Discover Animals’ Geoff More visits the most southerly point in the UK, Lizard Point, home to colonies of seals and the much rarer to spot chough, Cornwall’s national bird:
There are several sites around the rugged coastline and harbours of Lizard Point where you can see seals either swimming or resting up on the remote beaches. Grey and common seals can be spotted checking out some of the harbours at quieter periods. Being inquisitive and playful, they can at times come closer to humans than is really safe for them, especially if dogs are around.
At Lizard Point itself, taking time to enjoy a hearty breakfast or afternoon tea at the most southerly cafe in the UK is a good place to start. Walking from Lizard village itself, half a mile to the point, is enough to build a small appetite for a meal or snack or pick up one of Anne’s Pasties  (bel0w) to consume as you stroll due south. Certainly a ‘must do’ food experience in Cornwall along with the famous cream teas!
I arrived at the most southerly and exposed point rather wet but with the weather clearing, it was not long before other visitors had taken up the garden seating and a buzz went around that some seals had been spotted swimming around the former lifeboat station.
Out came the long lens and binoculars to better see them as they swam and then floated in that vertical way that they do, hovering in the surf. During my stay on the Lizard, there were a number of occasions that I spotted the wild creatures but at all times I adhered to the seal spotting rules to view at a distance and never encroach on them. Give them space; it’s just as satisfying viewing them from a distance as it is from trying to rush up to them.
Something that was really a surprise to be surrounded by a group of Cornish choughs whilst walking the cliffs from Mullion Cove to Poldhu Cove. This next wildlife encounter was rather the reverse of spotting seals as the birds came up to me or just accepted me as being part of the landscape.
Their calls are distinctive and their flight is also unusual. Their colour marks them out as a black crow-like bird; however, with a red/orange beak and red/orange legs, they are hard to miss! Â In my case, the birds were on top of me and surrounding me before I had a chance to note either such features.
As a small group they jumped around and fed. Only then did I start to hear their calls to each other as they pecked the rough grass, selecting food items as the communication almost seemed to be acknowledging each other’s success as another morsel was consumed or found. Over the years these birds have slowly grown in numbers. Reports now estimate that numbers could be around 200. I first saw a chough on a coastal mine walk near Lands End some 25 miles aways a few years ago. However, this area of the Lizard is now doing really well for chough numbers.
The rugged landscape of the Lizard also draws in a whole range of visiting birds from puffins to spotted flycatchers. Other species at different times include great northern divers, guillemots, razorbill, hen harrier and purple sandpiper.
If no luck seal spotting, then the Cornish Seal Sanctuary at Gweek, also on the Lizard, is where you will be guaranteed seeing seals and learning much more about them from the keepers and guides at this Sea Life Trust facility.
There are many places to stay on the Lizard peninsula from larger hotels, numerous holiday cottages and a number of campsites too. A hotel worth checking out is the family-style Polurrian Hotel (above), which has undergone some recent updating. Hotel guests have direct access to the beach at Polurrian Cove, an outdoor swimming pool, tennis court and Elemis spa, plus the Health Club featuring a gym, indoor pool and hot tub. Evenings are for enjoying cocktails while gazing at the spectacular coastal views from the floor-to-ceiling windows in the laid-back Vista Lounge.
Living Nature Common Seal Pup Soft Toy
£15.90
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