Distance: 6.5 miles – can be shorter
Parking: Yes – £3 all day, or free for RSPB members
Family Friendly: Yes
Pushchair/ wheelchair access: Yes
Facilities: No
This is absolutely one of my favourite places I have visited.
There are a few walk options available to you, I chose the Lakes walk this time, but there is a meadow and a woodland walk too. Some of the paths would be challenging for wheelchairs or pushchairs, but most of the paths are fine, and you will not miss out at all. There are many picnic benches around, so if you need to stop and rest there are plenty of places.
There are also bird hides around the lakes and these are a perfect way to rest and see all of the amazing wildlife available here. This place is a little gem packed full of wildlife.
There are no toilets that I could see, but there is a café at Middleton Hall you can stop at and eat or go to the toilet. I am not too sure when this is open or how to access it, as I have never visited it, but it has been recommended to me, so I will check it out next time.
The paths are clear and not over grown and there are signposts around so you know which route you are following. There are also little signs for children giving them facts as you walk around, helping to keep them engaged.
When it is open, the shop at the car park has a sign with all the birds people have seen written on it, so you see what other people have found when walking the lakes. There is a little walk behind this shop too aimed at children. It is super cute and a great way to keep kids interested.
There were SO many species I found here so, here we go!
Identified Species
Avocet – Recurvirostra avosetta
I had never seen one of these before, so I was over the moon when I review my photos and saw I had captured this!
These are waders, meaning you will find them around the edges of water.
They are white and black, with long grey/ black legs and a long upturned black thin beak. They have black heads, with the black plumage running down the back of their necks. They have black markings over the top and under the wings, giving a black circle looking marking on their sides.
Godwit – Limosa limosa
This is a wader. They have a red/ brown colouration to their chest and underside. Their backs are brown with a mottled pattern of brown and cream. They have long beaks that are either orange/ brown or dark brown, usually with a darker tip. They have a light eye stripe that is noticeable, spreading from the beak, across the top of the eye and to the head. The red stands out amongst other waders
Blue Tit – Cyanistes caeruleus
A small bird, with a bright yellow belly and blue back. They are very striking when they fly over. A small black and white beak. White face with black bands around the eyes and cheeks
Moorhen – Gallinula chloropus
Small water fowl, black plumage all over, with a distinctive orange and red beak. The legs are long and a green/ yellow colour. You do not often get to see them. This is such a wonderful bird. It is easily identified with its black plumage and striking orange beak and face. The moorhen will be along the edges of the water more commonly, they only swim out for food when they cannot find food along the edge. Coots have long feet and long legs, they do not have webbing like ducks.
Magpie – Pica pica
One of my favourite corvids and probably the easiest to recognise. It has lovely white and black plumage. The black is actually blue, green and purple iridescent. But from a distance they look black. They are cheeky birds and are very intelligent. They have the usual black corvid beak and black legs and feet.
Wood Pigeon – Columba palumbus
I personally adore pigeons, wood pigeons, feral pigeons and collared doves. I think they are just the most adorable.
This is a wood pigeon, it is a large pigeon, bigger than a feral pigeon (one you would see in a town). It is a grey bird, but their necks have a pink hue to them and sometimes you will see an iridescent pink chest and belly. They have a white patch on the sides of their lower necks and often have white markings to the underside or lateral edge of their wings. They have yellow beaks with a pink fleshly looking top nearer their face. They have yellow eyes. They are a heavy bird.
The wood pigeon is extremely versatile and it is down to this versatility that its numbers do so well. They do not migrate, and can breed in any month of the year, but tend to have their young in August. They make flat nests ideally in trees, but will use buildings or even the ground to lay their eggs. Females only lay 2 eggs at a time, and will potentially have 6 clutches a year, if she has lost some.
An adult can hold up to 150 acorns in its crop!
Nuthatch – Sitta europaea
This is a small and illusive bird, despite being pink and blue they are very hard to see! They have an unusual shape, and so stand out when you do see one. They have a blue head and back, running all the way down to their wing tips. They have white chins and orange/ pink throats, chests, bellies and vents. Their beaks are black, and from the beak across their eye is a long black eye stripe. You are more likely to find them standing on the bark of trees.
Chaffinch – Fringilla coelebs
This is a lovely little bird, but is quite hard to see. It has a lovely blue/ grey head plumage that goes down the neck and to the shoulders. It has a brown face, with a black strip above the bill and a small grey/ pale grey pointed bill. The chest is a pink/ brown colour. The wings have black and white bands, or spotted markings. Their tail is long and black and white.
