COVEHITHE SANDERLINGS

   Last week I drove down to Covehithe with the intention of walking up to Benacre broad to see if any waders were around but on the approach to the end of the lane and the cliff top path I found the way blocked by barbed wire which prevented any easy access along the path. I had heard that the Benacre estate which owns the land were making life difficult for walkers claiming that the footpath no longer existed due to cliff erosion but as long as I can remember there has always been a path along the top of the cliff which would gradually move inland as the sea claimed more of the cliff. The estate insists that access to Benacre broad should be from along the beach only which means walking in the opposite direction to Covehithe broad and then doubling back along the beach at the base of the cliffs. The only problem with this is that if the tide is coming in then there is the real danger of being trapped by it against the cliffs with no chance of escape. Because the water comes right up to the bottom of the cliffs at high tide drowning is a real possibility and I believe the estate is acting in a very dangerous way by trying to block the cliff top access and I wonder where they would stand legally if the unthinkable happened.

   Getting back to the day I decided against climbing over the barbed wire and instead walked along towards Covehithe broad where as I approached I could see many gulls and ducks sitting on the water. The tide was indeed very high making any access northward to Benacre broad impossible but it was retreating so I lingered around watching the birds on the broad hoping I could walk along the beach a bit later. Looking out towards the sea a decent swell allowed various gulls to fly down into the troughs and along the breaking waves making a nice sight to watch and it while doing this that I spotted a group of three birds flying close to the shore approaching me before sweeping past and alighting next to a small pool left by the retreating tide. Looking through the binoculars I could make out the mottled white plumage and realised that they were Sanderlings and because these birds are often very approachable I gradually made my way down to the pool.

   Sanderlings are a small energetic wader that seem to be constantly on the go but at the same time can be very confiding. They are a long distant migrants that breed in the high arctic on the land closest to the North pole and then move in the winter to South America, South Africa and Australia. They are found mainly on sandy beaches where they feed on insects and shrimps and prior to migration they really pile on the weight to enable them to sometimes fly 5,000 km non stop.

   Creeping down to the edge of the pool I positioned myself up from the direction the birds were walking and waited as they approached me. I was amazed as they came within 20 feet of me and carried on feeding happily as I snapped away and even stayed as dog walkers came along the beach. The final sequence of four shots here were taken as one of the birds had a bit of a wash in the tide pool.

NEW RED SQUIRREL KITTENS AT KELLING HEATH

   Last week I had the opportunity to travel up to the Kelling Heath holiday park in North Norfolk to photograph the latest Red Squirrel kittens to be born into their captive breeding program. This program was started in 1999 with the aim to help preserve numbers of the Red Squirrel in the country following their devastating decline due mainly to the pressure on them from the introduced Grey Squirrel. The Grey Squirrels being larger are able to out compete the native reds for available food and they also produce young at a faster rate too. The other main reason for the decline of the reds is a virus carried by the greys that they themselves are immune to but which can be lethal to our native red squirrels.

   This breeding program has been very successful producing young for both reintroduction to the wild and for use in other breeding programs elsewhere. It is important for young squirrels to be integrated into other breeding schemes to keep the gene pools varied as inbreeding can easily occur if not carefully monitored. The parent squirrels at Kelling Heath at the moment arrived in 2012 where they were named 'Fred and Ginger' and this is their second brood of the year after successfully raising three kits in the spring. These three youngsters are no longer with their parents as in the wild they are driven from the parents territory when they near adulthood and if they had not been moved then fights would occur as well as the chance of inbreeding. The latest kits emerged from the nest box last week at the age of roughly six weeks keen to explore the surroundings of their compound and for the first week or two are easily approached as they have yet to develop their nervousness around people.

   Positioning myself at the end of the enclosure I sat down and waited and it wasn't long before the inquisitive young kits began to approach and explore allowing some close photography. In some cases they came so close that the camera would not focus and as long as I remained still they were happy to feed and play. I was amazed that the parents were so tolerant of me and although they kept an eye on their offspring they didn't seem at all bothered by my presence.

   On a more technical note it was very difficult to get images of the kits in surroundings that were not obviously captive and looked reasonably natural but on a few occasions when they were on the ground I did get some photos without man made objects in view. Another problem was the very harsh light which made exposure difficult or maybe that's just me looking for an excuse for my bad photography!

   Hopefully these latest additions to the Red Squirrel population will find homes soon, maybe in an authorised release scheme or in other captive breeding programs around the country. Any releases have to be carried out under license and in areas that are not susceptible to intrusion from the greys which means islands like or isolated wooded areas in locations such as Northumberland or Cumbria. About 30 years ago the area around Kelling was the last stronghold of Red Squirrels in the region and it would be nice to think that one day they could be seen here again in the wild but realistically without some drastic intervention to reduce or eradicate the Grey squirrel population that will never happen and the only chance many people will have to see these beautiful and charismatic creatures are at captive breeding schemes such as this.    

Angelsey