0:00:02 > 0:00:05Welcome to Hands On Nature. I'm Chris Packham and this is your guide
0:00:05 > 0:00:08to some cracking nature spots around the UK.
0:00:08 > 0:00:14Today, we're looking at what a bit of water can do for our wildlife as we explore Britain's wetlands.
0:00:17 > 0:00:22I'm in East Anglia, enjoying the resplendent world of damsel and dragonflies.
0:00:26 > 0:00:29Mike Dilger's deep in a reed bed in Somerset.
0:00:29 > 0:00:32That's Britain's heaviest bird taking off.
0:00:33 > 0:00:37Sanjida O'Connell is in Lancashire, after a very elusive bird.
0:00:37 > 0:00:44And the reason why I've come here is to see a rather mysterious creature which sounds a bit like this...
0:00:44 > 0:00:45LOW TONE
0:00:54 > 0:00:57This is Wicken Fen Nature Reserve in Cambridgeshire.
0:00:57 > 0:01:00It's a brilliant place, it's somewhere you should come.
0:01:00 > 0:01:05More than 200 different species of birds have been seen here,
0:01:05 > 0:01:0725 different types of mammal live here,
0:01:07 > 0:01:1319 species of dragonfly, and, get this, 1,000 different types of moth.
0:01:13 > 0:01:16Surely this is a spot you can't afford to miss.
0:01:19 > 0:01:26Wicken Fen was THE first nature reserve to be bought by the National Trust, way back in 1899.
0:01:26 > 0:01:31The 1,500-acre site is a tiny remnant of the watery wilderness
0:01:31 > 0:01:34that once characterised the whole of East Anglia.
0:01:34 > 0:01:39Undoubtedly, one of the best ways to explore these rivers, or loads,
0:01:39 > 0:01:43as this channel is called, is on one of these Fenland longboats.
0:01:43 > 0:01:49You can just gaze down into the clear waters here and literally look into a different world.
0:01:49 > 0:01:52The water supports an abundance of wildlife,
0:01:52 > 0:01:59but I'm looking for one thing in particular - the aerial master of the insect world.
0:01:59 > 0:02:02Now, to find these creatures, like most wildlife,
0:02:02 > 0:02:06one of the best things you can do is to look for the right habitat.
0:02:06 > 0:02:12- Rory Mackenzie Dodds, you've been looking for the right habitat for a long time...- Indeed.- ..and know it.
0:02:12 > 0:02:16- What do you make of this? - It's absolutely brilliant, Chris.
0:02:16 > 0:02:19It's a lovely, lovely site here.
0:02:19 > 0:02:22You've got the three key sorts of plants which are attractive,
0:02:22 > 0:02:27you've got lots of oxygenators in the water, which keep the water nice and clear,
0:02:27 > 0:02:32- and then you've got the surface coverers, like white water lilies... - Looking very nice.- Very nice.
0:02:32 > 0:02:37..and then above those you've got these tall, stemmed plants.
0:02:37 > 0:02:40These are the three key groups which are really attractive habitat.
0:02:40 > 0:02:42- And there... - Right! OK, yes, absolutely.
0:02:42 > 0:02:47It's the star of our show - a dragonfly. Look at that.
0:02:47 > 0:02:50This is the stunning Emperor dragonfly,
0:02:50 > 0:02:57the largest of a family that's been around for 300 million years, much longer than us humans.
0:02:57 > 0:02:59This one is a brown hawker.
0:02:59 > 0:03:04It's decided it's a perfect place for a female brown hawker to lay her eggs,
0:03:04 > 0:03:08so it is guarding this territory, waiting for her female to come along.
0:03:08 > 0:03:16When that happens, he will mate with her, and she will be ready to lay her eggs along both sides of the pond.
0:03:16 > 0:03:19- Good start.- There is a damselfly down here. Two!