Common Tern – Sterna hirundo
I was super excited to see this bird as I had not seen one before.
They are the size of a black-headed gull, they have a black head, which tapers to a point at the back of the head. Their tail is forked which is probably one of the most notable features. They have white plumage covering most of their bodies, with grey across the tops of their wings and sometimes on their backs. A bright orange beak and orange legs and feet.
Great Crested Grebe – Podiceps cristatus
This is a stunning bird, with a lovely long white neck. It has longer dark black to red brown head feathers that point out from the back of the head. The face is white with a black eye stripe running from the eye to the long bill. There are dark red brown feathers from the back of the neck down a little. Their necks are white and bodies are dark brown.
Swan – Cygnus olor
Arguably one of the most recognised birds within the UK. This lovely large bird is completely white, from the top of their head down their long and elegant neck and to their tail. They have an orange beak which has a black knob nearest to the face on the top of the beak, which runs from their eyes to the top of their beak, this can be quite large in some birds. They have a black line that runs from the top of their beak to the tip of their beak.
Cormorant – Phalacrocorax carbo
These were the first birds I ever identified and so they have a special place in my heart. I adore them! There are a number of different types of cormorants, and I believe we have 2 here. Cormorants are large black sea birds, some have black plumage all round and others have white chests and necks. Cormorants have grey and yellow beaks with yellow to white cheeks
Greylag Geese – Anser anser
They are large geese, with shorter stocky grey necks, their heads are grey and their beaks are orange. Their cheeks have small smooth feathers, their neck appears rougher, but the same colour. Their chest and underside is light grey/ light brown. Their backs are a grey brown colour with a banded appearance similar to the Canada goose. Their bottom is white. The tips of their wings are tail is black.
They feed on grasses, seeds, roots and cereal
Canadian Geese – Branta canadensis
These geese are tall, with long thin black necks and a white cheek strap that runs from cheek to cheek. They have black heads and a black beak. Their backs are brown with the tips of the feathers being white, which gives the birds a stripped appearance. Their chest and belly is a creamy off white to light brown. Their bottom and underside of the tail is white. Their tails are dark brown with black tips. Their feet are also black.
Canada geese can be found in fields and in large numbers where they will eat seeds and grain.
Crow – Corvus corone
These are a stunning member of the corvid family. They are easily recognised, although sometimes confused with ravens.
Crows are gorgeous black birds, with all black feathers, black beaks and black eyes. They are smaller than ravens, although large when compared with other corvids.
A gathering of crows is a murder.
Lapwing – Vanellus vanellus
This is bird is found on the edges of banks. They have black heads and chests, with long feathers that stand from the back of their heads and it twists upwards. They have a white face with grey stripe under their eye. Black chest, white belly and vent. The wings and backs are an iridescent green/ orange. They have black beaks which curve downwards slightly. In flight their wings are very distinctive, they are straight from the body initially with the ends fanning out very wide. Their call is also very distinctive.
Black-headed Gull – Chroicocephalus ridibundus
Small water fowl, white plumage with grey wings, a grey to black eye stripe and small black patch on the cheek, an orange bills with black tip, black tail feathers, orange legs and orange webbed feet. After their first winter the males get a black head plumage
Little Egret – Egretta garzetta
They are long and white with a grey bill that is long. They have long black legs with white feathers at the top on their thighs. Their slender neck is very delicate looking. This is very similar to the great egret, the difference between the two, apart from size, which is hard to define when you have nothing to compare it to! It the bill. The great egret has a long yellow bill, and the little egret has a grey bill.
Swallow – Hirundo rustica
Often found standing on wires, these small migratory birds are most easily recognised from their deeply forked tails, with long feathers protruding from the outer edges. They plumage appears black, but is a dark blue/ black. They have a red/ orange face and chin, with a small black beak. Their underside is white.
Grey Wagtail – Motacilla cinerea
I believe this bird is a wagtail, it looks very similar in terms of shape, but it is missing the bright yellow colouration of the grey wagtail. I assume this was a juvenile, which have a grey/ cream underside, where the adults are yellow.
A grey back, wings and head, with a white eye stripe. Black beak and marking running from the beak towards the eye and down the chin. Their cheeks have a white stripe. White markings on their wings. A bright yellow chest, belly and vent. Grey legs.
Robin – Erithacus rubecula
A brown head, back and wings with a bright orange/ red face and chest. The chest is outlined with a small grey edge. They have small black beaks. Small brown legs.
