0:00:05 > 0:00:08Wales has many wonderful estates
0:00:08 > 0:00:13created with the wealth from landowning and industrial families.
0:00:13 > 0:00:15Once privately owned,
0:00:15 > 0:00:21most of these beautiful parklands are now open for all of us to enjoy.
0:00:22 > 0:00:26In this series, I'm uncovering another side to four of these parks.
0:00:26 > 0:00:29A side that often goes unnoticed by those who visit.
0:00:33 > 0:00:35I'm meeting people with inside knowledge to share.
0:00:35 > 0:00:41Exploring less visited corners. And finding night-time creatures.
0:00:42 > 0:00:50I'm discovering just how great these parks are for wildlife.
0:01:00 > 0:01:05This time, I'm amongst the dramatic scenery of Snowdonia.
0:01:08 > 0:01:13About seven miles east of Porthmadog lies the Maentwrog valley.
0:01:13 > 0:01:16Perched above the river on a wooded slope
0:01:16 > 0:01:19is a house that can be seen from miles around.
0:01:19 > 0:01:25This is Plas Tan-y-Bwlch, built by the Oakeley family,
0:01:25 > 0:01:29who made their money a few miles up the road in Blaenau Ffestiniog
0:01:29 > 0:01:30quarrying for slate.
0:01:30 > 0:01:32They made so much of it,
0:01:32 > 0:01:34they were able to build not just this wonderful house
0:01:34 > 0:01:37but also these magnificent gardens
0:01:37 > 0:01:39full of plants from all over the world,
0:01:39 > 0:01:43the village of Maentwrog in the distance
0:01:43 > 0:01:46and they even changed the course of the River Dwyryd
0:01:46 > 0:01:53to improve the view from the house. Now, that's wealth for you.
0:01:53 > 0:01:57Today, the house and gardens form Snowdonia National Park's
0:01:57 > 0:02:00Environmental Studies Centre.
0:02:00 > 0:02:02People come to stay and take part in courses
0:02:02 > 0:02:06from photography to insect identification.
0:02:06 > 0:02:09I'm starting my exploration in the garden.
0:02:09 > 0:02:12It's a place where the Oakeleys lavished
0:02:12 > 0:02:14a great deal of their wealth.
0:02:14 > 0:02:18It was clearly designed to impress.
0:02:18 > 0:02:20Wow! These colours.
0:02:20 > 0:02:24You don't get colours like these in native plants in the UK.
0:02:24 > 0:02:28Look at that! You could think, looking around at the rocks
0:02:28 > 0:02:29and all of these plants here,
0:02:29 > 0:02:33that you were somewhere like the Himalayas, couldn't you?
0:02:33 > 0:02:37Having a garden full of exotic plants was a sign of status.
0:02:37 > 0:02:43A team of 13 gardeners was required to maintain it.
0:02:43 > 0:02:46Sometimes, the best way to discover wildlife
0:02:46 > 0:02:48is to find a quiet place to sit.
0:02:51 > 0:02:55What appears to be a tranquil spot doesn't take long to come to life.
0:02:55 > 0:03:00And the garden pond is a great place to start.
0:03:04 > 0:03:07Very inquisitive dragonfly here,
0:03:07 > 0:03:10extremely territorial insects these are.
0:03:10 > 0:03:12It's a male southern hawker,
0:03:12 > 0:03:15lovely bluey and black body with a sort of greenish head.
0:03:15 > 0:03:18Because I am new, because I have just sat down,
0:03:18 > 0:03:19he'll come over, he'll have a look,
0:03:19 > 0:03:22he'd probably try and chase me away if he could as well.
0:03:22 > 0:03:27Here he comes. They are like helicopters, they'll go up and down, backwards, forwards.
0:03:27 > 0:03:32A pond like this is a great place for them, it's quite a big pond, a lot of vegetation.
0:03:32 > 0:03:35They lay their eggs in the water here and then that will stay in the water
0:03:35 > 0:03:40as a nymph for probably two, three, maybe even four years.
0:03:40 > 0:03:45Eventually, they emerge and over here you will see the cases of these nymphs.
0:03:45 > 0:03:51They're real alien-looking things and they'll emerge usually first thing in the morning,
0:03:51 > 0:03:55dry out, and this beautiful insect comes out the back of them.
0:03:55 > 0:03:59They have a sizable territory but it will be centred around this pond.
0:03:59 > 0:04:02If you sit and wait he'll come back. Here he comes again.
0:04:02 > 0:04:05Come on, old boy, come and have a shufty.
