Today was the last Wild Wednesday of the Summer holidays.   The theme was 'den building and habitats'.  The dens were built collaboratively by groups of 3-4 children (and their grown ups) in the woods of Bowlees Visitor Centre.  The remit was that each group had to be able to all fit inside their finished den. Just the children, that is, although there were a few willing grown ups too (including a member of staff)!

The craft activities were making fairy/hobbit homes, where the children designed and made entrances into a secret world hidden within the trees.

 

They also made solitary bee houses to take home for their own gardens.

 

 

 

 

There were also bug hunting kits available for those who wanted to go off in search of minibeasts. 

 

Plus there was a habitat-themed trail to follow through the grounds, in search of hidden clues.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We were very touched today by the thanks we have received from our Wild Wednesday attendees.  We have had a lot of fun running the Wild Wednesdays in partnership with North Pennines AONB and could not have managed without the invaluable support of our wonderful volunteers.

 

 

 

Working with the children has, as always, been a rewarding experience, made even more so by the following quote from Joseph, aged 7, "I wish we could have every Wednesday off school so that we could come here".  What a lovely note to end on.

 

Please be aware that there will be no Wild Wednesday during the October half-term week.  Instead there will be a Halloween event on Friday 28th October 2016 at Bowlees Visitor Centre.  See their events page for more details.

Don't forget we also run Bowlees Discovery Club, a nature club for 5-11 year olds, on the last Saturday of each month (except Aug & Dec), 10.30-12.30.  Contact Bowlees Visitor Centre for more information.



 

Despite the damp night, a few bats and moths were out last night during our Creatures of the Night event.  After indoor presentations given by North Pennines AONB Partnership's very own bat man, Alistair Lockett and local moth expert, Ian Findlay, we  had fun outside bat and moth hunting.  With the aid of bat detectors, we saw and heard pipistrelle and whiskered/brandt's bats flying around the grounds of Bowlees Visitor Centre.

 

We also trapped a number of moths using a variety of trapping methods, including treacling, wine ropes and light traps. 

 

 

We returned inside to examine and identify the moths we had trapped, including some from a trap set the previous night in neighbouring Newbiggin.  There were 16 different species of moth, including the barred straw, burnished brass, and dark arches pictured here. (See full list below).

 

Alistair had also brought in a captive pipistrelle bat for us to see, that he is looking after whilst it recovers from an injury.

 

Full moth list: anther moth, burnished brass, silver Y, yellow underwing, lesser yellow underwing, lesser angle shades, pug, ear moth, pink barred sallow, July high flyer, common carpet, dark arches, barred straw, lined waved moth, autumnal rustic and common rustic.

 

 

 

Wild Wednesday was immensely popular yesterday at Bowlees Visitor Centre where we were river dipping in the beck just by the bridge.  We found: caddis fly, may fly and stone fly larvae; snails, leeches, shrimp; and bullhead fish - to name but a few invertebrates.  These were later carefully returned to their natural habitat after we had studied and identified them.

 

Despite the river being low, we did end up with a few water logged wellies but the young casualties soon dried out in the sunshine. 

 

 

 

We also had other river-based activities.  These included: messy mud painting using river water; making both caddis fly larvae  and may fly lifecycle wheels; stone rubbings; plus a trail  around the grounds of Bowlees Visitor Centre to look for hidden pictures of  river invertebrates. 

 

 

 

Next week, the Wild Wednesday theme is 'Campfire Cooking'.  See Bowlees Visitor Centre Events page for more details.  Booking recommended. Time slots will be allocated for the campfire.


 

It was a cracking day yesterday for checking the electric fences around Widdybank pastures.  

 

The wading birds may have nested and mostly disappeared but the swallows are still with us and were busy hoovering up the flying ants in the farmyard. 

 

There were also lots of butterflies and moths in the meadows, and the sunlight was sparkling on the River Tees.



 

Today we've been working with North Pennines AONB Partnership at Bowlees Visitor Centre, jointly hosting 'Wild Wednesday', which is a weekly event for children (although the grown-ups enjoy it too), running through the school holidays.

 

Today's theme was 'Outdoor Art'. 

 

We had messy mud painting, fossil making, natural sculptures, art in the trees and a Turner trail.  The event was well attended and we saw some lovely creations.

 

Next week, the Wild Wednesday theme is 'River Dipping'.  See Bowlees Visitor Centre Events page for more details.



From all of us at Moor House - Upper Teesdale National Nature Reserve, welcome to our brand new blog! We are excited to have this platform to share our very special Reserve with you, including the work that we do, the wildlife that we look after and the events that we run.   We hope that you will find our posts  interesting,  informative, and on occasion, amusing.