Spring is a busy season in Swaledale. Not only is it lambing time but its also the breeding season for hundreds of birds such as the curlew.

Upper Swaledale is home to many ground nesting birds. They forage for food on the meadow fields but make their nests in the pastures. The abundance of rushes and uneven ground in the pastures provides shelter and camouflague for the birds, their eggs and newly hatched chicks.