We're all very excited here at Leighton Moss as the much anticipated 'H-Day' approaches.

Yes folks, May 17 is (hopefully) the day when we get to open our hides to visitors! If nothing changes drastically in the next few days, we can look forward to welcoming people back into our hides as of Monday next week. There will of course be some restrictions in place to ensure everyone's safety and comfort, such as…

Spring really is in full swing here at Leighton Moss. The whole place is absolutely alive with the melodious sound of birdsong; Cetti’s warblers, blackcaps, willow warblers, marsh tits, nuthatches and treecreepers can be heard belting it out from alongside the trailside vegetation while the reedbeds and scrub reverberate with the songs of reed buntings and newly arrived sedge  and reed warblers. Meanwhile, overhead…

Despite some rather chilly days, thanks to that northerly airflow, there have still been plenty of blue skies and sunshine here at Leighton Moss to remind us of the joys of spring!

Birdsong is in full flow as our resident species, along with recently arrived blackcaps and willow warblers, proclaim their hold on breeding territories. Marsh tits, treecreepers and nuthatches are busy nest building and can be seen and heard…

Spring has certainly been in the air here at Leighton Moss in recent days!

Along with an ever-increasing number of chiffchaffs and sand martins we have seen the arrival of singing blackcaps and willow warblers this week. The sheer beauty of the willow warbler's wonderfully cascading song is guaranteed to warm my soul on even the chilliest of spring days! Not long now before our first sedge and reed warblers return…

Late winter and early spring is the key time for us to start listening out for bitterns here at Leighton Moss. The males begin to boom in order to attract a mate and on calm days the sound of the first birds ‘tuning-up’ are a cause of celebration for staff, volunteers and visitors alike.

Bitterns have had something of a bumpy ride over the decades and at one point Leighton Moss held around a quarter of the…

With the new year fast approaching, many of us will be more than happy to wave goodbye to 2020; an often exhausting and deeply concerning year if ever there was.

As has been mentioned multiple times here and elsewhere, one of the few benefits of lockdowns and travel restrictions was the nationwide increase in nature awareness. Whether we were hearing more birdsong in our towns and gardens or discovering access to the…

As we hurtle toward the end of what has been an extraordinary year in so many ways I hope, like me, you have been able to take some comfort in nature. Just being outdoors does do wonders for the mind, soul and body.

In recent days, while going about my onsite business, I have been fortunate to see some wonderful wildlife - red deer in the reed beds, bittern at the water's edge, multiple marsh harriers hunting over…

I’m happy to say that we have yet more good news to share this week – we have reopened the trail towards the Grisedale and Tim Jackson hides. Although the hides remain closed, visitors can now enjoy a leisurely walk through the wet woodland and experience the winter reedbed!

We have cleared some vegetation to make the path ahead more visible, allowing visitors to safely negotiate one another. We have also…

As many of you know, the starling murmuration is without doubt one of the highlights of any winter visit to RSPB Leighton Moss.

In recent years the murmurations here have taken place from the end of December till March and as we'd expect at this time of year, we are seeing relatively small numbers of birds on the reserve at the moment. This will doubtless change in the coming weeks as the number of starlings increase…

We are all very excited to be re-opening tomorrow (Wednesday 2 December) following Lockdown2!

We will be open from 10am till 4pm daily - here's a quick summary of what will be available for visitors to enjoy at Leighton Moss...

Car park open 
Outdoor, Covid-secure, staffed Welcome Point
Visitor centre shop
Takeaway snacks, meals and drinks from the café: card payment preferred
Most trails and Skytower op…

I’m pleased to say that we have some very good news to share – we will be re-opening next week, albeit in a limited capacity.

As you probably know up here in here North Lancashire we are currently placed in Tier 3 along with the rest of the county and this does mean that some restrictions will apply. 

So, as of Wednesday (Dec 2) the reserve and the main car park will reopen but please note that all hides will…

One of the more positive things to emerge from the first lockdown earlier this year was an increase in interest in nature. Restrictions on travel and calls to stay close to where we live saw many people discovering, perhaps for the first time, places within walking distance of their homes where they could engage with the natural world. For some, bird song seemed more obvious and wonderous, while others simply spent more…

Despite the reserve currently being closed to the public, there is still plenty going on behind the scenes at RSPB Leighton Moss! 

Our wardening team have been as busy as ever, still catching up with jobs they were unable to do during the first lockdown as well as cracking on with seasonal tasks that are priorities at this time of year. One of the main projects currently underway (when water levels allow, at least!) is…

We’re sorry to announce that Leighton Moss will be closed to visitors from 5 November.

We know that for many of you, the reserve provides enjoyment and solace through these challenging times, so this decision has not been taken lightly.  

In line with Government guidance, our visitor centre, shop, café and hides need to close through lockdown.

Many RSPB reserves are able to at least keep their trails open but…

It’s certainly been a mixed few days weather-wise but it doesn’t seem to have deterred many of you from spending time here on the reserve over the half term week!

And of course our friends at Autumnwatch are back on TV – reminding millions of us of the sheer wonder the UK’s amazing wildlife can offer. It's been great to see our colleagues doing such a wonderful job at RSPB Old Moor too. It…

Once again the week's headlines have been dominated by those amazing bearded tits. They do seem reluctant to use the grit trays so far this year for some reason and are instead gathering their much-needed grit from the pathways. Hopefully visitors will be able to continue enjoying these stunning little birds as they go about their grit-gathering for a few more weeks yet.

Of course working here I’m very fortunate in…

It’s been another busy week or two here at Leighton Moss and as we’d expect at this time of year the main attraction is of course those perennial favourites, bearded tits.

Many visitors are getting great views of these enigmatic birds as they emerge from the dense reedbeds to gather grit and pick up fallen seeds from the paths. They seem to be a bit slow in taking to the grit trays this year; perhaps the mild…

It looks like we’re in for a few decent days so what better way to enjoy them than to get out into nature!

When I was doing my rounds earlier today it certainly felt like a classic autumn morning. The sun was bright and the air was cool, as I stood there listening on the Causeway I could hear the distinctive pinging calls of bearded tits and the explosive sound of Cetti’s warblers – sheer magic.

The…

With things becoming decidedly more autumnal of late, we have been noticing a few changes here on the reserve.

Down at the Eric Morecambe and Allen pools wader numbers are picking up, as we'd expect at this time of year. Good numbers of redshank (photo by Brian Salisbury) and lapwing are usually present and on some days the pools play host to lots of roosting black-tailed godwits. Among the commoner birds one can…

In this week's blog we invited volunteer Jennie to share her experiences of how the current Coronavirus pandemic affected her visits to Leighton Moss both before lockdown and again after the reserve re-opened... 

Return to the Moss By Jennie Chapman, RSPB volunteer

A bright and chilly mid-March morning. I dug out my blue polo shirt and navy fleece from the bottom of a drawer, found my name badge in the jacket pocket…

I am delighted to report that the Eric Morecambe and Allen hides are now open!

As with our other accessible hides on site, we have put some clear social distancing measures in place and hide occupancy is restricted.

Please consider this when visiting the hides and be mindful of others' needs. We ask that you do not 'hog the hide' when others are waiting to enter - we want everyone to be able to enjoy this wonderful place…

We have some very exciting news to share this week.

After a great deal of planning and rearranging, we are delighted to share that our shop at the visitor centre has reopened! We will be open daily from 10am to 3.30pm so do please come along and stock up on bird food and feeders, grab a new hedgehog house or treat yourself to a new pair of binoculars!

And while the café remains closed we also have a selection of sandwiches…