This is one of many amazing blog posts from Ruth our fabulous Ranger Volunteer. You can find many more posts on her blog at  https://ruthlawt.wordpress.com/ 

A wonderful sight at RSPB Sandwell Valley this morning – a heron trying to eat a rat but it wouldn’t fit. Yep. Gruesome. Fabulous.

I was walking along the raised bank between the river and the lake and I spotted the heron on the river bank. It was behaving…

Visitors from Norway

We had three visitors from Stavanger, Norway who were obviously keen bird spotters. I found that one of them, Erik, was already a member of the RSPB.

They were visiting several parts of England and as I said previously one was a member, Erik, acted as a guide for the other two. They were full of praise for our nature reserve, and that the visitor centres and the hides in their country were not…

The days are getting shorter and a bit chillier, but don’t worry there is still lots going on at RSPB Sandwell Valley! We’re bursting at the seams with events this autumn and winter!

The view from our visitor centre

Starting with October half term treats, we are holding our school holiday regular  Wild Wednesday on 26 October. There will be campfire cooking and wild crafts – a great idea to get the kids…

So it's getting towards the end of the quiet bird season, and that vaguely warm time of year we often refer to as 'summer'. Despite the muggy weather over the last few days, we can sniff out the first few hints of autumn, and the birds are starting to get fidgety.

The month of August, and the last few weeks of the summer holidays saw all our feathery regulars taking a bit of a break after raising this year…

Hello, my name is Jake,I am 7 years old and have been a regular visitor to RSPB Sandwell Valley for about 4 years.

Jake in his RSPB uniform - with his binoculars of course!

My dad is a volunteer for the RSPB & works with the children’s group Sandwell Swans which I go to with my sister Hannah.

Jake and his sister Hannah bird watching at Sandwell Valley

We help out with lots of exciting events at Sandwell…

This blog is one in a series we are running about the fabulous volunteers that keep RSPB Sandwell Valley alive and thriving. We want to show off the amazing mix of people who come here from all walks of life helping save nature and inspiring others about wildlife on our reserve, and we want to encourage you to get involved too. Read on through to get a feel for what you can do, and most importantly, what you can get out…

So how did we get here then? For those of you who have visited Sandwell Valley for years, you may fondly remember our old visitor centre, and perhaps the less-fond memories of us losing it. Sadly, in 2010 the visitor centre suffered fire damage that rendered it unusable to visitors, volunteers and staff. In the meantime we obtained a temporary office and visitor centre called the SPA (which means Semi-Permanent Accommodation…

Hello and welcome to our first Community Forum e-newsletter! We thought we'd start with a little introduction to who we are.

RSPB Sandwell Valley is a a little bit of green paradise wedged between Birmingham and West Bromwich, in the north east corner of Sandwell Valley Country Park. Not only is it the perfect place to come and see a bullfinch or lapwing, it's also great for families and people of all ages and…

The big story so far of 2016 has undoubtedly been the very early return of a little ringed plover. First spotted on Monday 22 February, it was the first to be seen in the Midlands and possibly the whole of the UK. This is the earliest, by far, that one has reached us, normally arriving around mid March. We're pleased to say that the female has now been joined by another. Fingers crossed they make use of the new gravel pits…

To celebrate how brilliant our volunteers are and give you a behind the scenes peek of life at RSPB Sandwell Valley, we're starting a series of blogs written by our volunteers about them and their roles at Sandwell.

First up is Andy White, who you'll find in the visitor centre on Wednesday afternoons. Andy's a cracking member of the team and his enthusiasm for wildlife is infectious so make sure you say 'hello' if…

We got the year off to a great start, with our 'Walk It Off' guided walk on Saturday 2 January. Connecting People and Nature Intern, Jenny, joined the group to see what birds would show...

Despite the thundering rain right through the wee hours of this morning, we had a cracking turnout for our first monthly guided walk of the year. And thankfully the weather decided to be kind.

Expert volunteers Colin Sedgwick…

We're happy to say we're open over much of Christmas and New Year but our elves will be having a little break, so please take a look at our opening times before deciding when to visit. And don't forget, while the visitor centre might be closed, there is access to the reserve at all times, other than Christmas Day, when footpaths will be shut to the public.

Credit: Kaleel Zibe (www.rspb-images…

Well, Winter might actually be here, it pouring down and its almost dark!

Yet, despite the rain, there is still plenty to see at Sandwell Valley.

A Water pipit was a surprise find on the bund on the 29th, bang on time for this species moving through and a cracking record for the reserve!

A pair of Pintail have been around for a week now. The male is a really smart bird so check out the lake as they are often seen feeding…

It was back in June 2013 that I started on a 15 month voluntary placement at RSPB Sandwell Valley and Middleton Lakes reserves as Assistant Warden Intern. I can certainly say that it has not felt that long; the time has whizzed past!

As part of a course in Environmental Conservation at university, I jumped at the chance to undertake a year’s volunteering experience. My goal is to work in conservation in the future and…

Bird sightings week beginning 31 Aug
Cormorant ( x 22),  tufted duck, coot, lapwing, lesser black backed gull, black headed gull, reed warbler, moorhen, magpie, swan, heron, crow, wood pigeon,  great crested grebe, mallard, Canada Goose, stock dove, swallow, house martin, gadwall, starling, shoveler ,pochard, teal, little grebe, kingfisher, robin, buzzard, sparrow hawk, pintail, jay, herring gull, great tit, willow warbler…

Do you want to develop a career in conservation? Do you want to become part of a team at two of the Midlands most exciting reserves?

Well if so, we have the opportunity for you!

We are looking for a volunteer intern to join our small team at Middleton Lakes and Sandwell Valley and help with the day to day reserve management work on 2 very different reserves.

Middleton Lakes is an ex quarry site that we are developing…

Sandwell Valley really is a great place to be at the moment. The birds are singing, the flowers are coming through and it wont be long before we see the migrants returning.

So why not come along to the reserve and enjoy the wildlife that is really responding to this period of settled weather we are enjoying!

Blue, Great and Long-tailed tits are enjoying the feeders along with Dunnocks, Redwing, Reed bunting, Willow…

Staff News

 We are very excited to announce that Alexis Johnson is returning to the UK and rejoining our field teaching team in March 2014. As many of you will know, Alexis has been living in the USA where she has been adding to her already extensive expertise in environmental education. We will also be welcoming Annie Ingram to the field teaching team. Annie has a wealth of knowledge and understanding of working with…

There are no shortages of birds around at Sandwell Valley RSPB at the moment and with this recent sun we’ve been having, it really is a great place to spend a few hours.

 The feeders have been doing really well recently with as many as 20 Bullfinches there in the morning. There have also been Chaffinches, Great and Blue tits, Reed buntings, Dunnocks and the occasional Willow tit.

 As you stand at the old visitor…

 So the time has come for Wendy Murray to take a well earned rest as she goes on maternity leave to wait for the arrival of her baby due in January.  I know you will join me in giving her our very best wishes enjoying some special time with her baby in the months to come.  We will miss Wendy but are delighted that Nicky Willner will be stepping into the role as Learning Development Officer whilst Wendy is away.  We know Nicky…