Monday

Today was bat roost survey day and I’d been looking forward to it for aaaagggeeees!  I’d like to be able to say I woke to the sun shining but of course, it was lashing it down! The purpose of the survey is to highlight trees that have potential to be used as bat roost sites. We are looking for things like dead wood, hollow stems or limbs, ivy cover and cracks and crevices. The first job is to check…

Well, this week has been very changeable. Some days we have had all four seasons in one day! Anyway enough about the weather; I know how we Brit’s love to talk about the weather until the cows come home!

As it is the end of the week, it is time for you to find out what we have seen out and about on the reserve this week. Unfortunately, this will be the last time I (Aimee) will be writing this blog as this is my…

Image by Jarrod Sneyd

Over the past few months, I have been lucky enough to assist on a project relating to the Consall Lime Kilns. These are large structures, which are on part of our Churnet Valley land-holding, close to Consall Nature Park. Most people walking along the edge of the adjacent canal, might not appreciate that these are owned by the RSPB. Indeed, many RSPB members would not realise that our reserves…

Well, it’s the latest sightings blog after a bumper Big Garden Birdwatch. We hope you enjoyed gazing out at your gardens last weekend, to see who visited.

It was really peaceful here at Coombes on Saturday morning. Looking out towards the feeders, there were a couple of blue tits and a great tit enjoying the peanuts on the feeders in the sunshine. The sun didn’t stay around for long as the clouds drew in.…

It’s been a topsy-turvy week in terms of the weather on the reserve. Earlier in the week the frost was making the reserve sparkle in the winter sunshine. Later the sun made a welcoming return giving an extra touch of warmth. Then the cold weather made its return with hail showers. What a mixture! No wonder the wildlife on the reserve is confused. Is it winter or is it spring? Well, whilst working on the reserve this week…

 Whilst sitting on the viewing platform outside the visitor centre at Coombes Valley, you might be lucky enough to see a sparrowhawk catching lunch from the feeders. Although an exhilarating site, this can be a touchy subject. Occasionally, people get concerned that songbird numbers might be reduced by birds of prey. However, this is not the case. Read on to find out more about the sparrowhawk.

Sparrowhawks need woodland…

January is certainly in full swing here at Coombes and to one of our warden interns (Becky) was delighted that snow had arrived. As I (Aimee) made my way to the reserve all I could see was white on the horizon.  I thought to myself wow the clouds are low today. When I reached the reserve I discovered that the ‘low clouds’ were actually the rolling hills of Coombes completely covered in snow; not enough to build…

Sitting in the Information Centre on a quiet day here at Coombes Valley, people aren’t the only visitors we get passing our arrival area. A welcome break from the drizzle and rain saw the lovely sight of blue sky as the clouds parted. Making the most of the lull, a kestrel came to hover over the field opposite the car park; a small flock of long tailed tits flitted in and out of the shrubs.

Long tailed tit by…

It was a cold, crisp and frosty morning that I decided to venture out into the magical woodland. With a slight crunching underfoot, it’s amazing to think how the reserve changes. All around you can see that the leaves have just a little bit of added sparkle. The sun glistened through the trees and you could hear the frost melting (perfect!) So off I went on my mini adventure, have a look to see what I discovered...…

Hello everyone. Sorry for the silence over the Christmas and New Year period although I’m sure you’ve all been kept busy unwrapping presents, feasting and popping the corks on some bubbly.

It’s been lovely here at Coombes Valley discounting the weather of course which has been a bit wild for a couple of days. There’s been plenty of dry and bright spells however and the temperature's still barmy…

My task over the past few weeks, along with the support of our long-term day volunteers, has been to find and map the nest boxes around the reserve. An easy task you may think, but with over 200 nest boxes dotted around the woodland it has involved many hours of searching. The day volunteers have been doing this particular task for several years so have a fairly good idea of exactly where all the boxes are. This week…

As the nights are getting longer, and the days are becoming colder – it’s time to think about all the wildlife braving the cold. So while you’re tucking into your Christmas pudding, give nature a thought in your own back garden. There are simple ways you can help wildlife during the festive season, and give nature a home…

Dead and rotting wood provides a home for an array of life. Whether that…

Todays recent sightings blog is written by Visitor Engagement volunteer Aimee.  Read on to find out what has been seen on the reserve this week.

