Moore Nature Reserve, 30th October 2010.
MORE AT MOORE
On a beautiful autumn day at the end of October, twenty members of the Rochdale Field Naturalists’ Society gathered at the Moore Nature Reserve near Warrington. The reserve is situated between the Manchester Ship Canal and the River Mersey and the 200 acre site has been created from farmland and sand quarries and has been a nature reserve since 1991. It has five lakes, large areas of woodland, meadows and wetlands and is managed by wardens employed by the Waste Recycling Group who operate the nearby Arpley Landfill site. Situated immediately adjacent to the Mersey Forest, an area of recently planted deciduous woodland, grassland and marsh, together with surrounding farmland, there is a rich diversity of habitats.
In warm sunshine and a southerly breeze Society members were able to enjoy the magnificent autumn colours, the yellows, greens and golds of the foliage, together with the reds of berry laden trees such as Holly, Hawthorn and Guelder Rose.
The season dictated that the day would be filled mainly with fungi and birds, though a few Common Darter dragonflies and a Peacock butterfly were noted. Also a few wild flowers, all contributed to the colours of the day.
The mycologists in the Group had a feast, or they would have done if they could have eaten all they found! Amongst an extensive list were well known names such as Clouded Funnel, Deceiver, Common Earthball, Fly Agaric, Parasol and Buttercap. Also a scarcer species, Daldinia Fissa, for which there is no English name.
The bird-watchers enjoyed their highlights too. The lakes were home to many duck species, Wigeon, Teal, Gadwall, Shoveler, Pochard and the ubiquitous Mallard, to name but a few. One pool with an island hosted fourteen Herons. Buzzard and Kestrel were frequently seen. On a mud bank, exposed by the low tide, in the River Mersey, a thousand plus gulls together with a flock of Lapwings loafed in the sunshine.
As an exhilarating day drew to a close, the final walk to the car park, through a field surrounded by Hawthorn trees, found flocks of Mistle Thrush, Fieldfares and Redwings feeding on the abundance of berries. Three Jays flew across and a fine view of a Kestrel perched on a power cable post was obtained, whilst in the distance a large flock of Starlings numbering many hundreds could be seen gathering to roost. A sumptuous ending to the day.
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| Common Buzzard | Kestrel | Birch Polypore |
All images by Peter Francis.
