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| a stalking tigress - tension indeed © Mike Richards |
“Tiger, tiger, burning
bright” … one of the most powerful predators in the world. Beautiful but
deadly, elusive and endangered, a few still survive “in the forests of the
night”.
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| a tiger's roar makes your heart leap © Mike Richards |
Tigers are one of the most
desirable creatures in the natural world so I was keen to film these
magnificent big cats, to show them hunting, the cubs playing and the beauty of
their forest home, most of which would have to be filmed from elephant back
with a twenty foot tripod. We got charged by Lakshmi when filming her cubs ;
she certainly got our attention. The elephant wasn’t happy either!
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| big aren't they - this one was killed by an even bigger male |
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| stars of the show - two of our three cubs |
Our film was made for the BBC
and National Geographic and is set in Kanha National Park in central India. Ace
cameraman Chip Houseman and I decided to tell the story of just one tigress and
her struggles to raise her three cubs in this dangerous [for tigers] world. We
called her Lakshmi, after the ‘Goddess of Fortune’ and hoped her name would
prove prophetic.
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| Lakshmi resting in the shade © Tom Mangelsen |
It certainly was for Chip and
I, for the film won us a BAFTA for cinematography, the ultimate accolade … and
if you wish to see this film, it will be showing in the second half of a fund
raising film show I am giving on behalf of the Dorset Wildlife Trust. I’ll be
telling a few stories about the filming and some of them might even be true … and
answering any questions you may have.
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| as good as it gets - awards are always earned by team effort |
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| 'the eyes have it' © Tom Mangelsen |
All funds raised will go
towards the habitat creation and enhancement being carried out by the DWT on
our lovely local river, the Allen.
It might only be thirteen
miles long but it is a jewel flowing through the Dorset countryside and through
Wimborne on it’s way to the River Stour.
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| the River Allen - a jewel in Dorset's crown |
The Allen is a chalk stream,
one of only 160 in the world and one of the best examples, for it is a
stronghold for the white clawed crayfish and still supports a small population
of water voles, both seriously endangered species.
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| source of the river, water so clear it's invisible |
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| brown trout thrive |
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| grayling to record size |
The crystal clear nutrient
rich water provides food and a home for an impressive sixteen species of fish,
most notably proper native brown trout and seriously big grayling, the river
having once provided the rod caught record at 3.10 to our ex.postman and
friend, Owen Wentworth. Lots of big roach and dace come up the clear stream
from the Stour to spawn on the clean gravel in April and two years ago I saw a
roach that had my eyes out on stalks ; it must have been close to three pounds.
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| sixteen species in all, including big roach |
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| filming but wishing I was catching |
I have made a film about this
lovely river for the Dorset Wildlife Trust in the hope of raising the profile
of this important waterway and showing people the hidden treasures below the
surface. ‘Out of sight, out of mind’ is an appropriate saying when it comes to
our fish life and the film certainly succeeds in making folk sit up and take
notice.
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| perch in the mill pools |
I am in the process of
updating it to include some of the hard work being carried out by the Trust to
enhance habitat for the white clawed crayfish, water voles and fish life … and
the river certainly needs all the help it can get. In October the flow was 50%
down on the seasonal norm and some of it had dried up … and with 8,200 new
houses planned for this area in the next few years, I wonder where all the
water is coming from?! Add to that the substantial amounts of water required
for ‘fracking’ and the future seems bleak … but it doesn’t have to be if we
keep fighting for our gem of a chalk stream.
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| plenty of kingfishers adorn the chalk stream |
So please come along to the
show and support the work of the Trust before it’s too late. DWT staff will be
there to answer questions and I’ll be on hand to add my bit too. I held a fund
raiser like this in May and we filled the place, the 300+ folk raising
sufficient funds to enable more habitat enhancement to be carried out this
Autumn.
The film is called “Liquid
Gold” … ‘we can live without gold, we die without water’! Tickets can be bought
from the Allendale Centre in Wimborne where the films will be shown, also from
DWT HQ.
ALLENDALE CENTRE, WIMBORNE –
01202/887247
DORSET WILDLIFE TRUST –
01305/264620
Friday 29th
November – 19.00 for 19.30 start. Tickets £10 or £5 for children – all proceeds
go to the River Allen Project …details on the DWT website.