It is that time of week again, Friday, yes that does mean the weekend but more importantly its time to update you on what has been seen over this last week. As Becky mentioned last week our feeders by the viewing platform are getting a lot of visitors this time of year. I (Aimee…

We have a fantastic opportunity for you to take a look behind the scenes at some of the work the RSPB is involved in. This Friday, the 13^th of December, we will be running the last Tawny Owl survey taster event of the year.  Join the team out on the reserve when the sun has gone down and these secretive animals start to become active, sending their eerie calls across the valley.

Tawny Owl at Coombes Valley Image by…

So here’s your weekly recent sightings blog. Another great week on the reserve and an amazing place to see wildlife has been the viewing platform next to the visitor centre. The great spotted woodpeckers are now making regular visits to the bird feeders along with robins and blue, great and coal tits. A male sparrowhawk has been seen regularly as well in the top meadows and in the education field. Two pied wagtails have…

This time of year, many of you will be busy thinking about Christmas and nature might not be in the forefront of your mind. Recently, the team have been out and about spreading the word about Giving Nature a Home and trying to recruit members at lots of off-site events as well as here at the reserve.

Mark and Me (Rachel) at Severn Trent's Carsington Water outside the RSPB shop.  Making Xmas crafts and talking about…

Todays recent sightings blog comes from Visitor Officer Mark Day, as he shares with us just what has been seen on the reserve of late.  Over to Mark!

All around the reserve there is plenty of life on the move. Despite December, the darkest month approaching, there is still plenty to see. Nature never stops and many of the creatures that call Coombes Valley home will be making the most of every minute of daylight that…

There is nowhere in the world closer to my heart than the garden of the house I grew up in. My mum never believed in keeping it spotlessly tidy, so there were always large areas of over grown grass, piles of trimmed branches left to fester, and wild scrubby areas left untamed around the edges. To the neighbours, I’m sure it was seen as an eyesore, but for wildlife it was a fantastic place to thrive, much to my delight…

This week it has been noticeably cooler on the reserve with the signs of winter starting to show. Leaves are crunching under foot and you can’t help notice that you need to put a couple of extra layers on in order to keep warm! But with the trees almost bare, the amount of wildlife you can see now is enough to warm anyone up on a cold winter’s day…

Starlings Late one night just before the darkness…

This week there's a special treat for you all as Neville, one of our regular work party volunteers, has written us a fantastic guest blog. So here's Neville introducing what Coombes means to him.

You might think you were in a primeval forest, unchanged since time immemorial. There is no evidence of man’s activities to be seen anywhere. All around there is soft green, gentle peace; accentuated by quivering leaves…

If you haven’t been to Coombes Valley before, it’s definitely about time you paid a visit! At this time of year, there is no better place for a peaceful, enchanting walk than this wild and colourful woodland. This will give you a tempting taster of what you could encounter on your journey through the reserve.

You can enjoy the wonderful wildlife Coombes has to offer from just a few metres outside the visitor…

Monday's blog comes from Adam, a previous intern at Coombes Valley:

Aching, covered in mud, and more than slightly damp from the perspiration that comes with a day’s hard work, we called it quits. It was the end of my third day helping out with some chainsaw work at Coombes. It had been a year since I was last in these woodlands, but by the middle of the first day my mind suddenly remembered this job. The burn in the…

Now that Halloween and Bonfire night are over, winter is slowly creeping up on autumn. Nevertheless, there are still lots of wonderful creatures to see on the reserve. I (Aimee) wandered around the reserve and managed to see an array of wildlife plus some spectacular scenery. With the sun shining and the squelch of mud underfoot, I ventured off to see what I could find.

(Coombes Valley by Aimee Burrows)

Walking through…

The clocks have gone back, the nights are drawing in and although the weather has been better than predicted it’s still been quite wild and wet at times. Understandably many of us might be inclined to baton down the hatches and prepare for hibernation. It’s an annual process for many species why not us too?

Well hopefully after this you’ll be inspired to swap the slippers for wellies, shake off the blanket…

Selective Thinning

Taking out a small proportion of mainly young birch trees and other non-natives such as red oaks allows the canopy to be opened up to allow light to reach the woodland floor. If it was left to its own devices, it would become too dense and not allow our native oaks to develop into big, strong trees. Contractors from Heartwoods are back on site this winter helping to improve our management of our wonderful…