Other side of the fence

Hello again! or for the first time to any of you who are new to the blog

As promised in my last entry, for the next couple of posts I shall be having a look at my experiences with the wild world beyond Kent, and to help illustrate this I am excited to get the chance to show you some of my favourite photos taken across the UK.

For any of you who don't know, I was lucky enough to spend the past 4 years studying at Bangor University in North Wales, beside the picturesque Snowdonia National Park and it's mountain ranges. It is therefore here that I will begin, looking at some of the amazing North Wales coast.

View from near the peak of Mount Snowdon

Ascending Mount Snowdon with the
parallel train line visible

Although the ranges themselves offer some opportunities to see beautiful scenery and landscapes, it is in the harbour city of Bangor and in towns across the North Wales coast where I spent most of my time photographing. This string of towns and villages radiates a lovely sense of community and is accompanied by an almost parallel string of reserves including 'Porth Diana', 'Cemlyn', 'Mariandyrys', 'Nantporth', the 'Spinnies', 'Gogarth', 'Rhiwledyn' and 'Big Pool Wood'. These reserves stretch alongside the Wales Coast Path from Holyhead on Anglesey to Flint and are managed by the North Wales Wildlife Trust. 

Pair of white speckled pattern
 rock doves at Conwy Castle

Over the course of my time spent in Bangor, I visited many of these towns and some reserves at least once or twice, however personal highlights were the towns of Cowny, with its impressive castle and more medieval layout, and Colwyn Bay, home of the Welsh Mountain Zoo and the sites utilised for my masters thesis. 

Although a tad unusual for wildlife spotting, I found that Conwy Castle made for some lovely shots of perhaps less noticed common bird species such as Jackdaws (Corvus monedula) and Rock doves (Columba livia), with the rocky outcrops and remaining castle walls giving an almost solitary, pensive backdrop.

Solitary focused Jackdaw perched on a
 Conwy Castle wall

When looking at interesting animal and plant life in Colwyn Bay however, perhaps the most obvious group to mention are those cultivated or conserved at the Welsh Mountain Zoo. Located on the hillside beside the town, this park is built into mainly deciduous woodland and helps to conserve both local native and exotic endangered species across the many enclosures, exhibits and conservation projects.

Similar to the topic of my masters thesis though, it is those that have made their home wild within these woodland grounds of the zoo itself that I am fascinated by, with a myriad of bird, mammalian and insect life thriving throughout the park.

From my time spent there though, there is one individual in particular that will stick with me for years to come, a European robin that for some reason I felt the need to name Janine. This bird gave some much needed company on the cold wet days carrying out my masters fieldwork and although she frequently helped herself to the bait that I was using for my rodent live-trapping, I will likely not find another robin so human accustomed and friendly.

Janine with a friend eating some
dropped bait

European robin foraging in leaf litter

Janine on a crisp winter morning

On those days when you just fancy walking for a while though, the city of Bangor itself is where I would generally be found. With a wild wooded hill on one side and the steep hill of Bangor's upper town, with it's green park space, on the other, I spent many days happily snapping away in between lectures and on days off.

View of Snowdonia National Park from Bangor

7-spot ladybird climbing a blade of grass

Overgrown bench at Roman camp in Bangor

Intersecting paths in the sunshine
 atop Roman camp

Eerie steps down towards
 the Menai Strait

Female herring gull perched along
Bangor pier

Silohuetted crows in Bangor

Shadows of Stone Circle near
 the University

Hardy sprout grows from a pipe

I also relished the opportunity whilst living in this North Wales city to indulge my love of urban wildlife photography. Although simple, this in particular is one of my favourite photos as I think it shows the resilience inherent in even the smallest sprout.

Over the years though, I have also made the trip home to Kent and back many times, and far be it for me to turn down an opportunity to pull out my camera!

Dwarf mongoose (Helogale parvula)
 digging at Chester Zoo

These journeys, along with behavioural trips taken with the university, allowed me on many occasions to experience the fantastic Chester Zoo. This zoo, considered by many to be amongst the top zoological parks in the country, is well worth a visit and houses hundreds of species, many of which are on the endangered species list.