0:04:05 > 0:04:10The Oakeleys may have built these gardens for pleasure
0:04:10 > 0:04:15but in doing so they created a fantastic range of habitats.
0:04:15 > 0:04:18With plenty of stone walls and areas that are now overgrown
0:04:18 > 0:04:23it should be the perfect place to find mice and voles.
0:04:23 > 0:04:26So, I'm going to carry out an experiment.
0:04:26 > 0:04:30What I am going to try and do is get some footage of some of these voles.
0:04:30 > 0:04:33I have got a small camera here. That's recording now,
0:04:33 > 0:04:37so if I place that on there, in a nice sheltered spot.
0:04:37 > 0:04:42I'll bait it with some mixed seeds and I reckon, I'm pretty confident
0:04:42 > 0:04:48that in no time at all this will draw out any voles that are nearby.
0:04:48 > 0:04:52OK, I'm going to leave that now
0:04:52 > 0:04:56and see what the camera gets.
0:04:59 > 0:05:06It doesn't take long to get a result. This is a bank vole.
0:05:06 > 0:05:08They're often active during the day.
0:05:08 > 0:05:12The walls provide them with good cover to hide in.
0:05:12 > 0:05:15But other mammal species will be trickier to find,
0:05:15 > 0:05:17as they're more active at night.
0:05:17 > 0:05:21Do you think this wall, maybe this big wall up here will be any good?
0:05:21 > 0:05:23Yeah, and I think that's a pretty good place to put it.
0:05:23 > 0:05:27'Kate Williamson's got a useful technique, which should help.'
0:05:27 > 0:05:31- There's a pond along here too. - Yeah, let's go and have a look.
0:05:31 > 0:05:35'We're going to put together a trap that captures not the animal itself
0:05:35 > 0:05:38'but the footprints they leave behind.
0:05:38 > 0:05:41'We need a specially designed plastic tunnel,
0:05:41 > 0:05:42'two bits of white paper,
0:05:42 > 0:05:45'some animal-friendly ink,
0:05:45 > 0:05:48'a few of their favourite foods...'
0:05:48 > 0:05:52The hotdogs for our carnivores, who are our hedgehogs and our shrews,
0:05:52 > 0:05:57sunflower seeds for our wood mice and bank voles.
0:05:57 > 0:06:00'..and somewhere suitable to leave it.'
0:06:00 > 0:06:03This is a nice flat surface for it to be on.
0:06:03 > 0:06:06'Any visiting mammals will leave their footprints for us to find.'
0:06:06 > 0:06:08- In here, like that?- I think so.
0:06:08 > 0:06:12'Just to be sure, we leave a night vision camera trap nearby.'
0:06:12 > 0:06:16'With several of these set up around the garden,
0:06:16 > 0:06:19'fingers crossed we'll get a good result.
0:06:19 > 0:06:21'We'll check them all later.
0:06:21 > 0:06:25'In the meantime, there are some cold-blooded creatures
0:06:25 > 0:06:26'I'd really like to find.
0:06:26 > 0:06:31'We just need a bit of luck and some sunshine.'
0:06:31 > 0:06:34Been talking to the staff and one of the gardeners here
0:06:34 > 0:06:39and they say that in the past this...it's like a walled garden...
0:06:39 > 0:06:42is a good place to look for reptiles, and the weather should be perfect.
0:06:42 > 0:06:46It's been a cool morning but the sun's come out now
0:06:46 > 0:06:48so hopefully they'll be out basking, sunbathing
0:06:48 > 0:06:51and trying to warm up before they go off and hunt.
0:07:03 > 0:07:05A lot of patience needed for this.
0:07:05 > 0:07:11About 20 minutes later and I've found my first one.
0:07:11 > 0:07:13Whoa, whoa, whoa, what have we got here? Come here, boy,
0:07:13 > 0:07:15come here, come here.
0:07:15 > 0:07:18Here we are. This one is quite a fast one
0:07:18 > 0:07:21and be careful how you handle this one as well.
0:07:21 > 0:07:24Slow worm, completely, completely harmless.
0:07:24 > 0:07:26It's a lizard, a legless lizard.
0:07:26 > 0:07:29Somewhere along the line of evolution it did have legs
0:07:29 > 0:07:31but it decided it would be better off without legs
0:07:31 > 0:07:33so it's lost them again.
0:07:33 > 0:07:36I daren't pick it up by the tail
0:07:36 > 0:07:40because one of its defence mechanisms is that its tail breaks off.
0:07:40 > 0:07:42Say I was a kestrel now and got hold of it by the tail,
0:07:42 > 0:07:46the tail breaks off and wriggles around, so that makes the kestrel think,
0:07:46 > 0:07:48"Wow! Here he is, I've got him!"
