1 RSPB Regd Charity No. 207076

West Cumbria Local Group

December 2014

A team of around 16 volunteers have been

manning the centre on a rota every weekend

throughout the year, making ten memberships

along the way, giving out information on latest

sightings and answering questions. From the

feedback given by visitors and comments in

the visitor book, it sounds like they’re doing a

great job!

The education room in the centre has also

been put to good use. For three weeks over

the summer, 45 children became ‘Solway

Nature Explorers’ experiencing practical

management, wildlife identification,

photography, orienteering, canoeing and

bush-craft amongst other things. Led by

Chris Spencer, the Solway Wetland Project’s

Education Officer, the children were

encouraged to explore, get dirty, and bring

their parents back to experience the local

wildlife.

All the places were fully booked and we will be running

more of the same next year.

The centre has also been used to run a series of wildlife

‘taster’ days – a chance to come along and learn about

birds, bog mosses, spiders, dragonflies and wild flowers

which again have proved very popular and more are

planned over the next year, along with the ever popular

photography workshops.

Now the centre is open, the second part of the project is

well underway, providing a new pool, pond dipping area

and wildflower meadow in the education field adjacent to

the car park, and loop paths around the farm and peat

bog to help visitors view and enjoy the wetland habitats

on the reserve. These paths should be completed by

Christmas – just in time to come and walk off that pud!

Dave Blackledge

Warden RSPB Cumbria Coastal Reserves

Campfield latest

The Solway

Wetlands Centre

It’s now over a year since the new

visitor centre at Campfield Marsh

opened. Since then around 6000

people have passed through the

door to be greeted by volunteers,

find out about Campfield Marsh

and the Solway’s other wetlands,

have a cup of coffee, and of

course, visit the long awaited loo!

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Scotland

In the third week of July we spent a few days in

Grantown on Spey at the Grantown Arms Hotel.

The hotel is the headquarters of the Bird Watching

and Wildlife Club and there was a lot of information

about local birding and wildlife spots.

We walked in the lovely Findhorn Valley from

where we saw a large herd of Red Deer and the

local wild goats, Peregrine and Ravens as well as

small birds. We went to Chanonry Point to see the

Dolphins close to shore and failed to get a photo,

however 2 men with very smart cameras clicking

off rapidly got only one shot between them so I

didn’t feel too bad!

We saw Roe Deer at RSPB Insh Marshes and on

one evening we had booked to go to a Pine Marten

hide from where we saw 2 Pine Martens! a Badger

and a Red Deer and fawn right outside the

windows.

At RSPB Loch Garten in the lovely Abernethy forest

we saw Ospreys but the best was Slavonian

Grebes, at Avielochan and Loch Ruthven, no

longer quite in full summer plumage but spectacular

nevertheless and with juveniles.

We drove up to the Cairngorm funicular station but

due to long road-works we were too late for the last

train - something for next time.

Susan Brandes

The new pond

It started filling up as soon as it was dug ( the fact

that work started when the unprecedented long dry

spell ended at the end of September may have

something to do with that! )and when it’s finished,

with a bridge across to the island, it will be a great

attraction at Campfield. I’m sure pond dipping will

be very popular with children (and adults too) and

should encourage more families to visit the reserve.

The loop walk around the east side of the farm

takes visitors into part of the reserve they haven’t

seen before and joins the main lonning just behind

the hide. A new section of boardwalk from the new

path will join the existing boardwalk across the

moss giving the option of a much longer circular

walk. These new developments will add a great

deal to the experience of visiting Campfield and

the Centre Volunteers will hope to be even busier

next year! Marjorie Hutchin

3 RSPB Regd Charity No. 207076

An Extraordinary Day in Norfolk

It’s 8.15am on Friday, 16 May 2014, it’s a beautiful

warm and sunny morning and it’s the first of 3

days in Norfolk – Roger and me, 5 others and

Chris, our guide. 8 blokes together all looking

forward to a great time birdwatching. By the time

we had got away from our base in Hunstanton we

had seen 18 species including fulmar, black-

headed and herring gulls, woodpigeon, feral

pigeon and collared dove; swift; wren; dunnock;

robin; blackbird; jackdaw and carrion crow;

starling; house sparrow; and chaffinch, greenfinch

and goldfinch. Nothing unusual, but still a great

start!

Our first stop is Holme Dunes, which has always

been productive on my earlier trips to Norfolk

(pallid harrier, red-breasted flycatcher, yellow-

browed warbler and wryneck just to mention a few

magnificent sightings here in previous years). On

the way, we spotted lapwing and mistle thrush –

20 species before we had really started. Would Mr

B. allow us to count these 20 or can we only start

at our first port of call? He’s not here, so we’ve

already started. We park the van and creep silently

up onto the ridge. First sightings are promising –

little egrets, avocets, and a greenshank.

