the accessible fruit and cleared all of the sound windfalls. Mary did see a single Redwing and 2 Fieldfares hanging on. We are back down to about 4 Blackbirds. A small flock of Fieldfares passed beyond the garden. We have a second fruitful Cotoneaster right next to the side of the house where we only go to put the washing out to dry, but that tree hasn’t been touched and never is. Perhaps the washing on the line is the problem. A Green Woodpecker called beyond the garden. A Stock Dove appeared briefly. 9th January 2026 Female Sparrowhawk caught a thrush sized bird at the bottom of the garden. Great Spotted Woodpecker visited the feeders. 10th January 2026 Mary heard Siskin calls nearby but we never saw one in the garden. 12th January 2026 A pair of Greenfinches on the feeders. Lately an occasional female has been the only visitor. 13th January 2026 Long-tailed Tit ultimately bullied off the feeder by the stream of feeding tits and finches, A great Spotted Woodpecker cropped up again. The local Wood Pigeons had a group bathing session in the pond leaving a greyish scum on the surface which presumably their preening-gland material. Mary heard a Green Woodpecker in the large open gardens over the fence. The earliest Winter Aconites are just starting to break bud. CARLTON LE MOORLAND SK909581 Jeremy Hutchinson In early December a flock of about 150 Greylag geese were feeding daily a field which had grown a crop of maize last year. They fed there for about a fortnight, then vanished, only to be replaced by a flock of 26 Egyptian Geese which were there daily for a week or so. My Pyracantha hedge had an exceptional crop of berries this year (like other similar plants), which for first time in 45 years or so had not been all eaten well before Christmas. There are still some remaining, but dwindling rapidly. Blackbirds are the main culprits, and the odd Redwing has joined in, a maximum of three at once on one particular day. On one occasion only I saw a Robin swallow a couple of the berries, and likewise I sw a pair of Bluetits pecking at berries after they had been displaced from the peanut feeder by larger birds. Although Fieldfares are in the area, I have not seen them feeding here. During a recent walk across the frozen stubble fields nearby I put up a Hare (the first I've seen for a long time), a Snipe (heard, but not seen as I crossed a ditch), a pair of Buzzards which kept a careful distance away from me, I presume the pair which nest about 200m away from the house in a large Oak. I also unwittingly disturbed a roosting female Sparrowhawk. There were signs of activity around a badger sett in the banks of a small watercourse. I always leave Michaelmas seed heads for Goldfinches to feed on, but this year they have been noticeably absent. Only very recently has the odd one been seen, and on one occasion only a pair were feeding on Lemon Balm seeds (Melissa). 4/1/26: Pair of Red Kites drifted over. 5/1/26: Raven. 11/1/26: Roe Deer at dusk in field close to bottom of garden. THEDDLETHORPE DUNES GARDEN John Walker 9th January 2026 Lowest air temperatures over first 7 days of January minus 6.5c Lowest ground minus 11.5c I’m putting out almost a kg of wild bird food plus 2 fatballs per day Up to 35 blue great and long tail tits, 8 to 10 blackbirds, 4 chaffinch, 4 dunnocks, 1 great spotted woodpecker regularly each day Also putting out food for badger and fox each evening ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 4. NNRs and NATURE RESERVES ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ LWT Top Reserves: https://www.lincstrust.org.uk/get-involved/top-reserves LWT Reserves List: https://www.lincstrust.org.uk/get-involved/nature-reserves-list RSPB Reserves: https://www.rspb.org.uk/days-out/reserves ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ GIBRALTAR POINT NNR ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Gibraltar Point Bird Observatory https://gibraltarpointbirdobservatory.blogspot.com/ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ LINCOLNSHIRE COASTAL COUNTRY PARK ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Dave Miller Coast and The Wolds (South) Warden Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust Sykes Farm Nature Reserve Office Gibraltar Point National Nature Reserve Gibraltar Road Skegness PE24 4SU No records this week ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ SALTFLEETBY THEDDLETHORPE DUNES NNR including DONNA NOOK ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ http://www.lincstrust.org.uk/reserves/saltfleetby-theddlethorpe-dunes https://www.lincstrust.org.uk/get-involved/top-reserves/donna-nook http://publications.naturalengland.org.uk/publication/38015?category=59026 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Owen Beaumont Tel: 07900264428 Reserve Manager Saltfleetby-Theddlethorpe Dunes NNR part of the Lincolnshire Coronation Coast NNR Sea View Road, Saltfleetby St. Clements, LN11 7TR www.gov.uk/natural-england Twitter @NEEastMidlands 070126 – 400 pink-footed geese feeding in cereal fields south of Rimac. 