0:03:19 > 0:03:23This pair of damselflies are laying their eggs,
0:03:23 > 0:03:28with the male holding onto the female to ensure that no other males muscle in.
0:03:30 > 0:03:36The egg hatches into a nymph, which lives underwater for around three years -
0:03:36 > 0:03:39hence the importance of those oxygenating plants -
0:03:39 > 0:03:45before it emerges from the water and sheds its skin to transform into the adult dragonfly.
0:03:46 > 0:03:51This is the dried-out skin of the last aquatic stage of this dragonfly,
0:03:51 > 0:03:55and here is the adult insect that has emerged from it.
0:03:55 > 0:04:00At the moment, it is pumping its wings full of fluid, and in the process of drying out.
0:04:00 > 0:04:04But just over here is another one that is a few hours ahead of it.
0:04:04 > 0:04:10Shortly, it will be taking to the wing and starting its process of looking for a mate.
0:04:15 > 0:04:19- Look, a four-spotted chaser. - That is. They're unmistakable.
0:04:19 > 0:04:24What you need to look out for is the four little spots in the middle of each wing.
0:04:24 > 0:04:29- How many species here? Five or six? - Five or six, just dragonflies, yes.
0:04:29 > 0:04:32And there's actually three or four down here.
0:04:32 > 0:04:36There are three of four types of damselfly too.
0:04:36 > 0:04:40And how do you tell the difference between damsels and dragons?
0:04:40 > 0:04:46Effectively damselflies are smaller and more delicate, but there is a trick, Chris, which is
0:04:46 > 0:04:51when you see them land, if they park their wings along their backs...
0:04:51 > 0:04:53- Folded behind? - Folded behind, exactly.
0:04:53 > 0:04:56..the chances are that it is an damselfly.
0:04:56 > 0:05:00If the lay them out flat, like an normal aeroplane, it is a dragonfly.
0:05:00 > 0:05:06- This is dragonfly heaven, isn't it? - It is absolutely perfect..- And yet we're not even on the the reserve.
0:05:06 > 0:05:13- This is just a pond-dipping area for kids.- And they've created a perfect heaven for dragonflies.
0:05:15 > 0:05:19These insects need sunshine to heat up their bodies in order to fly.
0:05:19 > 0:05:22They use their wings as solar panels.
0:05:23 > 0:05:29Now then, what have these children found in a nearby pond?
0:05:32 > 0:05:35- Hello there, James.- Hello. - What have you got, then?
0:05:35 > 0:05:39So far, I've got a great crested newt. I think it's a female.
0:05:39 > 0:05:41It certainly is. What a fantastic animal.
0:05:41 > 0:05:44- Beautiful. Have you seen its belly? - Yeah.
0:05:44 > 0:05:49Lovely and marbled and black underneath. It is a female - it's a bit bigger than the male.
0:05:49 > 0:05:55The great crested is the largest newt found in Britain, and can live up to 27 years.
0:05:55 > 0:05:59But it is endangered, so you need a licence to handle it.
0:05:59 > 0:06:06What a fantastic animal. It just goes to prove what a wealth of wildlife there is here at Wicken.
0:06:06 > 0:06:08Now, here's a little tip.
0:06:08 > 0:06:12Dragonflies often return to the same perching spot,
0:06:12 > 0:06:15so if you're patient and keep still...
0:06:16 > 0:06:20This common dart has been landing on this stick in front of me for some time,
0:06:20 > 0:06:26so I thought I'd stick my finger out and see if he'd choose my finger instead of the stick.
0:06:26 > 0:06:30And it's given me the best views of a dragonfly I've had all day.
0:06:30 > 0:06:32Let's see if he does it one more time.
0:06:32 > 0:06:35Just look at that.
0:06:35 > 0:06:37Oh, it's like having a pet.
0:06:37 > 0:06:42He goes off for a little fly, chases another dragonfly, and then he's back to my hand.
0:06:42 > 0:06:45It's like falconing, but with dragonflies.