Whitethroats seem to be perched on every bush,

and reed buntings, sedge warblers and linnets

were also around. Telescopes are trained on the

greenshank. Suddenly,

“Turtle dove!” exclaim Chris and me in unison.

Were we the only ones to hear the turtle dove?

There it was again, a beautiful, soporific purring

and this time we all heard it; one of the iconic

sounds of summer, but sadly one that is

disappearing from our countryside all too rapidly.

We headed off in the direction of turtle dove song

determined to find it. We found chiffchaff and great

tit on the way, but time for only a very brief glance

– we were after something “better.” It took a while

to find, but eventually we had good views through

telescopes of one of three birds perched out in the

open.

As we walked among the dunes we heard 2

cuckoos, and eventually we had good views of one

as it flew straight past us. At times, it was difficult

to know where to look. There were birds

everywhere.

We found both red-legged partridge and grey

partridge, pheasant, skylark and meadow pipit,

pied wagtail, willow warbler, magpie, and four

wheatears that were, presumably, still on

migration. Flying over were several swallows, sand

martins and house martins plus a solitary yellow

red-legged partridge

RSPB images

turtle dove RSPB images

grey partridge RSPB images

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wagtail (drat, I missed that one!), and there were

distant views of marsh harrier, sparrowhawk,

buzzard and kestrel.

The pools held mute swan; greylag and Canada

geese; shelduck, gadwall and mallard; whilst on

the shore were grey heron, oystercatcher, ringed

plover, sanderling, redshank and some beautiful

grey plovers in all their finery. Out to sea were

great-crested grebe, gannet, cormorant, common

eider, common gull, and sandwich and common

terns.

A relaxed and lazy lunch at Holme Bird

Observatory saw us add blue tit, coot, moorhen

and tufted duck to the list. There was also an

opportunity to see swallows nesting in one of the

hides, but unfortunately there was no ringing

taking place at the Observatory that day.

It is lunchtime and we have already seen 71

different birds – what a start to the trip!

Early afternoon saw us drive the few miles along

the coast to the RSPB reserve at Titchwell. My

best ever sighting here was a Camberwell beauty

(yes, a butterfly and not a bird!) two or three years

ago, but what were we going to see this

afternoon?

The woodland around the visitor centre saw us

add blackcap and long-tailed tit to the list; the reed

beds held cetti’s and reed warblers plus bearded

tits (although I had to wait until day 3 to see these

delightful little birds at Cley); the salt marsh

contained over a hundred brent geese that had not

yet migrated northwards; and the pool in front of

the hides played host to various ducks including

teal, shoveler and pochard, as well as two little

ringed plovers, dunlin, numerous black-tailed and

bar-tailed godwits, two common sandpipers and a

turnstone. Taking their ease were great and lesser

black-backed gulls, and flying across in front of the

hide was a pair of adult Mediterranean gulls.

Several little terns were resting on the shingle with

others fishing, and from the seashore we saw two

common scoters. A welcome drink at the visitor

centre before leaving saw us add a very confiding

song thrush to our now burgeoning list for the day,

but my highlight from Titchwell has to be red-

crested pochard which was a “lifer” for me. There

were two beautiful males escorting one female

.

There is still time to nip up the road to Choseley

Barns where there is always grain around for birds

to feed on. There is the added incentive of reports

over the last few days of several dotterel having

been seen in the area – this would be another

“lifer” for me if we are able to spot them. Others

have no doubt heard the reports too because

Choseley Barns is much busier than I have ever

seen it before, but despite all the binoculars and

telescopes there is no sign of dotterel anywhere.

Ah well, better luck next time! But back to looking

around Choseley Barns – there is grain around

and it is attracting birds, so we add to our list

several stock doves, yellowhammers and nine or

ten corn buntings, but the best sighting has to be

the fantastic views of FOUR turtle doves

displaying on the ground! A great way to finish off

a hectic first day. 96 species for the group is pretty

good by anybody’s standards, and certainly more

than I have ever seen on one day in my life. Can’t

wait for day two!

John Lapraik

bearded tit

red crested pochard

RSPB images

5 RSPB Regd Charity No. 207076

Squirrels in the Wood

An opportunity for dog-walkers

(and others)

As most of you probably know, Dodd Wood is

home to a population of red squirrels. Many

visitors to the lower Osprey Project viewing-point

are enchanted by seeing these diminutive

squirrels. Some have never seen them before and

are surprised at just how tiny they are. Others

have not seen them since childhood and find the

experience quite emotional.

In order to give our native population the best

possible chance of survival in the area, it is part of

a red squirrel reserve, where any sightings of

greys are reported and controlling action is taken.

