Peter Scott
The late Peter Scott, son of the famous polar explorer Captain Robert Scott, was a man of many and varied talents. He was probably most famous as a conservationist - he established the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust (WWT) in 1946 and later co-founded the World Wildlife Fund. He was also an accomplished sportsman, winning an Olympic Bronze Medal for solo dinghy sailing, and holding the title of British Open Gliding Champion, as well as being a skilled ice skater.
His atmospheric wildfowl paintings are well known, and he was author and illustrator of numerous books in addition to making appearances on television and radio.
Books by Peter Scott.
Peter Scott wrote and illustrated books including 'Wild Chorus', 'Morning Flight', 'A Thousand Geese', 'Wild Geese and Eskimos', and his autobiography 'The Eye of the Wind', plus many more. He also illustrated an edition of Paul Gallico's 'The Snow Goose', and his pictures have featured regularly in the WWT's annual publication 'Wildfowl'.
The Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust
The WWT is the largest international wetland conservation charity in the UK, and plays a very important role in the conservation of wildfowl species worldwide - by researching their needs and possible causes for population decline, breeding birds in captivity to ensure the species survival should anything happen to those in the wild, providing birds for release programs, and conserving suitable habitats.
The Trust's most famous success story is that of the Hawaiian Goose or Nene (which you should see above) - in 1949 there were just 20-30 birds left on the Hawaiian Islands. Some were taken into captivity - three to the Trusts headquarters at Slimbridge, Gloucestershire, and since then more than two thousand have been released. Continuing work in Hawaii safeguards their future. These, and other endangered species such as the Blue Duck can be seen at WWT centres around the country, the nearest to Rose's & Stella Books being Slimbridge and Llanelli, South Wales.
Above: Pink-footed geese in Holkham Fresh Marsh - Oil Painting
Out and about
Despite the often bitterly cold weather, January is an excellent time to get outdoors and experience one of Britain's greatest wildlife spectacles - winter wildfowl - the ducks, geese and swans that travel many miles from the north to spend the winter here in the relatively mild conditions. At WWT Slimbridge you can see flocks of White-fronted Geese and the beautiful Bewick's Swans, which return year after year with their new families. Other sites to visit include Llangorse Lake, the largest natural lake in south Wales, which is a short drive from Hay-on-Wye. The lake attracts hundreds of ducks including Teal, Goldeneye, Pochard and Tufted Duck, along with Great Crested Grebes and Canada Geese. The River Wye is the winter home of many birds - the most notable of which is the Goosander - a sawbilled duck which can be seen diving to catch fish. Other birds to be seen on or near the river are Cormorant, Wigeon, Grey Heron, Kingfisher and Mute Swan.
Above: "Three small swans flew along the shore low amongst the breakers; they were Bewick's." - Oil Painting
All the above pictures are taken from Peter Scott's books Morning Flight and Wild Chorus. All were painted by him.
(Published 2nd Oct 2013)
