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| In the wilds of Patagonia with a not so wild Chilean fox |
I have been passionate about
wildlife and it’s conservation since childhood and have been privileged to
spend most of my life travelling the world making more than sixty wildlife
films for all the major broadcasters – BBC, ITV, Nat. Geo. and Discovery.
Most of these films stressed
the need to protect our planet’s natural resources and I have produced films
about oceans, jungles, savannas, lakes and mountains. Film stories have included an extraordinary expedition
to the New Guinea Highlands with Sir David Attenborough looking for natives
that had never seen white men, polar bears in the Arctic, penguins in
Antarctica, fish and whales in Alaska, tigers in India, leopards in Africa,
mountain lions in South America and snow leopards in Ladakh – I like cats!
Closer
to home, there are subjects that are just as important. Our freshwater world is
threatened by lack of water [not recently!] and the UK has already suffered dramatic declines
in fish and other aquatic wildlife.
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| The source of the gem-like River Allen |
Chalk streams in particular
have been ruthlessly exploited and damaged. There are only 160 chalk
streams in the world and 85% of them are in England … so we have an
international responsibility to protect them … and we don’t.
Chalk streams support some of
the richest diversity of wildlife anywhere in Europe but we abstract the life
blood out of them and kill the animals by the bucket load. Pollution is
widespread, silt off farmland a nightmare for fish and invertebrates. Some
streams have already dried up. Everything is Dead.
So as a life-long film-maker,
my passion for the natural world and determination to try to make a difference
is un-diminished. Over many years I have become increasingly aware of how
almost all TV, the media and conservation organisations ignore our threatened
freshwater world, notably the fish and other aquatic wildlife that lives below
the surface.
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| Brown trout |
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| Atlantic salmon |
‘Out of sight, out of mind’
is a cliché but in the case of our fish life it is alarmingly true. We can’t see
them, know little about them and as a result, don’t care. However, fish are a
vital part of healthy ecosystems and without them, fish eating birds might
suffer and even our otters will go hungry. So education is long overdue and
showing adults and children is the key. Entering the water disturbs the
wildlife but an under-water camera works a treat and within a mile of our home
is the ideal location.
The crystal clear, chalk
stream waters of the River Allen and the unique wildlife it supports makes it
one of the most important rivers in Europe and for years it’s been my ambition
to bring it’s fish and other watery wildlife into the consciousness of the
local community.
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| 'Liquid Gold' - the upper reaches of the River Allen |
The river is only thirteen miles long but it is a little jewel
flowing through the Dorset countryside. It provides a haven for species such as
wild brown trout, the endangered white clawed crayfish and the fastest
declining mammal in Britain, the water vole, this is just one of only a few
rivers in England that achieve ‘good ecological status’. More than two thirds
of our rivers fail and for starters, if we want to save them, we have to save
water.
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| No doubt catching more than me |
Freshwater is a vital element
in
all life, not least to us
humans and if the river’s wildlife is to survive in the long term we need to
ensure the community realise how
important clean freshwater is.
My dream is to have permanent
underwater cameras set in the River Allen, with viewing facilities for the
public and school children in the Allendale Centre and Waitrose in Wimborne. These will provide live images to a TV screen
surrounded by educational material, along with a DVD player to show films and
pre-recorded images that will be played when nothing is visible on the cameras in the river.
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| Some of them enjoyed the fish best! |
Luckily, the Dorset Wildlife
Trust, [who we’ve supported for thirty or more years], has a ‘Wild Rivers
Project’, led in East Dorset by Amanda Broom. We needed £5,000 to put the
screen and u/w camera in the river and DWT successfully raised the funding to do
so. Bravo to them. The first stage is complete, with the screen and several school parties
already taking advantage of this educational facility in the Allendale Community
Centre alongside the river. The enthusiasm of the children is wonderful and
with several talks and film shows with Amanda already completed, we have done a
little to raise the profile of our precious fish and other wildlife.
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| grayling |
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| roach and chub |
There is a lot more to do and
the u/w cameras will be installed in the autumn. In the meantime, we hope you
too enjoy this little celebration of chalk streams and the wildlife they
support.
One of the children watching
the pike catching a perch exclaimed “ Cor Miss, that’s well ‘arsh”!
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| One of many school parties watching the film |
One of the children watching
the pike catching a perch exclaimed “ Cor Miss, that’s well ‘arsh”!
