Power walk on the Tarka Trail

The sheep are back in the field there’s a break in the weather and blue skies at last so time to get out in the open air to see if there is any sign of Spring. The Tarka Trail is ideal for a walk run or cycle ride and one of my favourite stretches is from Yelland to Fremington Quay which is about 2.25 miles. As we stepped from the car about 30 Crows were roosting atop piles of wood on a recently cleared puddle-filled field. Off the Trail there are a couple of points of interest for birdwatchers and nature lovers, a path which skirts the shores of the Taw Estuary and the small RSPB Reserve Isley Marsh and the Gaia Trust’s Home Farm Marsh. There is a Permissive Path around Home Farm Marsh both paths are wild-flower rich in Spring/Summer and at this time of year the marshes are havens for over-wintering birds. Today I caught sight of about 10 Egrets along this stretch. There are field upon field of winter stubble on the other side of the trail and I noticed further up there is now another Permissive Path linking the trail to the village of Fremington. Amongst the winter stubble I spotted two male Pheasants. The Tarka Trail can be quite busy so listen out for the sound of tinkling bicycle bells. Watch out for these cyclists, they come in all different forms and all at different speeds. Head down racers, family groups (there is always one slow one bringing up the rear) Little ones teetering on the back of Dad’s bike or tots on trikes, wheelchair users or wheelchair tandems, this fantastic Trail is open to everyone, even folk with bicycle trailers specially designed for pampered pooches. Today we just had a pot of tea and a toasted teacake at Fremington Quay Café but Sunday Roast is also on the menu at this time of year. There is also an exhibition here which offers a fascinating insight into the Victorian quay’s past, with touch screen, video and sound displays. The tide was creeping into the Pill, I spotted about 15 Oystercatchers on the mud flats beyond and there were two flocks of seabirds flying in to join the multitude out on the estuary. No sign of the Seal that was a regular visitor to the Pill last year. A quiet but brisk walk back the way we came, a twittering Blue Tit, a Robin and a large group of Chaffinch fluttering up then settling in a nearby tree. Luckily the late afternoon sun lit up the old power lines over Isley Marsh and highlighted the estuary across to the iconic Saunton Sands Hotel. On the horizon the new power turbines at Fullabrook Wind Farm. Article Pat Adams Sunday 18^th January 2015

Don't forget to register now for the Big Garden Birdwatch 2015 which is on 24-25 January

Access and Parking - Head for the Estuary Business Park Road, West Yelland EX31 3EZ off the Bideford to Barnstaple B3233

or Access and Parking - Fremington Quay EX31 2NH

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Focus on the RSPB Reserves in North Devon
North Devon Focus on the Tarka Trail
Points of Interest

The Gaia Trust
Please note: Dogs are not permitted anywhere on Home Farm Marsh, even on leads. This is because of the Trust’s purpose for the Marsh to support and encourage breeding and over-wintering birds. Cycling is also not allowed, but cycles can be left chained to the railings at the entrances to the site, at the cycle owner’s risk.
RSPB Isley Marsh
Fremington Quay Heritage Centre was renovated and officially opened it’s doors to the public in 2013. Located in the replica station building that also contains the popular Fremington Quay Café, on the Tarka Trail, the Heritage Centre now offers a fascinating insight into the Victorian quay’s past, with touch screen, video and sound displays enabling the visitor to step back in time. A charming community space, a good place for visits by local groups or schools or anyone wishing to learn all about the history of Fremington Quay and Fishleigh Pottery. 

