Today Mark Doveston of www.dovenature.com gave nine of our members a walk around the wood listening, observing and identifying 23 different species of bird in just two hours!

They were (deep breath): treecreeper, jay, long tailed tit, crow, rook, blue tit, robin, wren, great spotted woodpecker, great tit, blackbird, nuthatch, woodpigeon, dunnock, song thrush, chiff chaff, cockerel, magpie, coal tit, jackdaw, siskin, black cap, sparrow.

Mark also informed us that peregrine falcons have taken up residence again this year in the chimney of Dalton Mill (visible from Park Wood but only with good optics). If we want a wide range of bird species in the wood - and we do! - he recommended leaving dead wood, both standing and fallen, as nesting sites for woodpeckers and habitat for invertebrates like beatles that many bird species feed on. He stressed the need for more understorey in the wood to act as cover for song thrush and black cap.

On Sun 25th May  there will be another bird walk like this one. If we identify the same species as on the first walk then it is highly likely those species are nesting in the wood. We'll meet at 7am at the intersection of the snicket and Dale View Grove (same as first walk).

Thank you to Mark,  we are all looking forward to the next one!

As part of the Friends of Park Wood work party meet up, we walked around the wood and assessed for projects for the spring and summer. 

We came up with the following: 
-  Dry stone wall repair including training for us
-  Litter picking (particularly on the down side of the cobbled path    about 1/2 way down)
-  Footpath repair near Delph Croft View
-  Adding retaining stakes by the footpath near Parkwood flats
-  Identifying with the Council an area of beech in which to create a clearing
-  Clearing up a set of steps by 31 Kendal St
-  Species Richness list

For next month: clearing up the set of steps by 31 Kendal St and litter picking the area. Eric is going to arrange pick up of litter by Council.