A wild Devon summer for all the family

Devon Wildlife Trust has teamed up with South West Water to offer a range of wildlife events for all ages this summer.

The events have both water and wildlife themes and will include rockpool rambles on the coast, and pond-dipping, bug-hunting and wildlife walks at stunning nature reserves.

Many of the activities will be based at Wembury Marine Centre and beach, near Plymouth, where a freshwater stream surrounded by banks of wildflowers flows into the sea on one of Devon’s most wildlife-rich shorelines.

Mike Elsey, Major Supporters Fundraiser for DWT said: “building on the success of the association in previous years, we are once again extremely grateful for the support of South West Water in helping fund these community events around the county.”

Alan Hyde, Head of Communications for South West Water, said: “Our staff and partners work hard to protect the beautiful environment we enjoy in our region, so we’re delighted to support Devon Wildlife Trust.”

Events supported by South West Water this summer include the Nature Reserve Discovery Day at DWT Bystock Pools, near Exmouth, on Tuesday 28 July. A wild day out for all the family including animal sculpture-making, bug hunting and storytelling will run from 11am to 4pm. There will also be guided walks to discover the diverse wildlife at the reserve.

Next month, Wembury Marine Centre will be celebrating our seas with a free family day on the beach. The Love Your Water event will be held on Thursday 13 August from 10am to 4pm. A whole range of activities will run throughout the day including a rockpool ramble, snorkelling taster sessions, stream dipping, seashore crafts and face painting.

Devon Wildlife Trust and South West Water have also invited other organisations to provide information and activities at the Wembury event. The Marine Biological Association, National Trust and Marine Conservation Society are just some of the organisations who will be getting involved.

To round off the summer of South West Water-sponsored events, DWT will invite visitors to their Bovey Heathfield nature reserve near Newton Abbot, where children of all ages can explore the dragonflies and other creatures that live in the ponds. This Nature Reserve Discovery Day will take place on Saturday 19 September.

South West Water’s Alan Hyde commented, “these fantastic community events will be a great opportunity to talk to people about how looking after water is a starting place for looking after wildlife and how looking after both is good for everyone.”

In addition to these public events, South West Water is also funding DWT’s work with 50 schools this year. Talks will be given to over 2,000 school children about the marine environment and the weird and wonderful animals to be found in our seas. The students will then visit Wembury Marine Centre to start exploring an underwater world for themselves.

DWT’s Mike Elsey added, “by supporting our conservation work, particularly in areas of education, South West Water is directly helping us to inspire people about nature, which will ultimately help the protection of wildlife and wild places in Devon.”

For more information on Devon Wildlife Trust’s full programme of events visit www.devonwildlifetrust.org or call 01392 279244.