Sandwell Valley RSPB reserve facts for kids
Quick facts for kids RSPB Sandwell Valley |
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Gate by Tim Tolkien, featuring little ringed plover, grey heron and other species.
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| Location | Sandwell, West Midlands, England |
| Operated by | RSPB |
| Website | rspb.org.uk/reserves/guide/s/sandwellvalley |
The Sandwell Valley RSPB reserve is a special place for nature, managed by the RSPB. It's located in Sandwell Valley, near West Bromwich in the West Midlands, England. This reserve is right next to the Sandwell Valley Country Park and shares its main lake with it. It's a fantastic spot to explore wildlife and learn about nature.
Sadly, in March 2010, the visitor centre was damaged by a fire. But don't worry, a brand new centre has been built to welcome visitors!
Contents
Where is Sandwell Valley RSPB?
This nature reserve is found around the eastern and northern edges of a lake called Forge Mill Lake. This lake helps to control storm water from the River Tame. Even though it's surrounded by busy cities like Birmingham, Walsall, and West Bromwich, it's a peaceful green space. It's also easy to get to, being close to major roads like the M5 motorway, M6 motorway, and the A34.
You can drive to the study centre from Tanhouse Avenue. Or, you can walk or cycle along the paths that cross Sandwell Valley. There's also a car park at Forge Mill Farm on Park Lane, which is a great starting point.
What Can You See and Do?
The Sandwell Valley RSPB reserve is really important for teaching young people about nature. Many school groups visit to learn about birds and other wildlife.
Bird Watching Hides
One of the best features is a special bird hide. It's built on stilts in the lake and you reach it by a drawbridge! From here, you can get amazing close-up views of birds on the lake, its shores, and the islands. One island is even placed right in front of the hide for perfect viewing. There are also other viewing screens around the wetland areas, always open for you to use.
Nature's Design
The land where the reserve now sits used to be a landfill. But it has been carefully planted with lots of different native trees and shrubs. This has created a rich and varied home for many animals and plants.
The reserve has cool entrance gates designed by an artist named Tim Tolkien. The old visitor centre used to have a special carpet designed by artist Greg Poole, but it was lost in the 2010 fire.
Amazing Wildlife and Species
The lake and smaller pools are home to many different kinds of water birds. They also welcome birds that are migrating, meaning they are just passing through on their long journeys.
Birds to Spot
Birdwatchers love coming here to see species like the goosander, lapwings, common snipe, little ringed plover, and whitethroat.
The growing variety of life on the slopes attracts many different animals, including birds of prey like buzzards.
Other exciting birds seen at the reserve include Cetti's warbler and a female smew. You can also spot Common and Mediterranean gulls every year. Black-tailed godwits visit every few years.
Summer and Winter Visitors
In summer, many birds breed here, such as the common tern, little ringed plover, and oystercatcher. Summer warblers like the sedge warbler, reed warbler, whitethroat, chiffchaff, willow warbler, and grasshopper warbler are also common. Coots often breed here, but sometimes their nests are not successful.
In winter, you might see birds like wigeon, teal, common snipe, jack snipe, goosander, and goldeneye. Water rails are seen more often in winter, with up to four spotted in 2013.
Special Residents
Some of the reserve's most special birds are the lapwings. They breed here every year, but like the coots, they sometimes struggle due to predators. You can also regularly see Ring-necked parakeets flying around the reserve.
Gallery
- Main features of the Sandwell Valley RSPB Nature Centre
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View through the main window of the former visitor centre, which was equipped with telescopes for public use.
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The lakeside hide, which gives an excellent view of the lake, especially the central island, which is visited by a vast range of species.
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Forge Mill Lake, which is fed by the River Tame. The RSPB reserve is on the far side, and the bird hide is just visible, in the centre of the photograph.