0:07:48 > 0:07:53In the meantime, the animal itself escapes into the undergrowth.
0:07:53 > 0:07:56Oh, that's nice, that's really nice. I'm going to put this one back.
0:07:56 > 0:08:00You nearly got away, didn't you? You were haring along.
0:08:00 > 0:08:05There should be more reptiles here.
0:08:05 > 0:08:08And who said you couldn't get lucky twice in one day.
0:08:08 > 0:08:13Wow! This was one of those animals I was hoping to find here.
0:08:13 > 0:08:16Grass snake, beautiful, beautiful snake. Look at that!
0:08:16 > 0:08:19If you look at this one carefully,
0:08:19 > 0:08:21if I show you the head, see the eyes?
0:08:21 > 0:08:26Very, very pale, it's losing its skin, sloughing,
0:08:26 > 0:08:29and it's spraying stuff all over me.
0:08:29 > 0:08:32It absolutely stinks, absolutely stinks
0:08:32 > 0:08:35and that's a kind of defence mechanism
0:08:35 > 0:08:40because it smells as if it's dead. It really does!
0:08:40 > 0:08:45Oh, it really, really does stink and I'm going to smell for a while.
0:08:45 > 0:08:50But it's the perfect habitat for these because you have got stone walls here
0:08:50 > 0:08:53and this one was making its way towards the wall, it was going to hide in there.
0:08:53 > 0:08:58But it's come out on this soil and rock here, which is really warm,
0:08:58 > 0:09:02It's been warming up, and they are active hunters.
0:09:02 > 0:09:07It'll work its way through here looking for mice, voles, toads, frogs and newts.
0:09:07 > 0:09:12You used to see lots of them but they have got rarer and rarer
0:09:12 > 0:09:14but they are stunning, they are beautiful snakes.
0:09:14 > 0:09:18Right, I am going to put her back, and put her back where she was,
0:09:18 > 0:09:20which was just up there right by the wall.
0:09:20 > 0:09:24You little beauty. That really has made my day.
0:09:24 > 0:09:28The garden comprises only a small part
0:09:28 > 0:09:31of what was the Oakeley family estate.
0:09:31 > 0:09:33The valley and river below the house
0:09:33 > 0:09:35played a crucial role in their lives
0:09:35 > 0:09:38and the success of their slate business.
0:09:38 > 0:09:40At its peak, the Oakeley quarry
0:09:40 > 0:09:44was said to be the largest underground quarry in the world.
0:09:44 > 0:09:47Initially, the river played a crucial role
0:09:47 > 0:09:49in transporting the slate.
0:09:49 > 0:09:54To find out more, I'm joining Philip Van Gucci,
0:09:54 > 0:09:58who's canoed the River Dwyryd for many years.
0:09:58 > 0:10:02The bit of river that the Oakeleys altered, it's this bit here, is it?
0:10:02 > 0:10:06These couple of big meanders, these S-bends here.
0:10:06 > 0:10:09It is, yes, so they'd have a fine view of the river from the Plas.
0:10:09 > 0:10:13- It's amazing, isn't it?- You can see the old boat house now, Iolo.
0:10:13 > 0:10:17Ah, right, they'd have used that to bring a boat out fishing,
0:10:17 > 0:10:20probably duck hunting, all kinds of things, wouldn't they?
0:10:20 > 0:10:25Yes, I did read that they had a special coracle, a spear fishing coracle.
0:10:25 > 0:10:30And otter hunting too. There's a carving up at the house, beautifully done.
0:10:30 > 0:10:33It shows them otter hunting with otter hounds.
0:10:33 > 0:10:37Yes, I suppose there were a lot more otters in those days.
0:10:37 > 0:10:40What's this here? Looks like some kind of...
0:10:40 > 0:10:44Well, this was one of the wharfs or quays where the boats drew up.
0:10:44 > 0:10:47The boats would have brought up supplies,
0:10:47 > 0:10:50loaded them on to flat bottom barges
0:10:50 > 0:10:52and they would have been punted up to the wharfs.
0:10:52 > 0:10:57- That was coming up but going down they would be taking slates. - Yes, yes.
0:10:57 > 0:11:03- But nature is taking over now with this quay.- Always does, doesn't it, eventually?
0:11:03 > 0:11:06- It's tough going, this bit, Phil. - Yeah, the wind's got up,
0:11:06 > 0:11:09but the valley is much wider here,
0:11:09 > 0:11:11so it catches the wind down here.