0:06:45 > 0:06:47Look at that!
0:06:48 > 0:06:51What a stunning creature.
0:06:53 > 0:06:57Now, this habitat may look perfectly natural to you, but I'm afraid it isn't.
0:06:57 > 0:07:00It's been managed by man for centuries.
0:07:00 > 0:07:04One of the principal uses of an area like this was to cut the sedge for thatch.
0:07:04 > 0:07:07Well, these days that's largely redundant,
0:07:07 > 0:07:11and if we were to leave this area, it would rapidly become woodland.
0:07:11 > 0:07:17It'd be a disaster - we want wetland here - so they've come up with a new way of managing the vegetation.
0:07:17 > 0:07:22I say new, but, in fact, it was happening thousands of years ago,
0:07:22 > 0:07:25when bison and wolves and bears were roaming this land.
0:07:27 > 0:07:30These stunning-looking animals are konik ponies.
0:07:30 > 0:07:35They are one of the closest relatives to the primal ponies that roamed over Europe.
0:07:35 > 0:07:39And the warden, Carol Laidlaw, knows more about these herds than most.
0:07:39 > 0:07:46We've got them here because they're wetland specialists. They're so hardy, and have a placid temperament.
0:07:46 > 0:07:50You need an animal that is not going to be aggressive or bolshy.
0:07:50 > 0:07:53- Just a bit curious. - Just a bit curious, yes.
0:07:53 > 0:07:56They're no respecters of body space, as you can see.
0:07:56 > 0:08:00- But they are here to graze the site? - Yes.- In a traditional fashion.
0:08:00 > 0:08:05The National Trust has a huge expansion project on that is going to last the next hundred years,
0:08:05 > 0:08:12and it is going to become unsustainable to buy machinery and people to manage the land,
0:08:12 > 0:08:16so the best way to do it is to get these guys out to act as natural wardens.
0:08:16 > 0:08:20- They're out 365 days of the year. - 365 days of the year, yep. Rain or shine.
0:08:20 > 0:08:22Rain or shine...
0:08:25 > 0:08:30Beautiful as these animals are, Karen has one important tip for visitors.
0:08:30 > 0:08:37The general advice is, if you want to come and see these horses, um, use binoculars and watch them from afar.
0:08:37 > 0:08:40Don't approach them - these are wild animals and they're not predictable.
0:08:40 > 0:08:46- They're quite curious today, and they're behaving themselves.- Yes. - Let's hope they prosper.
0:08:46 > 0:08:51The National Trust plans to expand this fen over the next hundred years
0:08:51 > 0:08:55until it's 17 miles long, stretching all the way down towards Cambridge.
0:08:55 > 0:08:58What a thought that is.
0:08:59 > 0:09:05Wicken Fen is six miles south of Ely in Cambridgeshire, and it's open all year.
0:09:05 > 0:09:09If you're not a National Trust member, there's a small charge.
0:09:09 > 0:09:14You can hire a fen boat for 12 people if you book in advance.
0:09:14 > 0:09:15It costs around £60.
0:09:15 > 0:09:19There are more details on our website.
0:09:21 > 0:09:26This is Hands On Nature, your guide to the very best wildlife spots in the UK.
0:09:26 > 0:09:29Stay with us because we're going to be joining Sanjida O'Connell
0:09:29 > 0:09:33for the bird that loves causing trouble in our wetlands.
0:09:38 > 0:09:41If you're into your wetlands, there is one place you really must go.
0:09:41 > 0:09:46You see, it's incredibly low-lying, so it frequently floods, and it's a top spot for birds.
0:09:46 > 0:09:52Mike Dilger headed down to England's West Country to get to grips with the famous Somerset Levels.
0:09:57 > 0:10:02This unique landscape is one of the lowest, flattest areas in the country.
