Nature & Wildlife
Braunton Burrows
Braunton Burrows and over 3000 hectares of the North Devon landscape have been formally recognised by UNESCO as Britain's first new-style Biosphere Reserve. The biosphere has the Burrows at the core and stretches out to include Braunton Marshes and Great Field, Northam Burrows, the Taw and Torridge Estuary and out as far as Croyde Dunes and Kipling Tors. It is considered to be of international importance because of the diversity and abundance of rare plants and its continuous human use from ancient times.
 |
Northam Burrows Country Park Protected by a huge ridge of pebbles, the country park comprises 650 acres of sand dunes, salt marsh and pasture. Nearby, there is a visitors centre explaining the ecology of the sea and surrounding area. For a winter walk why not park at Northam Burrows and walk along the beach to Westward Ho! |
Lundy Island
Lundy's flora and fauna is so rich and diverse that most of the Island is a designated Site of Special Scientific Interest and the seas surrounding it are England's only statutory Marine Nature Reserve. Lundy is renowned for its large population of puffins - the name 'Lundy' is in fact the Norse word for puffin. There are approximately thirty-five different bird species on Lundy and there are plenty of vantage points on Lundy for birdwatching. Lundy is also famous for its grey seal population and is also home to fulmars, kittiwakes, peregrines and manx shearwaters which breed on the island. Other inhabitants on the island include Lundy ponies, rabbits and shrews. The warden of Lundy Island runs a number of events for members of the public. These including Rocky Shore Rambles, Lundy by Land and Sea, Seabird Walks and Snorkelling Safaris. For further information visit the Lundy Island page.
Tarka Country
The
scenery has changed little over the years and remains predominantly rural.
The soil is rich and red, created from the red sandstone for which
this part of Devon is famous. Livestock and dairy farming are typical
in this rolling countryside, with fields divided by traditional hedges.
Large settlements are scarce, but look out for small rural villages and
farms, some with thatched roofs. Keen naturalists may spot herons
stalking the river shallows, buzzards overhead or deer near
woodlands.
Tarka
lives on
Autumn 2002 saw the
75th anniversary of Tarka the Otter. Its author, Henry Williamson, imagined
and then wrote “his joyful water life and death in the country of
the two rivers” (the Taw and Torridge) in North Devon in the mid
1920s. Having moved to the area in 1921, Williamson conceived the idea
of a full-length story about the life of an otter. To learn more visit
the Henry Williamson
website.
Devon Biodiversity Action Plan
Biodiversity Action Plans set priorities for nationally and locally important habitats and wildlife. They work on the basis of local partnership to implement conservation for the priority habitats, species, wildlife and local sites. In Devon, Action Plans have been prepared for the following local species: atlantic salmon, barn owl, greater horseshoe bat, curlew, Devon whitebream and related species, golden hair lichen, great green brush cricket and primrose - as well as the following birds, butterflies, corals, crustaceans, damsels, mammels and molluscs:
 Cirl bunting (Emberiza cirlus) |
 Nightjar (Caprimulgus europaeus) |
 Otter (Lutra lutra) |
 Dormouse (Masardinus avellanarius) |
 Southern damselfly (Coenagrion mercuriale) |
 Brown hare (Lepus europaeus) |
 Pink sea-fan (Eunicella verrucosa) |
 Water vole (Arvicola terrestris) |
 Freshwater Pearl Mussel (Margaritifera margaritifera) |
 Freshwater white-clawed crayfish |
 Pearl-bordered fritillary (Boloria euphrosyne) |
 Marsh fritillary (eurodryas aurinia) |
Visit the Devon Biodiversity Action Plan website to see the partners invovled and for further information.
Royal Society for the Protection of Birds
The
RSPB's conservation programme in Devon has almost trebled the numbers
of cirl buntings in Britain. Key to the success of this project was the
involvement of the local community. This included working with land owners
and farmers helping to develop farm management agreements through to children
carrying out special projects in schools across the County.
Article: Birds in
the Torridge Estuary - August 2002
This is
a quiet time for birds, a time when they have almost finished breeding.
Some are thinking about migrating, others remain in woodland or isolated
areas to moult, that is to renew their feathers. Sitting in the garden
during the first warm weekend in August a party of young blue tits and
long-tailed tits searched a magnolia tree for insects. In the clear sky
above swallows, swifts and house martins were doing the same. Their diet
would also include flying ants which are also attractive to the gulls.
