Winter 2015

Marwell News

Cover © Lawrie Brailey; contents © Glen Atkins. Issue no:151. Copyright: Marwell Wildlife. Editor: Becky Churcher, email: editor@marwell.org.uk Design: Mel Hewitt. Marwell Wildlife, Colden Common, Winchester, SO21 1JH UK 01962 777407 marwell.org.uk. Registered charity number 275433, VAT no. 631 9661 30. Correct at upload 22/07/2015. ISSN: 1757-3378.

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Welcome 4

Rhino Delivery 6

Studying Barn Owls 10

Red-necked Ostrich in Tunisia 12

Marwell’s Zany Zebras - update 16

Meet Indah 26

Rare Species Returns to Eelmoor Marsh 30

Restoring Local Historic Routes 32

In Profile: Animal Managment 36

Marwell Photographer of the Year 40

Wildlife in Winter - How you can help 58

Make your own bird feeder 62

Annual Member update 68

Kids Christmas Activities 72

Post to Instagram

Category Adult NativeRunner up Robin Lowry

H ello and welcome to the latest edition of Marwell News.

Firstly, thank you to all who visited us this summer and gave us feedback on our latest investment, Wild Explorers - our new home for our Grevy’s zebra, rhinos and scimitar-horned oryx. We are delighted with the response to the new exhibit so far and it’s great to hear that you’re enjoying this new immersive experience. What’s more, we have a wonderful new rhino ‘Jabari’ now living in the exhibit. The young male rhino

arrived from Dublin Zoo last month as part of the European Endangered species breeding Programme (EEP). You can read more about Jabari’s impressive arrival on page 6.

Wild Explorers marked the start of a multi-million pound investment programme for the zoo and we will be unveiling plans for our next new exhibit in the New Year. It is certainly going to be exciting so I look forward to updating you further in the next edition of Marwell News.

Christmas at Marwell tickets are selling very fast so please don’t miss your chance to attend this hugely popular event. If you’ve bought tickets already you can look forward to meeting the elves in their magical woodland, festive storytelling, and the chance to make Christmas baubles before visiting Santa in his sparkling grotto. This is an important event for us, in an otherwise quiet period. The zoo can also look surprisingly beautiful and the animals are often very active so we very much hope to see you!

The Marwell’s Zany Zebras stampede is growing rapidly with 34 businesses now signed up to this exciting public arts project. They range from small family organisations to international brands and we are thrilled that they’ve joined what promises to be the biggest event in Southampton in 2016. There is still time for businesses to get involved and you can find out about all the latest developments on page 16.

As usual we have some fascinating updates from our conservation team on developments at home and abroad. We have good news from Tunisia and the ostrich project and details of the first recorded movement of a large mammal across the Chalbi desert in Northern Kenya. In the UK, a rare species returns to Eelmoor Marsh and we reveal results from the latest local barn owl studies. Plus we have news from around the zoo and the stunning results of our photography competition.

As always, thank you for your wonderful support so far this year and we look forward to seeing you soon.

James CretneyChief Executive

WIN tickets to Christmas at Marwell

Find all the hidden Christmas baubles, use the letters to spell out

the name of a popular Christmas character &

enter online here!

Category Adult Cute & FunnyRunner up Tom Way

Giant delivery

Not only have our female rhinos Kiri and Sula got a brand new home but they now have a brand new mate too.

abari, a two-year-old male white rhino arrived from Dublin Zoo last month as

part of the European Endangered species breeding Programme (EEP).

Weighing almost two tonnes, Jabari’s arrival had to be carefully planned and staff from Dublin Zoo and Marwell Zoo gathered to lend a hand. Although Jabari could be comfortably transported on a large lorry, it took expert crane operators to lift him safely into his new home.

Collection Manager Ian Goodwin said the hoofstock keepers were very excited about the new arrival, he added: “It’s great to have a new male rhino in our collection and to make use of our fantastic new exhibit Wild Explorers. Jabari is starting to settle in really well and appears to be very comfortable in his new surroundings.”