Yellow mongoose (Cynictis penicillata) staying
alert at Chester Zoo

Stubborn shrub surviving between lines
at Chester train station

On those rare, slightly longer than the train, drives back to Kent, we often also stopped to take in the scenery of the Welsh countryside. In particular when we decided on a more rural mid-Walian route, the rolling green hills offered lovely shots and a refreshing backdrop for a bit of local lunch. 

Rolling green hills in the heart of Wales

Mother sheep with her lamb

European robin (Erithacus rubecula) hunting
 for scraps outside of Bangor

There you have it then! Although more of a summary by necessity, and far from everything I could describe about these lovely areas with more time and space, hopefully I have shown how beautiful and worth a visit Wales and in particular the northern coast are for potential adventurers.

Stunning sunset over Birkenhead
from Liverpool

For those of you who are interested, in my next post I will be continuing in a similar vein, adding to this series by showing some of my experiences with wildlife beyond the shores of Britain. With any luck I have shown a few of you perhaps something new or something old in a new light, and so until next time, Have fun adventuring!

Sunset over the Menai Strait
from Bangor Pier

Mountain landscape outside of Bangor

Stodmarsh NNR

Hi everyone! Welcome back for another exciting entry into the reserves of Kent with Invicta Zoologia. This time I will be having a gander at the Stodmarsh National Nature Reserve in the picturesque Stour Valley.

Located beside the lovely little village of Stodmarsh, this reserve comprises marshland and wetland reservoir habitat spanning over 200 hectares of Northern area of Kent.

Wetland Stodmarsh Reserve

As you begin one of the many walks around the reserve, boardwalks and bridges allow you to experience the scenic waterways and the wildlife found there. In the summer particularly, a myriad of coloured butterflies and dragonflies, including commas (Polygonia c-album), speckled woods (Pararge aegeria), common red darters (Sympetrum striolatum) and common blue Damselflies (Enallagma cyathigerum) flit around investigating your presence.

Comma Butterfly perched on a hand rail

Common red darter having temporarily landed on the stony path

Speckled Wood Butterfly resting on a leaf

Thick ledges of fungi growing on trunk

Making your way to the more open areas of wetland, bird hides allow you to watch groups of wading birds feed and socialise with minimum human disturbance, and I particularly enjoyed watching the flocks of Greylag geese (Anser anser) seen below. The site in general is fantastic for viewing bird species, with its combination of wetland and marsh habitats providing plenty of ground-level vegetation for nesting and feeding. The water bodies also provide an ample supply of invertebrates and fish to support the avian colonies. 

Interestingly, this aspect also contributes heavily to the site's status as a prime habitat for the endangered British water vole (Arvicola amphibius), although it would have to be a rather lucky day to spy a glimpse of these iconic aquatic mammals!

Geese cruising through the marsh

Pair of Greylag geese strutting their stuff

Feeding flock of Greylag geese

Greylag floating in the still water

Beautiful plumage of the Greylag goose

Looking around while you attempt to navigate the myriad of walkways, little pockets of activity can generally be seen through the undergrowth, be it in wild ponds or in the many waterways criss crossing the landscape. Coot (Fulica atra) can be seen scattered around foraging for vegetation and invertebrates such as larvae and snails, as well as distant wetland growing trees in the heavy with flocks of fishing cormorants (Phalacrocorax carbo). Even immobile stands such as wild fungus growing upon fallen logs allow visitors to see the ever changing life cycles inherent in these ecosystems.

A good wing beat to get rid of that excess water

New life growing from the old

Foraging coot seen through the undergrowth

Cormorants taking a fishing break 

One of Stodmarsh's many plant-rich walks

For those of you a little more botanically minded, the reserve is also home to some lovely specimens of wetland, marsh and terrestrial plants, many of which create lovely summer displays of wild flowers. Common throughout the reserve, bulrush (Typha spp.) rhizomes can be picturesque alongside a pond or through marsh and as an interesting side note are almost entirely edible, with these "cattails" often referred to as "supermarkets of the swamp" in the US. 

In terms of autumn sights, even weeds such as dandelions (Taraxacum spp.) and the conical seed heads of the teasel (Dipsacus fullonum) can, in my personal opinion, make for some beautiful seasonal photos when hit in the right light. For some foragers and florists, indeed the teasel's seed cone has even become a staple appearance in dried flower arrangements. 

