Winter in Druids Glen Wild Life Sanctury
Druids Glen Resort is a registered Wild Life sanctuary and whatever the season, always a very interesting place to take a stroll around. You may recall I reported hearing a woodpecker in the Druids Glen…. A recent report in the Irish Times confirms that there are Great Spotted Woodpeckers in County Wicklow so let’s hope they stay and nest here. When you are staying in our Hotel and out for a walk or playing golf on either the Druids Glen or the Druids Heath golf courses, please listen for the woodpecker or more importantly, if you see one, do report the sighting to one of the Druids Glen Resort staff. Males have a red spot on the back of the head and females have a black and white head but they are very similar and you will get more information on the Bird Watch Ireland site http://www.birdwatchireland.ie/
I will keep you informed about our programme to attract kingfishers to nest and breed. We have plans to create another nesting bank on the Knickity River and we will do this work very soon to let it weather before the kingfishers start looking for a nesting site for the 2012 season.
The shooting season started on 1st November so we welcome the clever local pheasants into our sanctuary. They know that they will be safe from hunters here and we also provide pheasant feeders in strategic locations. You will see a cock bird taking ownership of each feeder and then build up his harem of hens in the vicinity and the success or otherwise of the breeding is very weather dependent. A cold wet spring is not good for the chicks and they find it hard to survive the early days without insects to feed on and dry sunny mornings to warm up their feathers.
Due to our changing seasons you may see the mallard ducks mating in December and resulting in very early ducklings on our lakes. They are very nice to see when the woodlands are bare and there is little vegetation on the banks but again cold wet weather makes life very tough for the young ducklings.
We have otters on the Knickity River and they come up to the bridge near the 14th tee on the Druids Glen Course. You can be lucky and look over the bridge and see them fishing for trout. They are not to be confused with wild mink and the otter is their enemy so you will not see them together. The otter is one of our most important mammals and since 1976 they are a protected species in Ireland.
We are fortunate to have a healthy population of yellowhammers and they are to be seen on the road behind the Hotel running parallel to the golf course. The males have a bright yellow head and underside with a brown breast band and brown streaks on the flanks and the white tail feathers make them very easy to recognise.
So I hope you enjoy your golf and walks through the estate. Please keep a keen eye open for our wild life and report interesting sightings to Druids Glen Resort Staff.
Derek Mulrooney
Honorary Wild Life Conservator.