Although Jabari is living next door to Kiri and Sula they are yet to meet in the large Wild Explorers paddock. Keepers will gradually introduce them to make sure all the animals are happy and settled.

Currently visitors can see Jabari on his hardstand or in his house. All five of the world’s rhino species are threatened by illegal poaching for their horns. Rhino horn has been in demand for centuries for its use in traditional medicines and as ornaments.

For two decades Marwell Wildlife has participated in efforts to manage and protect the two African species; the browsing black rhino (Diceros bicornis) and its larger, grazing cousin the white rhino (Ceratotherium simum).

Many white rhinos are now found within national parks and conservation areas with intensive protection zones. These rhinos are still vulnerable and conservation efforts for this species must continue if it is to survive.

Marwell Wildlife continues to contribute to the conservation of both white rhino and black rhino in protected areas in Zimbabwe and Kenya. This includes rhino management operations, training of rhino monitoring personnel, provision of monitoring equipment, and technical support for data management. Marwell’s latest initiative is a study on the ecology of rhinos in the Matobo National Park in Zimbabwe and the affects of land use and management on their distribution.

You can find out more about Marwell’s conservation work here www.marwell.org.uk/conservation

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Join the elves in their magical woodland and warm yourself with a glass of mulled wine or blackcurrant and a festive treat.

Meet our costume character and enjoy time with Santa’s elves creating some wonderful festive memories.

Have a ball this Christmas and join in the festivities at Marwell Zoo as we celebrate with a few special friends.

Create your own festive decoration before being called to meet Santa in his sparkling grotto and receiving a special gift.

The magic returns...

Add sparkle to your festivities. Book your ‘Christmas at Marwell’ tickets now & enjoy all of the above PLUS entry to Marwell Zoo!

Be charmed by Mrs Claus whilst she reads the enchanting tale of ‘Jack Frost’.

BOOK NOW!

Tickets areselling fast!

Studying barn owls

Over the last 50 years,one of the UK’s flagship farmland birds, the barn owl (Tyto alba) has been in decline.

hanges to land use, use of rodenticides and agricultural

intensification have all contributed to this species declining nationally by 69 percent over half a century. In addition, the felling of dead trees considered dangerous and conversion of disused barns means there are fewer nest and roost sites available.

Since 2014, Marwell Wildlife has been part of a barn owl nestbox monitoring project, established by the South Downs National Park Authority (SDNPA) across the region.

The project complements much of Marwell’s work in restoring habitats and species recovery, working towards meeting our broader conservation goals.

With the help of conservation volunteers, the Authority has erected over 100 boxes in the west of the National Park, with three of these within Marwell’s lands. Nestbox location is carefully assessed, ensuring the surrounding habitat is suitable to support barn owls, keeping in mind the needs of its small mammal prey species.

The bird’s main prey is field voles (Microtus agrestis), which require rough tussocky grassland with a thick litter layer as their favoured habitat. Understanding how habitats influence which nestboxes are occupied was an important question to ask.

One of this year’s postgraduate students, Kristen Whyle from Marwell Wildlife’s MRes in Wildlife Conservation, addressed this question in her 9-month research project. Kristen, originally from Buffalo, New York, earned her bachelor’s degree in animal behaviour, ecology and conservation in 2014 previously studying migratory birds as part of her undergraduate dissertation.

Working across 6 sites within the National Park, it was possible to quantify grassland structure, litter depth and plant composition and whether these were important predictors of breeding (e.g. eggs or chicks present) or roosting. The results indicate that breeding success is related to the grass height and a deeper litter layer, although further research is required.

We hope to continue this study over the coming years as well as assess small mammal density in those areas, working towards understanding these charismatic species just a little more.

Dr. Martin Wilkie

Conservation Biologist

C

Red-necked ostrich in Tunisia

n April this year, we reported how Marwell is supporting

the return of the north-African ostrich subspecies known as red-necked ostrich (Struthio camelus camelus), in the Tunisian aridlands where it was once abundant. Several initiatives are running simultaneously in different locations within the Sahelo-Saharan area to protect the last few remaining fragmented populations and avoid the subspecies’ extinction.

