 BIRDS
have flocked to the rescue of Cumbria’s beleaguered tourism
industry in the wake of foot-and-mouth, in a welcome move that
one hotelier describes as ‘on a prayer and a wing’. An impressive
upturn in the fortunes of many rare breeding species, both native
and visitor, has helped to sustain an upturn in the number of
human visitors to the county - and to neighbouring North Lancashire
- as rural recovery from the epidemic continues.
Over 100,000 birdwatchers delighted at the return of the osprey
pair which last year bred at Bassenthwaite to produce England’s
first wild osprey chick for a century and a half have this year
visited a special observation point to see the two chicks they
produced. And on Windermere, on Friday, August 16, one eagle-eyed
birdwatcher chalked up a sighting - subsequently confirmed -
of a lone adult osprey diving for fish. The bird is thought
to have been on early migration from Scotland. In the High Street
fells above lonely Mardale there are hopes that a new male golden
eagle might next year become a father after several ‘dud’ breeding
seasons at the species’ only nest site in England.
On Cumbria’s wild Pennine hills, the black grouse, one of the
county’s rarest regular breeding birds, has started to make
a comeback thanks to careful management of moorland habitat
maintained under the North Pennines Black Grouse Recovery Project.
Just over the border in Lancashire, at one of the country’s
top bird-waching haunts, RSPB Leighton Moss has had no less
than three rare marsh harrier females sitting on eggs while
last year’s lone avocet couple bred again - and this time they
were been joined by a second breeding pair, producing a total
of seven chicks. The reserve’s bitterns have also doing their
bit to attract visitors, with two nesting females, while the
beared tits that live and breed in the reed beds have increased
again after a particularly harsh winter decimated their numbers
in 2000.
 The
reserve has also been welcoming Mediterranean visitors such
as Spoonbill and Little Egret on a more regular basis. Elsewhere
in the South Lakes/North Lancs borders, sightings of other ‘exotics’
such as bee-eater and rose-coloured starling have also been
drawing more bird-watchers. “We’ve long advertised in RSPB birds
and other wildlife enthusiast magazines but the enquiries are
conming so thick and fast at the moment that we can hardly cope,”
said John Tiernan, who runs a Windermere B&B with his partner,
Sarah, and offers bird-watching trips in the Lakes area. “We’re
having to brush up on our knowledge of what are not usually
considered local species because there are so many more appearing
here now - and they’re bringing in more and more visitors for
us and other hoteliers, I’m convinced” said John. “We were operating
on a wing and a prayer last year but this year you could say
our prayers have been answered on the wing.”
For
more information visit Lancaster
& District Birdwatching Society
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