When I collected Charlie from Springhill Farm campsite, for a day’s birdwatching around Druridge Bay and southeast Northumberland, I could never have guessed that the day would bring such extremes of emotion and experience.
As a wildlife tourism business we appreciate that the control of Grey Squirrels, in order to conserve our Red Squirrels, is a difficult issue for many people. And so it should be; after all, that control involves the permanent removal from the population of Grey Squirrels. We’ve shown Red Squirrels to lots of clients over the last three years, and we always explain the Red vs Grey issue in as much depth as we can. It’s almost impossible to describe my feelings as we approached one of our favourite woodland glades, only to be greeted by the sight of a Grey Squirrel scampering up a tree trunk.
The other end of the emotional scale came as we ate our lunch just south of Cresswell, and watched 3 adult White-beaked Dolphins, and a calf, breaching time and again.
Two mammals, eliciting very different emotions. Then again, watching wildlife should be an emotional experience…