Guided walk to discover the birds of Ilkley Moor

Ilkley Moor forms part of the South Pennine Moors Special Protection Area (SPA) designated under the European Union Bird’s Directive for its internationally important bird habitats. As such it is a great place to discover birds; particularly upland waders, which use the moor to nest and raise their young.

The event was organised by The Friends of Ilkley Moor and their project officer Tracy Gray said: "It was an informative morning with people listening to the different bird songs that could be heard; looking for birds which could be seen and identifying these. People also learnt about the different nesting habits of birds: ground nesting birds, birds which nest in trees and those birds which use the nests of other birds. The ecology of Ilkley Moor was discussed and how the management of this can affect populations of bird numbers.

"It was a sunny day, so as well as exploring the lower slopes at the end of the event, the group also climbed up to the higher slopes to record birds. Three birds were recorded on the upper slopes: curlew, lapwing and meadow pipit and 12 birds were identified on the lower slopes: black cap, crow, cuckoo, blackbird, great tit, chif chaf, willow warbler, chaffinch, robin, magpie, wood pigeon and blue tit.

"Everyone had a great time and said they look forward to attending more events from this year’s events and learning programme so they can discover more of Ilkley Moors amazing heritage."

The events programme and heritage walks can be downloaded from the FOIM website www.ilkleymoor.org or collected from Ilkley Information Centre and shops in the town.