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W ithin this framework, Tunisia plays a crucial role and in collaboration

with Marwell’s Conservation team, the Direction Générale des Forêts acts to restore the largest non-flying bird in its natural ecosystem.

A year ago nine adult birds were released in Dghoumes National Park, near the oasis town of Tozeur, Tunisia. In February this year, two females and a male were released in Sidi Toui NP near the Libyan border.

The ostriches in Dghoumes were already mature and started breeding nicely, with two hatching seasons recorded in 2015.

In Sidi Toui, the animals were introduced as juveniles, but they have started to lay down eggs as well: hopefully we will report soon their successful breeding! The reintroduction process is not limited to the translocation and release: in between, there is an important phase in which the animals have to adapt to their new living conditions.

Learning how to survive is not easy, and with captive-born animals it may take several generations before their wildness fully reappears. Consequently, Marwell’s veterinarian and ethologist provide training and support to the park’s team to better support this adaptation process.

The threats are multiple: mitigating the changing climatic conditions, predator pressure, risk of intoxication with poisonous plants or injuries are amongst the greatest challenges that the inexperienced birds must face and instinctively find the best protective strategy. Fortunately, we have not suffered any loss of adult birds to date, but the animals are not yet able to effectively protect their offspring.

For that reason, most of the newly hatched chicks are collected and raised in captivity until they are big enough to return to their family group. It is hoped that next year, chicks raised by the adults will survive as well!

In both Dghoumes and Sidi Toui, the birds have been introduced to an ecosystem where the emblematic scimitar-horned oryx was re-established several years earlier: step by step, the historical landscape of southern Tunisia is being restored to give a second chance to endangered or extinct species as well as offering the next human generation the opportunity to get to know and learn from the Tunisian wildlife.

Dr. Marie PetrettoConservation Biologist

Marwell’s staff created a spectacular 33 metre high zebra portrait to celebrate the arrival of 100 education sculptures for Marwell’s Zany Zebras!

With help from HMS Collingwood, the team used the 100 sculptures to mark out large white stripes on the zebra. They also added a splash of colour with painted stripes so it looked just like our Marwell’s Zany Zebras poster boy - ‘Gilbert’.

Watch the video of the portrait being made HERE

These Grevy’s zebra sculptures are for schools and youth groups who have signed up to the Marwell’s Zany Zebras education programme. They will soon be decorating the white sculptures with their best ‘zany’ designs ready for a spectacular trail around shops and businesses in Southampton next summer.

The Marwell’s Zany Zebras team has been overwhelmed by the response to the education programme with 100 schools and community groups jumping at the chance to get involved with the South’s MANE event for 2016. Each will receive an Education toolkit designed to develop their understanding of both Grevy’s zebras and wildlife conservaton, and an outreach visit from the Marwell’s Zany Zebras Education Ranger.

The zebra sculptures decorated by the schools and youth groups will complement the trail of large sculptures which will be displayed in Southampton city centre next summer. Businesses can sponsor these large sculptures and so far 34 organisations in the south have joined the stampede.

In addition to the trail in Southampton, the designs of the large sculptures will be replicated onto miniatures which will be hidden within Marwell Zoo itself.

Marwell’s Go! Rhinos trail in 2013 was enjoyed by over 250,000 visitors and residents. The project ignited community spirit, showcased the city and put smiles of hundreds of thousands of faces. We’re certain that Marwell’s Zany Zebras will be even bigger!

Kirstie Mathieson, Marwell’s Zany Zebras Project Manager enthused:

“Our Marwell’s Zany Zebras project is a unique way to learn about Grevy’s zebras - it’s creative, interactive and fun. Once the trail goes live, hundreds of thousands of people will be able to enjoy the work that pupils have produced. We can’t wait to see what designs the schools and youth groups involved come up with.”

“From solicitors to shopping centres, sporting venues to theatres we have businesses and organisations of all shapes and sizes joining the event. We have 34 sponsors on board so far and we are expecting many more.The more sponsors there are the more sculptures there will be and the greater the trail and the bigger the spectacle. If your company’s not involved already I urge you to join the stampede - it’s going to be wild!”

