Nature's Top 40
Nature’s Top 40 counts down to the UK’s number one wildlife spectacle. Wildlife experts ranked suggestions from the public to compile the UK’s Top 40.
Into the wild
- Nature needs to be experienced first hand. You have to be able to touch it, see it, smell it and exercise your curiosity - and that's what Nature's Top 40 is all about. Sometimes we're so overwhelmed by TV images of glamorous animals in exotic locations, that we often forget that there's some really beautiful wildlife in the British Isles. I want to destroy the mystique about wildlife. For me, home is where the heart is. I've travelled all over the world but my favourite animals are right here at home. Â
- It's a myth that you have to be an expert to watch wildlife. You don't have to be a life-long nature specialist. You can be just like me and spend time watching and studying these animals just for fun. Take Otters, for example. Watching this elusive creature isn't a mystical art - it's practical common sense. Anyone can go out and find an Otter and have great fun doing it if you're patient and follow some of our top tips.
- I've been passionate about nature from an early age. As a child I transformed our home in Southampton into a menagerie bristling with a diversity of species. Snakes, spiders, finches and foxes all soiled my parents' carpets!
- Amongst the many types of spectacles sent in by the public were gatherings of animals, spectacular flower displays, and the behaviour of animals that simply made our viewers gasp in amazement. From these suggestions we compiled a list of your top British nature spectacles. Many were fantastic, surprising, magical or unusual - and all were something special.
A life in nature
- My ever-growing passion for wildlife has shaped my career. I studied Badgers for several years and this led to a degree in Zoology at Southampton University.
- One of my early TV ventures was presenting the Children's ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ Wildlife programme, The Really Wild Show. It was so good that it won a BAFTA.
- My more recent ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ programmes include Nature of Britain, Nature's Calendar and Hands on Nature. I've also worked on X-Creatures and Watch Out as well as Inside Out.
- One of my favourite experiences during the filming of Nature's Top 40 was watching Otters in the North East of England at Big Waters. The sight of these shy creatures in the wild is truly awesome.
- Another favourite moment during the series was my visit to North Berwick in Scotland where I saw an amazing bird spectacle on Bass Rock with thousands of Gannets indulging themselves in a feeding frenzy. Several thousand birds pack onto its cliffs making it bird central. It's rare to see so many birds up close and personal.
- It was also great fun watching stunning birds of prey including the amazing Golden Eagles in Scotland.
- Working on Nature's Top 40 has been really great fun. It has given me the chance to revisit some fantastic places around the British Isles as well as finding new ones that made filming a real treat. I hope that Nature's Top 40 will make you feel as passionate about nature as I do. So get off your sofa, get out there and enjoy the great British outdoors. It’s sure to satisfy the most curious of creatures!
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