2 woodcock flushed from dune scrub south of Rimac and another in the dunes at Sea View. 4 whooper swan flew over Rimac foreshore late afternoon. Weasel seen briefly around the work base at Sea View. 080126 – 8 whooper swan flew west over Rimac dunes at dawn. 4 cattle egret along the edges of the Great Eau between Rimac and Sea View. 7 fieldfare dropped into dune scrub at Rimac. 1500+ pink-footed geese flew up from cereal fields south of Rimac, with most flying inland and c300 dropping back onto fields. 10 white-fronted geese also in cereal fields south of Rimac; 6 within the pink-footed goose group and 4 keeping separate with Greylag and Canada Geese. 180 Canada geese and 850 pink-footed geese around Elm House Farm grassland late morning and a further 400 pink-footed geese flew north over Mablethorpe North End. By late afternoon 10 white-fronted geese had joined the Canadas on Elm House Farm, again in two separate groups. 93 shelduck, 24 cormorant, 620 dunlin, 34 sanderling, 21 oystercatcher Churchill Lane foreshore late morning. 3 caspian gulls on the beach between Crook bank and Mablethorpe North End (adult, third-winter and first-winter), the first lesser black-backed gull of the year and 3 colour-ringed common gulls (Germany, Poland and Norway origins). Orkney ringed sanderling again on Crook Bank beach with 720 sanderling, 200 dunlin, 7 grey plover, 10 bar-tailed godwit, 5 redshank, 28 oystercatcher and 5 curlews. 2 red-throated diver, a shelduck and a common scoter flew north over the sea. 1500+ pink-footed geese flew north and west in several skeins throughout the day, including some coming in-off the sea from Norfolk direction. 100126 – Great Eau water levels increased overnight and water beginning to fill Sea View Washlands. 8 whooper swan flew south off Rimac lagoon. Great tit in song at Sea View. 1260 pink-footed geese on winter cereal fields west of MOD. 249 pink-footed geese, 11 white-fronted geese, 210 Canada geese, 4 greylags, 108 lapwing, 69 redshank, 11 curlew and 9 golden plover in field, 2 Elm House Farm viewed from the B1200. The first short-eared owl of the year also seen at Elm House Farm late afternoon. 110126 – 10 white-fronted geese feeding on Elm House Farm wet grassland seen from the B1200. More localised evidence of thrush arrival/movement with 2 song thrush, fieldfare, 20+ blackbird and 10 redwings feeding in small pasture field at Mablethorpe North End. 120126 – great white egret on the edge of the Eau near Rimac bridge mid- morning. 15 gadwall, 54 shoveler, 170 teal and a black-tailed godwit on Paradise Lagoon. Minimum 8 pintail on the saltmarsh near Sea View late afternoon. 9 white-fronted geese again on Elm House Farm wet grassland from the B1200. Newly fledged woodpigeon seen at Mablethorpe North End early afternoon. 130126 – 7 white-fronted geese with c250 Canada geese Elm House Farm mid-afternoon, and 500+ wigeon put up by a marsh harrier. A further 400+ wigeon and 600+ teal around Sea View Washlands and along the Eau. 3 whooper swan on Rimac saltmarsh lagoon early afternoon, and c30 pintail dropped onto the saltmarsh nearby. Female stonechat perched on dune scrub at Rimac. c400 pink-footed geese feeding in winter cereal field inland from Rimac. Stoat seen briefly on the cross-ditch bank at Rimac freshwater marsh. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 5. BARDNEY LIMEWOODS NNR ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ These cover a huge area. Reports always welcome. The history of the Lincolnshire Limewoods: https://www.forestryjournal.co.uk/features/19111877.lincolnshire-limewoods/ The Forestry Commission visitor advice: https://www.forestryengland.uk/article/coronavirus-visitor-guide ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Butterfly Conservation Lincolnshire Branch: https://butterfly-conservation.org/300/lincolnshire-branch.html *** Butterfly Conservation Lincolnshire *** Chambers Farm Wood Butterfly Garden Volunteers Email: margaretwestcott7@hotmail.co.uk https://butterfly-conservation.org/in-your-area/lincolnshire-branch/chambers-farm-wood-butterfly-garden *** Lincolnshire Dormouse Group *** lincsdormousegroup@gmail.