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Little Green Space |
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Little Green Space |
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LITTLE GREEN SPACE Originally published in the Peak Advertiser on 9 January 2012
As I
write this there are just a couple of days left until 2012 arrives. And
looking back on 2011, one thing that really stands out is the number of
fantastic wildlife experiences we’ve had – many of them here in the
beautiful Peak District. The
highlight of the year was the discovery of a badger sett near our house,
and one warm evening in July we decided to have a go at a bit of badger
watching. We
were quite excited at the prospect of seeing badgers: usually very shy and
elusive creatures they are occasionally glimpsed crossing a road at night,
but the children had never seen one before. So
in the early evening we rigged up a tasty snack for the badgers: peanut
butter sandwiches, hung on a wire strung between two garden spades. Then,
as the sun began to set, we settled down on a rug 20 metres away and
waited. After
waiting very still and very quiet for what seemed like an eternity (but
was actually only about fifteen minutes), we spotted a badger emerging
from the sett. It stood on its hind legs to grab the sandwich, and was
quickly joined by another badger. Soon
a third, smaller, badger arrived. It was then that we realized we had
positioned the second sandwich a little too high – even standing up on
back legs, the badgers couldn’t reach it. Still,
it gave us a great view of the creatures as they circled under the
sandwich and sniffed up at it. Eventually one of them performed an
acrobatic leap into the air, snatched the sandwich, and dragged it away to
eat it. Amazing! Owls Another
highlight of our wildlife year was the owls nesting at Hackney Leys. A
barn owl box was installed a few years ago, and since then we’ve had
pigeons, magpies and even squirrels living in it. This
year, though, we noticed a distinctive cheeping coming from the box –
owl babies. A couple of days later we spotted a tawny owl emerging from
the nesting box, followed by a lot of comings and goings as the adult owl
collected food for her chicks. We
were delighted that an owl had decided to make use of the box – even if
it wasn’t the barn owl we had originally hoped for. Another
bird I have been thrilled to see this year is a nuthatch. A pair of
nuthatches has taken up residence in our garden, and we see them on our
bird feeders every day – interestingly they are choosing the mixed seed,
rather than the peanuts, despite their name. We
had a rather strange encounter with a third bird during a family walk near
Milltown, Ashover. We were talking about how we hadn’t heard a cuckoo
for years – hardly surprising, given that the cuckoo is on the RSPB’s
red category for conservation importance, a result of a severe decline in
numbers over recent years. Then
we were stopped in our tracks by the unmistakable call of – you’ve
guessed it – a cuckoo! It’s such a lovely, summery sound – and one
I’d like to hear a lot more often. During
the same walk we discovered a fantastic place to see six-spot burnets. We
found hundreds of these black and red day-flying moths, in a disused
quarry that was carpeted with orchids. In
fact, there seems to have been a lot of interesting insects about this
year – or maybe we have just been looking for them more carefully. Wildlife Watch Something
that has helped us to look more carefully has been our involvement with
the Derbyshire Wildlife Trust (www.derbyshirewildlifetrust.org.uk).
This
year our children joined our local Wildlife Watch group – a group for
young people interested in wildlife. Our
monthly Matlock Bath Wildlife Watch meetings have been fantastic. During
our first meeting we went pond-dipping, catching and identifying smooth
and crested newts. We’ve
been butterfly hunting, too, and have learnt how to tell the difference
between a meadow brown and a gatekeeper. And
back in October we went on a night-time walk along 2012
will be the 50th anniversary of the Derbyshire Wildlife Trust.
The Trust began in 1962 with an appeal to save limestone grasslands at
Ticknall, and now has over 14,000 members. In 2012, the Trust will be
running a series of special anniversary events, and is aiming to raise £50,000
to protect nature reserves – and the wildlife that lives in them –
across the county. Wildlife spotting If
you’d like to have some great wildlife experiences during 2012, here are
five top spots for spotting wildlife in and around the Peak, as
recommended by the Derbyshire Wildlife Trust: §
Avenue
Washlands, Wingerworth. A wetland reserve where water voles, crested newts
and dragonflies can be seen. §
Miller’s
Dale in the §
Chee Dale,
near Buxton. A steep-sided gorge with limestone grassland and ash
woodland, home to spotted flycatchers, blackcap, chiffchaff and willow
warbler. §
Carr Vale,
Bolsover. One of the best sites in Derbyshire for birdwatching, with a
rich variety of birds throughout the year. In September, thousands of
swallows can be seen gathering in the marsh. Birds of prey, such as
peregrines and hobbies, have also been spotted. §
Ladybower
Wood. One of the few remaining examples of upland oakwood in the Peak
District, and home to the elusive purple hairstreak butterfly. Red grouse
and mountain hares are sometimes seen here, too. If
you know a great place to see wildlife, the Derbyshire Wildlife Trust
would like to hear from you! It’s compiling a list of the top ten places
to see wildlife in Derbyshire – send your nomination, marking it Top Ten
Places, to enquiries@derbyshirewt.co.uk. Penny
Bunting |