Sign up now!

Thank you to the following sponsors who have joined the stampede!

Education Partner

Join the herd... Get in touch today! It’s going to be Wild!

MarwellsZanyZebras

zanyzebras.org.uk

MarwellsZanyZebras

@zanyzebras2016

Grevy’s zebra facts

• They are the biggest and most distinctive of the three species of zebra found across Africa.

• A Grevy’s zebra foal can stand 6 minutes after it is born and run after only 45 minutes!

• Marwell helped to create and implement the national plan for Grevy’s zebra conservation in Kenya.

• They can run at speeds of up to 40mph.

• Grevy’s zebra are found in dry rangelands of Ethiopia and northern Kenya, and they are specially adapted to these harsh conditions. They can go for four or five days without drinking.

• Sadly numbers of Grevy’s zebra have declined rapidly over the past 40 years. With a population of 2,600, there are still fewer Grevy’s zebra than there are black rhino in Africa.

Save the date!Look out for these fantastic events happening next year - more details to follow!

Zebra Zoom at the zooChildren’s Fun Run - 14 May 2016

Marwell’s Zany ZebrasTrail goes LIVE 16 July 2016

© Jeremy Landey Images

he Sulawesi-crested macaque baby was

born in July to mum, Drusilla and dad, Douglas.

Indah has settled in well and is starting to explore her new home independently, under the watchful eye of her mum and dad of course!

This is the first macaque born at Marwell for 10 years and Indah will be a valuable asset to the European Endangered species breeding Programme (EEP) which conserves the species to avoid extinction.

Sulawesi-crested macaques (Macaca nigra) are the most endangered of the seven macaque species found on the island of Sulawesi.

In the wild they live in tropical rainforests and mangrove swamp areas on the Northern Peninsula of the Indonesian island.

These animals face many threats in the wild; one of them is over hunting for food, as they are considered a delicacy in areas of Sulawesi.

In September we launched a public competition to name our little macaque. Primate keepers selected five possible names for the youngster and the public chose their favourite.

Indah, which means beautiful in Indonesian, was the clear winner with 35 percent of the votes.

Claire Mound, Team Leader of Primates and Small Mammals said: “Thank you to all who have voted to help us name our exciting new arrival. She is settling in really well to the group and is at the stage in her development where she is confident to explore. “Indah can be seen regularly running around and attempting to climb. Her sweet and playful nature has won the hearts of the entire team and visitors alike!”

For latest updates on Indah’s progress, visit Marwell’s Facebook and Twitter pages.

Meet Indah

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Little Indah is now three months old and is really finding her feet!

Looking for an awesome gift?

Bring some magic and sparkle to your Christmas shopping, our festive gifts will delight those special people on your gift list.

Please ensure your orders are placed by Wednesday 16 December to be sure that Santa can deliver in time for the big day.

Photo Experience DaysGive the gift of life through a lens

Gift Tickets Marwell Zoo tickets, presented in an original Christmas card with your chosen gift message, are the purrrrrfect gift for animal lovers.

Animal ExperiencesUnique and memorable

Annual MembershipThe gift that keeps on giving

Gift ShopFrom cuddly toys to works of art & sculpture

Animal AdoptionsThe perfect gift for animal lovers. Choose from a HUGE selection of furry, feathery & fanged critters to adopt!

Rare Species Returns

T he rare marsh clubmoss (Lycopodiella inundata)

has been found at Eelmoor Marsh Site of Special Scientific Interest in Hampshire, nearly 60 years after it was last seen in this location.

The species is confined to open peaty ground in wet heaths, mires and other places that are inundated with water for the winter. However, due to decline of these environments, it is now a threatened species occupying less than a quarter of its original range in the UK, making its reappearance at Eelmoor Marsh particularly significant.

It is likely that the marsh clubmoss has been revived at Eelmoor Marsh because of a combination of mechanical habitat restoration and disturbance by grazing animals, creating open conditions across wet ground. It represents a further success of the habitat restoration programme carried out by Marwell Wildlife and landowner QinetiQ, and an apt discovery

to mark the 20th anniversary of this partnership. Clubmosses can be traced back at least 300 million years to the Carboniferous period, and despite the name they are actually simple plants that are closely related to ferns.