Long-tailed Tit – Aegithalos caudatus
An adorable small bird, the third smallest bird in the UK. They can be very hard to see, but when you look out for them you are likely to find a small group of them, they are not found alone. They have a white face and head, with 2 thick black stripes over their eyes and down the back on their necks. They have dark brown to black wings, with a light brown back. Their tails are very long and black and white. Their chests are a cream/ pink colour.
Teasel – Dipsacus fullonum
A spiney looking globular head, and one you have probably seen many times dry. It has purple soft flower heads surrounding the globe, which are more often seen in rings around the top. The stem has spines and the leaves at the flower head are thin and sharp. Further down the leaves are lanceolate shape in opposite pairs, looking almost like they are joined and forming one leaf that wraps around the stem.
Foxglove – Digitalis purpurea
This is a lovely member of the figwort family. This iconic flower is most recognisable by the bells shapes pink or purple down turned flowers. The inside of the flowers has a mottled pattern of white circles with small dots of dark pink. The plant is tall and flower heads grown up the main stem. The leaves are lower than the flower heads nearer to the ground and are a light green, arrow shaped simple leaf. The edges of the leaves have a rounded edge serration.
Rosebay Willowherb – Chamerion angustifolium
A tall and striking member of the willowherb family. This flower can be identified by the tall arrow shape to the flower head, with pink flowers sprouting from slender stems in a conical shape to the top, where there are flowers yet for form. This plant grows is large clusters and has distinctive flower heads. Each flower head has 4 light pink to purple petal, 2 at the top and 2 at the bottom, with the deep pink sepals visible like another 4 petals. The stigma and stamen hang down from the flower head. The leaves are arrow shaped and grow in a spiral up the stem, terminating when the flowering head starts.
Burdock – Arctium
A large plant with vert large leaves. The leaves are very similar to dock leaves you will find near stinging nettles. Leaves are heart shapes and come from the ground on long stems. The edges of the leaves are curled terminating in a point. The flowers heads form atop a long stem, which has leaves all the way up. The leaves nearer the top will be small. The flower head forms a globular spiny ball, with purple tendrils on the topside of the ball. From a distance when burdock is in flower it can look like the flowers are a burgundy red.
Marsh Woundwort – Stachys palustris
The stem of this plant has a square cross section and hairs up the entire length. The leaves are lanceolate and in opposite pairs coming straight from the main stem, they do not have their own branches. The flower is orchid like, a pale purple colour with many deep purple veins and patterns visible on the large petal hanging down from the flower head. The calyx are reddish purple in colour and look spiny.
Hogweed – Heracleum sphondylium
This plant is also known as cow parsnip, there are so many plats with the word ‘cow’ at the beginning! This plant has 2 varieties, there is a giant hogweed, and this has sap that causes burns. So I always tell people to just stay clear, or make sure your children know what it looks like, so they stay away. It flowers around June and has a lovely umbrella of tiny white flowers. Each tiny white flower had 5 petals. The heads all form a domed shape. The stem in tall and hollow inside with ridges and spines running down the length and on all stems. The leaves are pinnate, with 2 smaller leaflets forming nearer the stem and one much larger leaflet at the end, that is deeply divided. The ridges on the leaves are very deep and the edges are toothed.
Hedge Bindweed – Calystegia sepium
This is a larger member of the bindweed family. It spreads veraciously, climbing up to 3 metres wrapping around any other shrubs in its way. The leaves are elongated heart shapes, with a thin and winding stem. The flowers are white and trumpet shaped. The calyx is green at the base of the flower, this can have an epicalyx over the top, these calyx do not overlap and both pairs are visible.
Ragwort – Jacobaea vulgaris
For the first year this plant remains in a vegetative state, and can be identified by the deep green leaves. They almost look like curly kale. Leaves are lobed and pinnate, with smaller leaves at the base of the stem and one large lobed leaf at the top. Deeply veined. The flower stem emerges from the middle of the leave bed that remains low to the ground. One long stem terminates in many daisy like flower heads, with 13 yellow petals and a deep yellow centre. The central part of the flower will turn in to white downy seed heads, with many seeds being produced by one plant and distributed in the wind.
This plant is classified as poisonous, but only really affects livestock should they mistakenly eat it.
Tansey – Tanacetum vulgare
These is a striking member of the Aster family. It has a clustered flowerhead with flat yellow flowers. The clustered flowerhead looks almost sticky or wet, but it doesn’t feel it. On the underside of the flowerhead, the phyllaries are brown closest to the flower and green as it connects to the stem. This is a tall plant and they grow together in patches.
The leave are deeply divided pinnate in shape and serrated. They are alternate in orientation. The stem and leaves are all hairless. This plant also like water, and can often be found along rivers, pools and banks.