0:11:11 > 0:11:15- Nice house here, lovely house.- This was the old laundry for the Plas.
0:11:15 > 0:11:16- Oh, was it?- Yes.
0:11:16 > 0:11:19- It's still called Laundry Cottage. - Oh, wow!
0:11:19 > 0:11:23Now, this is an impressive wharf here, isn't it?
0:11:23 > 0:11:26Yes, this is Tyddyn Isaf, one of the slate wharfs.
0:11:26 > 0:11:29I think it's probably the biggest one.
0:11:29 > 0:11:34Really good condition, isn't it? Most of it. Wow!
0:11:34 > 0:11:37Imagine the hustle and bustle way back then
0:11:37 > 0:11:39and there's only us two here,
0:11:39 > 0:11:42it's very quiet.
0:11:44 > 0:11:48The house was perfectly placed overlooking this beautiful valley.
0:11:50 > 0:11:53The Oakeleys loved the views of rugged hills
0:11:53 > 0:11:55and wild woodland from its terrace.
0:11:55 > 0:11:59And when they stepped out of their back door
0:11:59 > 0:12:02they had dramatic gorges to explore.
0:12:02 > 0:12:05The Oakeleys loved this area because of the fact that it is so picturesque
0:12:05 > 0:12:09and you can see signs of an old path that they would have built
0:12:09 > 0:12:10all the way along here.
0:12:10 > 0:12:13That would have been their fun fair rides,
0:12:13 > 0:12:16that was what really scared them. They would have said,
0:12:16 > 0:12:18"Right, let's go for a walk above the gorge."
0:12:21 > 0:12:24The family used their wealth to add to the beauty of the area
0:12:24 > 0:12:28by building dams and making a series of pools and waterfalls.
0:12:30 > 0:12:35They created Llyn Mair, beautiful in every season.
0:12:35 > 0:12:39And the estate also included large areas of woodland
0:12:39 > 0:12:41which they managed for timber.
0:12:41 > 0:12:45So, I'm going to include it in my exploration.
0:12:45 > 0:12:50I'm joining moth recorder David Brown, whilst he sets up his latest survey.
0:12:51 > 0:12:55You must have done this hundreds if not thousands of time, I would have thought.
0:12:55 > 0:13:01Probably thousands of times, I would imagine, since 1968, when I first started.
0:13:01 > 0:13:02Well, well, well.
0:13:02 > 0:13:06And what makes this woodland so good for moths?
0:13:06 > 0:13:10Well, it's the fact that it's ancient woodland,
0:13:10 > 0:13:12and that's always a great place for moths.
0:13:12 > 0:13:18A huge diversity of species rely upon ancient oak, beech, birch.
0:13:18 > 0:13:24- I've recorded 350 species of larger moth here at Plas.- 350? - Yes, in the last 20 years.
0:13:24 > 0:13:27That's doing mainly the work in the summer in June and July.
0:13:27 > 0:13:33We've had some fascinating migrants here such as striped hawk moth and scarce bordered straw.
0:13:33 > 0:13:36These are ones that have come all the way from the Continent.
0:13:36 > 0:13:38From North Africa and the Mediterranean.
0:13:38 > 0:13:42Everyone knows about the migration of the cuckoo or the swallow
0:13:42 > 0:13:44but moths travel thousands of miles.
0:13:44 > 0:13:46Thousands of miles, yes.
0:13:46 > 0:13:48With moths, it's often a one way ticket.
0:13:48 > 0:13:50That's a shame, that's a shame.
0:13:50 > 0:13:53Right, well, let's see what we get.
0:13:53 > 0:13:58Come on, let's go and have a cup of tea. Or a beer, I'll buy you a beer.
0:13:58 > 0:14:00Thank you, that sounds good.
0:14:00 > 0:14:02As dusk falls it's not just moths
0:14:02 > 0:14:05that will be active in the woodlands.
0:14:05 > 0:14:07The resident pipistrelle bats
0:14:07 > 0:14:11are leaving their roost in the roof of the old stable block.
0:14:11 > 0:14:16They'll hunt for insects amongst the mature trees.
0:14:16 > 0:14:20And, with nightfall, I'm hoping the footprint tunnels around the garden
0:14:20 > 0:14:25are attracting lots of small mammals.
0:14:31 > 0:14:34It's a sunny morning in the Maentwrog valley.
0:14:34 > 0:14:37Kate and I are eager to find out what mammals
0:14:37 > 0:14:40have left their footprints for us to find.
0:14:40 > 0:14:45It's the same as the last one. Just push those through, that's it.
0:14:45 > 0:14:49- Oh, wow!- Blimey. - A lot of activity, isn't there?
