Welcome to the award winning Ilkley Chat!
Recent events from the Friends of Ilkley Moor to provide opportunities for the local community to learn about and help conserve the heritage of Ilkley Moor.
On Saturday the 19th May a guided walk to discover the birds of Ilkley Moor took place; organised by the FoIM, with experts from the Wharfedale Naturalist Society informing people about the birds which were heard and seen on the day.
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 breeding birds.
In the past surveys showed the following species were present on Ilkley Moor: merlin, short-eared owl, golden plover, common sandpiper, dunlin, twite, snipe, wheatear, whinchat, redshank, ring ouzel, curlew and lapwing. This event was developed to enthuse the local community to help collate past records for bird species on Ilkley Moor and undertake new surveys to collect new ones. The FoIM also want to analyse these records to look at trends in the decline or increase in bird species over time; look at management issues that may help different bird species and recreational activities that may impact on birds.
The event took place on the upper slopes of Ilkley Moor. It was an informative and enjoyable day, with people listening to the different bird songs that could be heard; looking for birds which could be seen and identifying these.
Birds recorded on the day were: curlew, red kite, skylark, meadow pipit, golden plover, red grouse.
Everyone had a great time and said they look forward to attending more events from this year’s events and learning program so they can discover more of Ilkley Moors amazing heritage. And helping collect more bird records.
On Sunday the 23rd of June the Twelve Apostles and Beyond heritage walk took place. People climbed to the highest point of the moor to discover the landscape views, ecology and some of the archaeological heritage of Ilkley Moor.
The FoIM also delivered volunteering work parties for the local community to carry out practical conservation work on the moor. Bracken form cleared from an area important for wetland plants, the paddling pool was cleared, bracken was cleared from around some benches and litter was cleared from the burnt area. Vegetation monitoring of the burnt area was undertaken to see which plants are naturally regenerating: the main plants regenerating are bracken and bilberry.
The events programme and heritage walks can be downloaded from the FOIM website www.ilkleymoor.org
The July newsletter is available here.
For further information contact Tracy Gray FOIM Project Officer on 07780535860