Leighton Moss

Autumn Migration and Passage Visitors 

As the school summer holidays end, it’s hard to believe we’ve had a summer this year! We appear to have skipped straight from spring to autumn. Hopefully the weather outlook is set to improve for a while, starting from this weekend!  Some birds have already started their migration southwards, but as we move into September you will notice the transition as our summer visitors…

We have had a very busy couple of weeks here at RSPB Leighton Moss.  

We had a fly-past of a rare Purple Heron  last weekend, seen at Lower Hide. The last time we had a visit from a Purple Heron here at RSPB Leighton Moss was in August 2023. This bird tends to hide more than the Grey Heron and stalks its quarry of fish, eels and the occasional small mammal, raising its head to the sky at times like a Bittern would, to blend…

Here's Sue with the latest sightings blog from RSPB Leighton Moss.

Wow, what a fabulous fortnight with sunshine, sunsets and rainbows and exciting, rare visits from a Pectoral Sandpiper, Curlew Sandpiper and Common Tern over at the Eric Morecambe and Allen Hides. We have also had reports of Common Sandpipers, Greenshanks, Turnstone and growing numbers of Lapwing and Redshank over at the saltmarsh. Every now and then…

From Thursday 1 August to Thursday 8 August, there will be significant disturbance on the Eric Morecambe and Allen Pools as the Warden team get to work on some more improvements and repairs to the saltmarsh pools.

Last summer the Wardens carried out some repairs to the banks of the Eric Morecambe pool. The plan was always to continue with further bank repairs this summer, with a focus on the Allen Pool. We will also…

For more than thirty years, Lower Hide at RSPB Leighton Moss has stood as a cherished lookout for wildlife enthusiasts and birdwatchers alike, offering a unique vantage point over the Lower Pool. Throughout its lifetime it has enabled countless visitors to immerse themselves in the beauty of nature, undisturbed and close to the thriving wildlife which makes the reserve their home. However, the passage of time has left…

Here's the latest recent sightings blog written by Sue.

This last week has finally felt like summer has arrived here at RSPB Leighton Moss, just in time for the summer holidays! Come on down and enjoy a relaxing stroll through our wild and wonderful reed beds. See how many different species you can spot on your visit. Pick up a Wildlife Family Trail quiz sheet from our Welcome Desk for some summer fun with the family…

Sue is back with the latest recent sightings blog for Leighton Moss. Enjoy.

There was much excitement on the reserve last week when we had a very rare visit from a Caspian Tern seen at Lower Hide. The Caspian Tern is a very rare migrant from eastern and southern Europe, the last visit we had from one here at RSPB Leighton Moss was in June 2017 and before that 2005! There are approximately five sightings per year of these…

Super volunteer Sue is back with this weeks sightings blog.  

If you are planning a day out in nature this weekend, why not come along to RSPB Leighton Moss and immerse yourself in the wonders of our amazing wetlands. No matter what the weather the landscape looks stunning with the vibrant summer colours and the reflections on the pools. Are you ready to welcome in the first days of summer celebrating the solstice? Why…

Here's the all the latest wildlife sightings info put together by super volunteer Sue!

Spring and the breeding season are well underway here at RSPB Leighton Moss, this is such an amazing time of year to visit our wonderful, wild wetlands. The beautiful Yellow Iris are flowering all over the reserve, these large sunshine yellow flowers brighten up the margins of our waterways, ponds, wet woods, fens and marshes.…

Our super volunteer Sue has been gathering all the recent sighting info from around the reserve and put together this blog for us

It’s been another fantastic fortnight here at RSPB Leighton Moss with daily reports of Bittern flights, Ospreys fishing and Marsh Harriers sky dancing.  The warmer weather is bringing out the Dragonflies and Damselflies, Butterflies and other seasonal insects. With the increased number…

Our super volunteers Sue and Ann are back with the recent sightings blog, with additional info from another of our great volunteers, Dave.

 Wow, we have had an amazing two weeks leading up to the early Spring Bank Holiday here at RSPB Leighton Moss.  Osprey sightings are being reported every day from Causeway, Lower and Lilian’s Hide’s. Pied Flycatchers have been seen on the woodland paths and the Hirundine (Sand…

Volunteers Sue and Ann are back with our latest blog, bringing you all the recent sightings at Leighton Moss

We are so excited to welcome the first of this years new arrivals, look out for the Mallard ducklings and Greylag goslings on your next visit.  This is such a lovely time of year on the reserve with new life everywhere you look, in the surrounding trees, reeds, plants and pools.  The spring colours are really starting…