0:10:02 > 0:10:06In ancient times it was known as the summer lands
0:10:06 > 0:10:12because it was too wet to graze in the winter. It's thought this is how Somerset got its name.
0:10:12 > 0:10:17I'm walking along the oldest known engineered roadway in Europe.
0:10:17 > 0:10:21Just below my feet is a wooden trackway
0:10:21 > 0:10:27that was built over 6,000 years ago to enable people to cross the wet lands.
0:10:27 > 0:10:30And down the centuries, it's been a similar story,
0:10:30 > 0:10:35as humans have really struggled to farm and manage this boggy wetland.
0:10:35 > 0:10:39I wouldn't want to walk across this without a trackway either!
0:10:39 > 0:10:42BIRDSONG
0:10:42 > 0:10:44Dawn in the reed beds on a spring day.
0:10:44 > 0:10:49All the birds are belting their hearts out.
0:10:54 > 0:11:00Top tip - when listening for birds, THIS is amazing.
0:11:00 > 0:11:04It accentuates the sound and you can find out where they are singing from.
0:11:04 > 0:11:09I know I look a bit of a pillock, but it doesn't half sound good.
0:11:09 > 0:11:14Spring is the time for elaborate courtship rituals.
0:11:21 > 0:11:26The great crested grebe presents its mates with a love token.
0:11:26 > 0:11:28The gift is accepted.
0:11:28 > 0:11:33These reeds are the bird equivalent of a bunch of flowers.
0:11:44 > 0:11:52Unmistakable noise of mute swan wings slapping against the water.
0:11:52 > 0:11:54They take off like jumbo jets.
0:11:54 > 0:11:57That's Britain's heaviest bird taking off.
0:11:58 > 0:12:03From a bird that's white all over to one with just a white throat...
0:12:03 > 0:12:06For some reason, it's called a whitethroat(!)
0:12:08 > 0:12:14It's not the best singer in the world but it does this little power shoot up when it first arrives.
0:12:14 > 0:12:21It went up 10, 15 metres and then plummets down, singing all the way, with its breast out, like that.
0:12:21 > 0:12:27The most amazing thing about this bird is it's just crossed the Sahara to get here to Somerset.
0:12:30 > 0:12:33It's not just birds I'm listening to as well.
0:12:33 > 0:12:35Have a listen to this.
0:12:35 > 0:12:37DEEP GRUNTING
0:12:37 > 0:12:42That's a frog, a marsh frog. It's not a native British species.
0:12:42 > 0:12:46It was introduced into Britain in the 1930s
0:12:46 > 0:12:48by a Hungarian zoologist,
0:12:48 > 0:12:51believe it or not, from Kent,
0:12:51 > 0:12:54who put them into his garden pond, and they spread as far as Somerset.
0:12:54 > 0:13:01So now part of the dawn chorus, in addition to the birds, is the marsh frog.
0:13:07 > 0:13:13On the edge of the reed beds is Swell Wood, where one distinctive bird likes to raise its young.
0:13:14 > 0:13:19The Somerset Levels are such a rich, fantastic place for feeding birds,
0:13:19 > 0:13:24including one of our most recognisable species, which love nesting together.
0:13:24 > 0:13:29I'm here with Harry Paget-Wilkes from the RSPB, and we're here to count the heron nests.
0:13:29 > 0:13:33The wood is a great vantage point from which herons fly out
0:13:33 > 0:13:38to scour the waterways for food to bring back to their treetop nests.
0:13:39 > 0:13:41SQUAWKING
0:13:44 > 0:13:49They look primeval. They're ancient, they look like vultures or pterodactyls.
0:13:49 > 0:13:52It's like a sight of Britain nearly 10,000 years ago.
0:13:54 > 0:13:58You don't hear herons make a lot of noise normally. It's quite an experience.
0:13:58 > 0:14:04Of course, when you see them... Most people think of them sitting there with their neck drawn like a dagger,
0:14:04 > 0:14:10- ready to puncture the fish, and they're incredibly quiet, but here... - But here, a total different story.
