The wildlife within our fishery is truly amazing, due to the lakes being within a very large Nature reserve there is no hunting or disturbances for the creatures that live here. The lakes themselves have an immense amount of insect, amphibian and fish diversity. We have smooth and palmate newts, Frogs and Toads, grass snakes, many kinds of fish and wide spectrum of insects especially the Dragonflies, Damselflies, Moths and Butterfly's. Our favourite is the emerald Damsel and the rare Black and Gold dragonfly. Some live in the lakes, others come from the crystal clear stream that borders the whole of the north side across the wild meadows and woods. The deer are frequent visitors, Roe deer are residents in the area and can easily be seen most days. The foxes have become very brave, walking across the meadows and hunting mice in the long grass. We have stopped cutting most of the grass areas to allow the wild flowers and field mice to flourish. This in turn now attracts Barn owls and Tawny owls to hunt around dusk and dawn.
The extensive tree hedges and wooded shelter belts have a variety of species our favourites being the wild Honeysuckle growing amongst the woods with its scent like perfume on those still warm early mornings, Blackthorn for the sloe Gin and Crab-apple for the delicious jelly we make every year. The main trees are Alder, Silver Birch, Beech, Oak, Ash, Willow and Hazel. These again attract many different bird species including Owls, Sparrow Hawks, Buzzards, and jay (from the reserve next door) Robin, Gold crest, Goldfinches, Bull finches, Wren,Woodpeckers, Many kinds of Tits, King fisher, Heron, Goosanders, Canadian Geese, Swans along with the wintering wildfowl visitors. During the Autumn mouths you can witness the amassing display of Starlings forming murmurations as the sun is about to set in the evening sky. We do have an occasional visit from the Cuckoo and the allusive Bitton can be heard within the reserve. A true Bird watchers paradise.
On the whole we are not plagued by these animals and it is always a pleasurable experience to have the natural fauna of the countryside so close.
