South Yorkshire
South Yorkshire is a metropolitan county in England. It is the southernmost county in the Yorkshire and the Humber region and had a population of 1.34 million in 2011. It has an area of 1,552 square kilometres (599 sq mi) and consists of four metropolitan boroughs, Barnsley, Doncaster, Rotherham and Sheffield. South Yorkshire was created on 1 April 1974 as a result of the Local Government Act 1972.
Lying on the east side of the Pennines, South Yorkshire is landlocked, and borders Derbyshire to the west and south-west, West Yorkshire to the north-west, North Yorkshire to the north, the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north-east, Lincolnshire to the east and Nottinghamshire to the south-east. The Sheffield Urban Area is the tenth most populous conurbation in the UK, and dominates the western half of South Yorkshire with over half of the county's population living within it. South Yorkshire lies within the Sheffield City Region.
The metropolitan county lies largely on the carboniferous rocks of the Yorkshire coalfield which have produced a rolling landscape with hills, escarpments and broad valleys. In this landscape there is widespread evidence of both current and former industrial activity. There are numerous mine buildings, former spoil heaps and iron and steel plants. The scenery is a mixture of built up areas, industrial land with some dereliction, and farmed open country. Ribbon developments along transport routes including canal, road and rail are prominent features of the area although some remnants of the pre industrial landscape and semi-natural vegetation still survive.
The west of the county is fringed by the Pennines and its foothills, most of which lie inside the Peak District National Park and also contain carboniferous rocks, with the underlying geology primarily being millstone grit sandstones rising from the Yorkshire coalfield.
The Pennine range within the county is distinguished by the moorlands and plateaus of the Dark Peak while the Pennine fringes are distinguished by many steep valleys, and a transition from uplands and rural landscape to lowlands and urban landscape towards the east of the county.
Major rivers which cross the area are the Dearne, Rother and Don. To the east, in the Doncaster area the landscape becomes flatter as the eastward dipping carboniferous rocks of the coalfield are overlain by the lacustrine deposits of the Humberhead Levels.
Despite the urban and industrial areas there are a number of very important reserves in the area and wildlife areas formed from restoration of former industrial or mineral extraction areas.
Top Sites
Potteric Carr
A Yorkshire Wildlife Trust reserve, 2 miles from Doncaster, with areas of reed, open water and marshy woodland. Birds include Lesser Spotted Woodpecker, Water Rail and Bittern.
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**Latest Sightings
County Recorder
Rarities: Craig Thomas
Sunny Bank, Church Lane, Flamborough, YO15 1PG
01262 851677
Martin Wells
715 Manchester Road, Stockbridge, Sheffield S36 1DQ
0114 288 4211
Checklist
Useful Reading
Birds of the Sheffield Area, including the NE Peak District
Sheffield Bird Study Group. email richarddale9@hotmail.com for details.
Rare and Scarce Birds in Yorkshire
Andrew Wilson & Russell Slack
ISBN: 0903793598
Buy this book from NHBS.comWhere to Watch Birds - Yorkshire
by John Mather A&C Black, 2009 [3rd Edition]
ISBN: 9780713687828
Buy this book from NHBS.comYorkshire Bird Report 2010
Yorkshire Naturalists Union - Available through their website: http://www.ynu.org.uk
Best Birdwatching Sites Yorkshire
By Neil Glenn, with John Miles | Buckingham Press | Paperback | May 2017 | 340 Pages | 120 Two-tone Maps
See Fatbirder Review
ISBN: 9780956987679
Buy this book from NHBS.comUseful Information
Yorkshire Ornithological Committee
Chairman: Craig Thomas 16 Scarborough Road, Filey, North Yorkshire, YO14 9EF, Tel: 01723 513055 e-mail craigcthomas@yahoo.co.uk Secretary: Jim Pewtress, 31 Piercy End, Kirkbymoorside, York, YO62 6DQ, Tel: 01751 431001 e-mail trivialis@operamail.com Elected members: Mike Pilsworth, Hillcrest, Whitgift, Goole, DN14 8HL, Tel: 01405 704082 e-mail: mikepilsworth@hotmail.com Protection Liaison Officer: D. J. Simpson, 51 Heather Way, Harrogate, HG3 2SH, Tel: 01423 538645 e-mail: doug@milvus.me.uk Representative on Humber Wildfowl Refuge Committee: Miss A Gowland
Guides & Tour Operators
Click on WAND for tours, guides, lodges and more…
Yorkshire Rose Birding Tours
This website aims to give you a little background of what the county of Yorkshire has to offer. Yorkshire is arguably the best county in Britain for birds and bird watching. It has England's largest mainland Gannettry, some wonderful habitats that provide homes to some extremely rare and scarce birds. Locally common, they prove to be extremely difficult to see elsewhere in the country. The Corn Bunting and Tree Sparrow for example, in the right location can be easy to find. These and lots of other birds find a suitable home in Yorkshire…
Trip Reports
CloudBirders
CloudBirders was created by a group of Belgian world birding enthusiasts and went live on 21st of March 2013. They provide a large and growing database of birding trip reports, complemented with extensive search, voting and statistical features.