A clamouring of gulls over the river was followed by a heron retreating
away towards Kenwith. During the evening a quiet evening walk down the
Tarka Trail can reveal chaffinch, greenfinch and goldfinch and when you
reach the reed beds a little patient watching and reed warblers can be
seen flickering in an out of the reeds. Despite the relative quiet there
are always things to be seen if you are patient.
Source:
Bideford Buzz, August 2002
|
Article:
Devon's top ten birds - July 2003 Behind the house sparrow in second
place in the Devon chart was the blue tit, with an average of 3.3
birds seen per garden. Blackbirds were the most widespread, with
2.5 birds seen in 93% of Devon gardens. Overall the number of gardens
surveyed in Devon this year rose by an incredible 2,000 to 5,388,
and 8,278 people took part - many of them schoolchildren. Tony
Whitehead, South West co-ordinator of the Big Garden Birdwatch,
said: "We are absolutely delighted. This demonstrates the interest
and concern that people living in the county have for the birds
around them. It is essential that surveys like this continue
to gather important scientific information if we are to reverse
the decline of our best loved garden birds, such as the starling
and house sparrow." |
|
Article: Birding
in Devon
Devon has
a wide variety of habitats, fertile estuaries break up the rugged coastline
North and South, there is heathland in the East, both coniferous and deciduous
woodland, hilly farmland and of course high moorland. Rarities can and
do, turn up in any of these habitats, witness the recent Spectacled Warbler
found on Dartmoor. More often than not, however, the major rarities turn
up in the most inaccessible places, and that of course means an Island,
in Devon's case; Lundy. For resident birds, Devon is best known for its
population of Cirl Buntings, whose stronghold is the South Hams. Peregrine,
Raven, Dipper, Pied Flycatcher and Little Egret are all relatively easy
birds for visiting birders. Sea watching, mainly from the South coast,
may provide Sabine's gull, Sooty shearwaters etc, under the right conditions.
Lundy's impressive firsts for Britain list includes: American Robin (1952
- preceded by Irish records), Common Yellowthroat (1954), Sardinian Warbler
(1955), Baltimore Oriole (1958), Bimaculated Lark (1962), Rufous-sided
Towhee / Eastern Towhee (1966), Spanish Sparrow (1966), Eastern Phoebe
(1987) and the Ancient Murrelet (1990).
Source:
Fat Birder website
North
Devon's Mazzard Trees
Landkey Parish Council have rescued Mazzard trees from the brink of extinction. The variety of sweet cherry was once common in North Devon, but had almost died out. The parish council won a £35,000 matching grant through the Countryside Agency's Millennium Green project to pave the way for creating a two-acre orchard as part of a wider Millennium Green project.
Full credit is due to parish council chairman and mazzard advocate Dick Joy who helped to save North Devon's very own cherry from extinction following 80 years of steady decline. He reports every tree is in good health and making tremendous growth.
|
South West Lakes Trust What
is the SW Lakes Trust? What
does it offer? |
|
|
|
Volunteer
conservation projects The closest lakes to Elmscott Youth Hostel are:
Magical seahorses at home in Devon's seas Seahorses aren't just found in exotic, warm climates - they also live in Britain's coastal waters, and Devon is one of their strongholds. If you're lucky and you know exactly where to look, you'll find shoals of beautiful seahorses just yards off Devon's beaches. A survey carried out by the Exeter-based Seahorse Trust, has recorded over 300 sightings of seahorses around Britain's shores - in Paignton they have been seen just 100-200 yards from the shore. Neil Garrick-Maidment, of the Seahorse Trust, said: "Tor Bay is a great places for seahorses. Britain has two species of seahorses - the spiny and the short-snouted, and both can be found in Tor Bay. They like the eel-grass there, and they're very close to the shore. Seahorses have also been seen in the River Tamar and we've just had a report of a sighting at Saunton Sands in North Devon." Neil, who handed his collection of seahorses to Plymouth's National Marine Aquarium, is hoping to open a new £1m seahorse centre in Devon. The emphasis would be on conservation and education. To read the complete article (dated 20th July 2004) visit the BBC Devon website.
|
Page last updated: 18 August 2004