0:14:10 > 0:14:16You wouldn't believe it was the same species, really. They're just behaving very differently.
0:14:16 > 0:14:19How have we done? What's the grand total?
0:14:19 > 0:14:23Pretty good. It's 97 - more than the count I did earlier in the year.
0:14:23 > 0:14:29- So over the last few decades, has the colony been going up or down? - Up. It's been slowly increasing.
0:14:29 > 0:14:33It varies a lot from year to year, but the trend is definitely up.
0:14:33 > 0:14:36Do you have any tips for heron watching?
0:14:36 > 0:14:38If you're going to come here, come early.
0:14:38 > 0:14:44They nest early. Once you get to May, the leaves are out on the trees, so come before then -
0:14:44 > 0:14:48March, April. A brilliant time to come and look at them.
0:14:49 > 0:14:53Of course, the Somerset Levels aren't just a paradise for birds.
0:14:53 > 0:14:59They are also home to an amazing array of plants. You're about to see one of my favourite habitats.
0:15:03 > 0:15:11The lowland unimproved meadows, full of gorgeous plants like this.
0:15:11 > 0:15:13Unimproved - what's that all about?
0:15:13 > 0:15:17Basically, if you stick fertiliser on this field,
0:15:17 > 0:15:22nasty, aggressive common plants and grasses will grow up
0:15:22 > 0:15:27and overnight will out-compete these and they'll disappear completely.
0:15:27 > 0:15:31This cowslip is one of our classic meadow plants.
0:15:31 > 0:15:36These little purple spikes you can see all over the place are bugle,
0:15:36 > 0:15:42and nestling in amongst these flowers, the lovely, sumptuous green-winged orchid.
0:15:44 > 0:15:49They are called green-winged because if you look at the sepals, which are like tiny petals,
0:15:49 > 0:15:55they have lovely green lines running through them.
0:15:58 > 0:16:04Somerset Levels are characterised by thousands of miles of these.
0:16:04 > 0:16:06They've got loads of names -
0:16:06 > 0:16:13ditches, drains, dykes, or known locally as rhynes - and they serve two purposes -
0:16:13 > 0:16:18to drain the land and to serve as boundaries to keep in the cattle.
0:16:18 > 0:16:22But I tell you what, they're brilliant for wildlife!
0:16:25 > 0:16:30So, I've arranged to meet Pat Hill-Cottingham,
0:16:30 > 0:16:35who knows the wildlife of these rhynes like no other in Somerset,
0:16:35 > 0:16:39particularly the little ones, and the molluscs and the snails and the beetles.
0:16:39 > 0:16:41- Hello, Pat.- Hello there.
0:16:41 > 0:16:44There's a nice big water snail.
0:16:44 > 0:16:47It takes you back to your childhood, this.
0:16:47 > 0:16:50There's a little cosmopolitan world living in that water.
0:16:50 > 0:16:57You never lose your excitement in pond-dipping. Every time you dip in, you could find something fantastic.
0:16:57 > 0:17:02- But it can be frustrating when you don't find what you hope to find. - Shall we have another dip?
0:17:02 > 0:17:08I'm kind of hopeful that we might have something that might move. ..Oh, steady!
0:17:08 > 0:17:12The most important tip of all - these places are potentially dangerous,
0:17:12 > 0:17:16so always bring a buddy to fish you out if you fall in.
0:17:16 > 0:17:21I notice you got a very specialised technique with your net.
0:17:21 > 0:17:23If you fiddle it gently...
0:17:23 > 0:17:26Excuse me - fiddle - that's a new word on me.
0:17:26 > 0:17:33Well, it's my word. If you just do it gently, as I do, in little small movements,
0:17:33 > 0:17:38you wash the stuff into the net but you don't create tremendous disturbance around,
0:17:38 > 0:17:41so you are much more likely to get more species.