Dried out teasel seed pods

Resilient dandelion in the autumn sun

Insect looking out over the landscape from its grass perch

Shadowy bench overlooking a lake

So there you have it! Although I most likely will have to come back to this reserve to experience it in future seasons, if it's within reasonable travel distance it is well worth a trip out. I'm sure there are plenty of surprises that I either haven't managed to cover here or haven't had the chance to experience yet, so if you have a few hours free, why not give them to Kent's nature and have a go at exploring Stodmarsh and the Stour Valley!

For those who are interested, next time I will be taking a short break from looking at Kent's wildlife and will instead be having a hopefully different look at the wildlife and landscapes I have experienced a bit further afield, in both the UK and abroad. Also, for anyone who fancies a gander at more of my wildlife photography, links to both my DeviantART and Flickr galleries can be found along the right side of the blog.

See you next time!

Sandwich and Pegwell Bay NNR

Following in a similar vein to my previous post, I thought this time I would have a look, albeit far more briefly than it deserves, at the wonderful National Nature Reserve at Sandwich and Pegwell Bay.

The lovely view out from the Sandwich and Pegwell Bay reserve

Managed by the Kent Wildlife Trust, this coastal reserve is Internationally important for its bird species, particularly wildfowl and waders such as dunlin (Calidris alpina), curlew (Numenius arquata) and oystercatcher (Haematopus ostralegus). It covers a variety of local habitat types including mudflats, saltmarsh, sand dunes and coastal scrubland and has a range of difficulty paths to suit anyone visiting.

Insect getting covered in pollen

Flies getting their fill of nectar in a lovely purple wildflower

A lovely rustic glass vase of these stunning red edged flowers
 was placed with others beside a lain wooden log

White flower of the lesser bindweed

As you walk around the reserve, there is some beautiful flora to be seen, particularly in the summer with wildflowers thriving throughout, although some of the more resilient flowers such as those of the lesser bindweed (Convolvulus arvensis) still make an impressive appearance in the autumn.

Common red darter newly perched on a leaf

Common red darter perched on a dead stem

View out across the marshes on a
more cloudy day

Bunches of elderberries thriving on the reserve

The surprisingly consistent good weather this summer has also bolstered the local insect life, with flitting dragonflies such as the common red darter (Sympetrum striolatum) and summer butterfly species, which accompany the marsh and field habitat, being a welcome regular sight. Wild growing fruit can also be seen on the reserve keeping the wild bird species well fed, with apple trees (Malus domestica) and elderberry bushes (Sambucus) scattered around. 

Highland cow grazing whilst a curlew
 forages nearby

Highland cow basking in the summer sun

Exmoor pony shaking off dust in the summer sun

Herd of exmoor ponies grazing

The reserve is also home to herds of lovely shaggy highland cattle, Exmoor ponies and Polish Konik primitive horses grazing in certain areas. On one of my sunnier summer visits to the reserve in fact I was even lucky enough to spend time watching a group of highland cattle resting in the shade whilst two adventurous magpies (Pica pica) hopped around and even on top of them to peck at insects abundant in the cow's fur.

Magpie picking flies from the face of
a Highland cow

Magpie standing proud beside an inquisitive Highland cow

Magpie after hopping onto the head
of a relaxed Highland cow

All in all, this reserve offers a wonderful nature trip out for anyone in the area, with picnic seating areas and a play park for the little'uns. For those interested in more marine species as well, the harbour in nearby Ramsgate runs a boat trip along the adjacent River Stour to search for marine mammals, particularly seals, with the boats often being seen drifting up and down the river from the reserve.

It really is brilliant being able to see such a wide variety of protected habitats in a visit to one site and, with hides and viewing areas dotted around, you are exposed to a good range of what more natural Kent has to offer and stand a good chance of seeing some fantastic wildlife.  

Wilderness view down one of the reserve's paths

View out the marshes with waders and
Ramsgate visible

Bunch of Hawthorn (Crataegus) berries

Another view out over the marshes towards Ramsgate

Well then, that's my brief account of what I've experienced so far and my thoughts on the Sandwich and Pegwell Bay National Nature Reserve. I hope to have done it some justice through my photographs, although to really see how beautiful it is you'll have to visit it yourselves! 

For those who are interested, my next post will be looking at another of the NNRs in Kent, the picturesque Stodmarsh Reserve in the Great Stour valley. See you then!