Bog Myrtle & Peat

Having followed the black grouse’s progress in real depth over the past few days, I’ve had a good opportunity to see what they like and what they don’t like in their surroundings. Short grass is perfect for lekking, foraging and catching the sun, but it leaves you exposed and feeling vulnerable to birds of prey. Long rushes are good for shelter in a strong wind and provide seeds and food, but they make a dank and chilly environment during wet weather, leaving you vulnerable to opportunistic ambushes from foxes. Striking a balance between rushes and pasture is yet another issue to have been neglected on the Chayne, and it’s something I need to look into in the next few days.

Black grouse have regionally diverse diets, and birds in some areas eat far more of some things than others. In eastern Galloway, my birds only seem to eat heather in the winter,  vast quantities of willow buds in April and herbs and seeds throughout the summer. Once I get my heather sorted out on the hill, I’m confident that birds from my neighbour’s property will move in, but catering for the needs of “inbye” blackgame is a more immediate and achievable prospect. As it is, several good inbye fields are totally choked in rushes, and it is asking alot of a black grouse to even expect it to be able to land in some of the thicker spots. By breaking up the uniformity of chest high rushes, birds should have access to a great deal of the farm which was formerly off limits to them, and a few rides and clearings will make a big difference. Leaving patches of both tall and short vegetation will give them access to feeding and shelter, and creating a patchwork of tall and short cover over the next few years will hopefully make a big difference.

I plan to get a tractor in with a hammer flail this coming week to deliver some “tough love” to the undergrowth on the Chayne.