- 8 months ago
Iolo's River Valleys episode 4
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00:00Rivers have carved the face of Wales and many flow through breathtaking valleys.
00:11Their beautiful landscapes make them popular places to visit.
00:18In this series I'm going to be exploring four river valleys.
00:23The Clwyd, the Conwy, the Dovey and the Rhaidol, going all the way from sea to source.
00:39Now all four of them are stunning and I'm going to be seeing some of Wales' best wildlife
00:44including some very special species.
00:51Join me as I explore the hidden stories and natural wonders of these remarkable Welsh
00:57river valleys throughout the year.
01:08The Vale of Clwyd's broad flat bottom and spine of hills form one of the most distinctive
01:14landscapes in the area.
01:16It extends from the North Wales coast around 20 miles up to Clwyd Cynog Forest and it's
01:22the valley I'm exploring this time.
01:24My journey starts here where the Clwyd estuary, the narrow estuary empties out into the Irish
01:29sea.
01:30As you can see behind me this is Kinmill Bay this part of the North East Wales coast is
01:37highly developed.
01:44hill ahead of me over there.
01:46houses, shops, roads, caravan parks.
01:47But despite all of that this is a local nature reserve.
01:51and if I can stop you there, just below me is a common lizard basking on a little rock here.
01:57making the most of this first sunshine we've had in quite a few days.
02:06lovely to see that and the other thing that abounds here, lots of them here at the moment is wheat ears.
02:15One or two flying around over there and there's two if not three I think, yeah there's three.
02:21down an old stump over there, there'll be one or two of these pairs will stay and breed but the vast majority, they've just come in from Africa.
02:30They'll feed up, rest a while and then head north again.
02:34Lovely to see that and the other thing that abounds here, lots of them here at the moment is wheat ears.
02:40One or two of these pairs will stay and breed but the vast majority, they've just come in from Africa, they'll feed up, rest a while and then head north again.
02:49Lovely to see cracking little birds.
02:58The estuary walkway provides prime vantage points for spotting birds drawn to the exposed riverbed.
03:05You can see from here just how narrow the estuary is, then it's been hemmed in by all of this development.
03:15But having said that, there are some nice birds here, there's a nice selection of wading birds.
03:19Red shank feeding on the far shore there and there's a flock of turnstone just underneath me.
03:25They're lovely little birds, really smart little things.
03:27It's only when they start to move that you can see them because they're so well camouflaged.
03:32But I'm going to leave all this urbanisation behind and I'm going to head up the valley.
03:45The lower stretch of the river Clwyd hasn't been shaped naturally.
03:49During the 13th century, when one of the valley's castles was being built,
03:54the river course was straightened and dredged, which would have been a huge effort back then.
04:02This is Rhidland Castle. It was built in the reign of Edward I, his first Welsh wars,
04:10and it was built between 1277 and 1282, and the positioning here was critical.
04:16It's up on a bank, so you're overlooking much of the flat land around here.
04:22But critically for him, it's right on the river Clwyd as well.
04:26So that meant that he could access fresh water, but also he could supply the castle up river.
04:33And although it was attacked over the next couple of hundred years by various Welsh princes,
04:38including our wine Glyndwr, it was never taken.
04:42It was pretty much, at that time, impregnable.
04:56The vast floodplain covering the middle stretch of the valley rises just 30 metres above sea level
05:02and has medieval field patterns criss-crossed with ditches.
05:12The valley bottom often floods during the winter months, so I've timed my visit in spring.
05:18I've moved up now towards Demby and heading up the valley towards Rithin.
05:27And the river here, it meanders along a very flat bottomed valley.
05:32You can see the water is barely moving.
05:35And it's very good agricultural land.
05:40It's alluvial soil, so the river has flooded over thousands of years.
05:44It's dumped the soil on the land.
05:47But there are some great pockets for wildlife too.
05:53An insect you're likely to see flitting along a slow-moving river like this is the Dumoiselle.
05:59And as it's overcast, many of them are perched up.
06:05There's a group of damselflies, banded Dumoiselles.
