The Birds And Wildlife Of The Staffordshire Moorlands (2 Viewers)

[Upland Birder]

We had a good afternoon there Terry and good to see that you managed take a cracking photograph of this bird. Interestingly these birds had moved to a different part of the wood from where we saw them last and thinking about it provided a degree of shelter and there was an abundance of insects there.

Thanks for sharing your photo and the photo of the Fox moth larva we found on Goldsitch Moss. This was amazing to see having never seen one before.

Dean

 

[Upland Birder]

Fox Moth Larva

Myself and Terry Eyre were fascinated by the Fox Moth Larva we found this afternoon at goldsitch Moss.

According to the 'Field Guide to the Moths of Great Britain and Ireland' by Waring and Townsend (2004) this is a resident but common moth widely distributed and locally frequent throughout the British Isles.its habitat is heathland, moorland, downland, meadows, coastal grassland, sand dunes and open woodland.

Larval foodplants include heathers, bilberry and creeping willow on moors and heaths. Larva is June to April, feeding until September then emerging briefly without feeding again to bask in spring sunshine then pupates.

Interestingly, Fox Moths from the cooler northern and upland areas are often darker, less red and greyer than those of the southern lowlands.

The flight season of this moth is May to June with the male flying rapidly by day, the female is nocturnal.

They might be common resident moths but this was a first for me in the moorlands region and I have learned something new today.

Dean

 

[Adam M]

Funny you should mention fungi Dean. Seen loads of species at Coombes recently, but I don't know what some of them are. If anyone is interested in learning more about fungi, there is a guided walk lead by the amazing 'fungal punk Dave' at Coombes on Sept 25th. It is seriously worth attending as he knows his onions (and fungi ) and is very obviously passionate about the subject. There is a need to book in advance, and a small fee, as places are limited and much sort-after. Details can be found in the reserves events page http://www.rspb.org.uk/events/details.aspx?id=tcm:9-261565 The last couple of years have produced 50-60 species, but Dave reckons 100 is not beyond reasonable :eek!:

Adam

 

[Upland Birder]

Thanks for the information Adam I might just look into that. Like you I have noticed fungi in different parts of Swineholes Wood but have no idea what I am looking at. I hope to get a few photographs and check them against a field guide. I must get over to Coombes somtime soon as I know it is a good habitat for fungi and it is only a stones throw from Swineholes Wood.

Dean

 

[terryeyre]

goldsitch moss

some photos taken at goldsitch moss yesterday of the colourful scenery.had three tawny owls calling at 8.15 this evening dimmingsdale area,another sign of autumn

 

[Upland Birder]

Nice photos Terry and I like the first one looking across Goldsitch Moss from the edge of Gradbach Hill. The purple heather looks great this time of year.

I came across a small flock of Goldfinch feeding on thistle seeds in a field above Gibridding Wood this afternoon. I heard a buzzard calling from there and saw it in flight. There was a mixed flock of 200 Jackdaw and Rook feeding in a large stubble field over towards Hawksmoor Wood along with many Wood Pigeon and 21 Canada Geese

There numerous Swallow feeding on insects low over the fields here. Had good views of Ipstones edge from here as well as the extent of Hawksmoor Wood.

Across the fields from Woodhead I had a count of 47 Lesser Black backed gull and a single Raven was present. It was quiet at Hales Hall but I did have a count of 7 Collared Dove and a flock of 17 Starlings.

I agree with you Terry the first signs of autumn are here. The berry crop appears to be good this year and I am looking forward to seeing the first of the autumn arrivals.

Dean

 

[Upland Birder]

Looking for Owls

It was a cool 9.5 degrees at Swallow Moss early this evening and all was still and quiet the only sound being the bark of a dog from a distant farm. Not even the call of Red Grouse could be heard. From the top of Morridge I watched a bright red sky across the distant cheshire Plain below a stubborn grey cloud that has sat over the moorlands region all day with the highest points shrouded in mist.

