Deer Day April 2021

It was good to be back at the reserve after yet another lock down and continue with work towards our John Muir award. Today we were joined by Harry, a young person who has been working at the reserve alongside Jonathan whilst doing his conservation degree. He told us what he had been doing and about his career path and different opportunities available. Before coming we had all been asked to watch a fascinating short film about Trophic Cascade - How Wolves Change Rivers - YouTube It was really interesting to find out what it is and its impact! We had all done individual research about the different species of deer that live in the UK which we then shared and discussed with the group. Red Deer Roe Deer Sika Deer Fallow Deer Muntjac Deer Chinese Water Deer After all that theory we went off in groups to go and see if we could find any evidence of deer on the reserve as there have been sightings and footage on the camera traps. We found lots of deer hooves prints down by the dark pond perfectly captured in the muddy clay. As we were sitting outside learning in the morning sunshine, the swallows made their first appearance of the year singing and swooping over the lake - what a treat! It was lovely to be back and watch how the reserve is bursting into Spring.