We had a great Easter Bank Holiday weekend here at RSPB Leighton Moss with warmer temperatures and some lovely sunny days. It has however been a mixed fortnight weather-wise which of course impacts on the wildlife and how it behaves. Some of the wildlife will take cover and stay out of sight while others are totally unfazed by it.  As the clouds descend so do many of the insects that the Sand Martin’s and Swallows feast…

Sue and Ann are back with the latest Leighton Moss sightings blog

We have had a fabulous fortnight here at RSPB Leighton Moss.  We are delighted to have had sightings of Lesser Redpoll, Siskin and Chiffchafff and the reserve is filled with the sound of booming Bitterns and Cetti’s Warblers. Although not as regular now we have still had some great starling murmurations, a trip up the Skytower can never be a bad end…

One of our volunteers, Sue, is back with the blog for this week.

March is an exciting month here at Leighton Moss as large numbers of migratory birds are returning to the UK for the spring and summer months. As the largest remaining reed-bed reserve in the North West of England Leighton Moss provides the perfect habitat for hundreds of these returning birds. Many are already busy nest building and using various tactics…

This week the Leighton Moss sightings blog has been written by two of our brilliant volunteers at Leighton Moss, thanks to Sue and Ann! 

The Bitterns continue to boom all over the reserve and are beginning to move around the site with some incredible sightings flying across the pools while searching for females. 6 booming Bitterns have been reported, they have also been heard ‘gull calling’ when individuals circle above…

Here's a sightings blog from the Leighton Moss senior site manager, Jarrod Sneyd.

What an exciting time of year!  Now is the cross-over of wintering birds with the signs of spring coming.  Our ‘bellowing sign of spring’ is the amazing early season booming of bitterns.  Absolutely incredible.  We’ve always known that the vigour and frequency of booming relates to the amount of competition – the more the merrier…

I hope that 2024 has got off to to a flying start for you and that you've managed to enjoy some time spent in nature.

Here at Leighton Moss, as many of you may be aware, we've had some challenging conditions thanks to heavy rainfall in the first few days of the year. The reserve water levels shot up and we soon saw most of the pathways under water. Wellies were the order of the day as the majority of hides became…

As we head into 2024, it’s tempting to look back on the past 12 months and summarise what kind of year it’s been. I mean, we could talk about the incredible 11 booming Bitterns in spring, the relentless antics of Otters, summer skies filled with Ospreys and Hobbies, a cracking autumn for Bearded Tits, one of the best ever breeding seasons for Avocets on the saltmarsh pools… the list goes on.

But rather…

It’s been another brilliant week with lots of fabulous wildlife sightings here on the reserve. The weather may not always have been quite so pleasant, but nature always knows how to get by under such conditions and we’ve seen plenty of activity around the site.

As ever, our Otters continue to delight visitors on a daily basis, with Causeway and Lilian’s hides being the most consistent locations in recent days…

Visitors to Leighton Moss have been treated to frequent and prolonged views of Otters in the past few weeks. Several animals are currently residing in the reed beds and they may seen at all times of the day, anywhere on the reserve from Lower Hide at the northern end of the site, to the Eric Morecambe Pools at the coastal saltmarsh. (Pic by Jarrod Sneyd).

Recent icy conditions have proved typically productive, with Otters…

It’s been a mixed week weather-wise, with some lovely crisp autumnal days, a visit from Storm Debi and quite a lot of rain. As a consequence, we have seen a significant increase in water levels across the reserve. And while we are of course a wetland site, there can be such a thing as too much water!

So much so that many of our dabbling ducks such as Shoveler, Teal, and particularly Pintail, have cleared out in notable…

After all the excitement of 'Bearded Tit and Red Deer Rutting Season' one would think think that it would quieten down here at Leighton Moss. As if! The wonderful thing about a reserve like this is that there is always something to witness.

Regular features such as Otters, Bitterns and Marsh Harriers (the latter back in force with up to seven individuals on site at the time of writing) are supplemented by the…

If there’s one thing we know about October, is that it’s a Bearded Tit bonanza!

For decades now, we here at Leighton Moss have looked forward to autumn when these dazzling little birds become temporarily ‘easy’ to see.

Although resident, our Bearded Tits usually reside deep within the reedbed and for much of the year they can be pretty tricky to spot. Of course, those of fortunate enough to work…

Despite the drizzle of recent days, the wildlife at Leighton Moss has not been deterred - and the inclement weather has not put a damper on our visitors’ days out!

September sees the start of meteorological autumn, and right on cue, the Bearded Tits began visiting the grit trays. They were first caught on the Causeway live camera on 10 September at 11:30am, but had been seen on the Grisedale grit trays a few days…