2nd June 2010
Armageddon Theme
Another Incredible Biking Birder Day at Portmore
Lough RSPB Reserve.
Having arrived at Portmore Lough the previous evening and having camped amongst the picnic benches, I awoke early and had a walk down to the hide whilst the tent dried out from the early morning dew.
I had actually had rather an interesting dilemma on arriving at the reserve as it was getting a little late and a romantically active couple were very pneumatic on the front seat of their car as I turned onto the car park. Now what should I do? Pretend that I had not seen them, exceedingly difficult to do considering the effort the young lady involved was putting into the activity and continue down the gentle slope through the car park or turn around and go the other way. I chose the former and kept my eyes firmly looking at the way out in front of me. No way would a side glance be used!
Back to the tent for a healthy breakfast of no less than five jam doughnuts, just in time to meet Steve the assistant warden. John the actual warden and then Laura, a volunteer arrived and I was invited, with a half nelson used to persuade me, to join in with the day's work.
Actually the morning spent working with these three fabulous people was immensely enjoyable. Together we drove down in the caterpillar tracked vehicle, took a boat out to put two large poles into the silt at the bottom of the lake, adjacent to the tern raft, and placed tree branches near the shore for tern roost sites. The poles are to anchor a platform, whose function is for tern chicks that fall off the tern raft to clamber onto instead of drowning. As we put up one pole a tern chick was trying to climb back to its nest having fallen off, demonstrating the need perfectly. Over 50 nests were counted on the rafts by John and Steve and the poles and branches were soon being used by the many terns and swallows.
Being a gentleman I will not say which one of we four went into the mud up to their knees. I hope health and safety will not mind but John allowed me to drive the vehicle back to the centre. Over fields and through ditches. Great fun!
The afternoon was spent at a nearby peat bog searching for and finding lots of Irish damselflies; a new one for me and one totally unexpected. Cracking little things that allowed remarkably close photos to be taken as many were in egg laying tandems. There were also dozens of four-spot chasers, a good number of hairy dragonflies and just one large red damselfly. Lots of sundews were here as well.
Back to the reserve in time for a visit from the then environment minister for Northern Ireland, Edwin Poots and his daughter, Lydia. She was there to name one of the Polish pony foals, Cookie, and it was a real thrill to walk around the reserve with John and Steve, together with such a distinguished personage. Mr Poots showed a lot of enthusiasm for the work being done on the reserve and had no qualms over getting amongst the reed bed, with Lydia, to get closer to the group of ponies. Excellent man and lovely daughter.
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