0:14:49 > 0:14:52Yeah, these are all small mammal tracks.
0:14:52 > 0:14:55The mice have got four toes on the front feet and five on the back.
0:14:55 > 0:14:58I mean, there's a nice four print.
0:14:58 > 0:15:00You see, one toe sticks out
0:15:00 > 0:15:03at a slightly different angle to the others.
0:15:03 > 0:15:07I think down here I'd expect mainly wood mice, perhaps bank voles.
0:15:07 > 0:15:10Because it's darker and less ground vegetation.
0:15:10 > 0:15:13Yeah, there's not the grassy vegetable matter
0:15:13 > 0:15:16which the field voles want to be feeding on.
0:15:16 > 0:15:18But I would imagine, cos of the sheer volume here,
0:15:18 > 0:15:21it's a good sign, it's a sign of a healthy environment.
0:15:21 > 0:15:23I think so. Plenty of small mammals
0:15:23 > 0:15:27means there's plenty of food for those higher up the food chain.
0:15:27 > 0:15:32The good thing, Kate, is, we also set up a camera on this one,
0:15:32 > 0:15:36so what we can do is have a look and see what information is on the chip.
0:15:36 > 0:15:39That will hopefully show us what's gone in and out of here.
0:15:39 > 0:15:44- Right, here we go, Kate. - Oh, there we go.
0:15:44 > 0:15:47- Wood mouse.- That's a wood mouse, yes.- And he's gone in as well.
0:15:47 > 0:15:50- It's in the tunnel. - Eating.- Ooh!
0:15:50 > 0:15:53- They're great jumpers, aren't they? - They are, they are.
0:15:53 > 0:15:57- Hang on, hang on, whoa, whoa. - There's three of them.
0:15:57 > 0:16:01- Three wood mice again. - Oh, playing leapfrog.
0:16:01 > 0:16:04Oh! It's got a huge bit of hotdog. Taking the whole lot away.
0:16:04 > 0:16:09You greedy little so-and-so, you're supposed to leave that there.
0:16:09 > 0:16:11- It's got to be nearly a quarter of his size.- It is.
0:16:11 > 0:16:12Oh, off he goes.
0:16:12 > 0:16:18I tell you what, we had the camera out the night before as well.
0:16:18 > 0:16:20Let's just give this one a go.
0:16:20 > 0:16:23Well, there's something there already.
0:16:23 > 0:16:25Yeah, wood... Hmm...hard to tell.
0:16:25 > 0:16:28The way it's hopping and leaping is very mouse-like.
0:16:28 > 0:16:31Let's try this one now.
0:16:31 > 0:16:35- Oh! Wow, that was quick! - That was quick, wasn't it?
0:16:36 > 0:16:41- Ooh!- Ooh! Weasel?- It's a mustela of some sort, isn't it?
0:16:41 > 0:16:48- A stoat weasel.- And then it's over here.- Is it a mink? No.- No.
0:16:48 > 0:16:51- It had something in its mouth. - Yeah, it looked like it, didn't it?
0:16:51 > 0:16:55Probably one of the mice coming here to feed. Well, well, well.
0:16:55 > 0:16:58- Shall we go back and have another look? - Yeah, let's have another look.
0:16:58 > 0:17:01Hold on then. Oh, here he goes, that's too fast, isn't it?
0:17:01 > 0:17:05- It's when he comes back. It's very small.- It's very small.
0:17:05 > 0:17:07- Think it's a weasel? - I was thinking weasel.
0:17:07 > 0:17:11Cos it's so quick, you can't... it's carrying a prey or something.
0:17:11 > 0:17:14It's got a mouse or a vole, hasn't it?
0:17:14 > 0:17:18And that prey item was quite big compared to...
0:17:18 > 0:17:21- It was sort of this size. - So, I would say weasel.
0:17:21 > 0:17:24Well, well, well. That's a nice record. That is a really cool record.
0:17:27 > 0:17:30The garden is clearly a haven for small mammals.
0:17:30 > 0:17:35I'm also keen to find out how David got on with the moth traps.
0:17:35 > 0:17:38David!
0:17:38 > 0:17:40- Ah, good morning. - What have we got?- Not bad.
0:17:40 > 0:17:42- There's quite a few species here. - Wow!
0:17:42 > 0:17:46- There's some nice biggies here, aren't there? - We can see a nice large moth here.
0:17:46 > 0:17:49- This is a Great Prominent. - Oh, wow!
0:17:49 > 0:17:53That's a species which is indicating ancient
0:17:53 > 0:17:54sessile oak woodland.
