Birding Group Visit to RSPB Marshside and WWT Martin Mere 24 Feb 2026

Our visit to Marshside this year fell on a lovely, mainly wind-free, sunny day. Although it was obviously low tide, there were still good numbers of birds on the various bodies of water around the reserve. At Marshside we did not see anything especially unusual but after we were done at Marshside, Anne and I went on to WWT Martin Mere where there were very many birds and even a life tick – at least in the UK.

At Marshside there were large numbers of Canada Geese and many fewer of the other varieties you would expect. On the scape, some very active Ruff were the main attraction. There were very large numbers of Lapwing and, especially, Wigeon. Teal, Tufted Ducks, Shovelers, Pintails and Mallards were all easy to see and a pair of Little Grebes also showed for us. I was hoping for some Golden Plover but I couldn’t see any – at least not clear enough for a positive ID, though I looked long and hard at some distant birds. There were also Black-tailed Godwits but for once they were simply roosting whereas you normally see them taking to the air every five minutes.

So, not the best birding we have had at Marshside but a lovely morning. After a couple of hours we thought we would head off to WWT Martin Mere for a cup of tea and a shot at finding the life-tick Ring-necked Duck and the year-tick Glossy Ibis and Barnacle Geese, all of which had been seen in recent days there.

After tea and a scone, we headed off to the Discovery hide where we hoped to see the Ring-necked Duck. Anne caught a glimpse of it and there were others in the hide who had seen it recently, but none could find it when I was looking. A bit disappointed, we headed off to the Hale hide where the Glossy Ibis had been seen just minutes before. When we got there were told that it had been showing really well until a minute ago when it flew off. Two misses seemed likely but we stayed for a bit longer and, not much later, it wheeled into view and we got good views of it circling in front of the hide before it landed in some reeds where we could no longer see it. A further wait and it came back landing in the far side of the pool right in front of the hide; our reward for perseverance. On the potato pile we got a quick glimpse of a Barnacle Goose.

We headed up to the Ron Barker hide where we got a group of Cattle Egret variously placed along the cut. They suddenly all flew up and dispersed but later came back to the cow field and settled there; we counted 30 or more in one group among the cows.

Apart from that, there wasn’t a lot at Ron Barker; a Marsh Harrier showed from there and at the Kingfisher hide we got a Kestrel perched on a fencepost.

Returning to the Discovery hide again, it wasn’t long before we got the elusive Ring-necked Duck and when we did see it, it turned out to be so distinctive (a singular head shape) that it was hard to lose it again. We spent quite a while watching it and also looking at the swans as the all started to drift closer to the hide, knowing that it wasn’t that long till feeding time. We didn’t want to stay until then and we opted to avoid the worst of the motorway traffic by leaving mid afternoon.

So, in all a really nice day. Marshside wasn’t spectacular but it was a lovely day and it was nice sitting in the sun taking in all the bird life. Our decision to go on to Martin Mere was more than rewarded by the UK life-tick Ring-necked Duck and the good year ticks of Barnacle Goose and Glossy Ibis. Of course at this time of year we got lots of other year ticks but these were the special ones.

Bird Sightings : RSPB Marshside 25 Feb 2026

Species	No
Black-headed Gull	30
Black-tailed Godwit	300
Canada Goose	1000
Coot	4
Goldfinch	14
Greylag Goose	30
Herring Gull	4
Lapwing	300
Lesser Black-backed Gull	1
Little Grebe	2
Mallard	50
Moorhen	2
Mute Swan	12
Pink-footed Goose	30
Pintail	20
Redshank	1
Ruff	8
Shelduck	12
Shoveler	20
Starling	400
Stonechat	1
Teal	100
Tufted Duck	50
Wigeon	600
Woodpigeon	6

Bird Sightings : WWT Martin Mere 25 Feb 2026

Species	No
Barnacle Goose	1
Black-headed Gull	30
Black-tailed Godwit	100
Blackbird	2
Canada Goose	100
Carrion Crow	4
Coot	4
Cormorant	20
Glossy Ibis	1
Goldfinch	4
Great Tit	2
Greylag Goose	40
Kestrel	1
Lapwing	80
Little Egret	2
Magpie	2
Mallard	50
Moorhen	2
Mute Swan	20
Pink-footed Goose	50
Pintail	30
Pochard	30
Ring-necked Duck	1
Robin	1
Rock Dove / Feral Pigeon	40
Ruff	20
Shelduck	30
Shoveler	12
Starling	60
Teal	150
Tufted Duck	100
Whooper Swan	200
Wigeon	100
Wren	1