Birds. 88 1 



A few Notes on the recent Change of the Herbage on Pilling Moss. 

 By the Rev. J. D. Banister. 



For several years past, it has been remarked by persons visiting 

 and working on Pilling Moss, that the herbage of a certain portion of 

 it, much frequented by sea gulls in the breeding-season, had recently 

 undergone, and more of it was yearly undergoing, a great and won- 

 derful change. 



For the information of persons unacquainted with this locality, let 

 me inform them that the extensive tract of boggy land, commonly 

 called Pilling Moss, is situated in the northern division of the county 

 palatine of Lancaster, and principally lying in the parish of Cocker- 

 ham, the townships of Winmarleigh, Out Rawcliffe, Stalmine and 

 Pilling ; but as Pilling occupies a central position, and has a greater 

 extent of bog-land appertaining to it, than any one of the other afore- 

 mentioned townships, this boggy tract has on that account, I presume, 

 obtained the name of Pilling Moss, which for centuries has afforded 

 a considerable supply of fuel to the inhabitants of the surrounding 

 country, and has also been considered so inexhaustible as to become 

 proverbial in many parts of the North of England, namely, that "Pil- 

 ling Moss and God's grace will last for ever." 



But it is the very remarkable change of the herbage of this cele- 

 brated Moss, that I have undertaken to notice in the first place. The 

 chief part of this Moss, in its original wild, uncultivated and undrain- 

 ed state, produces very little herbage excepting bent grass, and a poor, 

 short, unhealthy heath, provincially called ling. In its undrained 

 state, the surface is of so soft and spongy a texture, that no descrip- 

 tion of cattle can depasture or even walk upon it in security ; nay, 

 unless a long frost has congealed the surface, or a succession of dry 

 weather considerably evaporated the moisture, it is impassable, in 

 many parts, dry-shod, by man. In every quarter boggy swamps, pits, 

 or tarns of water, extensively prevail ; and an unlucky or unguarded 

 step may easily precipitate the careless intruder over head and ears in 

 some of the deep sloughs, which are neither few nor far between. 

 The average depth of this moss will probably be about eight or ten 

 feet, immediately under which lies a stratum of blue sand, loam or silt, 

 and this generally divides the boggy earth or peat from a rich and fri- 

 able marl or clay, which, when applied as manure to the drained moss, 

 renders it so fruitful as to produce, in favourable seasons, an excellent 

 crop of oats. 



Originally on this moss the common wild duck, teal, snipe, curlew, 

 iii 2z 



