It was back in January that we started work on Nightingale Walk, (check back to this post for a description of the whole idea), an exclusive gated village of fifteen individual, architect-designed dwellings set right in the heart of a nature reserve.

By February 8th, three of the properties had been sold.  Now, a further six have been reserved.  The homes will be completed in 2009.  So, there are just six remaining, and there simply won’t be any more than fifteen, ever.  There’ll be no subsequent in-fill, no additions, no extensions, no sudden change in plans, no increase in density, no alteration to the surroundings.  There will be fifteen houses, placed in one incredible natural environment, and that will be it.
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Interesting how the media sometimes gets the wrong end of the stick. Here are a few facts:

The North American beaver (Castor Canadensis) was introduced to Chile and Argentina many years ago, so that hunters and trappers could exploit it for its fur. It proliferated, and is now causing extensive damage to forests. It’s an object lesson in the dangers of introducing non-native species to an area.  According to an ACS (Advanced Conservation Strategies) report, the only way to deal with the problem will be to undertake a massive programme of extermination. This is definitely a newsworthy story worthy of public debate.

So far, so good (or rather quite bad, if you’re a North American beaver residing in Argentina). BUT ……..
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A national first for Lower Mill Estate, on the national news.  If you follow this link, you can watch the Six O’Clock News excerpt from Wednesday 16th July which features film of the first ever beaver kits born in Great Britain for over 400 years.

The film is magical: we commissioned a cameraman to take footage and he was lucky enough - very lucky - to catch two kits at play in the early morning.  For me, it’s a truly momentous event, and it encapsulates a critical aspect of what Lower Mill is all about - creating an environment in which man and wildlife can live harmoniously, side by side.

Nowhere else in the country can offer this kind of experience: I can’t begin to tell you how excited and delighted I am, and I hope other residents here will have the opportunity to see these beautiful creatures working and playing in the estate’s waterways.

Sad to report, we’ve had a bit of a falling out between some of the neighbours at Lower Mill Estate. There are two families involved, and it’s Eva (the mum) who’s got the problem. One day recently, she upped and left without saying any goodbyes and without leaving a forwarding address. As far as we can gather (although we didn’t hear from him either), her partner was pretty supportive, and decided to accompany her. Eventually, we made contact with the couple. He’d actually gone off towards London, and she was staying locally.
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Lower Mill Estate’s beavers have achieved semi-celebrity status (for those enjoy a nice TV-breakfast). Take a look. Footage kindly provided by the BBC.

According to the latest edition of New Scientist, beavers (as re-introduced to the UK at Lower Mill are exceptional hydrological engineers and eco-system managers.

English Nature claims that their activity creates habitats which support up to 32 endangered species including aquatic invertebrates which are vital to the freshwater food-chain: their dams filter and purify
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Following on from the BBC story here’s a night-time picture of one of the three beaver kits.

Not easy to capture - definitely a triumph of content over quality - but possibly all the more interesting as a result.

As for this kit’s prospects - I can confidently predict that he will grow into a highly proficient water filtration engineer.

Just a quick note (fuller story to follow) to say that both the estate and the beavers are gaining national acclaim on the BBC. Here’s the story. I’m trying to track the news footage as we speak.

Difficult to tell whether to post this under the Lower Mill category or Ecology - so I’ve done it under both.

Kate Gamez (Estate Manager) has just e-mailed me as follows:”Thought some of you might be interested to hear that a local bird ringer came out on Friday to ring the barn owl chicks in Someford Lagoon owl box and found 6 fat and healthy owlets!

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