‘It’s north Devon’s turn’ for marine wildlife protection, say community figures

Community figures across north Devon, including local MP Sir Nick Harvey, are supporting a campaign to secure protection for the area’s unique marine environment. Two sections of the north Devon coast, along with an offshore area north of Lundy, are set to be considered by UK Government for designation as Marine Conservation Zones in 2015. As no new areas for protecting north Devon’s marine wildlife were included in the Government’s first designation of MCZs in 2013, the feeling that 2015 is ‘north Devon’s turn’ is building. The Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is expected to begin a public consultation on up to 37 recommended Marine Conservation Zones in the next few weeks. The three north Devon recommended MCZs are Bideford to Foreland Point, Hartland Point to Tintagel and North of Lundy. These three areas include a wide variety of coastal and undersea habitats from the sandy shores of Bideford Bay to the popular rockpools of Ilfracombe’s Tunnels Beach. Devon Wildlife Trust has been inviting people to support legal protection of north Devon’s marine wildlife by becoming a Friend of Marine Conservation Zones. This campaign has received support from prominent figures in the local community. Local MP Nick Harvey explained why he wanted to see the creation of a Marine Conservation Zone on the coast of his constituency: “We are incredibly lucky to have such a stunning section of coastline right on our doorstep here in North Devon, inhabited by a diversity of species, from reef-building worms to seabirds, rare corals and harbour porpoises. There are real gaps in the existing Marine Conservation Zones across the country and I strongly support the case for Bideford to Foreland Point to receive this designation in the second ‘tranche’ of MCZs.” The first ‘tranche’ of 27 MCZs designated in 2013, included four Devon sites. Although one of these was around Lundy, these waters had already received protection as England’s first Marine Conservation Zone in 2010. That’s why the second round of MCZs represents the first opportunity to secure new areas to protect marine wildlife in north Devon. Sir Nick took up this point: “The conservation of North Devon’s rich marine environment is vital. We need the tailored protections that MCZ status can offer to ensure that generations to come are able to enjoy, study and preserve our fantastic marine ecosystems. There is a huge amount of evidence to back up Bideford to Foreland Point’s candidacy for the MCZ designation and I hope experts and the Government alike will make the right decision this year.” The beauty and variety of north Devon’s coastal and marine environment also support local livelihoods in fishing and tourism. New Marine Conservation Zones could have a role to play in safeguarding jobs for the future. Lawrence Raybone, director of Ilfracombe Aquarium, emphasized this point: “Careful consideration and collaboration needs to be offered to those who depend on the proposed Marine Conservation Zones for their livelihoods - but at the same time in order to provide long term sustainability of biodiversity adequate protection within proposed marine reserves is the only solution” said Lawrence. North Devon has already proved this to be the case, Lawrence continued: “Lundy Marine Reserve has provided evidence of the benefits of marine reserves providing safe havens for biodiversity -including commercial species such as lobster. These animals grow larger and produce more offspring, with juveniles moving into surrounding unprotected areas. These unprotected areas have then seen improved productivity and commercial value.” And it’s not just fisheries that could benefit, added Lawrence. “Other benefits include eco-tourism which is another valuable growth industry.” Currently closed for refurbishment, Ilfracombe Aquarium is due to re-open for the February half-term with a Devon Wildlife Trust display on the Marine Conservation Zones campaign. The marine wildlife of the north Devon coast still provides surprises. In 2014, retired teacher Robert Durrant, who volunteers as a marine recorder for Coastwise North Devon, discovered a new variety of sea anemone off Hele Bay, as reported in December. Bideford resident Robert explained why creating new Marine Conservation Zones is so important: “The more rich in species the seas are, the more we are enriched, spiritually as well as economically. So it is vital that we act quickly and effectively to stop the decline, and to create havens where this natural treasure of sealife can be safe and flourish. There needs to be a network of such havens, interlinked and comprising every type of habitat for every type of marine life.” Having spent countless hours exploring the north Devon coast, Robert detailed his feelings about why this area is so special: “The dramatic coast of North Devon is a beautiful but a harsh and demanding environment. There is little shelter. On the rocky coast, most creatures have to seek out refuges against the pounding Atlantic breakers. Nevertheless, there is a great richness of life here. And this needs protection against human ravages, against which it is defenceless, much more than against the fury of the sea against which it can cling to life.” Devon Wildlife Trust’s Richard White, summed up what marine conservationists want to see in north Devon: “It is vital that we fill gaps in the network of protection around our coast. The North Devon Marine Conservation Zones were left out of the first round, much to the annoyance of local stakeholders who worked so hard to reach agreement on where they should go. We know that the voice of the public makes a difference, so we are encouraging people to respond to the Defra consultation in the coming weeks, showing the strong levels of local support to ensure these special places are protected.” 