Part of ensuring a strong healthy population is by

supplementary feeding. There are two feeding

stations in Dodd. One is in front of the lower

viewpoint where visitors can catch good views and

the other is shortly beyond the upper viewpoint

where a CCTV camera relays images to the visitor

centre at Whinlatter. During the months that the

Osprey Project is up and running (April to August),

the feeders are filled as part of the project’s duties.

In September when the project shuts down, a

separate volunteer rota is formed to ensure both

the squirrel feeders and seed and peanut feeds for

birds are filled. This serves the twin purposes of

ensuring a well-fed, healthy population of birds

and squirrels, but also keeps them accustomed to

visiting the feeding stations where they can be

seen.

My purpose in writing this brief note is to appeal

for more volunteers. We have each day of the

week covered, but there is no slack in the system.

It would be very helpful to have a few other names

to call on, either to cover holidays and other

absences or share a day with existing volunteers.

It is possible to drive all the way to both feeding

stations, but for those such as me with a dog to

walk it is an ideal way of performing two tasks at

once. If the weather is good, I proceed on to Dodd

Summit. If it is wet I simply dish out the food and

return to the car park. There are many trails in the

woods and it is possible to take innumerable

circular routes, keeping both you and your dog

alert and interested.

Please think about it and have a word with me if

you would like more information. Susan Brandes

manages the rota and would be pleased to hear

from anyone willing to consider helping out. She

can be contacted on 01900 828619 or 17798

801053.

Sandra Shaw 01900 829812

Summer Holidays

This year we went to the Isles of Scilly at the end

of June beginning of July. We stayed on the main

island of St Mary’s and had a very nice little

holiday cottage in Old Town, very well equipped as

is necessary because cars have to be left on the

mainland so we were limited as to luggage. We

chose St Mary’s because being the main island

boats leave on a daily basis for all the other

inhabited islands, all of which we visited, plus 2

uninhabited small islands, Gugh which is reached

by a causeway from St Agnes at low tide and

Samson.

By this time of year the spring migrants have

dispersed and the autumn migrants have not yet

arrived but what we did see was good. We had

never seen so many Song Thrushes and they

were so tame. Wherever we went there they were,

in town and countryside, begging at cafes running

around the grassy or sandy areas. I think all the

6 RSPB Regd Charity No. 207076

Song Thrushes (which are in decline in mainland

UK) have migrated to the Isles of Scilly!

There were also lots of Blackcaps, Willow

Warblers and Chiffchaffs and many House

Sparrows, Blackbirds and Wrens but we did not

see the Scilly Wren or the Scilly Shrew although

we looked, especially on St Agnes and Gugh

where rats have been eradicated to give these

Shrews and the ground nesting birds protection.

There is hope that the eradication programme can

be carried out on other islands.

And of course we saw many sea-birds from the

boat trips to the other islands – lots of Guillemots

and Razorbills and some Gannets, Shags and

Cormorants but just one Puffin. It was too late in

the season; they had already left the islands.

There were also many Grey Seals around and the

other mammal of interest was the introduced Red

Squirrel on Tresco. These were introduced from a

breeding sanctuary in the south of England and

some were released on Tresco 2 or 3 years ago

and are now breeding themselves. As it is an

island the Grey Squirrels can be kept away.

Apart from the squirrels Tresco was the island we

liked least. It is in private hands and expensive

both for the gardens, which were not as good as

we had expected, and the cafes.

My favourite islands were Bryher and St Agnes,

maybe if we go back some day we will stay on one

of those.

Susan Brandes

A Group Visit to Marshside and Martin Mere 25

th October 2014

Twenty seven people left a rather grey damp

Cockermouth for our visit to Lancashire and these

two reserves.

We arrived at Martin Mere Wildlife and Wetlands

Centre to the only shower of the day to allow those

not going on to Marshside to disembark. Then

onwards to Marshside RSPB reserve near

feeding time at Martin Mere

song thrush – S Brandes

Volunteering

Neil and I were surprised and somewhat overwhelmed

when we learnt that we were to receive the RSPB

President’s Award for our volunteering over the years.

We were presented with the award at the AGM in

Birmingham recently.

I’m mentioning this here because we want to say that we

couldn’t have done our volunteering without the help and

support of the committee and members of the West

Cumbria RSPB Group, and the staff and volunteers at

Campfield.

We have gained every bit as much as we have given, as

volunteers. We have learnt a great deal, had many

interesting experiences and a lot of fun and friendship.

If you are thinking of volunteering with RSPB whether

with the Campfield Work Party, the Visitor Centre

volunteers or in some other way, don’t hesitate. Join in!

Give it a go! You’ll be very welcome.