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The NNR includes the following sites: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Chambers Farm Woods (comprises Ivy Wood; Little and Great Scrubbs Woods; Minting Wood; Hatton Wood, Hatton Plantation and Minting Park; and also three areas of grassland: Little Scrubbs Meadow and extension), Small Meadow and Big Meadow. Since all have their own management plans, please give the actual location when reporting). College Wood; Cocklode & Great West Woods; Hardy Gang Wood; Newball Wood; Rand Wood; Scotgrove Wood; Southrey Wood and Wickenby Wood. Many of these include both areas of ancient woodland or important grassland. Many are also designated Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Records which provide a six-figure grid reference are of particular value to the Forestry Commission. Other woods included in the NNR but without public access: Stainfield Wood; Stainton & Fulnetby Woods (access by public bridle way only). ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 6. OTHER RESERVE REPORTS AND HIGHLIGHTS. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Discover Woodland Trust woods near you- including the best woods for walks, wildlife watching, family fun and heritage. https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/visiting-woods/woods/#=undefined&view=map Lincolnshire County Council - Local Nature Reserves https://www.lincolnshire.gov.uk/coast-countryside/nature-reserves Links to "Other Reserves" are welcome. Your suggestions, please. Boston Woods Trust https://www.bostonwoods.co.uk/ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 7. SENDING IN BULLETIN REPORTS ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The purpose of the Bulletin is to encourage biological recording in Lincolnshire. We aim to increase the number of people reporting observations to Recorders or via iRecord. https://www.brc.ac.uk/irecord/ The Bulletin is a FREE service. We ask you to provide reports, questions, news or relevant articles from time to time. Descriptive pieces are welcome. You don't have to stick to lists! Please help us to help you. When sending in reports please follow this layout to save re-editing: Place Name: IN CAPITALS with Grid Reference if you have it. Your Name: Real names please, not aliases. Put it in each time, for each location Date: Species list [Alphabetical?] & numbers [and observations?] e.g. Blackbird - 24 [And please, no home-grown abbreviations. Species Names in full.] Bulletin mailing times may vary. It usually goes out on Wednesdays/ Thursdays in time for the weekend. Please e-mail in contributions to the editor as early as possible. Tuesday latest. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 8. CONTACTS AND USEFUL WEBSITES ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ *** Links "not to be missed" *** Please copy and paste URLs if/as necessary. CONTACTS LIST *** Lincolnshire Naturalists' Union *** LNU Website: http://lnu.org/ LNU Twitter feed https://twitter.com/LincsNaturalist LNU e-mail: info@lnu.org Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust: https://twitter.com/LincsWildlife Lincs Bird Club: https://twitter.com/Lincsbirding LBC County Bird Recorder: recorder_south@lincsbirdclub.co.uk The Sir Joseph Banks Society: https://twitter.com/sirjosephbanks Lincolnshire Bat Group: http://www.lincsbatgroup.co.uk/ Butterfly Conservation Lincolnshire Branch: https://twitter.com/BC_Lincolnshire Lincsbirders: https://twitter.com/lincsbirders Lincolnshire Chalk Streams Project: https://lincolnshirechalkstreams.org/ Lincolnshire Chalk Streams Trust: https://lincolnshirechalkstreamstrust.org.uk/ South Lincolnshire Flora Group: https://bsbi.org/south-lincolnshire-v-c-53 The Wolds Fungi Group: Contact Paul Nichol via email: nichol20@gmail.com Lincolnshire Dormouse Group: Contact: lincsdormousegroup@gmail.com FIGHTING WILDLIFE CRIME Wildlife Crime https://www.lincs.police.uk/advice/advice-and-information/wc/wildlife-crime/ SPECIES IDENTIFICATION AND RECORDING Please copy and paste URLs if/as necessary. LNU Recorders and Specialists: https://lnu.org/specialists/ Downloads of LNU books: https://lnu.org/publications/books/ Recording with "iRecord": https://www.brc.ac.uk/irecord/ iRecord is recommended by the LNU as an appropriate platform for on-line recording When asking for help: Please give the very best information you can provide. If you are not sure, ask what is needed from you to confirm identification. Photographs are helpful but not every species can be identified from a photograph. When asked for further details,get back to the recorder promptly. Don't forget a thank you for the help. That is always welcomed. Local Bat Helpline Grounded bats, bat problems, advice and information. Contact the new Lincolnshire Bat Group co-ordinator as above: Email: info@lincsbatgroup.co.uk Or by phone on 01526 