To support the creation of north Devon’s MCZs people can become a Friend of Marine Conservation Zones on the Wildlife Trusts’ website ‘Friends’ receive all the information and guidance required to take part in the public consultation on Marine Conservation Zones, which is expected to begin in the next few weeks. 

  Welcombe Mouth, where Devon meets Cornwall: coastline included in Hartland Point to Tintagel recommended MCZ - Photo copyright David Chamberlain (All Rights Reserved)

Nick Harvey MP and DWT’s Richard White rockpooling at Combe Martin, Sept 2014 
Photo copyright DWT (All Rights Reserved)
Devonshire cup coral, one of the notable species of Bideford to Foreland Point recommended MCZ Photo copyright Paul Naylor (All Rights Reserved)

‘Fairy’ found on north Devon coast in new sea creature discovery

A new variety of sea anemone has been found off the coast of north Devon. Just 6mm tall, the tiny animal was spotted by retired teacher Robert Durrant in Hele Bay, near Ilfracombe. But it took an international exchange of emails and photos before the anemone was identified as a new variety. As it lacks a common name, Robert has proposed calling the small, pretty creature the ‘fairy anemone’. As a volunteer marine recorder for Coastwise North Devon, Robert wasn’t particularly looking to find a new species. He takes up the story: “It was found by accident at Hele Bay really – I took a photo and posted it on Facebook and experts hadn’t a clue. So I decided to take a specimen for my aquarium at home to feed the anemone to see how it would develop – and get some more photos to try to identify it.” There are more than forty recognised species of sea anemone found on our coasts, with the dark red beadlet anemone the most commonly seen. Although their appearance gives the impression of a flowering plant, the tentacles on these animals make them very effective predators. Once Robert had started to feed the anemone in his aquarium, it grew a little. He also noticed it reproducing asexually by breaking off small fragments of its body then moving away from them. In time, these smaller pieces will develop into individual anemones. The breakthrough in identification came after Robert tried a different way of photographing the animal. Robert said: “I took a backlit photo which showed very clearly the transparency of the anemone as well as the tiny tubercules on it.” After more online correspondence a French expert, Wilfried Bay-Nouailhat, identified it as a different variety of an anemone known to science as Aiptasiogeton pellucidus. Robert explains: “This anemone had been found in Portland Harbour in 1976, then further along the Dorset coast over the next two years – after that it disappeared off the radar.” But the differences between the anemones found in Dorset in the 70s and that of Robert’s find in 2014 are enough that experts agree they are different varieties of one species. As the scientific name for the Hele Bay discovery, Aiptasiogeton pellucidus var comatus, is a bit of a mouthful, Devon Wildlife Trust asked Robert for a suggested common name. Robert’s preference? “I’d like to call it the fairy anemone, as it’s so small, delicate and elusive.” Since this record, further anemones have been found at Newlyn in Cornwall which are individuals of the ‘Hele Bay’ variety, rather than the previously familiar ‘Portland Harbour’ variety. Devon Wildlife Trust’s Dan Smith commented: “It’s amazing that new animal discoveries can still be made right on our shores. The north Devon coast is particularly rich in marine habitats and species, which is why local people nominated the area from Bideford to Foreland Point as a Marine Conservation Zone. Government missed this site off the list in the first designations of MCZs in 2013, but we have a chance to secure protection for this stunning section of coast in the new year.” Dan continued: “Bideford to Foreland Point is one of three recommended MCZs for north Devon which the Government is considering for designation in 2015 – and public support could help secure protection for these marine sites.” 

The Government is expected to begin a public consultation on new Marine Conservation Zones in January. People can discover how to get involved on The Wildlife Trusts website: So the fairy on top of the Christmas tree is not the only one to have caught the eye this winter. Another ‘fairy’ off the north Devon coast shows how even the experts can still be dazzled by the wildlife beneath the waves.

  Photos of the anemone copyright Robert Durrant (All rights reserved)