As a group, clubmosses have been used throughout human history for medicinal, dyeing and decorative purposes.

Because their spores repel water they have been used as a powder to treat skin rashes and wounds. The high oil content means that the spores are highly flammable and as they ignite with a bright flash, they were once used in fireworks and for early flash photography

Dr. Tim WoodfineDirector of Conservation

Restoringlocal historic routes

arwell staff and volunteers have been working hard to restore a popular local bridleway thanks

to a donation from the British Horse Society and a grant from Hampshire County Council.

The bridleway, which runs from Colden Common to the entrance of the zoo, is regularly used by walkers and horse-riders but has seen a decline in condition.

Restoration work was needed to improve access to Marwell’s semi-natural ancient woodlands and increase wider countryside access. This work also underlines Marwell Wildlife’s mission of connecting people with nature.

Marwell Wildlife is fortunate to have a network of rights of way which traverse the woodlands and grasslands of its estate and many of these form important access routes for our stakeholders. The routes are historically significant, evident from numerous adjacent bank and ditch systems as well as the historical maps from the 17th Century. At that time and preceding it, the estate was owned by the Bishops of Winchester and the woodlands formed part of extensive deer emparkments. A boundary to the eastern margin of this emparkment is now a Scheduled Ancient Monument (SAM), which lies adjacent to one of our bridleways. This bridleway was also once the only route towards the Grade I listed Marwell Hall and onto Bishops Waltham.

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The bridleway prior to renovation work

The bridleway, is banked on both sides with herb-rich vegetation and is typical of wet ash-field maple vegetation, accompanying the adjacent woodland copse.

Several ancient woodland indicator plant species can be found along this bridleway, and species of interest include thin-spiked wood sedge (Carex strigosa) and wood anemone (Anemone nemorosa).

The route has been well used by the local community but has been in need of renovation for some time to prevent erosion, conserve the historical attributes and to maintain a wearable surface for all users.

Thanks to the British Horse Society and Hampshire County Council, Marwell Wildlife has been able to commence the renovation of these bridleways for the benefit of all users. Conservation of the surrounding habitat and its sensitive flora was also key to these improvements as alternative routes can degrade important woodland habitats and damage important plant communities.

The restoration included excavating a drainage ditch alongside the upper bridleway and diverting the water flow, marrying the different levels along its length, compacting a sub-base and providing a suitable flat and durable wearing course. The work was overseen and completed by Marwell Wildlife staff with the help of volunteer groups including SSE, to whom we are hugely grateful.

Dr. Martin WilkieConservation Biologist

Steve CornfordTeam Leader of Animal Management

Marwell’s Animal Management team receives five tonnes of animal feed and hay every week, all of which has to be moved around the huge 140 acre zoo.

Every morning before the zoo opens, the area is a hive of activity while the team deliver goods to ensure all the animals are fully prepared for the day.

Steve Cornford is the Team Leader of Animal Management and has been working at Marwell for six years. From transporting tigers, to making sure the animals have all the bedding they need; the Animal Management team play a vital role in the running of the zoo.

Can you describe an average day at the zoo?

We drive most of the large vehicles such as JCBs, tractors and diggers and therefore carry most of the heavy goods around the zoo including food, bedding and sometimes animals too! Occasionally we help with events, moving set designs around or more recently hundreds of pumpkins.

We take regular trips to farms throughout Hampshire but spend most of the time transporting goods before the zoo opens to the public.

As well as ordering in food supplies we cut our own bamboo for the animals and prepare browse barrels for the winter. These browse barrels ensure animals such as giraffe, okapi and primates get their favourite food all year round. Most of the animal feed is sourced and ordered by the Animal Management team.

What are the more unusual jobs you carry out?

No day is exactly the same here at Marwell, we have our standard daily routines but we also get some very strange requests!

