Thanks to #LDV volunteer Rox Vassie for sharing this delightful video of some of our newly arrived Corncrake chicks (now settled in our pre-release pens at just 15 days old), and to be released onto the reserve in around three weeks time 🐥

Amazing to see these drone shots of our new Nature Recovery, Community & Science Hub at Bank Island, as well as our original #LDV NNR reserve base, thanks to our partners at Ad Astra ALP - really interesting to see them from a different angle and blending into the landscape 📸

Over the last few months our team and partners in Norfolk have been busy with the second year of this reintroduction project, with up to date 72 chicks now released in the #LDV following vet health checks, colour-ringing and DNA swabbing, with more releases still to follow.

Fantastic to be able to host Tony Juniper, Marian Spain & the @naturalengland.bsky.social Board at our new #LDV NNR Nature Recovery/Science Hub yesterday, & to be able to share the joy of our Corncrake reintroduction programme with them, thanks to the visit coinciding with another release.

This year one of our long-term #LDV team members Rox Vassie has been running various monitoring stations on #SkipwithCommon NNR on behalf of UK CEH, with the data feeding into a national data set on pollutants (using passive air monitors and soil solution sampling).

Following a message from one of the local landowners to say that a chick was peering out of their owl box (only installed by our team in April), we made time to visit & enjoyed showing the young birds to the students & owners (great reward for their hard work on the farm) 🦉🦉

Recently we've enjoyed welcoming a number of work experience students to the #LDV to help with balsam removal, seed harvesting & path clearance, with each task day starting with exploring the contents of the moth trap - hopefully inspiring an interest & potential career in the environmental sector.

Whilst Quail numbers in the #LDV have now slowed, a total of 69 singing males have been located so far, with 15 males and a single first-year female caught and ringed. Amazingly, that equates to nearly 7% of all the Quail ever ringed in the UK @yorkbirding.bsky.social Image @niqvassie.bsky.social

Wader passage has been picking up in the #LDV this week with several Little Ringed Plover, five Green Sandpipers, Black-tailed Godwits, Redshank, Greenshank, Ruff and Common Sandpiper all recorded from Bank Island @yorkbirding.bsky.social Image @duncbye.bsky.social

The #LDV monthly sightings are now up to date on the NNR blog - ldvnnr.blogspot.com. Many thanks to everyone who contributed records and counts throughout the month, in particular to members of @yorkbirding.bsky.social and regular patch birder @duncbye.bsky.social

The first hay meadows have started to be cut throughout the #LDV this week, although fields with Curlews have been delayed a week or two, and where Corncrakes are present, delayed further - thank you to the local farmers for giving these special birds time and space 🐣🐦🚜

Great to see the wildflower walks so well attended (and it was nice to be out there prior to the start of the hay cut!). A good selection in the moth trap was also rather popular, especially the crowd pleasing Buff-tip and Elephant Hawk-moths 🦋

Nice to see fledged Curlew on our early morning guided bird walk, with Red Kites and a Hobby over the churchyard during the day, whilst a rather surprise Kingfisher in our mist nets was the star of the bird ringing demonstration 🐦

Huge thank you to everyone who turned out to support our #NationalMeadowsDay event on Saturday at Aughton Church - we were blown away with how far some people had travelled for the event & were delighted to see how much everyone enjoyed it! Great day/weather/wildlife! 🦉🦋🐝🌿

Fantastic to see the Friends of the #LDV's land 'New Meadow’ at North Duffield Carrs being cut for hay for the second year in a row – only three years ago this was an arable field, and now in its place is a stunning hay meadow supporting a vast range of wildlife 🐦🐝🦋🌿

Whilst the #LDV is known as a Quail 'hot spot', thanks to the present national influx we’ve seen even bigger numbers this summer. Another recent influx has swelled singing males to 61, with several more individuals caught and ringed as part of our long-term project on the species.

Great to be able to join forces with the @tophilllow.bsky.social Yorkshire Water crew on Wednesday with a day spent harvesting seed from the #LDV hay meadows (for them to grow in their nursery area before restoring species and communities elsewhere in Yorkshire) #NatureRecovery in action.

This week we’ve also had three work experience students join the team, with time spent helping to remove Marsh Ragwort, feeding Corncrake chicks, exploring the moth trap, bird ringing and harvesting seed from the meadows to help restore floodplain grasslands elsewhere 🌿

We were then joined by another of our regular supporters (HSE) on Tuesday, with a brand new team of staff visiting the #LDV for the first time. This invaluable help provided by corporate groups allows us to achieve so much, so a huge thank you to everyone for their efforts on the day 👏

Another week and another corporate group from Drax - where would we be without this incredible help! 🤩 Huge thank you to the team for helping us with the final week of clearing Marsh Ragwort from the Ings meadows ahead of the start of the hay cut. So grateful - thank you.

Interesting to hear that one of our colour-ringed Ruff (ringed last winter at Bubwith Bridge) is now at RSPB Blacktoft Sands (presumably returning from lekking areas in Europe ahead of the females & juveniles). Great to see how they are using sites along the East Coast 🌊 @yorkbirding.bsky.social

It was also nice to host our nature recovery partners from St Nicks last week for the checking of the moth trap, a bird ringing demo and a walk through the meadows – great discussions were had about how we link up the NNR with #NatureRecovery into the heart of York...exciting times ahead... 👀

Last week we enjoyed welcoming Marian Spain & her NE colleagues to the #LDV to meet our fantastic volunteers – everything achieved here is due to a massive team effort thanks to our staff & volunteers, & the many organisations & individuals all working towards the same goals & vision 👏

It's been nice to enjoy our new NNR Base meadow at Bank Island recently early on a morning and late into the evening (outside of the heat of the day), and whilst it's already looking really nice, we're excited to see how it develops in the years to come 🌼🪻🌷🌻🐝🦋🪲🐛

It was another busy weekend in the #LDV for the team, between hosting the army & running a stall at Ellerton Fete – providing a great opportunity to engage with residents from the local villages about responsible recreation, nature recovery & bringing the NNR into the heart of the community.

Fantastic to welcome two Platoons from the Army Foundation College in Harrogate to the #LDV at the weekend – despite the heat the soldiers worked incredibly hard helping our team of staff and volunteers clear Marsh Ragwort from the Ings meadows ahead of the hay cut 🚜🌿 Huge thanks to all 👏

Although our new #LDV NNR Base at Bank Island isn’t quite open just yet, it is at least complete and will be operational soon. Great to be able to give our fabulous volunteer team a quick tour of the building last week, inc. the new rooftop viewing area 🤩

Great day recently at #ForgeValleyWoods NNR for the @ynuorg.bsky.social BioBlitz – plenty of fantastic records were collected, which will help to shape our management of the site. Huge thanks to everyone who came along, and to Sarah White for organising. Images courtesy of Joan Childs 📸

Perhaps surprisingly and rather belatedly, Marsh Harriers have bred successfully in the #LDV for the first time this year (brood of four fledged last week). Fantastic to be able to see these magnificent birds at close range & ring them under @btobirds.bsky.social licence @yorkbirding.bsky.social

Several new moth species have been recorded in the #LDV area recently (after 30 years of trapping) inc. this stunning Scarlet Tiger at North Duffield, shortly followed by Red-tipped, Yellow-legged and Currant Clearwings, and several Lunar Hornet Moths. Amazing! @savebutterflies.bsky.social