Native British Wildlife
A Digital Exhibition Catalogue of the work of Judith MacKay
British Wildlife Organisations, Associations and Groups
In this section you will find out about the different Organisations, Associations and Groups Judith has been affiliated with or been a member
The Herts and Middlesex Wildlife Trust is one of 47 local Trusts throughout the UK. It is primarily about people taking action for wildlife in their local patch. As a member I have free access to all their reserves and have visited Amwell and Tewin Orchard regularly. Amwell for birds and Tewin Orchard for Badger watching. It necessary to book beforehand and then to get there before dark so that you don’t disturb the wildlife. The hide is equipped with seats and alight outside so that you can view the wildlife that comes to eat the food put out for them. I have seen a number of foxes as well as badgers. Sadly it is difficult to sketch in the semi dark and so far I have not been successful with taking photographs.
Butterfly Conservation whose main aim is to work with partner organisations to achieve the shared aim of keeping the natural environment and species conservation on the public agenda.
I joined Butterfly Conservation because of my love of butterflies and moths. I have always endeavoured to grow suitable plants in my garden to encourage them to come visit. Over the years I have not been disappointed having seen Brimstones, Clouded Yellows, Orange Tips, Red Admirals, Peacocks, Comas, Painted Lady and the occasional Camberwell Beauty on the plants in my garden. In the surrounding countryside apart from the more common ones such as Meadow Brown and Ringlet we have Skippers, Small Blues the Speckled Wood. I the taken part in their Butterfly count to establish how widespread the butterflies are in the UK.
The RSPB reserves include the best places to see much of the UK’s wildlife. They create habitats to help many of the UK’s most threatened animals. Since becoming a member of RSPB I have visited several of their reserves including Sandy Lodge, home of RSPB, Minsmere, Rye Meads and Rainham Marshes all very different and providing ideal opportunities to sketch and photograph the amazing birds and wildlife. Minsmere has a wonderful herd of red deer that frequent the reserve and they have introduced Konik Ponies to help keep the habitats right for wildlife. The wide species of birds to see includes, Bittern, Marsh Harrier, Bearded Tits, Terns and of course the iconic Avocets.
Wildlife & Wetlands Trust is one of the world’s leading science and conservation institutions in its field. But we’re unique because we never forget it all starts with the simple pleasures, like feeding a duck, and maybe a nice cup of tea.
As a member of the Trust I have free access to all their sites in the UK, plus updates via email and a Newsletter/magazine. I have made a number of visits to Slimbridge to see and sketch/photograph the visiting birds. Come 4pm or perhaps later in the summer they feed the geese and wild swans on one of the lakes, which is a magnificent sight as they come flying in to land jostling for best position and eat the seed that is being put out for them. The Flight of the Swans was a fascinating undertaking by WWT’s Sacha Dench and the swans had to flee the harsh Arctic winter as it descended across Europe. Flight of the Swans won Campaign of the Year at the 2017 Environmental Impact Awards.