0:17:54 > 0:17:57Oh, that's a nice one too, it's a big chunky thing.
0:17:57 > 0:17:59And of course it's highly cryptic
0:17:59 > 0:18:03on the lovely moss-covered tree trunks.
0:18:03 > 0:18:07And in the same family we have a Lesser Swallow Prominent,
0:18:07 > 0:18:10that's a little more widely distributed than the Great Prominent.
0:18:10 > 0:18:13But still really nice, really smart moth.
0:18:13 > 0:18:15And you know, to anyone who says,
0:18:15 > 0:18:18"Ah, moths, just boring brown things that hang around at night,"
0:18:18 > 0:18:22just come and have a look at one like that. It's beautiful, isn't it?
0:18:22 > 0:18:24And Hebrew characters, even I catch those.
0:18:24 > 0:18:27That's about the commonest moth at the moment.
0:18:27 > 0:18:29- It is. - This is the Iron Prominent.
0:18:29 > 0:18:32- Iron Prominent. It's almost black, isn't it, this one.- It is.
0:18:32 > 0:18:35But it does have certain features which look like rusty iron,
0:18:35 > 0:18:39reddish markings on the...
0:18:39 > 0:18:41Yes, I can see those,
0:18:41 > 0:18:43and the light reflects off them as well, doesn't it?
0:18:43 > 0:18:47Here we have a very common moth at this time of year.
0:18:47 > 0:18:49- Clouded Drab.- Clouded Drab.
0:18:49 > 0:18:51I can see why it's got the name drab,
0:18:51 > 0:18:54- it's not the best-looking of moths. - No, no.
0:18:54 > 0:18:56- That's more or less it, isn't it? - I think so.
0:18:56 > 0:18:59Another Clouded Drab and that's it.
0:18:59 > 0:19:04And it's no wonder, is it, if you've got 350 moths here at least.
0:19:04 > 0:19:07You know, you've got all these bats and you've got all these birds,
0:19:07 > 0:19:12you know, feeding on a lot of these, I dare say, which must break your heart.
0:19:12 > 0:19:15I sometimes see the bats swooping around my light at night
0:19:15 > 0:19:19wondering how many special moths are being consumed.
0:19:22 > 0:19:25The moths may be one reason the woodland is special
0:19:25 > 0:19:28but there's plenty of other wildlife here too.
0:19:31 > 0:19:34The Ffestiniog Railway runs past the back of the house.
0:19:34 > 0:19:38I've come to Plas Halt to catch the next train
0:19:38 > 0:19:43and explore the woodland further.
0:19:44 > 0:19:49Bore da. Diolch yn fawr iawn.
0:19:49 > 0:19:54This is the way to travel. It's a bit like having a portable hide going through the woodland here
0:19:54 > 0:19:56looking at all the birds.
0:19:56 > 0:20:01This was built in 1836 and it was to carry slate
0:20:01 > 0:20:05from Blaenau Ffestiniog down to the coast.
0:20:06 > 0:20:13The trains came in later because it ran by gravity and horses pulled it back up.
0:20:13 > 0:20:16Of course, it's been kept open really for the tourists.
0:20:18 > 0:20:20There is actually a reason for me being here.
0:20:20 > 0:20:26I'm going to see Huw Jenkins, a local naturalist who lives in the woodland
0:20:26 > 0:20:30and whose house has its very own stop.
0:20:35 > 0:20:38Cheers, brilliant, thank you very much. Diolch.
0:20:38 > 0:20:42- Huw, sut wyt ti, boi? - Welcome to Campbell's Platform. - Thank you very much.
0:20:42 > 0:20:45Your very own platform as well, boy.
0:20:49 > 0:20:52- Shall we go for a walk into the wood?- I would like to show you something special.
0:20:52 > 0:20:55I can show you some wild goats, all being well.
0:20:55 > 0:20:59This morning, they were behind us over there and they went down the bank.
0:20:59 > 0:21:01We need to be pretty quiet, do we?
0:21:01 > 0:21:05They're not too sensitive, they're not too worried. They see me enough.
0:21:05 > 0:21:09- They might be a bit scared of you though, Iolo.- Yeah!
0:21:09 > 0:21:10Ah, there you go.
0:21:10 > 0:21:13- Big curly horns. - Ah, yes I see, I see.
0:21:13 > 0:21:16There's currently five - three males, two females.
0:21:16 > 0:21:22They've had no kids this winter nor the previous winter so, I'm not sure.
0:21:22 > 0:21:25Why's that then?
0:21:25 > 0:21:27These ones are getting a bit long in the tooth.
