UPDATE - all four eggs hatched and four chicks have now been spotted!

We believe this to be the most northerly breeding success for this species ever in the UK. 

Four eggs were laid about a month ago and chicks were spotted by a visitor on Tuesday afternoon. The chicks take their first steps away from the nest soon after hatching, but remain vulnerable and it will be a few days before they can fly.  Black-winged stilts don’t breed in the UK every year but up to ten pairs breed in some years across southern England.

Andy Dalton, Operations Manager, said; “The nest was vulnerable to predation by other birds and mammals, but the parents were quite aggressive in and around the nest, and have been busy chasing off all manner of birds. Our amazing team of volunteers and reserve staff have kept an eye on the nest round the clock to help protect the nest from egg collectors, who sadly are still an illegal threat to wild birds."

The pair arrived at Potteric Carr reserve on 16th May and were soon prospecting for a nesting site, tempted by the wetlands with rich mudflats where they can feed. 

Work was completed earlier this year on Piper Marsh, where the stilts nested, to reduce the amount of reedbed and remodel the islands. This created ideal feeding areas for a variety of wading birds including curlew and lapwing. Black-winged stilts also prefer very bare islands to nest on, with some shallow water to feed in.

Black-winged stilts don’t tend to return to the same nesting site, but the work will benefit more resident and regular migrant birds for years to come. This year, lapwing, oystercatcher and several duck species have also bred in the area for the first time in recent years. Bitterns are resident throughout the year and a purple heron was also seen at the reserve this week. 

Visitors hoping to see the birds can visit Potteric Carr nature reserve from 9am to 5pm where it’s a 30 minute walk across the reserve to Piper Marsh.

About black-winged stilts 

• Black-winged stilts are scarce visitors to the UK. They mainly breed in Europe mainly around the Mediterranean, and around the world.
   
• Conservationists think climate change is making black-winged stilts move north – in this case it could be due to very hot weather in Spain that has made wetlands too dry, or the prolonged period of southerly winds pushing them further north, or both.
   
• Black-winged stilts are migratory and mainly winter in northern Africa.
   
• Young black winged stilts leave the nest almost immediately, and can walk but not fly from a very young age. The Trust expect the birds to be in the vicinity for the next few weeks, before exploring other sites.
   
• Why are stilts called stilts? Look at those legs. A black-winged stilt’s 23cm-long legs represent 60% of its height. They often wade in water above the knee to find aquatic invertebrates like beetles (adults and larvae), caddis flies and mayflies.
   
• The European population is estimated at 53,900-75,700 pairs, which equates to 108,000-151,000 mature individuals (BirdLife International 2015). The global population is estimated at c.450,000-780,000 individuals (Wetlands International 2015).
   
• They’re striking to look at – black and white, with a needle-thin bill and those famous long, bright pink legs – but not especially large; a little smaller than their relative, the avocet.