We're almost at the end of our golden anniversary year (which seems to have absolutely flown by!) In my weekly blogs I have been looking into a particular aspect of the site throughout it's 50 year history as an RSPB nature reserve. I've previously talked about Barrow Scout Fields and Warton Crag and this week it is the turn of Silverdale Moss and Challan Hall Allotment (CHA).

Silverdale Moss and Challan Hall Allotment (CHA) are satellite sites, around two miles away from the main reedbed here at Leighton Moss, and are located just over the road from Gaitbarrows National Nature Reserve. Silverdale Moss is a reedbed around the size of 42 football pitches, and CHA is a mixed, broadleaf woodland approximately 26 football pitches in size. Both were purchased by the RSPB back in 2001. At the time Silverdale Moss was a wet, rushy field with little nature conservation value. The site was bought to convert into a reedbed, creating more habitat for the rare and unusual species that require it including bitterns, bearded tits and marsh harriers. It took several years of planting reed and creating ditches to establish the reedbed there and it is still a young site, but it is now a great place for water rails, reed buntings and barn owls. It also gets a phenomenal pre-autumn swallow roost. 

  Digging the first ditches at Silverdale Moss by David Mower

Thanks to funding from Biffa Award, work is being carried out to make Silverdale Moss wetter, by widening ditches and creating a bund that will allow us to hold the water at a higher level. This will make it better for fish to move around and therefore hopefully mean bitterns want to set up home there. We use a special digger called The Beaver to do a lot of the work at the site. It is specially adapted to cope with the soggy conditions, with wider than normal caterpillar tracks and a specially adapted scoop for cutting vegetation. The site has had marsh harriers nesting on it over the past few years and this year we even spotted rare high brown fritillary and small pearl-bordered fritillary butterflies feeding on the marsh thistle.

  Digging out the ditches using The Beaver by Richard Miller

  Silverdale Moss by Richard Miller

Local Natural England reserve Gaitbarrows (just over the road from Silverdale Moss and CHA) is an important limestone grassland and woodland site for rare butterflies such as the Duke of Burgundy. We have been doing work at CHA to hopefully attract these unusual butterflies across from Gaitbarrows. Back in 2011, we drafted in the skills of a local company-Celtic Horse-Logging, to carry out some important work on the site. This involved tree felling in order to open up some clearings (known as rides) through the woods, to allow in light and encourage the ground plants (particularly violets which the butterflies feed on) to flourish. Horse-logging was used as CHA is a sensitive site and machinery would have caused damage to it. The felled wood used was in our woodchip boiler which heats the visitor centre in an environmentally friendly way.

  Horse-logging by Jen Walker

As well as butterflies, CHA is home to woodland birds. Last year, it was chosen to be part of a trial, looking into the dawn chorus. The study, led by Dr Stephen Willis from Durham University is looking at 19 sites across the UK.  Recording equipment is placed out in spring to gather data about the dawn chorus such as what time it starts in different areas of the country and in what order the birds start to sing. The data is still being collated, but we're very interested to see the results and further help with the study in the future.  

  Challan Hall Allotment in the snow by Richard Miller

There is no public access to Silverdale Moss, as the site is sensitive, but if you want to experience the magic of Challon Hall Allotment yourself, then a public bridleway runs through it. You can also look down on Silverdale Moss from there. Let us know what you see!

  Challan Hall Allotment and Silverdale Moss from above by David Wootton (rspb-images.com)