And on this blog now, folks - at long last! - are the links to the new FILTER BED WOOD and OFFLEY WOOD Trail guide. On your desktop view, the links should immediately be visible on the right (as well as on a separate page). On your mobile or tablet you will need to go to the separate page - just click the down arrow to see the pages available. Enjoy! George
Sandbach Woodland & Wildlife Group news blog
Wednesday, 1 February 2023
Saturday, 17 July 2021
Recent sightings
Nice sightings include a Kingfisher seen occasionally at Mill Hill Lane bridge, and once even in Beech Wood; 9 Common Spotted Orchids in Sandbach Park; frequent Banded Demoiselle dragonflies along the brook (all Trail routes); and (16/7/2021) unusually, an Emperor Dragonfly patrolling a short stretch of the canal just on the Elworth side of the Wheelock road bridge! George
Wednesday, 3 March 2021
We're now on Facebook!
We are now on Facebook! - just click on the right to go to our SWWG group page. BUT this blog will stay in operation as a place to find links to our free downloadable Trail guides (via tab or on right), and as an information store; and occasional nature articles may still be posted here. But for a busy view of Sandbach woodland and wildlife and lots of friends, just press the button!
Thursday, 8 October 2020
Wildlife's challenge
Work continues in Filter Bed Wood on the Sandbach Woodland and Wildlife Group's Sandbach Bridges Trail (East), which will complement the existing Sandbach Bridges Trails (North) and (South), the Brook Wood Trail, the Sandbach Environment Trail created by the Friends of A Rocha group and of course the very popular Wheelock Rail Trail managed by Cheshire East Council.
This image from near to Filter Bed Wood shows a magnificent Giant Horsetail that demonstrates how challenging the natural world finds it to live alongside us humans nowadays. The height of the plant can be judged by comparison with the (standard size) traffic cone that someone had abandoned deep in the woodland....
Sunday, 23 August 2020
Summer of lockdown
As we all know, our local wildlife has flourished during lockdown this spring and summer. I have photographed some nice wild flowers along the nature trails in Brook Wood and Dingle Wood, including Moschatel. Sweet Violet is well established on the Rail Trail. Tawny Owls are often heard around the Park area and a young Great Spotted Woodpecker was there. A Kingfisher has been seen flying up the valley to the old mill pool above the weir on Mill Hill Lane. (Grey Wagtails nest there too, and at Brook Bridge). A fine colony of Butterbur grows by the river below the Wheelock football field. Little Owls may have nested not far from the Queens Drive estate. Not all of our wildlife has appeared naturally. Several spikes of Common Spotted Orchid flowered in the wildlife area of Sandbach Park; they had been planted there but are from local rescues and we wish them very well for the future - they look nicely settled.
But elsewhere, I found an even stranger artificial delivery today when a shocked dog-walker outside my house pointed out two Elephant Hawk Moth caterpillars on the grass by the road! I attach a couple of pictures.The larger stretched to some four inches long (when it felt like it). I can only think they must have been dumped there by some equally shocked person who found them in their garden. I looked up their food plant on Google, and discovered to my delight that one plant which Elephant Hawk Moth caterpillars will consume is Himalayan Balsam! So they are now chomping away not far from here on one of Sandbach's most pervasive pests. That's the sort of biological control measure that I like! I hope you see one of the moths later.
Elephant Hawk Moth caterpillars:
Wednesday, 18 March 2020
Winter and spring
Nevertheless, the birds and the bees are moving, even if the human world has suddenly stopped. We saw a fine Great Spotted Woodpecker and a Nuthatch in Dingle Wood, and the local Buzzards are frequently over the valley. At the Sandbach Park Pond the resident Moorhens are rarely seen unless you pause and watch for them slinking through the waterside vegetation, but they will prepare to nest soon. And finally, here's one more piece of evidence that spring has arrived!