0:17:44 > 0:17:50- We've done well, haven't we? These three snails, for starters... The ramshorn, yeah?- The great ramshorn.
0:17:50 > 0:17:55And that's the great pond snail. And that is the river snail.
0:17:55 > 0:18:00Now, I know what this certainly is because I love dragonflies and damselflies.
0:18:00 > 0:18:03- This is a damselfly larvae.- Yes.
0:18:03 > 0:18:05This is a really specialised critter.
0:18:05 > 0:18:09- Caddis larvae.- He's built a home from little bits of reed.
0:18:09 > 0:18:14How long are they in the larvae form before they turn into caddis flies?
0:18:14 > 0:18:17Most of them, about three years.
0:18:17 > 0:18:21This beast here is one of my favourites.
0:18:21 > 0:18:24He looks really fearsome with those claws, doesn't he?
0:18:24 > 0:18:30- He's a water scorpion. He grabs them and sucks the living daylights out of them.- Yes!
0:18:30 > 0:18:32Talking of predators...
0:18:32 > 0:18:36the great silver diving beetle.
0:18:36 > 0:18:39Is it just about the biggest beetle in Britain?
0:18:39 > 0:18:44- Yes.- When you look underneath, because he traps air so he can breathe,
0:18:44 > 0:18:46he's got a lovely silvery colour.
0:18:46 > 0:18:52The top tip is - make sure you put back everything where you found it.
0:18:52 > 0:18:56To spot herons in the spring, head for Swell Wood.
0:18:56 > 0:19:00It's part of the West Sedgemoor RSPB Reserve, near Taunton.
0:19:00 > 0:19:05And for the other wildlife, visit the Ham Wall National Nature Reserve, near Glastonbury.
0:19:05 > 0:19:07Both reserves are free.
0:19:07 > 0:19:14More details are on our website...
0:19:14 > 0:19:18Some of us are given over to the idea that the best things in life are birds.
0:19:18 > 0:19:21One of the best places for birds are our wetlands.
0:19:21 > 0:19:26In the summer, you've got the breeding species - everything from reed warblers to herons.
0:19:26 > 0:19:33In the autumn, they're supermarkets, where birds like house martins come to fatten up before long flights.
0:19:33 > 0:19:37In the winter, they are often packed full of waders and wildfowl.
0:19:37 > 0:19:41One of our best wetland reserves is in the north of England, Leighton Moss.
0:19:41 > 0:19:45Sanjida O'Connell went up there to take a look through her binoculars.
0:19:46 > 0:19:52Early morning sees this Lancashire reserve at its magical best.
0:19:52 > 0:19:56It has all sorts of wildlife, from the very unusual...
0:19:56 > 0:19:58to the very familiar.
0:20:02 > 0:20:04This is beautiful.
0:20:04 > 0:20:08It has to be one of the most stunning wetland areas in Britain.
0:20:08 > 0:20:14I've come to see a rather mysterious creature, which sounds a bit like this...
0:20:14 > 0:20:17LOW TONE
0:20:17 > 0:20:21The booming cry of the bittern might be distinctive,
0:20:21 > 0:20:27but am I going to be able to spot this secretive creature amongst all the other birds?
0:20:29 > 0:20:32The reason why this place is so fantastic
0:20:32 > 0:20:36is because you've got two very different habitats side by side -
0:20:36 > 0:20:39freshwater here and salt water down there.
0:20:39 > 0:20:42That means you end up with a really rich diversity of wildlife.
0:20:44 > 0:20:46This watery world of plants and animals
0:20:46 > 0:20:53has disappeared from much of the UK, but at Leighton Moss the water's been reinstated.
0:20:53 > 0:20:57And as with most of our wetlands, the conservation work is ongoing.
0:21:01 > 0:21:04This habitat looks completely natural,
0:21:04 > 0:21:07but it needs constant attention or else it will disappear.
