Warden Gavin Durrant was thrilled to discover this exceptionally late flowering peloric (mutant form) green-flowered helleborine orchid at Castle Marshes this week. This species is very unusual in Suffolk, the only other recent small colony was recorded in the Brecks on the border with Norfolk. Also, in 2014 there were a few plants recorded further up the Waveney in Norfolk. 

Warden Gavin Durrant recorded the calls of muntjac and Chinese water deer at Castle Marshes recently. The muntjac reminds us of a dog barking, whilst the water deer sounds decidedly spooky..! 

Intern Anneke Emery snapped this glorious wild service tree at Bonny Wood this week. The wild service tree was once widespread, but is now confined to ancient woodlands and hedges, particularly on heavy clay soils. An inconspicuous tree for much of the year, its white blossom in spring and crimson leaves in autumn give it away - this one is just turning and will look stunning in weeks to come! 

It’s fungi season! Often brightly coloured, fungi are neither plant nor animal, and come in a fantastic array of shapes, with some weird and wonderful names! Please do not pick or eat fungi (several are very poisonous), - leave them where you find them so that others can enjoy their beauty.  

Autumn means the sun is lower in the sky, which results in wonderful light and even more beautiful scenes. Warden Sam Norris and visitor Kim Wippel snapped these magical views at Knettishall Heath this week.  

Warden Jamie Smith snapped these stunning autumnal scenes at Dingle Marshes – there are lots of snipe and redwings coming in off the sea on migration at the reserve this week. 

At Hen Reedbeds work has been completed to clear areas in front of the viewpoints, this will help with species monitoring and also improve the experience for visitors. 

Our wardens have reported oak, beech and sweet chestnut trees bearing extra high loads of seeds this year - this might be a result of stress from the summer drought.  

The North East Wardens spot an exciting array of birds whilst topping the marshes. This week’s sightings included a short-eared owl, buzzard, kestrel, sparrowhawk, marsh harrier, red kite, peregrine falcon and jack snipe. A definite perk of the job! 

The North East Wardens did efficient work by topping the marshes in tandem on Castle and Carlton Marshes early in the week. Unfortunately, things don’t always go so smoothly, and later in the week they encountered a wetter than expected foot drain, resulting in the tractor getting very stuck! The wardens quickly teamed together and soon had the tractor back on dry land and topping of the marshes completed.