Strumpshaw Fen - My Favourite Place

I've been trying all evening to write a blog about my favourite place in the whole world, Strumpshaw Fen, but I just can't seem to word it right!

This place is so full of wildlife you can't fail to see something brilliant every time you go whether it's otters, bitterns of swallowtail butterflies.

Obviously they are all wild so I can't guarantee you will see any of these things (apart from marsh harriers, you're pretty much guaranteed to see one of those!) but I will say, we aren't the type of people who sit for hours on end in one hide to get one glimpse of something. Some of the best things we have seen have been within 5 or 10 minutes of arriving, and it's not just in the hides that these things can be seen. One of our best moments was in February 2013 when we saw an otter fishing at the sluice between Fen Hide and Tower Hide, it was so close it was even spitting at us as it didn't want us to be there!

 

When we first got together in 2009, Matthew's main goal was to see a kingfisher, which is what first led us to Strumpshaw Fen. We didn't see one on our first visit but since then we have seen many, including 3 at once last summer! If you fancy seeing one, the best place to go is Reception Hide, they are often seen from Fen Hide too but not often seen them land there!

 

 



Strumpshaw Fen also brought me my first ever sighting of a bittern, now in all honesty, if you want more reliable/good views of bitterns, you're best to go to Minsmere, but they are at Strumpshaw, I have seen 3, all in flight so not great views but every time I've visited on spring evenings we have heard them booming!

Strumpshaw is also full of insects and creepy crawlies, I won't list them all because there would be too many but during the winter months you tend to forget about them, until the sun starts coming out in early spring and suddenly you remember they exist! The best of these has to be swallowtail butterflies, this year was the first time I have ever seen them, but by all accounts they are relatively easy to see (I wasn't really able to go at the right times last year, or the quite the right place!) The best place to go is the Doctor's Garden which is right at the end of the main trail (or the start if you go the other way round!), it's not technically part of Strumpshaw but the owner of the house is very accomodating in allowing visitors to walk up their garden to view them on their flowers!

Keep your eyes and ears open as you walk around, things can sneak up on you and you can easily miss them! Last year Matthew walked past a water vole right next to the path, I only noticed him as I was a few steps behind and heard it nibbling next to us, and I saw a weasel once after hearing rustling in the undergrowth near a bench, it was too fast for a photo but I managed a short video clip, unforunately I can't get it to upload on here but at the end I will post a link to my Strumpshaw Fen Flickr set and it should be in there!

Well, I am not going to waffle on too much more about all the things we've seen because I will be here all day, here is the link to all my flickr photos of Strumpshaw Fen https://www.flickr.com/photos/31291506@N00/sets/72157645581774984/ 

If you want a chance to see anything you see in those photos in real life, then get yourself down there! It's £3.50 to get in, but free for RSPB Members (well worth doing so you can go as much as you like for free!).

Below is a list of all the other wildlife I have seen at Strumpshaw Fen (and I've probably missed some, or there are things I haven't seen that are there!)
If you have any questions please feel free to ask, thanks for reading :)


Common Lizards
Frogs
Grass Snakes
Barn Owl
Tawny Owl (Heard)
Red Kite
Marsh Harrier
Hobby
Peregrine
Hen Harrier
Sparrowhawk
Cuckoo
Norfolk Hawker Dragonflies
Poplar Hawk Moths
Stag Beetles
Newts
Chinese Water Deer
Hare
Stock Dove
Cetti's Warbler
Reed Warbler
Whitethroat
Sedge Warbler
Grasshopper Warbler (heard)
Osprey
Bearded Tits (heard)
Snipe
Kestrel