Pineapple Weed – Matricaria disciodae
A commonly found little plant. It can grow up to 1 foot tall, and found usually on poor compacted ground. It has small globular green/ yellow flower heads. Which have a pineapple scent when pressed and a bitter pineapple taste when eaten. The leaves are feathery pinnate. Each stem terminate in 1 flower head usually, occasionally 2 flower heads can be found at the top of a single stem.
Yarrow – Achillea millefolium
This plant has a flat topped dome of white flower heads, clustered together. The petals of the flowers are white, with a pinky white or pale yellow centre. The leaves are feathery lanceolate shaped and deeply divided.
One other thing I saw when walking was a wasp nest, which I thought was pretty interesting.
I do have a vlog of the site, so if you would like to walk it, please see the link below.
Finally I have a large number of species I did not get a photograph of, but still found. So below is the remaining list of species I found and how to identify them. But there are no photos. I will add photos as I get photos of these guys.
Great Tit – Parus major
This is a small garden bird and can often be confused with a blue tit. They are roughly the same size, but the great tit has a distinctive yellow chest with a black line running through the middle. This black line runs up the chest to a patch under the beak. Their beaks are small and black and they have a black head with white cheeks. The black markings run on the underside of the cheeks like strap around their faces.
Their backs are a deep green colour, leading down to blue/ black wings. They have long tails which are also black with some white feathers on the edge and underside.
Stock Dove – Columba oenas
This is the size of a collared dove, but looks most similar to a wood pigeon. The stock dove is grey all over, with an iridescent green patch on the rough feathers on their necks and a pink glow to their chests. Their wing tips and tail feathers are a darker grey. They have a little pale beak, with a pink/ white lump on the top of their beaks.
Reed Warbler – Acrocephalus scirpaceus
This is a very challenging bird to identify visually and so I highly recommend listening to their call and seeing if you can learn that instead.
Reed warblers are small brown birds. Their backs are dark brown, with slightly darker wings. They have a white throat and a pale brown/ cream chest and vent. Their beaks are black along the top and white in the underside of the beak. They have an indistinct pale eye stripe that ends at the end of their eyes.
Green Finch – Carduelis chloris
The green finch is a yellow/ green colour. Their chest and vent is the lightest colour which looks more yellow than green. They have a darker back and bright yellow stripe on their wing edges visible when the birds stands on the side profile. They have a pink beak and same colour legs. They have a distinctive call, and so this can be the best way to help identify them.
Tufted Duck – Aythya fuligula
This duck is predominantly black, with long feathers sticking from the back on the head, which gives this duck its name. They have white patches on their sides. Their eyes are bright yellow, standing out against their black faces. Their beaks are blue, the female is mostly dark brown, with light brown sides. They do have the same prominent eye.
Mallard – Anas platyrhynchos
A medium sized water fowl – males have a green head, yellow bill, white stripe around the neck, a brown check and belly, grey sides and wings, with a black back and white tips to the wings and a curled black feather at the tail. The female has a brown head, no curled tail feather, and brown plumage.
Herring Gull – Larus argentatu
Out on the water there were a couple of these lovely gulls. These are the iconic seaside birds, that might or might not like to steal things! When mating, males will feed their partners. When she has her eggs and incubates them she loses calcium and fat, their chick require feeding day and night for their first 12 weeks. Therefore fish provide the replenishment of lost nutrients for the adults and healthy food for the young.
Goldfinch – Carduelis carduelis
These are bright little birds, with their faces being very distinctive. They have bright red plumage on their faces with a black around their beak and down the back of their head and neck. Between this is a white band. Almost making their faces look like a little target. They have a white belly, with light brown flanks. Their back are light brown too.</p>
Their wings have a patch of bright yellow with black and white banded wings below this yellow patch.
Spear Thistle – Cirsium vulgare
A lovely tall thistle, with heavily lobed leaves, each leaflet terminating in a spine. There are fine and large spines running up the stems. The flower head is spiney looking with a purple tuft of flower on the top, when in flower, this one has flowered and so now all that remains is the spiny globular head.
Buddleia – Buddelja davidii
This is also known as the butterfly bush and I feel it one anyone in the UK would recognise. The flower heads for a thick lanceolate shape of many tiny flowers. Commonly the flowers are purple, but there are deep red and white varieties. Each small flower has 4 petals. This plant can reach a height of 2.5 – 3 meters (8 – 10 feet). Their wood stems are covered in opposite pairs of lanceolate shaped soft leaves.