The Lincolnshire Bird Club

Posted on behalf of Anne Goodall, if you can assist with this survey, Anne's contact details are at the bottom of this post.

One of the targets in the Greater Lincolnshire Nature Partnership’s current ‘Biodiversity Action Plan’ is to increase the area of habitat in the county suitable for use by breeding waders of farmland and grassland. This will mainly be achieved by directing agri-environment funding to create or recreate such habitat, but one of the first essentials is to identify potentially suitable target areas, and the Lincs Bird Club has been asked to take this on, concentrating on inland sites which are not nature reserves. (The Grazing marsh survey has targeted coastal grassland, and NR files should supply the latter)

To do this we need to identify both sites which still have breeding waders, particularly redshank, snipe and curlew, and also sites where these species have bred in the relatively recent past, especially if they are still being visited by these species on passage. The first step was a trawl through our database for breeding season records of waders in the last 10 years, and this is more or less complete (but see below). We now need volunteers to visit these sites, ideally during the current breeding season (ie May-June) both to check for breeding waders, but also to report on the habitat. This will involve mapping each field on the supplied map (approximately a square kilometre around the last breeding location) as either arable (ie ploughed/under a crop or set-aside), or grassland or heathland, or some other (unsuitable) habitat. For grassland we need to know how wet it is in spring/early summer. The idea of covering a larger area than the known or last site is to try and extend good habitat, or to find a landowner close to the original site who might be amenable to habitat creation.

Currently we have known sites still needing volunteers in the areas listed in the table below. If you are close to, or know, one of the areas in the first list, please consider taking the survey on, and contact me asap for the map and instructions.

Known sites still needing volunteers:

Site Name
Central NGR
Ancaster
SK975425
Arnold's Meadow NR, Spalding
TF 260216
Gate Burton
SK 856 826
Hibaldstow Bridge
(TA0001)
Kingerby Meadows
TF052937,
Lea Marsh
SK809 861
Market Rasen Golf- & Race-Courses
TF1288
Messingham SQ
SE916 038
North Rauceby
TF 003 472
Scredington
TF104398
Skellingthorpe
SK937726
Wilksby Farm Reservoir
TF289634

There are also a number of known sites for which I’ve sent a request to the observer who supplied the original record, but haven’t yet had a response. If you recognise ‘your‘ site in this list, please let me know whether you will be covering in. However, as a back-up, if there is anyone else who could consider taking one of these on, please contact me for instructions.

Known sites which might still need volunteers:
Site Name
Central NGR
Anwick Fen
TF138523
Billinghay Skirth
TF151538
Butterwick Common/Hale
SE855 061
Cranwell (village)
TF 008 485
Dorrington Fen
TF128535
Dunston Fen
TF098642
Fiskerton Fen Scrapes
TF087721
Worlaby Carrs
(SE 983125 )


Finally, we also have a longer list of areas which cover more than one square km and from which there are good records NOT pinned down to a mappable location. These are listed below. If you know any of the areas on this list, and have a good idea where the actual breeding location might be, please let me have that too!

Sites for which we only have a general area, no actual location
Anton's Gowt
Long Bennington
Snitterby Carrs
Bagmoor/Winterton Floods
Low Melwood/High Melwood
South Kyme
Benniworth
Manton-Greetwell
Springthorpe
Branston Island
Middlemarsh (Skegness)
Stixwould
Burringham
Normanby Hall CP
Swanpool
Crowland Common
North Kelsey Moor
Swinderby Airfield
Dunsby
Norton Disney Quarry
Toft Newton Reservoir
Foston
Potterhanworth Fen
Toynton All Saints
Gunby (Spilsby)
RAF Cranwell
Toynton St Peter
Haxey (Langholme)
RAF Waddington
Walesby
Holme
RAF Woodhall
Welbourn Low Fields
Kettleby
Redbourne
West Ashby (Grove Farm)
Kirton in Lindsey
Revesby
Westwoodside (Cove Farm Quarry)
Laughton (Gainsborough)
Risby Warren
Wroot
Laughton Common
Scotterthorpe
Wroot (Tunnel Pits)


It is not actually essential to visit the sites in the next two months, since we are looking at habitat rather than confirming current use, so if you are willing to help, but simply can’t find time before the autumn say, then please let me know.

Many thanks,

Anne Goodall

(Contact via anne.goodall@esl-lincoln.co.uk or on 01526 398182 )