Leighton Moss RSPB reserve is a

nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancash ...

, England, which has been in the care of the

Royal Society for the Protection of Birds The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) is a charitable organisation registered in England and Wales and in Scotland. It was founded in 1889. It works to promote conservation and protection of birds and the wider environment thr ...

since 1964. It is situated at Silverdale near

Carnforth Carnforth is a market town and civil parish in the City of Lancaster in Lancashire, England, situated at the north-east end of Morecambe Bay. The parish of Carnforth had a population of 5,560 in the 2011 census, an increase from the 5,350 reco ...

, on the edge of

Morecambe Bay Morecambe Bay is a large estuary in northwest England, just to the south of the Lake District National Park. It is the largest expanse of intertidal mudflats and sand in the United Kingdom, covering a total area of . In 1974, the second larges ...

and in the Arnside and Silverdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Leighton Moss contains the largest area of reed beds in north-west England. The site provides habitats for many

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

wildlife Wildlife refers to undomesticated animal species, but has come to include all organisms that grow or live wild in an area without being introduced by humans. Wildlife was also synonymous to game: those birds and mammals that were hunted ...

, including

bittern Bitterns are birds belonging to the subfamily Botaurinae of the heron family Ardeidae. Bitterns tend to be shorter-necked and more secretive than other members of the family. They were called ''hæferblæte'' in Old English; the word "bittern ...

otters Otters are carnivorous mammals in the subfamily Lutrinae. The 13 extant otter species are all semiaquatic, aquatic, or marine, with diets based on fish and invertebrates. Lutrinae is a branch of the Mustelidae family, which also includes weas ...

and

red deer The red deer (''Cervus elaphus'') is one of the largest deer species. A male red deer is called a stag or hart, and a female is called a hind. The red deer inhabits most of Europe, the Caucasus Mountains region, Anatolia, Iran, and parts of we ...

. As a

wetland A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in the soils. The p ...

of international importance, it was designated a Ramsar site in 1985. It is a Site of Special Scientific Interest, a

Special Protection Area A Special Protection Area (SPA) is a designation under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds. Under the Directive, Member States of the European Union (EU) have a duty to safeguard the habitats of migratory birds and certa ...

, and an Important Bird Area. The RSPB reserve also protects an area of

, where a saltmarsh provides a habitat for birds such as

avocet The four species of avocets are a genus, ''Recurvirostra'', of waders in the same avian family as the stilts. The genus name comes from Latin , 'curved backwards' and , 'bill'. The common name is thought to derive from the Italian ( Ferrarese) ...

History

In 1822 the moss came into the possession of Richard Gillow, grandson of the Lancaster furniture manufacturer

Robert Gillow Robert Gillow (1704–1772) was an English furniture manufacturer, who founded Gillow & Co. Early life Robert Gillow was born on 2 August 1704 in Singleton, Lancashire to a prominent English recusant Roman Catholic family. He served an apprentic ...

. Using steam technology, Gillow drained the moss for agriculture. Although the soil is of good quality, by 1918 the land was flooded again, as drainage appeared to have become uneconomic when the price of coal was high. The area was used for duck shooting. The RSPB initially leased the moss in 1964, before purchasing it from the Leighton Hall estate.

Facilities

The reserve is entered through the visitor centre (a converted farmhouse) containing a shop and a tea-room. The centre also contains an education room. There are seven observation hides, which were renewed in 2012 with funding from the

Heritage Lottery Fund The National Lottery Heritage Fund, formerly the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF), distributes a share of National Lottery funding, supporting a wide range of heritage projects across the United Kingdom. History The fund's predecessor bodies were ...

. One is named after comedian

Eric Morecambe John Eric Bartholomew, (14 May 1926 – 28 May 1984), known by his stage name Eric Morecambe, was an English comedian who together with Ernie Wise formed the double act Morecambe and Wise. The partnership lasted from 1941 until Morecambe's d ...

. A nine-metre high Skytower provides extensive views over the nature reserve. There are also nature trails.

Flora and Fauna

The site is well known for its breeding populations of bittern,

marsh harrier The marsh harriers are birds of prey of the harrier subfamily. They are medium-sized raptors and the largest and broadest-winged harriers. Most of them are associated with marshland and dense reedbeds. They are found almost worldwide, excluding ...

and

bearded tit The bearded reedling (''Panurus biarmicus'') is a small, sexually dimorphic reed-bed passerine bird. It is frequently known as the bearded tit, due to some similarities to the long-tailed tit, or the bearded parrotbill. It is the only species in ...

. In 2021, it was reported that six booming male bitterns were present on the site. Other regularly seen bird species include marsh tit,

water rail The water rail (''Rallus aquaticus'') is a bird of the Rallidae, rail family which breeds in well-vegetated wetlands across Europe, Asia and North Africa. Northern and eastern populations are bird migration, migratory, but this species is a perma ...

and many wildlfowl species such as

common pochard The common pochard (; ''Aythya ferina'') is a medium-sized diving duck. The scientific name is derived from Greek '' aithuia'', an unidentified seabird mentioned by authors including Hesychius and Aristotle, and Latin ''ferina'', "wild game", ...

and

Eurasian teal The Eurasian teal (''Anas crecca''), common teal, or Eurasian green-winged teal is a common and widespread duck that breeds in temperate Eurosiberia and migrates south in winter. The Eurasian teal is often called simply the teal due to being th ...

