In spring the hill becomes alive with birdsong as smaller birds come into their own, high above, unseen in Pendle’s famous mists, Skylark and Meadow Pipit trill, from a lone Rowan an Ouzel whistles and from the Gorse you may hear the unusual yet unmistakeable call of the Stonechat.
Author Archives: Northwest nature and history
The Black Seam
On the 22nd of March, 1962, the tight-knit mining community of Hapton in Lancashire was shaken by catastrophe when an underground explosion ripped through Hapton Valley Colliery, the town’s main employer, claiming the lives of 19 men and injuring many others.
Springtime Lepidoptera on the Fylde Coast Dunes
Lancashire’s Fylde Coast features one of the finest stretches of sand dunes anywhere in England. From St Annes to Starr Gate these dynamic dune-systems, remnants of a once vast realm of sandy hills which stretched along this entire coast, are home to a myriad of flora and fauna, many of which have nowhere else to live.
Hymn to Spring, by Lancastrian Poet Samuel Bamford
Sweet bringer of new life, welcome thou hither! Though with thee comes the strife of changeful weather. Oh! young and coldly fair, come with thy storm-blown hair. Down casting snow-pearls fair, for earth to gather!
Northern Shores: Ammophila arenaria, Aeolian Architect
Marram grass, Ammophila arenaria, also known as European beachgrass, is one of our most iconic and ecologically important maritime plant species. A tough, perennial grass it thrives in the harsh, windswept conditions of coastal sand dunes, where few other species can survive.
When the Buds and the Blossoms are Fresh on the Trees!
The arrival of spring often feels hard-won here in northern England, winters linger longer here than in the south, with colder temperatures and more frequent frosts delaying the greening of the landscape.
Yet, as days lengthen and occasional milder spells arrive, typically from late February through March, the first tentative signs of nature’s renewal appear on the trees.
Recently I wrote about the Forest City Proposals and how they could set precedents which would threaten countryside throughout the UK, here is a great blog by West Suffolk councillor Nick Clarke on the subject
Coltsfoot Rocks!
Coltsfoot, Tussilago farfara, a member of the Asteraceae family, is a perennial herb known for its bright yellow, Dandelion-like flowers that emerge early in spring, often before its broad, hoof-shaped leaves appear. This unique blooming pattern has earned it folk names like ‘son before the father’ and ‘foal’s wort’.
Northwest Nature and History 