According to the National Trust, many of us are missing out on a daily dose of nature. This doesn’t surprise me. Even though I am passionate about wildlife (as you can hopefully tell from my images!) and love being outdoors, I still have to fight to get time with nature every day. The pressures of having a day job and other responsibilities can lead me to sacrifice time in the fresh air for sitting at my desk, trudging round the shops or crashing out on the sofa.
The findings of research published by The National Trust reveal that only a small percentage of us are connecting to nature by doing simple activities like watching the sunrise or smelling wildflowers. Sadly, the figures are staggeringly low among children. For example, the research found that 77 per cent of children questioned infrequently or never listened to birdsong. I hope that campaigns by organisations like The National Trust help to encourage people to take the time to connect with nature each day.
Today I thought I’d ‘reflect’ (sorry!) on a recent dose of nature I had in my local patch. This photo was taken on valentines day when, if I remember rightly, we were having some respite before the next storm arrived. All the wildlife I saw in the Botanic Gardens that day seemed to be making the most of the break in the bad weather, but the blue tits were taking particular advantage. This blue tit was one of a few using a large puddle to have a bath. The birds were understandably cautious when in the puddle as each time they submerged their bodies and heads they were vulnerable. So, getting close enough to take this photo took some time. Luckily, there was an iron bench a few metres away from the puddle. I sat down and slowly reduced the distance between myself and the blue tits by sliding myself from one end of the bench to the end closest to the puddle. The slow and stealthy approach worked as they were soon used to me sitting still near them and I was able to spend a good part of my lunch break photographing them. This is one of my favourite images from the set, with the bird’s reflection showing the catchlight in its eye.
Time with nature always makes a huge difference to my day and I couldn’t stop smiling on the walk back to the office. I hope this image makes you smile too.