At various times of the year I find myself looking for owls on the higher moors and between now and early spring I generally keep an eye on Swallow Moss and the surrounding moorland.

This evening I watched the moor in the hope that I might get to see a Short-eared Owl but all was initially quiet in the stillness there being no wind or breeze. Then to my right at about 200 hundred yards from where I stood 13 Red Deer, three with a full set of anklers crossed the lane from the Moss making their way towards Revidge. I have seen Red Dear before at two other locations in the Moorlands region in recent years.

Turning my attention once again towards the Moss I scanned the heather with my bins from left to right when suddenly a flicker of white drew my attention. What was it I puzzled given that it had gone to ground almost immediately. After a minute or so it took to the air and I was watching a single Barn Owl in flight hunting methodically over a wide area of the Moss. It passed quite close to where I was stood.

This was a fine way to spend a Monday evening I thought with a smile. Here I was on Swallow Moss a peaceful upland moor with just Red Deer and a single Barn Owl for company.

Dean :t:

 

[JHDraytonbassettpits]

Red Grouse
Found on the North Staff Moors a sub-arctic bird unique to Britain, it's continental cousin being the Willow Grouse (Red Grouse being a sub-species of Willow Grouse).
The Red Grouse can fly up to 70 to 80 miles per hour, they are shot from 12th August to the 10th of December and known as the king of the gamebirds. Thousands of pounds are paid to shoot these birds at the start of the season.
The benefit of Red Grouse shooting is that the habitat has to be managed which provides better habitat than sheep grazed moorland, but not a pleasant time at the moment if your a Red Grouse.

Regards, John

 

[Upland Birder]

Here is a piece I wrote on 3rd February 2008 and for me personally was the best year ever for Hen Harriers on Swallow Moss. There has not been a better year for this species since this year in terms of numbers of birds. I thought I would bring the piece back from the mists of time and put it under the roof of this thread.

The Hen Harriers of Swallow Moss

There is a strong wind this day on Swallow Moss in the Staffordshire Moorlands. Cold days have been a feature up here this winter but also there have been many mild days for this time of year. At an altitude of 350 metres small birds continue to frequent this wind swept and wild moorland landscape. I can smell a change in the air and I sense snow is on its way in the days to come, perhaps down the spine of the Pennines to these hills and moors of North Staffordshire. The cold is beginning to penetrate my inner soul in the final hours of the day. The sun set against a blue sky is preparing itself to shine elsewhere on the world, its people and wildlife while here temperatures fall.

It is a Sunday afternoon four days from the end of the first month of this year. I sit quietly, watching, waiting, and concentrating on the extensive moorland landscape before me. My mind drifts as I wait for Hen harriers to show on the Moss and I recall memories from the recent past when this landscape was draped in snow, a winter wonderland as far as my eye could see. I look towards the distant hill of High Wheeldon on top of which I have sat alone many times and in the valley below the river Dove flows a short distance from its source.

All I can hear is the wind as it pounds against low lying leafless trees and heather a constant feature for the time I was here. Somehow this was calming to my mind and soul. I am in my element and feel at home on these moors and while I sit patiently for the Hen Harriers to show I unlock further memories of my mind recalling joyous walks amongst the hills and dales of this wild land.

When spring arrives the call of the Curlew will once again enter my consciousness, raise my spirits, and I will look for an assemblage of birds across these uplands, amongst rocky gritstone outcrops, exposed hill tops, on drystone walls and in sweeps of heather. On lower ground I will wander through rushy pastures, hay meadows and woodland, watching and listening.

My breath is taken away when out on the open moor before me, from nowhere, without warning a male Hen Harrier appears in flight low across the moss, a specialised hunter looking for prey. The flight remained low, it quartered and searched hoping to take its prey by surprise and from time to time dropped to the ground at speed, out of sight perhaps pouncing on prey sheltering from the wind. A moment later it would rise from the ground and continue this flight display hunting up and down the Moss for the next hour. I am stunned, speechless, spellbound and feel inner joy watching this silver-grey, white bird, a predator of the moorland with distinct black colouring to its wing tips.