344726, who will be able to help you. Confidential Bat Records You may send confidential bat records direct to the above, who will make sure they are securely passed on to the new recorder. Slug ID Help Chris du Feu will help with slug identification. Tel: 01383 669 124 Email: chris.r.dufeu@gmail.com USEFUL WILDLIFE LINKS Please copy and paste URLs if necessary. How to identify ladybirds| NatureSpot https://www.naturespot.org/WildlifeGuides/12CommonLadybirds How to identify diving ducks | The Wildlife Trusts https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/wildlife/how-identify/how-identify-diving-ducks Dragonfly Identification help https://british-dragonflies.org.uk/odonata/species-and-identification/ Bat Identification https://www.bats.org.uk/about-bats/what-are-bats/uk-bats/ NHBS - Frequencies of British Bats https://media.nhbs.com/equipment/British%20Bat%20Frequencies.pdf Lincolnshire Badger Group https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100093647842292 Email: lincolnshirebadgergroup@hotmail.com Lincs Environmental Records Centre: http://www.glnp.org.uk/ Natural England: http://www.naturalengland.org.uk/ NHBS - Natural history equipment or books.https://www.nhbs.com/ The Flora of Lincolnshire by Joan Gibbons: downloadable LNU book https://lincsnaturalist.files.wordpress.com/2017/06/the-flora-of-lincolnshire-e-joan-gibbons.pdf Atlas of the terrestrial and semi-aquatic Mammals of Lincolnshire https://lincsnaturalist.files.wordpress.com/2021/06/mammalatlas.pdf ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 9. NOTES ABOUT THESE WILDLIFE REPORTS ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ We do our best to ensure accuracy in our reporting. However, records are sent in by a variety of reporters; from complete beginners to professionals. They may vary in reliability and occasionally may be difficult or impossible to verify. If further information is needed please contact the editor: Bulletins are sent to Recorders at Lincolnshire Environmental Records Centre [GNLP], Lincolnshire Naturalists' Union and Lincolnshire Bird Club. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 10. BULLETIN PUBLICITY POLICY ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ When submitting reports, e.g. unusual plants, please send any sensitive news directly to recorders. Not the Bulletin. We don't want to spoil things with unwise or untimely publicity. Thank you. Please respect the interests of wildlife and site owners if you report on national networks. Interest in wildlife is not a licence to act irresponsibly or thoughtlessly to landowners, who may well be partners in important conservation work. [Views expressed in the Bulletin do not necessarily reflect the policies or opinions of the LNU or associated organisations. In particular this applies to agencies, especially charities, taking a political stance.] ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 11. LNU EVENTS DIARY ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ New details to come.... ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 12 ...AND FINALLY... ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ *** National and International Stories *** Living their best life? What the Highland lynx did next https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cm2y1ygjmy2o Rare discovery as nightjar found behind Belfast bin https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c3wz1e4lnw1o Mystery of wolf-type dogs solved with DNA test https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c93vngqg97ko What I’ve learned from studying the wild pigeon https://theconversation.com/what-ive-learned-from-studying-the-wild-pigeon-269116 Why hedgehogs used to be hated https://theconversation.com/why-hedgehogs-used-to-be-hated-272376 The Heartwarming Story of How a Lion, a Tiger, and a Bear Defied Biology and Became Best Friends https://www.zmescience.com/ecology/lion-tiger-and-bear-share-impressing-friendship/ A zombie spider-killing fungus and a bloodstained orchid: Kew Gardens reveals the strangest plants new to science in 2025 https://www.discoverwildlife.com/plant-facts/kew-gardens-new-species-science In Bali, this diver saw a bizarre crab scuttling out of the darkness | Discover Wildlife https://www.discoverwildlife.com/animal-facts/marine-animals/crab-holding-jellyfish-bali On line conifer ID course https://fienta.com/tree-identification-conifers *** Mail Fails *** Brian Rice - soft bounce Gary Steele - soft bounce If you experience any such problem in future please let Alex know. mrapickwell@gmail.com ----------------- ~ THE END ~ ----------------- (..until next week!) Roger Parsons old.museum@yahoo.co.uk http://rogerparsons.info/