06:10They're probably waiting for the temperature to rise.
06:14The male is bluey-green metallic.
06:18The wings are see-through, except for one blue thumbprint on them.
06:22They're probably our most stunning damselflies, I think.
06:29What's great here is that the farmer has let patches of thistles grow,
06:33and you just can't underestimate how vital these plants are for all kinds of insects.
06:40Look at this. We've got a green-veined white here.
06:44And it's not been a good spring and summer for butterflies.
06:46It's been cold and wet for a long time.
06:49You've got soldier beetles galore.
06:52You've got hoverflies here.
06:54I can see another thistle over there that's actually got meadow brown on it.
06:59These pollinators, they're all important.
07:01The butterflies, the beetles, the hoverflies.
07:04It's not just bees.
07:07Big hand for the farmers for letting these be.
07:09The river Clwyd is surprisingly good for sea trout, also known as sea wind.
07:19And from late spring on, they return to the valley from the Irish Sea.
07:25They hold up in deep pools, often under trees,
07:29until the autumn floods allow them to swim upstream to spawn.
07:33Sadly, sea wind numbers have declined in Welsh rivers,
07:41so anglers practice catch and release to support their recovery.
07:45I got talking to local fisherman Ian Roberts from the Vale of Clwyd Angling Club.
07:55I used to fish for brown trout. I've never fished for sea trout, I've got to be honest.
07:59I think genetically there's no difference. They're the same fish, but nobody knows why.
08:06At some point, some of them decide to smolt up and turn silver and disappear off the sea.
08:11So a brown trout will stay in the river all the time,
08:14and a sea trout will leave the river for some reason.
08:16Yeah, that's it.
08:16Go to the sea, fatten up and come back up again.
08:19And they do go up and spawn and go back to sea and come back,
08:22so they're multi-sea spawners.
08:24Amazing fish, isn't they? Incredible.
08:26They are, they're fantastic.
08:28But they're not here today, so...
08:31So why is the Clwyd still a good seaweed river?
08:35Because I'm thinking of the classic rivers, you know, the Taivi, the Tawi,
08:38they've all suffered in their last 30, 35 years or so.
08:42Quite a lot of discussion about the wind farms out at sea.
08:45Has that stopped the trawlers coming in too close?
08:48And obviously, sea trout stay to the coast.
08:50But the worry is really for us that, you know, we're just a few years behind
08:54some of the better sea trout rivers who suffered from, you know, poor water quality.
08:59There's been a massive increase over the years with intensive food production.
09:03I don't like to call it farming, you know, chicken farms, large dairy farms,
09:08and also the sewage works.
09:11It looks like a pristine Welsh river, but like all of them, it's suffering from pollution.
09:18These sea trout are amazing things.
09:20They're so resilient, they seem to still want to come back.
09:22So, you know, long may it continue.
09:25I've got to say, it's really heartening to talk to a fisherman who still catches fish,
09:30you know, on a river that's holding its own.
09:32Thanks for having a chat.
09:34No, that's all right, no problem.
09:35And good luck.
09:36I'll leave you in peace now.
09:37Thank you very much.
09:38Cheers.
09:38Ta-ra.
09:39The chain of summits that runs the length of the valley to the east is the Clwydian Range,
09:58and dotted along them are several hillforts.
10:03Moel Arthyr is one of them.
10:10During spring, the hillside below comes alive with birdsong,
10:14from stone chats to white throats,
10:17and includes the unmistakable call of the cuckoo.
10:28Isn't that lovely to hear?
10:30So many people these days tell me,
10:32I've had a cuckoo for years and years and years,
10:34and it's getting harder and harder to hear one, let alone see one.
10:39Well, that'll be the male.
10:43There is a female supposedly nearby.
10:46I'm going to sit somewhere, tuck myself out the way, and just wait and watch.
10:55I've been quite still.
10:57I just sat here for a while.
10:59He's obviously got his favorite perching post.
11:01One is an ash tree right down the valley there,
11:04but it's in this ash tree here.
11:06They're lovely birds, really nice birds.