I am excited by the thought that some individual Hen harriers whom have wintered here at Swallow Moss in the past have come from the North of Scotland, Argyll, Dumfriesshire, and more recently the Forrest of Bowland in Lancashire. My spirits are raised knowing that we here in the Staffordshire Moorlands have a connection with these wild lands through this most wonderful bird of prey.

I am suddenly distracted as a small flock of Long-tailed tits close to my immediate left are blown in by the wind at speed to a small tree on the edge of the Moss, these individuals perching and hanging on frantically to branches before continuing their journey on the wind. Perhaps they were looking for shelter, or on their way to what they call home for the night. These individuals are such beautiful birds here in wild isolation. As quickly as they appear they are gone, blown on the wing to who knows where in this wild exposed place. Good luck my friends I mumble to myself.

I look once more towards the Moss and to my surprise there are now three female Hen Harriers in flight accompanying the male. Where have these birds come from I ask myself? Where have they spent the day? And now they are here for my eyes to behold and to enjoy their impressive beautiful qualities surveying the moss beneath them and gliding on the wind between wing beats.

For these birds it is time to return to their roost nearby as the sun falls rapidly beyond the moors and hills. I am now in a period of twilight and darkness is beginning to take hold just as the cold has taken hold of me. I continued to watch all four Harriers in the fading light until no more, and they were gone from the moss before me to settle and survive the rigours of a harsh cold night.

Dean:t:

 

[Upland Birder]

I know I am going down Memmory Lane at the moment but does anyone remember the Great Grey Shrike on Swallow Moss in the winter of 2008. I wrote a piece about this on 14th February 2008:-

Swallow Moss and the Great Grey Shrike

As night turned to day there was frost and ice on the ground in the Staffordshire Moorlands preceded by a still cold semi moonlit night, the stars and planets bright, the latter fading as darkness was replaced by a gradually changing shade of blue. The dawn had arrived, and as the sun rose on this the 10th day of February birdsong could be heard on the lower meadows, in isolated woodland and out on the wet rushy fields of the moorland fringe. Birds were active, some like the House sparrow in small flocks were searching frantically for food after surviving low temperatures of the night.

Somewhere out there on an upland moor was a solitary Great Grey Shrike, a rare or scarce winter visitor to these parts, a migratory bird making an appearance all the way from Northern Europe perhaps Scandinavia. Swallow Moss in the far northern reaches of the county is a haven for small wild birds, raptors, insects, mammals, the hunter and the hunted, an ideal place for Great Grey Shrike to watch and catch its prey.

Through the Churnet Valley I passed, across Ipstones Edge, along Morridge Top, the views to Hen Cloud, the Roaches and Shutlingsloe raised my spirits and cleansed my mind. These hill tops are my friends from walking expeditions of times gone by. Then to Swallow Moss with little wind, warm temperatures and a real hint of spring not to far away. Gone was the snow of recent weeks but I knew it may return before winter is gone. The weather can be fickle and changeable here.

There is something beautiful and poetic about the name Swallow Moss something that gives rise to an active imagination. Its open exposed moorland heather, scattered trees and bushes, birds and wildlife living within its boundaries appeals to a basic inner need to be out and about making a connection with this wild land and its inhabitants. It is a far cry from urbanisation and brings peace to my life.

I was thrilled to see the Great Grey Shrike perched prominently on thin branches of a small leafless tree, its long tail and strong feet enabling it to balance. This bird the largest of the European Shrike species moved between prominent perches around the Moss sometimes at close quarters, at others some distance away, for the most part easy to find or indeed was elusive for short periods.

The Great Grey Shrike of Swallow Moss was on the move in its field of play, its flight bounding, at speed coupled with excited agitated wing beats, sometimes gliding, and swooping between leafless trees. Then there was the occasional dive to the ground, out of sight, pouncing on prey. I reflected on whether I would see the Shrike impale its prey on bushes; preparation for a meal later in the day but this was not to be.