0:21:27 > 0:21:29What's the origin of these, Huw?
0:21:29 > 0:21:32I like to think these once belonged to Huw Lloyd,
0:21:32 > 0:21:36who lived in my house. I've got his will.
0:21:36 > 0:21:38He died in 1684, it went to probate,
0:21:38 > 0:21:43there's a list of every item he owned, including 59 goats,
0:21:43 > 0:21:47and I reckon they escaped and they're still running wild today.
0:21:47 > 0:21:50- You reckon these are descendants of his goats?- Yeah.
0:21:50 > 0:21:53Well, you couldn't ask for a better place, could you? You couldn't.
0:21:53 > 0:21:55And to have goats on your doorstep as well,
0:21:55 > 0:21:57that really is something, isn't it?
0:21:57 > 0:22:02I wasn't that keen when they ransacked my vegetable garden though.
0:22:02 > 0:22:05Everyone I know has had a run-in with goats.
0:22:10 > 0:22:14These goats are currently enjoying not only the twigs and bark of the trees
0:22:14 > 0:22:17but also the new spring leaves.
0:22:22 > 0:22:25This time of year is perfect for finding woodland birds,
0:22:25 > 0:22:28who are busy building their nests.
0:22:30 > 0:22:33These old oak woods are at their best now,
0:22:33 > 0:22:36with the leaves just emerging, looking really, really fresh.
0:22:36 > 0:22:40They are full of holes, which is fantastic for nesting birds,
0:22:40 > 0:22:42but in this particular wood the Countryside Council for Wales
0:22:42 > 0:22:45have put up nest boxes.
0:22:45 > 0:22:48The main reason for that is not just to provide more nest sites,
0:22:48 > 0:22:52but also it makes it easier to monitor the birds.
0:22:52 > 0:22:56I'm on my way to meet Gareth Evans, whose job it is to go and check all these boxes.
0:22:57 > 0:23:00- Hiya, boy, how are you? - Iawn.- All right? Good.
0:23:00 > 0:23:03- Do you want me to take that?- OK, fine.- I'll take that for you.
0:23:03 > 0:23:04I'll take the notes, then, OK?
0:23:04 > 0:23:11- So, what was in here last time?- Pied flycatcher.- Oh, was it? Oh, right.
0:23:11 > 0:23:14- Nest and eggs?- A complete nest. - Let's have a look.
0:23:14 > 0:23:18- Oh, wow! One, two, three, five eggs.- Oh, five eggs.
0:23:18 > 0:23:22Five sky blue lovely pied flycatcher eggs.
0:23:22 > 0:23:27Typical pied flycatcher nest too, dried grass and dried leaves.
0:23:27 > 0:23:29That's all they have, isn't it?
0:23:33 > 0:23:36So what was in this next one last time?
0:23:36 > 0:23:39- A blue tit hen on the nest.- Oh, right.
0:23:39 > 0:23:41They're feisty little things, aren't they?
0:23:41 > 0:23:46Very aggressive. They're more protective than the pied flycatcher
0:23:46 > 0:23:50when you open the top of the box.
0:23:50 > 0:23:52I tell you one thing, dangerous job you've got coming along there.
0:23:55 > 0:23:58It's a blue tit sat on there, and it's all wool.
0:23:58 > 0:24:01It looks so cosy, but she looked up at me as if to say,
0:24:01 > 0:24:03"What are you doing? Get off."
0:24:03 > 0:24:07I'll just leave her, I think, that one.
0:24:07 > 0:24:10Right, next one.
0:24:11 > 0:24:14Notice how I'm doing all the hard work here.
0:24:17 > 0:24:19So, what was in this one before?
0:24:19 > 0:24:21There's a pied flycatcher, a complete nest.
0:24:21 > 0:24:28- A good chance there could be eggs or even a hen on the nest this time. - Oh, OK.
0:24:31 > 0:24:33Yeah, oh, right.
0:24:33 > 0:24:37I'll leave her but there's a hen on the nest there, so I'll leave her.
0:24:37 > 0:24:42That's unusual, isn't it? They usually leave, don't they? They're quite jumpy.
0:24:42 > 0:24:46Yes, they're more jumpy than the blue tits, so onto the next one, yes?
0:24:46 > 0:24:50Brilliant, Gareth. That's lovely, that is.
0:24:50 > 0:24:54There was a blue tit's complete nest with seven eggs.
0:24:54 > 0:24:58See if she's on here. Oh, lovely nest.
0:24:58 > 0:25:01One, two, three, four, five, seven eggs, so that's a full clutch now.
0:25:01 > 0:25:04Moss around the outside and lined with wool.
