Birds 'Tern' Up and Get a Helping Hand at Country Park!

A Leicestershire country park is getting ready to host its annual flock of nesting Common Terns as they head over for the summer!

With the help of the Leicestershire and Rutland Ornithological Society (LROS), Leicestershire County Council’s Rangers at Watermead Country Park have been busy installing new nesting platforms for these elegant birds to spend the warmer months on these shores.

In previous years Common Terns have nested on a small island that was created for their use, though as the park is situated on a flood plain it didn’t take long for it to be covered in vegetation. So a plan was devised to help bring the birds back. With the help of the park’s rangers and representatives from LROS, two modern Tern rafts have been installed for the birds to use. To help keep the rafts from moving, heavy anchors made out of old tyres and concrete were used and pebbles bought ready in anticipation of their arrival.

It is hoped that the Terns will find these rafts attractive enough and want to set up home there for the spring and summer. The rangers will monitor any activity on the rafts and if successful; the young birds will be ringed, weighed and measured by the Charnwood Ringing Group.

LROS has also helped the rangers to put up 12 Willow Tit boxes in the Reed bed Reserve Woodland. This species has had a dramatic decline over the last few years.

Dale Osborne, Leicestershire County Council’s Senior Ranger at Watermead Country Park said: “More and more species now require our help to survive. By creating artificial nesting habitats, this enables many species the chance to breed successfully and hopefully able to rear their young.”

Watermead Country Park is hosting two events for anyone interested in finding out how different species of birds are recorded. The Dawn Chorus Walk is taking place on Sunday 15th May and a course for beginners in bird identification is taking place at the park on Sunday 29th May.

For more information or to book a place at the events mentioned please call: 0116 305 5434 or email: countryparks@leics.gov.uk

Further information can also be found on: www.leics.gov.uk/watermead