A spontaneous day trip to Somerset and East Devon!!! - The Axe Valley Wildlife Park - Feb 20th 2019

Jaguarundi at Axe Valley

"Any plans for tomorrow?" my bestie said to me. "Fancy accompanying me on a drive into Somerset?" well, being the adventurous spirit I am, loving to explore and discover new places, I didn't need asking twice!!!!  My camera gear already packed, I prepared for my exciting day ahead!

A Beautiful privately owned dwelling

The only not so exciting part of the day was the wake-up call at silly o'clock! I'm not renowned for my love of early mornings! so the alarm going off at 3.45am wasn't so welcome, but once in the car and with my first cup of cappuccino inside me, I eagerly anticipated the day ahead!

With a 4 hour long journey into Somerset, we reached the beautiful county by around 7.30am/8am giving us a nice long day ahead. We stopped by the side of a beautiful privately owned house which appeared to be a church. It was difficult to pass by and not take a few photos. It was such a beautiful sight: beautiful architecture, daffodils, a lovely flowing stream, and small rocky waterfall and a brilliant blue sky with lovely clouds. Thankfully, I was able to crouch down far enough into a tiny corner on the outskirts of the property and just about get in the full view through the railings as I didn't have my wide angle lens to hand at the time.

A Bullfinch at Steart Marshes

We drove on to one of the WWT sites (Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust) at Steart Marshes. This is a really beautiful site with plenty of wonderful bird watching facilities including hides and lovely pathways to explore. Dog-friendly too, my sheltie Benji enjoyed his time there while remaining on a lead at all times. Created by the Environment Agency and the WWT, The marshes on the Steart Peninsula are one of the UK's largest new wetland reserves. They serve to provide protection from rising sea levels and provide a habitat for many species, not just avian. Roedeer, Hares, and Otters can also be spotted here so it is definitely somewhere I would like to return to to fulfill my lifelong dream of trying to see wild otters! I saw a lot of Lapwing on the lakes as well as some birds such as this Bullfinch feeding from one of the local feeders.

In the afternoon I got to spend a wonderful couple of hours at the Axe Valley Wildlife Park. Sometimes luck is on your side as you happen to be in the right place at the right time! I just happened to be scrolling through my FB page on my phone having a brief catch up when I noticed some photos from an FB acquaintance having posted some photos in one of the animal groups we both belong to. "Axe Valley", hmmm I have an inkling that may well not be too far from here! a quick google search showed we were only an hour at max away from it.

Arriving at the Axe Valley around 2pm, my friend was happy to look after Benji for a couple of hours so I was able to go in and have a walk around. I was soo excited!!! I was aware that they had some really unusual mammals there, the more exotic species that very few zoos near me have. Being only a smallish place it was an ideal place for me to wander around easily and revisit the animals there in the hopes of catching glimpses of some of these rarer species. It was the Palm Civets and Genets in particular that I was really hoping to see but these beautiful animals decided that sleep was more exciting for them than coming out to greet me! So another visit is on the cards for the future!

Long-Nosed Potoroo at Axe Valley Wildlife Park

I did however really enjoy my visit there and got to see some other unusual animals including the Long-nosed Potoroo. I had only ever caught brief glimpses of these animals at other zoos before now so it was great to finally be able to get a photo of one! These rather bizarre looking animals are members of the Rat-Kangaroo family Potoroidae and are closely related to Kangaroos and Wallabies. There are two subspecies of Long-nosed Potoroo, one of which lives on the Australian mainland and the other residing in Tasmania, the latter having lighter colouration.

Beautiful Arctic Fox at Axe Valley Wildlife Park

One of the highlights for me was seeing the Arctic fox in all its glory. It was one of the very few times I have ever seen a beautiful white fox and I was mesmerized!!! Though this beautiful animal wasn't strictly pure white as such and showed a more blue-grey coat colouration, which is also quite typical of the breed. These magnificent animals are found throughout the artic Tundra of the Northern Hemisphere where they have evolved special adaptations enabling them to withstand the harsh climate which can reach as low as -58 degrees! Coat colour changes with the seasons, providing effective camouflage in winter when they adorn their white (or blue-grey coats) against the snow and ice of the tundra. In summer as the tundra gives way to reveal rocks and plants, their coat turns to more of a brown colour. They also have short ears and a short muzzle and also have furry soles which help them cope with the chilly temperatures.