11:12You can see why they're often mobbed by things like meadow pipettes,
11:16you know, because they do look a lot like sparrowhawks with that long tail.
11:21You can hear it calling away again now.
11:33Every now and again, I've seen it drop down as well, just drop down.
11:36I'm sure what it's doing, it's going down to look for caterpillars.
11:40There are lots of quite big, hairy caterpillars, oak eggers and moths like that now,
11:48and that's what the cuckoo specializes in eating.
11:52Even though they've got these hairy, long guard hairs all over them,
11:56which prevents other birds from eating them, cuckoos can eat them.
12:00And what they do is they bring up a pellet every now and again,
12:03and they cast out the lining of their stomachs,
12:07and that brings out all the hairs with it.
12:09So they're specially adapted to take advantage of those hairy caterpillars.
12:13And lovely, it's been a real privilege to spend an hour in the company of the cuckoo up here.
12:29Right, I can leave it and head quietly up the hills.
12:43As the UK is home to three quarters of the world's remaining heather,
12:50the moorland on the Cluidian Range is very important.
12:54It's managed by Denbyshire County Council, and by cutting strips and patches on the hill,
12:59it maintains a habitat for a host of wildlife, including red grouse.
13:05These plump birds prefer to eat the young shoots, but will also feed on seeds.
13:10Late summer brings one of the finest spectacles in the area when the heather bursts into flower.
13:18This purple bloom lasts just a few weeks, providing an important late season food source for bees,
13:25and the nectar's medicinal properties could protect them from disease and help prevent their decline.
13:34By September, most of the heather has faded, but there's always something to see.
13:41I'm heading up to the highest summit, Moell Vamai, which means Mother Mountain in Welsh.
13:48There are hillforts all the way along this chain, and up ahead of me here is Moell Vamai,
13:55which is the highest point at 554 metres above sea level.
14:00And this, well, to me, I've got to say this is a bit of an ice fort, because it's not a hillfort at all.
14:06It's the Jubilee Tower is built to commemorate the Golden Jubilee of George III.
14:12Stands out a bit, doesn't it?
14:14But if you come with me, look, there's something I'm going to show you over here.
14:17Look at this bird.
14:18Just admiring the tenacity of this raven here. Look at it.
14:36It's a wild bird, but it's learned that so many people come up here to Moell Vamai and eat,
14:42you know, they leave scraps around, or they'll feed the bird, that it's virtually tame.
14:48It's only a couple of metres away from these ladies over here.
14:52Such intelligent birds as well.
14:56She needs to put the grape under its foot and pecked at it with its huge beak.
15:00Look. Look at this.
15:06There's no point in coming over to me. I'm not sharing my cake with anyone, I tell you that much.
15:21Closest I've ever been to a wild raven, I think. Amazing bird.
15:30The valley floor is mostly open farmland,
15:41with the last patches of mature woodland clinging to the valley sides.
15:48A mile south of Hrithin is Coed CĆla Grausluid.
15:53It's managed by the local wildlife trust and has some of the longest-lived native trees in the area.
16:00Look at this wood. Fantastic place.
16:08And sections of it are made up of yew trees.
16:11And yew woodland is very, very scarce habitat in Wales.
16:17You look at the plants growing on the forest floor and it's kind of a mix really of shade-loving plants.
16:25You've got ransons or wild garlic.
16:30You've got hearts-tongued fern growing everywhere.
16:34And then because we're on limestone, you've got limestone-loving plants.
16:39This is herb robert on this site growing in profusion here.
16:45But there are one or two quite scarce plants here as well.
16:49Tucked away within this wood are a few limestone-woundworms, Denbyshire's county flower.
17:02It's so rare that it's found at only three sites in the whole of the UK.
17:06So this site is really worth protecting.
17:19This is one that I wouldn't have been familiar with till a few years ago.
17:21It's called wood sanical and this likes limestone soil, ungrazed, shaded areas.
17:29And in the olden days, this would have been used extensively for all kinds of ailments.
17:34It was used for wounds. It's got antiseptic qualities.
17:38It was used for ailments of the kidney. It was used for dysentery.
