Flanders Moss NNR
Sometimes the journey to a nature reserve can be just as good as the actual visit on the reserve. Nature doesn’t just start on the nature reserve boundary but is all over so don’t just start looking when you get to the boundary.
Today driving to Flanders Moss some slightly more uniform lumps in a field close to the edge of the reserve caught my eye. I pulled over, wound the window down and had a scan. And there, beautifully hidden, were 85 golden plovers. These stunning birds have been breeding on mountain tops during the summer and now flock up in groups for the autumn and winter. The Carse of Stirling can be a good place to see groups out of breeding season as they pass through but it takes a sharp eye to spot them They are certainly harder to find than the big flocks of noisy geese that are around.
So if you are heading down to Flanders Moss remember to keep looking the whole way down. And check out any lumps in the fields!
2 bogs, a swamp and some islands 