Wharfedale Naturalists Society
Polecat ferret at Hebden
Each of our Recorders will be writing here about their speciality to give you an idea of the wildlife you may find in Wharfedale. Here you will find introductions to Botany, Butterflies and Birds, Moths and Mushrooms and … well, Dragonflies and so on.
If any of these areas particularly interests you, you will find that the Society is a friendly way to learn more – and, perhaps, to teach others who would like to learn!
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View species lists from our field meetings.
Download old copies of our annual reviews, dating back to 1945.
Run by the Friend's of Gallows Hill, the Gallows Hill Nature Area is situated on the banks of the Wharfe, in Otley.
In May 2014 the Ben Rhydding Gravels pits site was declared a Local Nature Reserve by the Lord Mayor of Bradford.
The secret to spotting otters is to go birdwatching and wait for a kingfisher to appear. That’s what Frank Munkes a regular visitor to the reserve did on Monday morning with stunning results. I believe we have here a male kingfisher eating a stickleback and a dog otter that includes the this section of the … Continue reading August 8th Kingfisher and Otter! → [...]
A stunning female Golden-ringed dragonfly photographed by John Gavaghan last week. Will be checking back on our records to see how many sightings we have had in the past. From a distance its similar to a Southern Hawker so wondering if we have misidentified them I the past. [...]
Great to host 1st Ben Rhydding Beaver Scouts last night on their 1st visit. The sun shone and all seemed to have a fun time on our nature trail and a bit of pond dipping. Look forward to welcoming you back in the Autumn [...]
When visiting the reserve why not take a few minutes checking out the butterfly info. You can see photos of our main species and a handy table to see which butterflies you have a chance of seeing that week. Warm, still, sunny times are best. When the sun comes out after rain shower can be … Continue reading Butterflies → [...]
Wonderful to see that the orchids are back in abundance this year after the massive decline a few years ago. Many are quite small which may be down the dry spring.. Estimate around 200 flowering stems. Most are southern marsh orchid with a few common spotted orchids and hybrids of the two. The large fenced … Continue reading Orchids → [...]
We discovered this American signal crayfish whilst working on restoring the beck. These were introduced into the wharfe over 20yrs ago and have spread everywhere. Unfortunately they brought a virus with them that our native crayfish are very vulnerable to and are now locally extinct. I believe this is a large male. It is … Continue reading American Signal Crayfish → [...]