Sometimes we are required to move animals when they arrive at the zoo. We have to take a lot of care when doing so and there’s a certain amount of pressure. You can’t make any sudden jerky movements to ensure the animal stays as calm as possible. There’s a lot of anticipation when a new animal arrives so there’s usually a crowd of people watching too.

Another unusual job was to move dinosaurs around the zoo for Marwell’s ‘Rise of the Dinosaurs’ summer event in 2014. There were dinosaurs of all shapes and sizes so it was all hands on deck to get them positioned. There was actually a lot of pressure to do this carefully as the animatronics were extremely expensive and had made it safely from America. Moving dinosaurs was a completely new experience for us and something that I never thought I’d be doing one day!

Are there any particular moments in your career that you’ll never forget.

I will never forget breaking down on the M4 while transporting a pygmy hippo from Bristol Zoo. The pygmy hippo was secure in the back of the vehicle but we had to stop and call the Highways Service for assistance. I told them that there was a pygmy hippo on board but I think they misheard me and thought it was a standard sized hippo! When they arrived they were shocked at the size of the vehicle and asked ‘How did you get a hippo in there?’

Luckily it didn’t seem to affect the hippo as we continually checked him and he was fast asleep!

We soon had the vehicle fixed and made our way to Marwell safely. It’s not something that happens every day thank goodness!

Unloading our female tiger Milla was quite an experience as she was moving around quite a lot in the crate. We wanted to get her settled quickly but I had to take care in lifting her slowly so she stayed as calm as possible.

Marwell’s annual Photographer of the Year competition once again provided breathtaking images of incredible wildlife from all over the world.

From a hilarious image of a slippery squirrel caught in the act and a Japanese monkey taking a dip in a thermal pool, to a captivating critically endangered Amur leopard and the best of British nature, the prestigious competition didn’t disappoint.

Judges had the difficult task of selecting their favourite images over four categories - Native Wildlife, Cute & Funny, Marwell Zoo Residents and Marwell Zoo Endangered.

The competition’s overall adult winner was Lawrie Brailey who caught the magical moment between a female fox and her cub. Mr Brailey also won the Marwell Zoo Endangered category with his atmospheric image of an Amur leopard. James Welch, 14, won the junior overall award with his skilled image of a short-eared owl in flight.

Laura Barwick, Image Consultant for BBC Natural History Unit and the competition’s head judge said:

“I thought the diversity of species was far superior to last year, both from adults and juniors. The Adult Native category alone showed the range and talent that I think typifies the winning selection everyone put together.”

Other winners included ‘Doing Bird’ by Roger Clark who won the cute and funny category with his image of a young squirrel who managed to squeeze his way into a bird feeder.

This year’s People Choice winner was Emma Healey with her image of a Japanese macaque breathing a sigh of satisfaction after emerging from a hot pool. Whilst the Marwell Wildlife Residents winner was Tim Archer with his stunning silhouette of a macaque.

Category Adult Marwell Endangered Winner Lawrie Brailey

Sponsored by

This competition’s top prize was an 8 day Estonia photography trip from wildlife holiday specialists Wildlife Worldwide and The Travelling Naturalist worth £1,795 along with an annual subscription to Digital Photographer magazine. Other prizes included a special day at Marwell Zoo incorporating a Junior Photographic Experience, annual memberships and camera equipment from Thule, Case Logic and Gardenature.

Judges for this year’s competition included:

• Laura Barwick, Image Consultant for BBC Natural History Unit.

• Jason Brown Multi-international award winning wildlife photographer

• Chris Breen, Managing Director Wildlife Worldwide

• Stuart Martin, Award winning news photographer from The Daily Echo

• Amy Squibb, Editor of Digital Photographer Magazine

We are delighted to announce that Winchester based wildlife travel specialists, Wildlife Worldwide and The Travelling Naturalist once again sponsored the Photographer of the Year competition. As well as providing some fantastic prizes, Wildlife Worldwide has sponsored this year’s competition to the tune of £1,000 to help support Marwell’s conservation work with Grevy’s zebra in Africa.