Marjorie Hutchin

7 RSPB Regd Charity No. 207076

Southport where the hides and screens were all

checked as well as the shoreline and marsh

immature male marsh harrier

RSPB images

Lamberts (Lancaster) Ltd

5, Rosemary Lane Lancaster LA1 1NR Tel 01524 37384 / 01539 821562

www.lambertslancaster.co.uk As one of the country’s largest

optics retailers we carry binoculars and telescopes ranging from value for money to

the world’s best. The shop has extensive stocks of equipment.

Competitive pricing, package deals

and next day mail order a speciality.

If you need information, give your local expert a

call. Our advice is free

plenty of Pinkfoot mixed in with Greylags so a good

opportunity to do a comparison to see the distinct

differences between the two species. From here a

Curlew Sandpiper, a rarity, was identified by a few in

the group. Along the avenue leading to the hides

some of the smaller birds were found at the feeders

and the scrub cover. There were Coal, Blue and

Long Tailed Tits, Chaffinch, Greenfinch and

Goldfinch, Blackbird, Robin, Dunnock and Wren

along with House and Tree Sparrows. The Wood

Pigeons and Pheasants were also taking

advantage of the fallen seed below the feeders.

At 2.30pm there was a mass march of the Whooper

Swans, geese and ducks from the smaller ponds to

the Mere. The area in front of Swan Link hide on the

Mere is where the daily feeding occurs. There were

more to add to our list here with Coot, Moorhen,

Pochard, Goldeneye and Gadwall. Other waders

seen were Snipe and Ruff and of the gulls were

Common, Black Headed and Lesser Black Backed.

Also identified were Carrion Crow, Jackdaw and

Magpie. Some of the group were lucky enough to

see the Kingfisher and the Sparrowhawk just to

finish off a perfect day.

As a group we counted up 66 species, the highlight

of the day being the Curlew Sandpiper.

Val Young

. At Sandgrounder hide we found a Little Grebe

diving just a few metres away showing his lovely

colours in the sunshine. Also a pair of Pied Wagtail

bobbing about on the pond banks. From here we

started our duck count with Mallard, Widgeon, Teal,

Shelduck and Tufted Duck. There was a pair of Mute

Swan and several Little Egrets along with Grey

Heron and Cormorant. The goose count started here

too with a few Canada and Greylags with large

numbers of Pinkfoot feeding on the fields behind the

ponds.

Those who braved the wind went out to scan the

shore and marsh to be rewarded with great views of

wheeling waders such as Dunlin, Knot and Oyster

Catchers. The first raptors of the day were seen here

with Marsh Harrier, Peregrine and Merlin sighted.

Meadow Pipits and Skylarks were also abundant

over the marsh.

At Nell's hide the duck count increased with sightings

of Pintail and Shoveller. Here also there were big

numbers of Black Tailed Godwits all chattering to one

another along with Redshank, Lapwing and Curlew.

One of the group also identified Twite and Siskin

among the Starlings.

It was then time to return to Martin Mere to join the

others. All the hides were visited by the group and at

the Ron Barker hide there were more views of Marsh

Harrier, Buzzard and Kestrel too. Here there were

8 RSPB Regd Charity No. 207076

The Group Website is a good source

of news and information with a link to the Campfield blog and other sites.

www.rspb.org.uk/groups/westcumbria

Our website manager is Val Young email bvyoung@sky.com

Group Leader & Editor If you don’t already receive the newsletter by email and would like to do so and help us to keep costs down, please send me an email

Marjorie Hutchin Tel 01900 825231 email marjorie.hutchin@btinternet.com

Indoor Programme Jan – April 2015

Jan 6th

Dragonflies - the Birdwatcher’s insects David Clark British Dragonfly Society

Feb 3rd Birds – Movement , Migration and All That

Dave Blackledge Warden, Cumbria

Coastal Reserves

March 3rd from the Kent Coast to Yorkshire Hills via Africa

Peter Robinson Director RSPB North Region

April 7th AGM (very brief) followed by

Butterflies of Cumbria Steve Doyle

Butterfly Conservation Cumbria

Outings 2015

Feb 14th

Washington WWT Reserve, Wearside March 21

st

Mersehead RSPB reserve Dumfries by coach or Ken Dee Marsh & red kites by car April 25

th Brockholes Wildlife Trust

Reserve near Preston May 23rd Leighton Moss RSPB reserve Silverdale June 7

th Farne Islands

These trips will be by coach, ( except Ken Dee) fare £10

to £15 depending on numbers. Outings are open to all.

Whether you are a beginner or an expert birder or

somewhere in between you will be very welcome. Be

sure to take suitable footwear and waterproofs. For more details and to book for a trip phone Brian Furness on 01900 823881 Details also on the Group Website.

A deposit of £5 is payable when booking. Please let

Brian know as early as possible if you are not able to go

on a trip for which you have booked.

Coffee Mornings 2015

in URC Hall Main St Cockermouth

from 10.00 to 12.00

Sat May 9th

Sat August 22nd

Sat November 14

th