VISITORS to Weymouth’s Radipole Lake and Lodmoor nature reserves have been on the lookout for winter residents including marsh harrier and the elusive bittern.

The harrier, a beautifully marked female, is frequently seen gliding over the Radipole reedbeds on low hunting flights or perched in the crown of a willow, while there are believed to be at least three bittern using both reserves that have been showing obligingly throughout November.

RSPB spokesman Nick Quintrell said: “We know that winter has arrived when bittern appear and with three or four individuals around they are being seen more consistently than in recent years. It’s always a great privilege to see these amazing birds and poignant too, given their recent precarious status in the UK.”

The bittern endured extinction in the British Isles from the late 19th century due to habitat loss – primarily drainage of reedbeds for agriculture – and persecution, but numbers steadily grew again after a pair recolonised the Norfolk Broads in 1911.

However, by the end of the 1990s the population was once more on the brink, with just 11 calling males recorded in 1997.

From this low point a concerted effort was made to address the decline which resulted in improved reedbed management allied to the creation of entirely new reedbed reserves.

These initiatives have promoted the recovery this year to 75 calling males, the highest population for at least 130 years.

Nick said: “Two pairs of bittern bred on the RSPB’s Ham Wall site in Somerset in 2008, the first in the county for some 40 years, which may explain the relative profusion that we are currently experiencing here.

“Next year will see the conclusion of our long-awaited restoration project on the reedbed at the top of Radipole and we are hopeful that it will pay off as spectacularly as the work at Ham Wall obviously has. Breeding bittern in Weymouth would be a spectacular coup for the town!”

The marsh harrier was also extinct in the UK from the turn of the last century before naturally re-establishing and becoming relatively widespread by the 1950s.

It again suffered massive declines for the same reason as the bittern. It has since recovered, with well over 300 pairs across the country.

Nick concluded: “It is always heartening to see iconic birds such as bittern and marsh harrier.

“These birds’ respective histories can be seen as a cautionary tale, but also as a hugely positive message in highlighting the results that can be born of designated habitat management projects and a lot of hard work.”