0:21:07 > 0:21:10What happens is that the soil accumulates,
0:21:10 > 0:21:14and shrubs and bushes will come in and colonise the area.
0:21:14 > 0:21:19What they are doing at Leighton Moss is cutting down small areas of the reed beds every 25 years or so.
0:21:19 > 0:21:25That means that more plants and animals can come in, and that increases the biodiversity.
0:21:27 > 0:21:31And the reeds are where the food chain starts.
0:21:31 > 0:21:33Insects are prey for fish and other animals,
0:21:33 > 0:21:36but top of the pile is the bittern -
0:21:36 > 0:21:39an endangered bird that's also one of our largest.
0:21:39 > 0:21:45Head warden Robin Horner is its number one fan.
0:21:45 > 0:21:50It has a special call, it's called a boom, it's quite a rare bird.
0:21:50 > 0:21:54It's thought that the females are looking for the best-quality boom.
0:21:54 > 0:21:58If there was more than one male in the reed bed here, then the female's gonna choose...
0:21:58 > 0:22:03- Go for the best quality!- ..the bittern with the best-quality boom.
0:22:03 > 0:22:09- They draw breath into their lungs. - Can you show me?- Yeah. I'm not a bittern...but you draw breath...
0:22:09 > 0:22:11HE GASPS
0:22:11 > 0:22:13..like that, fill lungs with air,
0:22:13 > 0:22:19and then tilt the head back and then push all the air out, so you sort of...
0:22:19 > 0:22:21boom... It's a lot of effort.
0:22:21 > 0:22:23Is there any element of learning?
0:22:23 > 0:22:28Absolutely. Young bitterns, we call them "grunters"... It doesn't sound very nice.
0:22:28 > 0:22:31Because that's all they can manage, a grunt?
0:22:31 > 0:22:35Yeah! People don't realise that they also have to learn at the beginning of the season.
0:22:35 > 0:22:37They sort of go...
0:22:37 > 0:22:39HE GRUNTS
0:22:39 > 0:22:43- It might be just one or...- Lucky to impress the females with that!
0:22:43 > 0:22:44Yeah, absolutely.
0:22:47 > 0:22:50LOW BOOMING
0:22:52 > 0:22:55Well, I can hear it, but I can't quite see it.
0:22:55 > 0:23:01Bitterns fly low over the reed beds, so that's where I've trained my binoculars.
0:23:01 > 0:23:07The sound echoes for miles but, frustratingly, I still can't see it.
0:23:16 > 0:23:21Maybe I should try a bit higher, so I'm looking down on the reed beds.
0:23:23 > 0:23:27And at last, there it is.
0:23:31 > 0:23:36I know it's a long way off, but this is actually a really good view
0:23:36 > 0:23:40of one of our rarest and most elusive birds.
0:23:47 > 0:23:52One of the reasons why Leighton Moss is so great for bitterns is because a lot of eels live here.
0:23:52 > 0:23:58These elvets have travelled all the way from the Sargasso Sea in the Caribbean.
0:23:58 > 0:24:01They'll make tasty, protein-packed snacks for the bitterns.
0:24:01 > 0:24:08And it's food like this that drives the life cycle on the freshwater part of the reserve.
0:24:09 > 0:24:14But the salt-water lagoons nearby a have a totally separate ecosystem.
0:24:14 > 0:24:20They contain a different food source, which attracts even more birds.
0:24:29 > 0:24:31And this is what they are all after.
0:24:31 > 0:24:38It's packed full of tiny flounder - flat, transparent fish - and there's a shrimp in here as well.
0:24:38 > 0:24:41And pint for pint, there's more crustacea in here
0:24:41 > 0:24:45than there are invertebrates over there in the freshwater lagoons.
0:24:45 > 0:24:51It's a bit like minestrone over that way, and this is what my mum might call "eating and drinking soup".
