From as early as mid February, the curlew will start to return to the upland hills of the Yorkshire Dales. Their cries are haunting and yet magical as they announce their arrival to their life long partner before the nesting season in the very same spot each year. Their numbers are down within the UK but here in the Dales, they still have a stronghold and one that we believe we must protect.
On our Walking Breaks, we’ll encourage you to stay on paths, bring your binoculars and listen – the rewards are remarkable and plentiful. Along with the curlew, over 3,000 breeding pairs of lapwing are often seen in displays of tumbling and swooping over the moors. Their calls are so distinctive as to give them their local name of peewit, heard alongside the single shrill of the golden plovers.
Recently in the North York Moors National Park, pine martens have been recorded but in very low numbers. An active project to increase this species is underway by Forestry England, Nature Spy and the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust with the hope that in the not too distant future, we may also see them in the Dales. They are natural predators of the grey squirrels which thrive in abundance but limit the success of the red squirrel. The red squirrels have evolved with a fear of the pine martens, an adaptation the grey squirrel is yet to learn.
In Snaizeholme, beyond Hawes, the red squirrels have a protected reserve of woodland which allows them to thrive and for photographers to relish the opportunity to film these usually timid creatures at close quarters. Across the Dales, this little herbivorous rodent has other pockets of habitat and therefore it is hoped that their numbers might also increase.
It has made our day to spot wildlife during our walks. In broad daylight, we have seen barn owls, little owls and tawny owls, herons, stonechats, dippers, oyster catchers, kites, buzzards, kestrels, skylarks and pipits. We were lucky enough to spot a weasel playing in the snow last year, five hares chasing each other around a fallen tree and field mice scurrying into holes through the thick moorland grasses. What a privilege and truly good for our souls!
Photos courtesy of Hilary Thompson on the May 2024 Walking Break.