17:42It was used for all kinds of things. Really, really useful plant.
17:46But again, not that common in Wales anymore.
17:51This part of the valley is scattered with a scarce form of exposed rock called limestone pavement.
18:05The area has some of the best examples in Wales
18:08and supports a wealth of rare plants and other wildlife.
18:13During May, the most open areas are a great place to see orchids,
18:18as well as being a hotspot for a host of butterflies.
18:21I've come to Eyarth Rocks. It's a nature reserve that's owned and managed by butterfly conservation.
18:34And it's probably the best place in North Wales, or at least one of them, for all kinds of butterflies.
18:40But I'm looking for one in particular. It's called the pearl-bordered fritillary.
18:49Here we are. Here we are. I've got one here.
18:52I've got one just down here. Beautiful.
18:55I'm pretty sure these have just hatched out.
18:58It's stunning. I won't go too close, because they are quite flighty, even in this wind.
19:03And if it gets up in this wind, they'll be in Wrexham in no time at all.
19:06But it's nice and sheltered down there.
19:10Pearl-bordered fritillary. You've got to look at them underneath and see sort of,
19:14um, sort of pearl, like little pearl markings on them.
19:17They are quite beautiful. They're really stunning little things.
19:26This butterfly was once common, but has declined sharply in recent decades due to habitat loss.
19:32And shockingly, only six sites remain in Wales.
19:41Without regular bracken clearing by volunteers to let dog violets grow, the caterpillars' main food source,
19:48we risk losing another Welsh population of the pearl-bordered fritillary.
19:52Every so often, you see something totally unexpected.
20:02Graham, our cameraman, has spotted movement nearby.
20:13There's a badger out in broad daylight about seven or eight metres away,
20:20just on the edge of this clearing there.
20:27Keep my voice down. The hearing is okay.
20:31Their eyesight is poor, but they've got a very keen sense of smell.
20:35But the wind is hitting my face this side, so it's blowing my scent that way,
20:39so it shouldn't be able to smell me.
20:41It'll be the fourth time I can remember bumping into a badger in the middle of the day,
20:50because it's, it's half past 12 in the afternoon.
20:54And even though this reserve is fairly isolated, I've seen on the way up,
20:58saw a couple of dog walkers, but yet the badger feels confident enough to come out to feed in the day.
21:04In its upper reaches, the river Cluid resembles more of a stream,
21:24as it winds through Clocaidnog forest.
21:30While conifer plantations don't support as much wildlife as native woodlands,
21:34there are a few species that live in them almost exclusively.
21:39A speciality here is the crossbill,
21:42a chunky finch that moves along treetops looking to extract seeds from pine cones
21:48with its distinctive bill.
21:51But I've come here to see a very special mammal,
21:54so I'm teaming up with Caro Collingwood,
21:57the red squirrel ranger for Clocaidnog.
21:59Do you know what, Caro?
22:03I've got to say, I'm, I'm really excited about this.
22:06I've seen red squirrels in Wales before, of course I have.
22:08I've seen, you know, the Angleseed populations doing really well.
22:11I've seen them in central Wales as well.
22:13I've been at Clocaidnog dozens of times,
22:16never seen a red squirrel here.
22:18Is it because the numbers are so low?
22:21That's it.
22:22So, you know, previously it's been a really low number of red squirrels here,
22:25so you were pretty unlikely to see them,
22:27but there's been a lot of conservation work
22:29which has gone into bringing the numbers back up in Clocaidnog.
22:32So if we're lucky, fingers crossed,
22:33you might get to see the red squirrels here today.
22:35Oh, I hope so.
22:35We're heading to an area in the forest which also has a few native trees
22:41that's monitored by the Clocaidnog Red Squirrel Trust.
22:44If you give me that, I'll get that set up for you.
22:47Cheers.
22:47Cheers.
22:48Cheers.
22:49After refilling one of their feeders,
22:51we settle in the hide and get comfortable.
22:54As we were walking up here through the forest,
23:02I saw lots of squirrel food,
23:05you know, because they omnivores, they leave virtually anything,
23:07weren't they?