These funds will contribute towards Marwell’s field work in Kenya’s arid northern rangelands to promote conservation awareness, as well as training workshops for newly recruited community scouts in data-collection techniques. This work is ultimately aimed at providing an overarching framework for community-based conservation of Grevy’s zebra as a flagship species, and wildlife conservation in general, in areas which have not previously been assessed or included in Kenya’s national conservation and management strategies.

Category Adult Cute & FunnyWinner Roger Clark

Category Adult Native & OverallWinner Lawrie Brailey

Category Junior Cute & FunnyWinner Isobel Parry

Category Junior Marwell ResidentsWinner Sophie Mott

Category Adult Marwell ResidentsWinner Tim Archer

Category Junior Marwell EndangeredWinner Grace Brown

Category People’s ChoiceWinner Emma Healey

Category Adult Cute & FunnyCommended Robin Lowry

View more runners up & commended here!

s the weather gets colder and the days get shorter many wild animals

instinctively migrate in search of food.

But what about the wildlife that stays behind for winter?

They must adapt to the changing weather. To keep warm, animals may grow new, thicker fur during autumn. Some animals, like squirrels and mice prepare for the winter by gathering and storing extra food.

Some, like rabbits and deer, spend winter looking for moss, twigs, bark and leaves to eat. Other animals will eat different kinds of food as the seasons change.

The red fox eats fruit and insects in the spring, summer and autumn but in the winter, when they can’t find these things, they will eat small rodents instead.

AWildlife in winter

So what can we do to help the neighbouring wildlife embrace the colder months?

• Allow some fallen fruit to remain on the ground as it is a tremendously rich source for invertebrates and birds, attracting in thrushes, redwings and fieldfares.

• Piles of leaves are a perfect home for hedgehogs to wait out the winter months. Make sure to check before moving or burning as they may be hibernating inside.

• If you have space, allow a small area to become a thick, rough grassy area. This allows brilliant structural diversity for many invertebrates.

• Keep a constant water supply in your garden for wildlife.

• For those of you with green fingers, resist the urge to prune back bushes and shrubs, as it provides a good food source over winter.

Some birds such as blackbirds, blue tits and European robins come to rely quite heavily on garden feeders so if you get regular visitors keep them well stocked until mid-March.

Create an easy hanging bird feederwith seeds and cookie cutters!

• 500ml of boiling water

• 2 sachets of gelatin

• 400g of bird seed

• Greaseproof paper

• Cookie cutters or silicone moulds

• Straws cut into 2 inch pieces

• String

Pour the water into a very large mixing bowl. Add two sachets of gelatin and stir until it’s fully dissolved. Add the bird seed and mix well until everything is evenly coated.

Place cookie cutters/moulds onto a parchment-lined tray and scoop seed mixture in until heaping full. Place another piece of greaseproof paper on top of the cookie cutters and press down firmly to pack in all the seeds. Remove the top greaseproof layer and gently poke straw pieces all the way through the seed shapes (be sure not to put them too close to the edges). Pop the tray into the fridge for a couple of hours to allow the feeders to set.

Later on, remove the tray from the fridge and let it sit on the counter to dry out. Flip the cookie cutters over a few hours later to let the bottoms dry out too. Let sit for at least 3 – 4 more hours (overnight is best) until the feeders are completely dry.

Gently remove the seed shapes from the moulds (they should be fully dry and hard to the touch at this point – if not, allow to dry longer). Carefully remove the straws and tie a string loop through the holes. Hang in a tree.

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Make your own!

Adoption Certificate Photo + fun sheet Sticker & bookmark Adopters’ Zone

© M

ike

Ang

el

For the puuuuurfect gift, click here or call 01962 777988 Monday to Friday

Go Wild!Milla the Amur Tiger

Imogen the Grevy’s Zebra

Isabella the Giraffe

Chico the Meerkat

Eva the Penguin

Wendy the Pygmy Hippo

Indeever the Snow Leopard

or Kaia the Amur Leopard

Cuddly toy 1 FREE child ticket Recognition at your animal’s enclosure

© Lawrie Brailey

Registered charity number 275433

The natural world is changing rapidly around us and our conservation efforts have never been more urgent. Please help us ensure a better future for endangered wildlife for years to come through leaving us a gift in your will.