0:24:53 > 0:24:57One of the fantastic things about coming to Leighton Moss
0:24:57 > 0:25:00is that if you've got family, you can borrow one of these.
0:25:00 > 0:25:03It's an explorer's pack and it's full of bits and pieces.
0:25:03 > 0:25:06You've got pens and pencils, a little mirror in there.
0:25:06 > 0:25:11Various guide books. There's even a pair of binoculars.
0:25:13 > 0:25:17There's one animal here whose noise just fills the air.
0:25:17 > 0:25:23It's a bird many of us take for granted, but when you get up close to the black-headed gulls
0:25:23 > 0:25:28you can really appreciate the beauty of the chocolate-brown of their summer plumage.
0:25:28 > 0:25:32When you see farmers ploughing, the gulls following the plough will be these.
0:25:32 > 0:25:37They were termed "land gulls" because they spent their time on the land...
0:25:37 > 0:25:40so following the plough, feeding in fields...
0:25:42 > 0:25:47They are highly territorial and chase everything off, whether you're a heron...
0:25:47 > 0:25:49a marsh harrier...
0:25:52 > 0:25:54..or even a red deer.
0:25:54 > 0:25:59Like an angry mob, these gulls know no fear.
0:26:01 > 0:26:03This is fantastic, Robin.
0:26:03 > 0:26:05Indeed.
0:26:05 > 0:26:07Look at them in the air.
0:26:07 > 0:26:12Yeah, I mean, black-headed gulls are the most hyperactive
0:26:12 > 0:26:14of birds, really. They never stop.
0:26:14 > 0:26:18You come down in the middle of the night and you approach,
0:26:18 > 0:26:24- and suddenly, they'll start to have a good banter.- It must be peaceful in the winter, when they've left?
0:26:24 > 0:26:30- Most of the year, there's plenty of noise. In October, we got the red deer in rut...- Oh, right.
0:26:30 > 0:26:34so the gulls have gone, but something else is making the noise.
0:26:34 > 0:26:36And then if you're up for the dawn chorus...
0:26:36 > 0:26:41That's special. There's a real peak of bird noise at the dawn chorus.
0:26:41 > 0:26:46To some extent a little bit at dusk as well, but not quite as intense.
0:26:50 > 0:26:55One final thing to do at Leighton Moss is to come at lunchtime
0:26:55 > 0:26:59when moth expert Tori Summerell is emptying her traps.
0:27:01 > 0:27:07Most people tend to think of British moths as being quite plain, a little bit boring,
0:27:07 > 0:27:12but this is absolutely fantastic because that is a British moth.
0:27:12 > 0:27:15A member of the hawk moth family.
0:27:15 > 0:27:20People just don't expect to see that in the UK, and it's here!
0:27:22 > 0:27:26The poplar hawk moth - what an incredible creature!
0:27:31 > 0:27:33What a spot!
0:27:34 > 0:27:38And what a fantastic booming bird.
0:27:50 > 0:27:54Check out the web for more info.
0:27:54 > 0:27:59Just look at this - I really can't think of a better way of getting into the heart of a habitat.
0:27:59 > 0:28:02We are pushing through this dense reed bed.
0:28:02 > 0:28:06The birds are singing, butterflies are thronged along the banks
0:28:06 > 0:28:12and there are elegant water lilies on the surface of the water. Fantastic, absolutely fantastic!
0:28:12 > 0:28:15Sadly, that is the end of our programme.
0:28:15 > 0:28:19Hopefully we'll see you again next time for some more Hands On Nature.
0:28:19 > 0:28:23When Mike Dilger will be climbing the Brecon Beacons
0:28:23 > 0:28:26in search of the blackbird of the mountains.
0:28:26 > 0:28:29It's just such a red-letter day for me.
0:28:29 > 0:28:33And I visit England's southern heathlands,
0:28:33 > 0:28:36stronghold of our rarest reptiles.
0:28:36 > 0:28:40Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd - 2005