23:08They were peach masts.
23:09I saw fruits around as well, and fungus as well.
23:13Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.
23:29He's grooming, yeah.
23:31He's quite high up.
23:32He's about 25 feet up.
23:36That's my first ever Clocaidnog Red Squirrel.
23:39I don't get to see them very often here.
23:42When you do, it really lifts your spirit.
23:45They're beautiful things, aren't they?
23:52You see, you've only got a small population here.
23:55Do you know how many?
23:56Not exactly, because it's a small population,
23:59makes it quite hard to do population counts.
24:01But we think there's somewhere around 50 red squirrels,
24:04but it could be a bit more than that.
24:06So all the red squirrels you can identify as individuals,
24:10can you just the markings and everything else?
24:12Not all of them, but some of them are really distinctive,
24:15like they might have a very dark tail,
24:17or be missing a bit of fur.
24:19But a few of the red squirrels have been chipped.
24:22And this feeder box, when it lifts up like that,
24:25there's a little magnet which reads the chip.
24:27Oh, wow.
24:28And each of those chips has a number,
24:30so we can see where that individual squirrel in the forest is going.
24:33There's another one coming in at the base of the tree, look.
24:38Oh, gosh, yeah, I see.
24:40Oh, fantastic, really smart.
24:45As far as we were aware, it's been a good breeding season,
24:47because we've had lots of evidence of kits on trail cameras this year.
24:51There's one higher up above the feeder, maybe three, four metres up and slightly left.
25:02I think, yeah, it's in the beach.
25:05Oh, yeah, I see, I got it, yeah.
25:07I think it's feeding on the beach mass, the beach seeds, natural food.
25:12It's a young one.
25:13It's got a lovely round face.
25:15Yeah, yeah, that's right, that's beautiful.
25:19It's on the move as well.
25:24Thanks to a few seed-producing trees,
25:26this area of the forest is a favourite for red squirrels.
25:30But it also means that grey squirrels are attracted here as well.
25:35They not only out-compete the reds for food,
25:38but carry a deadly squirrelpox virus.
25:43Uncle Cainog is surrounded by grey squirrels.
25:49Yeah.
25:49So it's like an island, really.
25:51That's it.
25:52So what does the future hold for reds here?
25:56We have five years of funding from the National Lottery Heritage Fund
26:00that's going to help us continue doing conservation work here until 2027,
26:04so that there's supplementary feeding the red squirrels, monitoring them,
26:08but also putting in some effort to control the grey squirrels.
26:10I'm sure some people don't agree with trapping and removing grey squirrels,
26:17but it's vital for the survival of our native reds in this forest.
26:24Spruce cones have tiny, tiny little seeds in them,
26:28and the red squirrels can make use of this food resource because they're just that much smaller,
26:33whereas for the grey squirrels, it's not a good food resource.
26:37It's lovely to know, you know, that we've still got a small population of red squirrels
26:43in this part of North-East Wales.
26:46It's lovely to see them.
26:48It's a joy.
26:49I've come away from the saucer of a ChloƩid now.
27:08I can see the ChloƩidian range in the distance.
27:17And the Vale of ChloƩid down below.
27:22And I must confess, it's been a real eye-open, not just the monuments and the hill forts,
27:27but also the wildlife.
27:29From the estuary, a trill, all the way up here to Clokainnog Forest.
27:33And of course, I finally managed to catch up with the Clokainnog Forest red squirrels as well.
27:39I've really enjoyed exploring these river valleys.
27:47All four have a different charm as well as special wildlife.
27:53Sadly, our natural world is under threat and time is running out for some of our iconic species.
27:59Despite this, wildlife is resilient and can bounce back when given the chance.
28:07Pine martins are now thriving in the Rhaidol Valley and sea trout still return to the Clwyd each year.
28:15The moorlands of the Upper Conway support a number of hen harriers.
28:22And with beavers now along the Dovey, biodiversity and people stand to benefit.
28:28These amazing river valleys have so much to offer.
28:35And we have a responsibility to look after them for future generations.
28:49lmao
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