0:25:04 > 0:25:06Fantastic, isn't it? Lovely.
0:25:06 > 0:25:10So, what have you got? How many boxes in this whole wood?
0:25:10 > 0:25:13In this actual site we've got 25 boxes.
0:25:13 > 0:25:1715 were blue tits and five pied flycatchers,
0:25:17 > 0:25:22so it seems that the blue tit is very dominant on this site.
0:25:22 > 0:25:26Yeah, fantastic.
0:25:26 > 0:25:29I've almost finished my exploration of the old Oakeley Estate.
0:25:29 > 0:25:34But back at the house there's a special event taking place.
0:25:34 > 0:25:37It might help us find one or two more species before I leave.
0:25:40 > 0:25:45This is fantastic because it is Bio-blitz day in Plas Tan-y-Bwlch
0:25:45 > 0:25:49and what that means is that they've got a group of about a dozen experts,
0:25:49 > 0:25:53they've got the public here to just blitz the whole site
0:25:53 > 0:25:58to try and record how many spiders they can find, how many moths,
0:25:58 > 0:26:01dragonflies, birds, reptiles, amphibians,
0:26:01 > 0:26:07anything and everything, and it's brilliant, it's a fantastic day.
0:26:07 > 0:26:12With all the extra eyes, ears and expertise here today
0:26:12 > 0:26:16I'm wondering what else we can find.
0:26:16 > 0:26:20There's no surprise that the mammal group found a vole.
0:26:20 > 0:26:25But the moths trappers have captured a species David and I didn't.
0:26:25 > 0:26:27That's called an elephant hawk moth
0:26:27 > 0:26:30and it's one of the most beautiful moths you can catch.
0:26:30 > 0:26:34It has this lovely yellowy-green and pink colour.
0:26:34 > 0:26:36Common but so few people know they are out there
0:26:36 > 0:26:41but if you put out a moth trap and you'll catch... I think they've caught four or five here.
0:26:41 > 0:26:44It's absolutely stunning, just look at that.
0:26:44 > 0:26:47I'm also introduced to an unusual survey technique
0:26:47 > 0:26:50which adds another species to our list.
0:26:50 > 0:26:53It shows you are never too old to learn.
0:26:53 > 0:26:58I have witnessed something here that I have never seen in my life before.
0:26:58 > 0:26:59OK, take it away, Richard.
0:26:59 > 0:27:02I hope this works now, I've built you up.
0:27:02 > 0:27:05So give it a tap and see what happens.
0:27:05 > 0:27:09Here he comes. What we have got here is a mesh web spider
0:27:09 > 0:27:12- and you can fool them into coming out with a tuning fork.- Look at that!
0:27:12 > 0:27:15You can see him going for it, he's definitely totally fooled.
0:27:15 > 0:27:20So, does the fork vibrate like an insect would in the web?
0:27:20 > 0:27:24It does, yeah. If you think of a fly trapped up on that silk he'd be buzzing away.
0:27:24 > 0:27:27And that tuning fork is just mimicking the fly buzzing there.
0:27:27 > 0:27:30I've got to be honest, I've never, ever seen that before.
0:27:30 > 0:27:34I find that incredible. I love that.
0:27:34 > 0:27:39It's fantastic to see all these people enjoying the wildlife.
0:27:39 > 0:27:44And I've been surprised with the variety of creatures we've found here.
0:27:44 > 0:27:48There's no doubt that the Oakeleys have left a wonderful legacy here.
0:27:48 > 0:27:53The mature woodlands, the gardens, it's all become a real haven for wildlife.
0:27:53 > 0:27:59And I think the mixture of natural and manicured means that it's particularly good for reptiles.
0:27:59 > 0:28:02And it was a real privilege for me to be able to hold a grass snake,
0:28:02 > 0:28:05and a big one at that. That doesn't happen every day!
0:28:05 > 0:28:10But I think the most important legacy is the fact that this hasn't been left as a living museum
0:28:10 > 0:28:12to times gone by.
0:28:12 > 0:28:16It's actually used as an education centre,
0:28:16 > 0:28:19educating the next generation of naturalists.
0:28:19 > 0:28:22Next time, I'll be exploring my last great Welsh park,
0:28:22 > 0:28:24Stackpole Estate in Pembrokeshire,
0:28:24 > 0:28:27where I'll glimpse an underwater world...
0:28:27 > 0:28:30This is a real hotspot for roach.
0:28:30 > 0:28:34..get up close to birds...
0:28:34 > 0:28:37and go on the hunt for otters.
0:28:52 > 0:28:55Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd