The arrival of the cygnets at Abbotsbury Swannery
Discover Animals’ new roving reporter, Geoff Moore, presents the first of some fabulous films on wildlife attractions around the country with a visit to Abbotsbury Swannery in Dorset.
Author: Abbe Bates
Abbotsbury Swannery
Abbotsbury Swannery in Dorset is the only managed colony of swans in the world where you can enjoy walking through hundreds of nesting and free-flying Mute Swans. The 600-year-old swannery was established by Benedictine Monks who built a monastery at Abbotsbury in the 11th century. The monks farmed the swans to produce food for their lavish […]
Stag beetle
Stag beetles are Britain’s largest land beetle, with males reaching up to 7.5 centimetres in size. They are also one of the most spectacular looking insects, with a male’s huge mandibles (antler-like jaws) making them easy to spot. Despite their appearance, stag beetles are harmless if left alone, and from mid-to-late-May are more likely to […]
Pipistrelle bat
The common pipistrelle bat is a very small species of bat that is native to the British Isles; in fact it is the smallest of the UK’s 18 species. It has a wing span of about 22 to 25 centimetres with an average life span of 4-5 years. It is a species of conservation concern […]
Robin
The robin is a familiar site in British gardens throughout the year, especially at Christmas. Males and females look identical, and young birds have no red colouring but are spotted with golden brown. They sing nearly all year round and are aggressively territorial. As well as being resident in gardens, robins also live in woodland, hedgerows […]
Eurasian beaver
Native to mainland Britain, beavers are herbivores who were hunted to extinction in the 16th century for their fur, meat and scent glands. The loss of beavers led to the loss of the mosaic of lakes, meres, mires, tarns and boggy places that they were instrumental in creating, but they have since been re-introduced to Britain over the last […]
Record year for beavers
The Wildlife Trusts have announced that 2021 will be a record year for beaver releases. Plans developed by the Wildlife Trusts of Dorset, Derbyshire, Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, Nottinghamshire and Montgomeryshire will see new beaver families moving into these counties for the first time.
Watch Discover Animals on TV today!
The Discover Animals team will be popping up on TV today, Thursday 3rd Sept, when we take part in the upcoming Celebrate Group Travel Day, streamed live via YouTube from 2pm-7pm. You can find out more about how animal attractions have been adjusting over the past few months as well as get up to date […]
Great Island Adventure Safaris of Madagascar
Great Island Adventure Safaris is based in Antananarivo in Madagascar and offers tailor-made tours to explore the island, still relatively unknown to visitors from the UK and Europe. The company specialises in birding, wildlife watching, trekking and ‘off the beaten track’ wilderness adventures. Fifty National Parks and nature reserves provide ample opportunity for nature discovery […]
Rewilding Britain’s lost landscapes
The opportunity to visit locations where rewilding projects to bring back native habitats and species are in action is an idea to consider this year. In particular, at Knepp Estate in West Sussex, where the concept of rewilding has been most significantly developed, you can encounter herds of wild ponies, cattle, deer and pigs as they roam […]
The Wonders of Nature proves to be the perfect follow-up
Following on from the best-selling An Anthology of Intriguing Animals, author and wildlife journalist Ben Hoare brings us The Wonders of Nature, a beautifully illustrated compendium that, alongside a selection of amazing animals, features plants, rocks, minerals and microorganisms. The hardback book features wonderful designs, photography and imagery to draw children into a world of fascinating facts. […]
Sensory play with animal Dooballs
The youngest member of the Discover Animals team at two years old had great fun testing out the new ‘Dooballs’ from French brand BabyToLove. The company has specialised in the creation of original and innovative baby products for over 10 years, and the Dooballs aim to stimulate babies and toddlers’ curiosity to catch, manipulate, shake […]
Extraordinary Insects: Weird, Wonderful & Indispensable
It was a pleasure to review one of HarperCollins recent nature releases, ‘Extraordinary Insects’, by Anne Sverdrup-Thygeson. Published on the Mudlark imprint, the book is wonderfully written and packed with facts about how insects keep the world going. The passion and enthusiasm for the topic that Anne has jumps off the page, and really brings […]
Best animal books for younger readers
The girl who really, really, really loves dinosaurs (Natural History Museum) With its bright colours and simple observations, ‘The girl who really, really loves dinosaurs’ by artist John Hamilton was a hit with my eighteen-month-old, who not only loved spotting the dinosaurs in the book but also the other animals that appear along the way. […]
Animals sound book captures kids’ imagination
The Little Book of Safari Animal Sounds by Andrea Pinnington and Caz Buckingham landed on our desks in the Discover Animals office recently and I took it home for my two children (5 and 1) to review! Through this fact-packed guide, readers can discover the unexpected call of the Plains Zebra, feel a chill when listening […]
Wildlife in the Cotswolds
As part of a recent holiday to the Cotswolds, Discover Animals’ Editorial Director Abbe Bates paid a visit to the Cotswold Wildlife Park and Gardens in Burford with her family. The 160-acre site is a mix of beautiful landscaped gardens and parkland, animal enclosures, aviaries, insect and reptile houses, farmyard, and adventure playgrounds. Its beginnings […]
Up close at Longleat
Sarah Jeffery from the Discover Animals team recently spent a day exploring Longleat Safari Park in Wiltshire with her daughter Caitlin. It had been a few years since the pair last visited, so they were excited to see what was new. ‘Marvellous Monsters’ is a new outdoor exhibition for 2017 and features 20 larger-than-life animatronic […]
Nausicaa re-opens with focus on sustainable tourism
On Saturday 28th January, NAUSICAA, the French National Sea Centre, opened its doors again in Boulogne after three busy weeks of annual maintenance carried out by the NAUSICAA team. As soon as the centre re-opened, the topic of sustainable tourism was highlighted in the Mangrove area, through a number of new animals. The latest arrivals […]
Winter snow safari adventures with Artisan Travel
‘Safari’ is a Swahili word for ‘to travel’. And because of that etymology, the term is most closely associated with wildlife-spotting journeys in Africa. But it’s possible to head north, to the countries closest to the Arctic Circle, for a snow safari or ‘snowfari’. Explore the winter wildernesses of Scandinavia, Lapland, Iceland and Alaska by […]
Xmas giraffe explores the great outdoors
A baby giraffe, which was born over Christmas, has ventured outside for the first time at Longleat. The male Rothschild’s giraffe, who has been named Evan in honour of a long-time keeper, was delivered inside the centrally-heated giraffery at the Wiltshire safari park in December. Since then the youngster – believed to be the 122nd […]
Twycross Zoo set to blossom with new landscaping project
Twycross Zoo in Leicestershire is pleased to announce that it has commissioned landscape architect Dominic Cole, best-known for his designs at the Eden Project and the Lost Gardens of Heligan in Cornwall, to create a new vision for the zoo’s landscaping. Although animals are the star attraction for visitors to Twycross Zoo, planting also plays […]
Living Coasts seal has eye op
A seal at Living Coasts in Devon has received crucial medical treatment from South Devon veterinary experts. South American fur seal Grace was first given slow-release implants in 2011 to control her immune system, which causes problems with her eyes. These implants were replaced in September 2014 – and now she has had the procedure again. […]
Lotherton Bird Garden to be transformed
Ambitious plans to transform Lotherton Bird Garden into an exciting new wildlife attraction are set to get underway this month. The spectacular Lotherton Wildlife World will see a number of new animal additions joining the Lotherton family including tapirs, capybaras and a colony of Humboldt penguins. The impressive redevelopment of the historic attraction, which first […]
New family soars into safari park
A family of gigantic pterosaurs have soared into the grounds of West Midland Safari Park in Worcestershire and made it their new home. With a wing span averaging around 11 metres, quetzalcoatlus was the largest animal to have ever taken to the skies. It was so tall, it could have looked a giraffe in the […]
Top tips for spotting UK wildlife this spring
As the seasons change from winter to spring, everything begins to come to life and this is the perfect opportunity to enjoy the UK’s wildlife at its best. With this in mind, TV presenter and ecologist Mike Dilger has partnered with Swarovski Optik, the leading luxury optic specialists, to offer a selection of top tips […]