SUSTAINABILITY

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Reflections at Foxglove
A view over the lake from the hides. 75 kingfishers have been caught here © Foxglove
The volunteer pool is enormous with some 60 people turning
out on a ‘worky-day’; over 35,000hrs of volunteer time have
been committed over the past three years, which costed out
at just £5 per hour would equate to £175,000 of work.
With the recent ‘Festival of Nature’
successfully behind us and the curtain
down on the hundreds of visitors who
enjoyed the experience, Foxglove
returns to its tranquil, leaf y state
couched between the Garrison and
the Training Area at Catterick. Birds are
heavily in moult, dragonflies are
starting to emerge, and with the
prospect perhaps of some warmer
weather, the peaceful mid-summer
ambience creates a tangible
atmosphere across the reserve. Dexter
cattle quietly munch their way through
the wetland vegetation and reed
warblers squabble within the
phragmites; water voles ‘plop’ hurriedly
and disappear under the water. These
are the scenes that greet the myriad of
people from all walks of life that
frequent this unique MOD reserve.
Hidden away behind the wire
Foxglove is a byword today within the
local community. Consistency has
been key, and with assistance from a
wide ranging group of suppor ters
locally and nationally, the site has
developed and thrives.
It was the late Colonel James Baker, Head
of MOD Conservation, who supported
the idea of this military reserve back in
the late 90s, and his vision to have a
Defence conservation asset at the heart
of this large, mixed conurbation was
certainly appropriate. Few of those
individuals who have passed through
the gates would disagree.
Adults and children take part in a natural history based mixed-media art session © Foxglove
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Sanctuary 44 • 2015