Tag Archives: Black Country

Dawn chorus walk this Sunday!

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Don’t forget it’s our dawn chorus walk this Sunday (7th May), starting at 7:00am at the cairn on Portway Hill. Join local bird expert Nick Horton to look and listen out for the Rowley Hills’ resident birds such as Kestrel, Bullfinch, Long-tailed Tit, Mistle Thrush and Buzzard, as well as recently arrived migrants including Chiffchaff, Swallow, Blackcap, Whitethroat and maybe even a Lesser Whitethroat, Wheatear or Ring Ouzel. This event was very popular last year with some great bird sightings and we hope for similar successes this year! No need to book, just turn up; ensure you are dressed appropriately for the forecast weather conditions, and wear sturdy footwear. Bring binoculars if you have them!

Blackcap (Sylvia atricapilla) (image © Andy Cook)
Robin (Erithacus rubecula) (image © Andy Cook)
Willow Warbler (Phylloscopus trochilus) (image © Andy Cook)
Sparrowhawk (Accipiter nisus) (image © Andy Cook)
Blackbird (Turdus merula) (image © Andy Cook)
Long-tailed Tit (Aegithalos caudatus) (image © Andy Cook)

A few photos from Portway Hill

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The Portway Hill site is really coming to life now with spring flowers appearing and Small Tortoiseshell, Peacock, Orange-tip, Green-veined White and even Green Hairstreak butterflies putting in an appearance. Here are a few photos of some of the flowers, including a couple of fruit trees – most likely to have been seeded on the hills via bird droppings.

Pear (Pyrus communis) (image © Mike Poulton)
English Bluebell (Hyacinthoides non-scripta) (image © Mike Poulton)
Apple (Malus pumila) (image © Mike Poulton)

Warm weather brings out the butterflies!

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The unseasonable warm, dry weather we are currently experiencing has really brought out butterflies in good numbers. Peacock, Small Tortoiseshell, Orange-tip, Speckled Wood and even a Brimstone have been seen on the hillside over the past week. Hopefully, this spring will be much better than last year, which was wet and cold right up until the end of May, and these last few days are just a taster of more fine weather to come. Please remember, if you have any wildlife sightings from the Rowley Hills that you would like to tell us about, or any interesting photographs you would like to see on the website, then please let us have them – you can comment below, or on Facebook or Twitter.

Brimstone butterfly (Gonepteryx rhamni) (image © Mike Poulton)
Small Tortoiseshell butterfly (Aglais urticae) (image ©Mike Poulton)
Peacock butterfly (Inachis io) (image ©Mike Poulton)
Speckled Wood (Pararge aegeria) (image © Mike Poulton)

Portway Hill public right of way improvements

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Our marvellous volunteers have once again been busy, this time opening up the old public right of way through the old quarries on Portway Hill. This means that walkers now have a fully functional right of way through a part of the hillside that was so badly overgrown it had become impossible to negotiate. Here are a few photos of the hugely improved right of way!

New volunteer dates

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We’ve just added lots of new volunteering dates to our website – the first one is this Saturday! Have a look at our Events page for all the details. Volunteering is a great way to meet new people and see the wildlife that can be found on the reserve. Hope to see you at a volunteer day on the hills soon!

The geologists have been hard at work again!

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Once again, geoconservation volunteers from the Black Country Geological Society have been beavering away on Portway Hill to expose more of the dolerite rockface. For more information about the geology of the Rowley Hills, visit our geology page. Here are a few photos of the results of their work!

A look back at our Awards for All events

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Big Lottery Fund logoNow that our Awards for All funding from the Big Lottery Fund has all been used up, we’ve put together a short summary with lots of photos of all the events and activities we were able to arrange thanks to the funding. Join us for a wander down memory lane – click here to read the Awards for All summary report!

A big thanks to the Big Lottery Fund, and also to the Wildlife Trust for Birmingham & the Black Country who were instrumental in helping to arrange and deliver these events.

We’ve also added this report to our Governance page so it’s easy to find in future.

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A few photos from our Views of the Rowley Hills walk

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Last Saturday we held our final Awards For All Lottery-funded event, a guided walk of the many fantastic views it’s possible to see from the Rowley Hills. Luckily the weather was clear and we were able to enjoy some great vistas! Thanks to everyone who came; here are a few photos. We’ll be posting a summary of all our Awards For All-funded events shortly; we are very grateful to have received this funding from the Big Lottery Fund which has enabled us to spread the word about the Rowley Hills via a varied programme of events and activities.

This weekend – Viewpoints of the Rowley Hills guided walk

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Join us and the Wildlife Trust for Birmingham & the Black Country this Saturday 26th February for our final Awards For All Lottery-funded event, a guided walk taking in some of the Rowley Hills’ great views across the Black Country. The walk will start from St Brades Close at 10:00am (see our Events page for a map) and will begin by heading over to the viewpoint above the Wildlife Trust’s Portway Hill nature reserve. From there we will go on to several other great locations high up in the hills, where you can enjoy fantastic views over the cityscapes of Birmingham & the Black Country. Walking boots or other sturdy footwear are a must for this walk, as the terrain is uneven and may be slippery in places. Wrap up warm and bring a flask with a warm drink if you like – the walk should last just over three hours and covers about 5 miles; we will be stopping at one of the viewpoints for a rest about halfway. This a family friendly event; dogs are allowed, however they must be on a lead at all times. The event is free but donations are always welcome to support the work of the Wildlife Trust. We hope to see you there!

Portway Hill (image © Jane Tavener)

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