Every single gift, no matter how large or small, makes a genuine difference to the work we can do.

Please contact us now on 01962 777977 or via email for more information on what your gift might support.

Your memory......theirfuture

pleaseleave us a gift in your

will

Thank you for being an annual member. Your support makes a valuable contribution to both our conservation work and the care of our animals in the zoo.

We’re on hand to answer any questions you might have so please drop into the membership cabin next time you’re in the zoo. Alternatively call the team on 01962 777960 or email us at membership@marwell.org.uk

One visit a year to a range of zoos As a Marwell annual member you are welcome to visit the following zoos once a year (subject to their terms and conditions); Bristol, Chester, Colchester, Edinburgh, Highland Wildlife Park, Paignton (inc. Living Coasts), Newquay, Rotterdam & Twycross.

Designated entryEnjoy priority entry to the zoo during peak periods, including school holidays, meaning shorter or no queues.

Explorers TrailDon’t forget to collect an Explorers Trail from the information hut on your way into the zoo. We have just added new animals to the trail, with two new stamps to collect.

Keeping you up to dateDon’t miss out on zoo news, exclusive events and special offers. Be sure to register for our monthly email at marwell.org.uk/register You can also join us on Facebook and Twitter

AnnualMemberupdate...

AnnualMemberupdate...

Whatever your ability or interest in photography, whether you want to learn to take better photographs, are a seasoned professional looking for new subjects, or simply want to understand your camera better, our new Photographic Experience Days are a must.

Our adult, junior and twilight experiences offer you an exclusive day with Jason Brown within the historic and picturesque setting of Marwell Zoo. You’ll have the opportunity to capture some spectacular images of our exotic and endangered species from a range of public and restricted access areas.

Find out more & how

to book here!

PhotographicExperience Days

© JasonBrownPhotography.co.uk

Pedro’s helping Santa deliver presents through the chimneys - Use stairs, ladders and keep him safe, no jumping or climbing up the walls!

Christmas Delivery

Look at the presents under the tree. Find the matching numbers and fill in the missing words that are hanging on the tree.

You’ll find the answers to all the christmas activities here:

http://issuu.com/marwellwildlife/docs/marwell_zoo_news_kids_christmas_act

Colour & Christmas Clues

After a busy day helping Santa deliver presents, help Pedro find his way home!

Pedro’s maze

WIN tickets to Christmas at MarwellDon’t forget to find all the

hidden Christmas baubles in Marwell News & use the letters

to spell out the name of a popular Christmas character

- then enter online for your chance to win!

Pedro’s Christmas Word Search

f q r a k c h r i s t m a s

a w o a p i y m g f i l r k

t e b d o u l n h e n r o r

h r i n z y l b r u s n o w

e t n a x t o v w r e l s l

r y u p c p h c f w l s l d

c n i d v t r d r k m r l r

h i r e i n d e e r s s d a

r u o r b r l x s t n r l p

i g p n t e e z r e p o n o

s n a m r w k l f t n r h e

t e s l e q j z v t o t n l

m p d k e a h x n e n z q w

a g f j f s g v m e s j k o

s h s t h g i l y r i a f n

k j a c k f r o s t n m k s

Christmas

Father Christmas

Robin

Snow Leopard

Holly

Fairy Lights

Penguin

Elves

Tinsel

Red Panda

Snow

Jack Frost

Reindeer

Present

Tree

f q r a k c h r i s t m a s

a w o a p i y m g f i l r k

t e b d o u l n h e n r o r

h r i n z y l b r u s n o w

e t n a x t o v w r e l s l

r y u p c p h c f w l s l d

c n i d v t r d r k m r l r

h i r e i n d e e r s s d a

r u o r b r l x s t n r l p

i g p n t e e z r e p o n o

s n a m r w k l f t n r h e

t e s l e q j z v t o t n l

m p d k e a h x n e n z q w

a g f j f s g v m e s j k o

s h s t h g i l y r i a f n

k j a c k f r o s t n m k s

Category Adult Marwell ResidentsCommended Ralph Harvey