If you're anything like me, you'll also have a full appreciation for colourful  birds. I just find the vast array of different species of them fascinating! Axe Valley proved to a wonderful place as they house a variety of birds, both large and small. One of my favourite birds there was the White-Cheeked Turaco. First bred in the UK in 1964, they are the most popular of the Turaco species within zoos as they breed so well. Members of the family Musophagidae, this translates literally to "Banana eaters".

Black Swan preening itself at Axe Valley

Among the larger birds at Axe Valley were Black Swans, which were great to see! also, Flamingoes and Cranes to name just a few. Black Swans originate from Australia however were introduced as ornamental birds to many countries in the 1800's. Following the escape of some animals, Small pockets of them began to build up along certain counties within the Uk along the rivers. Whilst being monogamous as are white swans, these swans are unusual in that one quarter of all pairings are homosexual, generally between males.

Vibrant  Lovebird at Axe Valley

One little bird that took me back to my younger years was the Lovebird. During my late teens, I had two of my own Lovebirds. I called them Kiwi (yes, he was a Green bird!) and Malaika (A peach face Love bird). I grew up surrounded by many pets of the feathered, scaled and furry kind so thank my mum for my love and appreciation of all things relating to animals and nature. I enjoyed reminiscing as i observed the beautiful Lovebirds there.

There are nine species of Lovebird, eight of which are native to Africa with the ninth (The Grey-headed Lovebird) being native to Madagascar. Lovebirds are small parrots belonging to the genus Agapornis. Living in holes within trees, rocks or shrubs, interestingly, different species build their nests in different ways. For example, Fishers Lovebird carry single bits of bark in their beaks, whereas the Peach-Faced Lovebird hides bark in it's feathers exhibiting a more complex from of behaviour.

The Lovebird is also thought to be connected to Valentines Day. A poem by Geoffrey Chaucer called "Parliament of Foules" features two birds and is thought to be the first evidence to a link of a religious festival called Saint. Valentine and  romantic love.

Leopard Cat at Axe Valley

My visit to Axe Valley enabled me to see a cat that i had never seen before: The Leopard Cat. I was astounded by just how small these cats are! Weighing in at around 3.9 KG as an adult, it's very similar in size to my domestic cat! These small wild cats are native to Asia being found throughout the Southeast, South and East of the continent. Though similar in size to a domestic cat they are more slender with longer legs and well-defined webs between it's toes. I learnt that it was the Leopard cat that was the species of cat to become associated with humans in a domestic type setting in Neolithic China some 5,000 years ago! Since the 1960's hybrids have been produced for the pet trade resulting in the Bengal cat (a cross between an Asian Leopard Cat and an Asian Leopard). I arrived just as feeding time was about to commence. I got to see them playing with their food. As Carnivores, they eat small prey such as amphibians, rabbits, mice etc.

Fishing Cat at Axe Valley

It was also a fab day for getting some great shots of the Fishing Cat. I have seen them quite often as they have them at Howlett's Zoo where i go to quite often. Seeing them however and photographing them are two different things!!!! Another beauty of the small size of the park at Axe Valley was that my patience paid off as the Fishing Cats weren't easily seen on my first walk around! For me, it was seeing those magnificent big eyes up close!

Carols around the tree Lemur-style!

One of my funny highlights of the day was seeing the RingTailed Lemurs. Watching them playing was quite comical. Many of the enclosures at the park had Conifers in them, presumably as some kind of enrichment for them. The Lemurs in particular seemed to find these great fun to leap on and explore. I took a photo of a group of them and called it a Lemur version of "Carols around the Xmas tree!"


I could so easily have spent so much longer within the Park as i wasn't able to see all of the animals or photograph them but it's certainly somewhere i would love to go back to!!!

Here's a few more photos from my brief visit to this lovely little gem of a place.

Until next time! Take care folks and thanks for reading!!!

Egyptian Mongoose

Bush Dog

Prarie Dog