Our annual competition was established in memory of local photographer Nicola Devine, who died in 2022. There are two categories (under-18 and adult), with a prize of £100 in each category, and a chance for winners and runners-up to have their photos of Trap Grounds wildlife and scenery included in the annual calendar (with the […]
Bird-ringing on 31 May 2025
Twenty-five years ago a dozen pairs of Reed Warblers were ringed in the Trap Grounds reedbed — the largest colony within the city boundary. But conditions on site gradually deteriorated: the water level dropped as scrub willows invaded the site and dead reeds built up. In 2017 we began eradicating the willows, and scything blocks […]
Swans on the Canal again…
Yesterday (21 July) I spotted Eddy the swan (who lost her partner Prince in May this year) leading her 5 cygnets up the canal. It was almost mid-morning and sunny. The cygnets, who are still very young and fluffy, wanted to keep their heads under their wings when I saw them later closer by, but […]
Banded Demoiselles mating
James Wainscoat caught this pair in flagrante on 16 June 2023.
The woods are full of birdsong
Claire Weiner photographed a Thrush and a Blackbird in full song on her walk around the Trap Grounds on the evening of May 1st.
Cowslips galore
Last year there were about a dozen cowslips in flower in the Snowdrop Glade near the back entrance. This year there are too many to count!
Long-tailed tits: tiny birds, more easily visible while the trees are bare
Always the first to welcome visitors
Arctic weather relenting …