Perhaps this bird had been here all winter and made the Moss its home. Visually, it was a remarkably obvious bird to observe on its winter territory and with a 3 to 5 year lifespan and declining status I knew that this was one of those special moments to behold. I watched in awe the Shrike that was before me so close yet so far.

This light grey and white vulnerable bird with black eye mask and hooked bill was greeted warmly by other appreciative watchers but soon it will be gone from the Moss leaving its winter home behind and I can only hope that it will return some day. I may not see one again I thought but who knows. The natural world is full of surprises.

I observed the Great Grey Shrike for a while when finally it made its way down to the lower reaches of the Moss and perched on a birch tree. In no time at all it was gone from my sights and I did not see it again this day. The images of this bird were now memories of the mind to be cherished in the here and now and to be unlocked again in the future perhaps in the quieter moments of my daily life.

Leaving Swallow Moss I reached Ipstones Edge and watched the sunset, a glorious scene of deep red, orange and yellow shades as it fell beyond the horizon of the lowland midlands. I felt so alive here next to Swineholes wood, another home for birds and mammals and indeed I was on the very southern tip of the Pennines looking out to the south, east and west. For a moment and with a feeling of joy I reflected on my observations of one male and three female Hen Harriers in flight on the Moss two weekends before to the day and a small herd of Red Deer emerging from woodland on the Moss twenty four hours before as darkness replaced a fading blue sky.

Where now is the Great Grey Shrike I thought to myself? I would never know but one thing is for sure Swallow Moss is a special place in our time. As I made my way home I concluded that it was time for me to look for and seek new natural worlds within the Staffordshire Moorlands and beyond. I will return to the Moss in the Spring.

Dean:t:

 

[Upland Birder]

And finally for Adam here is a blast from the past that I put together 6th January 2008. One for your scrap book Adam:-O

The Leaves Have Fallen-A Staffordshire Moorlands Woodland Journey:

The leaves have fallen, the trees not dead but without clothing. It is deep winter here, the afternoon cold and frost is on the ground in this 9000 year old hilly wooded kingdom of the Staffordshire Moorlands.

I inhale the clean cold air and listen to the peace, quiet, and tranquillity of this place. I am at home here in this wooded world frequented across the seasons by birds, mammals, insects, butterflies, moths, and bats.

I hear the quiet chatter of birds and the sun is low in the sky as I make my way on foot moving quietly into Coombes Valley. No other humans are present just me, no noise, no bustle, no distractions, no mobile phones.

There is movement ahead of me as a pair of Bullfinches feed on the ground close to a hedge. Chaffinches are close by and a single Blackbird is perched on a small tree to my left. A Robin appears moving between stonewall, hedge and tree keeping an eye on my progress. Perhaps I am an intruder in their world, not to be trusted. I am being watched by many eyes. I hear the occasional alarm call from above and in the undergrowth.

In this avenue of hedge, trees and stone walls I see Blue Tits and Great Tits manoeuvring around branches and in flight across the cattle grazed pasture to my left and above the hay meadow a little further along on my woodland journey.

The birds are busy feeding to survive another night in this upland habitat, survivors they are and all look strong and healthy. A solitary Greenfinch appears and quickly departs. Coal Tits mingle with the Blue Tits and Great Tits. Feeding, feeding, feeding is the name of the game that these birds play.

Another lone birder approaches and there is quiet acknowledgment of one another as we pass by both savouring the moment.

Descending into the valley I hear the distant babbling of Coombes brook where Signal Crayfish lurk, Dippers and Grey Wagtails live and breed. There are none to be seen today though and no signs that they have been around. Perhaps the Grey Wagtail has moved to the lower reaches of the Churnet Valley. I cannot comment for the Dipper I say to myself.

I take a higher path that works its way through woodland on the upper slopes to the right of me leaving the central path and acquire views through leafless trees across the Coombe and gradually descend again to the pond at the base of this magical landscape. All is quiet, no sign of birdlife and I wait until spring for the return of migrant birds such as Pied Flycatchers and Redstarts singing in their territories.

