Tuesday was all about Tremendous Trees! We spent our morning following the Green Route around the nature reserve, matching leaves to their trees and thinking about the wildlife dwelling in them. Along our wander, we created Journey Sticks, gathering natural objects that we found to illustrate our travel. As we approached Yonder Cowleaze, we paused to look at some magnificent oak trees. We thought about the shape of the tree, made bark rubbings, and hunted for minibeasts crawling around in the shade cast by the leaves, before heading back to the visitor centre – just as the rain began to pour!

On Wednesday, families joined us to explore the birdlife at Kingcombe Meadows. The nature table was our first port of call, exploring the natural objects that birds may choose to eat, and the feathers that they had moulted. We took a closer look at the nest box camera and chatted about the sparrows nesting on the side of the barn. There were lots of swallows swooping overhead, and jackdaw nestlings calling for their parents. The group ventured out onto the reserve, stopping to listen to birdsong. To highlight the food chain, we had a rummage around through fallen leaves and underneath twigs to investigate the food that the birds eat.

On Thursday, it was time to discover the World of Water. The beautiful River Hooke meanders through Kingcombe Meadows, and is teeming with copious numbers of aquatic minibeasts. We strolled over to the river and learned how to safely use the equipment to investigate the watery habitat. After emptying our nets, we saw a range of invertebrates: dragonfly larvae, cased and caseless caddisfly larvae, and bullhead fish to name but a few! It was such a treat to share the magic of Kingcombe with everyone this half term – thank you for coming!