Coastal
bird paradise
 |
The Conwy RSPB Reserve at Lavan Sands, North Wales, was created following
the construction of the Conwy road tunnel to provide a safe haven for waders at
high tide throughout the year. | | Conwy
nature reserve - thousands of birds |
The coastal area of North Wales is an area of great natural beauty
with its mixture of headland, shingle beaches and estuaries.
Overlooked
by Snowdonia National Park, its range of habitats means that it's a fantastic
place for birds and nature watching. The habitat at Lavan Sands consists
of coastal lagoons and grassland running alongside the Conwy estuary, with over
200 species recorded here. Conwy Reserve
 The
RSPB's Conwy nature reserve comprises 47 hectares of reed beds, lagoons, and grassland.
This relatively new reserve was created in the 1980s after the building
of the Conwy road tunnel,
Its reed beds are great for birds such as Water
Rail, Little Grebe and Reed Buntings. At dusk Conwy boasts an incredible
spectacle - look for various sized flocks coming in from all along coast. Some
birds visit from Scandinavia for the winter too, boosting British flocks.
Spring birds  Spring
is the best site for birdwatchers on the North Wales coastline.
Conwy is
home to Lapwings, Sedge Warblers and Water Rail - these birds breed on the wetlands
during spring and summer. The elusive Water Rail is especially interesting
- this reed bed specialist makes a squeal like a pig, eats carrion and is quite
aggressive. Water Rail always stay close to cover, sneaking around from
reed bed to reed bed.
The bird looks slightly round and dumpy from the
side, but in reality it's quite a narrow bird with a spiky bill and long reddish
toes. It's also rather secretive, making it one of our most difficult birds
to see well. These birds are very territorial, and they eat a variety of
insects, aquatic molluscs, berries, shoots and even small birds in hard weather. Reed
Buntings  Also
look out for the Reed Bunting with its black head and Sparrow-like appearance.
This
reed specialist has sadly declined in last two decades, largely due to loss of
habitat. The male is unmistakable in summer with its glossy, black head
and white collar. But in winter it's much paler and less glossy black.
It's easy to mistake the female bird for a Sparrow - the main difference is
that the female Reed Bunting has pale coloured stripes on her head and back.
These
birds have long claws so they can feed easily in the reeds which also provide
protection and shelter. Later in the year many different waders and wild
fowl can be seen in what is the largest roost in Wales. Conwy has also reported
sightings of rare birds like the Terek Sandpiper, the first of its kind to be
seen in Wales. Inside the hides  There
are four hides at the reserve and visitors have reported seeing Bluethroat, Black-headed
Wagtail, Marsh Sandpiper and all three phalaropes.
The types of birds to
be seen depends heavily on the time of year - visitors to the reserve in spring
will witness the mating season, while summer brings a new flock of young into
the skies. Visit in autumn to see a wide range of migratory birds arriving
here, while winter is the best time to see huge flocks of birds flying at dusk
forming roosts to keep warm. Species by season include Grey Herons and Skylarks
in spring, warblers and waders in summer, Buzzards in autumn and Water Rails in
winter. Reserve highlights: *
Black-tailed Godwit
* Lapwing
* Shelduck
* Skylark
* Water Rail
Morfa
Madryn  The
whole North Wales coast is a great place for a variety of bird watching experiences.
Morfa
Madryn reserve is an important nesting site for birds including Lapwing and a
variety of waders. Located right on the shoreline next to mudflats, there
are thousands of Oystercatchers and Dunlin as well as hundreds of Wigeon, Curlew
and Pintail. At high tide - or one hour either side - the birds come in
to roost on shingle spits. Oystercatchers are easily recognised by their
black and white plumage and long, bright red beaks. Despite their name,
Oystercatchers don't eat oysters - they actually like cockles, mussels and earthworms. Their
long red bills are designed for prizing open shells. The adjacent Traeth
Lafan mudflats reserve is also of major importance for wading birds. The
Spinnies  Also
check out the nearby Spinnies reserve run by the North Wales Wildlife Trust.
The
reserve is set amidst a small woodland and also features a series of ponds and
a lagoon. There are many species of wildfowl and wading birds during the
autumn and spring migrations. You're almost guaranteed to see Kingfishers
if you visit this location. Photo credits
The
Oystercatcher image is courtesy and copyright of the RSPB and Andy Hay. The
Kingfisher is copyright of the RSPB. | 