In the spring bluebells and wood anemones will appear in the woodland, perhaps Grey Wagtails will return and sightings of dipper on the brook will once again please my birding eyes. There will be early butterflies, Holly Blues and Brimstones, something to look forward to which I reflect on briefly.

The pond is frozen, with no possibility of Kingfisher today. It is completely silent other than the flowing Coombes Brook to my left and below the pond.

I make my way across Clough Meadow and a thin veil of cloud is arriving from the west spelling rain for the evening. It is time to make a gradual ascent of the valley and a return to Blackbirds, Blue Tits and Great Tits, Robins, Coal Tits, House sparrows, a solitary Magpie across the hay meadow, wood pigeons and crows in flight and finally a Kestrel perched and sometimes hovering looking for its next meal.

I watched the Kestrel, a medium sized falcon at close quarters, perched with only its head moving, looking and searching and when taking to the air its flight agile and quick.

Reaching the top of the Coombe and the end of my journey on foot I looked beyond the valley to the sun now very low in the sky, falling behind cloud and a yellow and orange glow to warm my thoughts.

If only I could immerse myself full time in nature I say to myself.

The repeated atmospheric call of a Buzzard reaches me from afar to help me on my way.

Dean

 

[Upland Birder]

According to Birdguides 2 Little Stint were seen today at Tittesworth Reservoir.

Dean

 

[Merlin]

Dean

This a great report with an almost lyrical text which is obviously prompted by the special atmosphere you have experienced.
You've managed to transmit that atmosphere to the rest of us and I like many others on this thread surely remember simple but still special almost ordinary birding days that one never forgets??????

Cheers

regards
Merlin

 

[Upland Birder]

No sign of Little Stint at Tittesworth Reservoir this evening when I visited but there was a single Snipe present and several Goosander were resting. I did not see any other waders while I was there.

Dean

 

[terryeyre]

swallows

most off the swallows have gone from the farm now,they had been gathering on the wires for a few days ready to set off,they seem to come earlier and leave earlier each year,still loads of warblers about,took these photos in the garden today.

 

[terryeyre]

two hour walk around dimmingsdale and threapwood area,9x goldcrest (5 in mixed flock of 100+ mainly coal, great and blue tits with the several willow warblers,chiffchaffs a couple of treecreepers a nuthatch and a robin,are some of the goldcrests new arrivals from the continent?also seen 1x buzzard 1x green woodpecker 2 x g s pecker,50+ siskins 4x linnets 3x male bullfinch,plenty chiffchaffs and willow warblers heard.

 

[Adam M]

My girlfriend just text me she has a spotted flycatcher on her farm on the edge of the Churnet Valley. Sadly, she found it as it had flown into a window and died :-C

Today at Coombes we had our first Sunday work party. Saw a family of mistlethrush fly over the car park and a flock of 25 siskins in on of our woodland rides.

Adam

 

[Upland Birder]

Information received late afternoon of a report of Yellow Wagtail seen on the south east edge of Cheadle.

Dean

 

[Adam M]

Feeders busy at Coombes today. dozen or so goldfinches on there, along with the usual tit species and GSW. Plenty more goldfinches around the viewing platform early doors as well. Had a bloke report 2 ibis' (he said glossy ibis, but Im sure I was told of a different sp in the area) in a near by field, guessing they are escapees from Blackbrook.

If anyone does visit in the next week, can you please fill in a visitor survey. We need to get some feedback so we can see where we can improve (both on the reserve and in terms of letting people know about the reserve) and help to build Coombes Valley into a flagship reserve for the RSPB and Staffordshire. Obviously, the more surveys we get filled in, the better we can assess the views of our visitors and the better we can target our improvements. Thanks in advance.

Adam

 

[s.g.]

staffs moorlands

hi dean,
only just found this and again another great thread started and a great read.
sorry you missed the l stints, heres a few shots of them mid afternoon on the 31st and the snipe.

s.g.