. Red deer and otter are also present on the reserve. The site is also known for its breeding

colony, with a record of 40 chicks having fledged at the site in 2012. Due to its proximity to the coast, the reserve has attracted rarer species, with species such as

osprey The osprey (''Pandion haliaetus''), , also called sea hawk, river hawk, and fish hawk, is a diurnal, fish-eating bird of prey with a cosmopolitan range. It is a large raptor reaching more than in length and across the wings. It is brown o ...

Eurasian spoonbill The Eurasian spoonbill (''Platalea leucorodia''), or common spoonbill, is a wading bird of the ibis and spoonbill family Threskiornithidae. The genus name ''Platalea'' is from Latin and means "broad", referring to the distinctive shape of the ...

black tern The black tern (''Chlidonias niger'') is a small tern generally found in or near inland water in Europe, Western Asia and North America. As its name suggests, it has predominantly dark plumage. In some lights it can appear blue in the breeding se ...

and

little gull The little gull (''Hydrocoloeus minutus'' or ''Larus minutus''), is a small gull that breeds in northern Europe and across the Palearctic. The genus name ''Hydrocoloeus'' is from Ancient Greek , "water", and , a sort of web-footed bird. The speci ...

recorded at the site on a fairly regular basis. Rare birds present at the site have included red-footed falcon, purple heron,

Caspian tern The Caspian tern (''Hydroprogne caspia'') is a species of tern, with a subcosmopolitan but scattered distribution. Despite its extensive range, it is monotypic of its genus, and has no accepted subspecies. The genus name is from Ancient Greek ' ...

great reed warbler The great reed warbler (''Acrocephalus arundinaceus'') is a Eurasian passerine in the genus '' Acrocephalus''. The genus name ''Acrocephalus'' is from Ancient Greek ''akros'', "highest", and ''kephale'', "head". It is possible that Naumann and ...

and

Savi's warbler Savi's warbler (''Locustella luscinioides'') is a species of Old World warbler in the grass warbler genus ''Locustella''. It breeds in Europe and the western Palearctic. It is migratory, wintering in northern and sub-Saharan Africa. This small ...

, whilst more recently, rarities have included

American wigeon The American wigeon (''Mareca americana''), also known as the baldpate, is a species of dabbling duck found in North America. Formerly assigned to ''Anas'', this species is classified with the other wigeons in the dabbling duck genus '' Mareca'' ...

great grey shrike The great grey shrike (''Lanius excubitor'') is a large and predatory songbird species in the shrike family (Laniidae). It forms a superspecies with its parapatric southern relatives, the Iberian grey shrike (''L. meridionalis''), the Chinese ...

green-winged teal The green-winged teal (''Anas carolinensis'') is a common and widespread duck that breeds in the northern areas of North America except on the Aleutian Islands. It was considered conspecific with the Eurasian teal (''A. crecca'') for some time, ...

and

European honey-buzzard The European honey buzzard (''Pernis apivorus''), also known as the pern or common pern, is a bird of prey in the family Accipitridae. Etymology Despite its English name, this species is more closely related to kites of the genera '' Leptodon'' a ...

in 2019.

Management

The extensive reed beds are managed to prevent them drying out and also to prevent saline intrusion from the coast. Despite such control of ecological succession, the breeding bittern population (measured by "booming" males) suffered declines in the 1990s and 2000s. Following extensive dynamic habitat management in recent years the number of bitterns is steadily increasing. In 2015 there was controversy about a plan to cull small numbers of red deer, which create significant damage to the reedbeds.

Media interest

In 2013 Leighton Moss hosted the BBC's ''

Autumnwatch ''Springwatch'', ''Autumnwatch'' and ''Winterwatch'', sometimes known collectively as ''The Watches'', are annual BBC television series which chart the fortunes of British wildlife during the changing of the seasons in the United Kingdom. The p ...

'' programme. The programme returned in 2014.

Opening times

The reserve and visitor centre are open daily all year round (except Christmas Day) from 9 am to dusk and the visitor centre from 9.30 am – 5 pm (4.30 pm November–January inclusive). Entrance is free for RSPB members, and half price for those who come by public transport, bicycle or on foot. Silverdale railway station is just a few minutes' walk away. The reserve is on a proposed cycle way around Morecambe Bay.

Gallery

Image:Leighton Moss reedbed.jpg, The view from the Skytower Image:Leighton Moss.jpg, Greylag geese at Leighton Moss Image:Leighton Moss Woodcarving.jpg, A wood carving by the visitor centre at Leighton Moss Image:Leighton Moss path.jpg, The reedbed path Image:Leighton Moss Grisedale.jpg, The view from Grisedale hide

References

External links

RSPB Leighton Moss reserve
{{Authority control Birdwatching sites in England Protected areas established in 1964 Royal Society for the Protection of Birds reserves in England Ramsar sites in England Important Bird Areas of England Special Protection Areas in England Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Lancashire Nature reserves in Lancashire