Organisations
RSPB - Sheffield Members Group
This web site provides information for members and anyone who is interested in the work of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds and the Sheffield Members Group…
Sheffield Bird Study Group
Sheffield Bird Study Group was formed in December 1972 as a forum for birdwatchers in and around the city with an active interest in ornithology. The group's recording area, covering twelve 10km squares with the city roughly in the middle, is hugely diverse, stretching north to the outskirts of Barnsley, south to Chesterfield, east to the lowlands beyond Rotherham and Bolsover, and west to the highest tops of the Peak District National Park….
Sorby Natural History Society
The Sorby Recorders who are responsible for organising surveys and collecting information on the local fauna. A list of interesting birds appears in each Newsletter, whilst reports on other groups appear in the Record…
Yorkshire Naturalists Union
The YNU has four basic aims: To study the wildlife of Yorkshire. To record the results of these studies. To present these studies. To use the information for wildlife conservation…
Yorkshire Red Kites
The Yorkshire Red Kite Project was the fifth in this sequence and began at Harewood Estate in West Yorkshire in 1999. By this time, the newly established Chilterns population had been so successful that, up to 2003, it was able to supply a total of 68 young birds for release in Yorkshire…
Reserves
RSPB - Dearne Valley - Old Moor
Situated right at the heart of the Dearne Valley, Old Moor is a wonderful place to come and watch wildlife. The skies, fields and open water are teeming with birds throughout the year…
Potteric Carr Reserve
Potteric Carr is one of over sixty reserves owned or leased by the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust. It is situated about 2 miles from the centre of Doncaster, close to the M18 and A6182. Its wide range of habitats from open water and marsh to woodland, covering an area of about 130 ha., give it an interesting diversity of wildlife. In addition, its paths through attractive scenery make it an ideal venue for all kinds of visitor ranging from those who simply enjoy the quiet of the countryside to the dedicated wildlife expert…
Rother Valley Country Park
Rother Valley Country Park lies on the South Yorkshire / Derbyshire border. The site features regular updates of birds seen within the Country Park boundary, we also include a large selection of photos, all taken within the Park. Conservation has always played a part in the valley, with areas of open water and marshland alongside the Rother prior to open-casting. These attracted migrating birds which use the river for navigation as they travel north and south during the spring and autumn migrations…
Forums & Mailing Lists
YorkshireBirds
Discussion Group - This list is for Yorkshire birders, birdwatchers, birdspotters, and related subjects in the Counties of North, East, South, and West Yorkshire England. The list is a forum for news of rare bird sightings in the four Counties. You may also make requests for bird-related information and information on local birdwatching sites. This is a public forum do not post details of species or sites that could help egg collectors identify nest sites. Do not send file attachments.
Blogs
Josh's Josh Jones
Now 19, living in Lincs but at University in Sheffield. Lifelong interest in birds aided initially by my father and enhanced as an impressionable youngster by local birders, who I am indebted to! Only really got serious with the hobby after a trip to Israel in 2000. My patch is the local gravel pit complex adjacent to my home village (Baston & Langtoft), and I have been birding here as often as possible since my mother would let me out the house on my own!
Sheffield Wildlife
My name is Pete Mella. I’m an amateur nature-watcher who lives in Sheffield, and this is my blog where I’ll jot down my thoughts, observations and anally-retentive lists based on my wildlife-spotting activities. Posts from 2006-2007 can be found in the old blog at http://sheffieldwildlife.blogspot.com
Paul Cooper - Little Brown Job
Paul had not been birding for a few years now but has been bitten by the bug again. This is his diary of the the journey back into the world of the little brown job…
Other Links
Sheffield Photographic Centre
The premier independent dealer in Sheffield for Canon, Pentax, Minolta, Leica, Nikon, Olympus, Kodak, Tamron, Mamiya, Fujicolor, Ilford, Ricoh, Lowepro, Samsung, Kowa, Opticron, Gossen, Meopta, Minox, Swarovski, Agfa, Fotospeed, Tetenal, Forte, Cobra, Metz, Courtenay, Paterson, Kentmere, Manfrotto, Polaroid, Digital Imaging, Used cameras and darkroom equipment, Monochrome products, Chemicals, optics, the list is endless…
British Garden Birds
British Garden Birds shares information about the birds that visit a suburban garden in Sheffield, England.
SK58
SK58 Birders were formed in December 1992, when several local birders met and decided to pool their resources time and experience to build up and share information on local birds and bird-related issues. Members are people who live in and around SK58, i.e. Dinnington, North and South Anston and the outlying villages who are interested in birds, especially local birds. Members range from people who enjoy watching and feeding birds from their homes to the ardent birder, who enjoys finding and watching birds at the highest level. Membership is open to anyone who has an interest in local birds at whatever level. Membership is £5 per year. SK58 Birders are unique. No other group concentrates on just a single 10km square.