New Bird and Bat Boxes in Marple Memorial Park

Not long after we were formed in 2003 Friends of the Park installed quite a few wooden bird and bat boxes around the park. We noticed over the last few years that many of these were deteriorating badly, quite a few of the bird boxes had enlarged holes caused by Woodpeckers or Squirrels and several of both had fallen down.

Late last year we decided it was time to do something about this again and since December 2019 we've installed 18 new Woodcrete Bird Boxes and 8 Woodcrete Bat Boxes. We chose to use Woodcrete boxes because, although they are expensive compared wooden ones, they have a life expectancy of 25 years. So they are actually a good investment in the long term.

New Bat Boxes along the canal woodland

The bird boxes are located on trees throughout the park. The bat boxes are located alongside the canal boundary, as research suggests that being near water is an advantage for bats as there are likely to be more insects for them to feed on.

Funded by Stockport Hydro, Marple Senior Citizens and our 50-50 Club

The 18 bird boxes and 8 bat boxes have cost a total of £632.92. That's quite a lot of money but we're please to say we've had a lot of help too. We were delighted to be awarded a grant of £275 from the 2020 Stockport Hydro Environmental Challenge contributing towards the boxes and we also received a donation of £50 from Marple Senior Citizen's Association too. The balance of £307.92 was funded from our 50-50 Club income, which is generously supported by many people in the local community.

Stockport Hydro winners receiving their awards on 13 March 2020

Please let us know if you see the boxes in use

Fortunately for the birds and the bats, we got them all installed before the Covid-19 virus stopped our activities in the park but sadly we haven't been able to have a proper look and see which ones are occupied. If you are taking your daily exercise in Memorial Park during this period of social isolation and you spot any of the boxes in use we'd love to know the details - like the location and who's moved in. It would be great if you could send a photo too!

BBC Breathing Places Bird Box Refurbished

We can also report that the bird box and plaque mounted on the corner of the library overlooking our BBC Breathing Places Reading Circle has recently been refitted after refurbishment by Terry Wood, one of our regular volunteers.