WestCountry
Centre
The species we currently maintain for film and
photographic opportunities are as follows
Pine martens (Martes martes)
Stoats (Mustela erminea)
Polecats (Mustela putorious)
Mink (Mustela vison)
Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes)
Wildcats (Felis silvestris)
Badgers (Meles meles)
European beavers (Castor fiber)
Hedge hog (Erinaceus europeaus)
Water shrew (neomys fodiens)
Common shrew (sorex araneus)
Pygmy shrew (sorex minutus)
Short tailed vole (microtus)
Bank vole (Clethrionomys glareolus)
Orkney vole (microtus arvalis)
Water voles - black Scottish and English ( Arvicola
terrestris)
Woodmice ( Apodemus silvaticus)
House mice ( Mus musculus)
Brown rats ( Ratus norvegicus)
Black rats ( Ratus ratus)
Edible dormice ( Glis glis)
Common dormouse (muscardinus avellanarius)
Harvest mouse (micomys minutus)
Adders (Viper bera)
Grass snakes (Natrix natrix)
Common lizards (Lacerta vivipera)
Common frog (Rana temporaria)
Marsh frog (Rana esculanta)
Common toad (Bufo bufo)
We have a well established wild bird feeding station and
adjacent photographic opportunities for wild red and roe
deer.
Wild boar photography is possible by arrangement as are
captive indigenous birds of prey.
We also host the only herd of Heck Cattle - reconstituted
Aurochs - in the UK which can be photographed in a
naturalistic marshland setting.
More detailed information on Heck Cattle and Auroch
history is available here
Copyright The Derek Gow Consultancy Limited 2009
Heck cattle in Devon
Heck Cattle are widely used as a nature
conservation grazing tool with one of the
most famous herds occupying the splendid
‘Oostvaardersplassen’ reserve near
Amsterdam. Here in Devon we have a herd
of 13 Heck Cattle imported from Holland
and Belgium in 2008. This is the first time
that the Heck cattle have been imported into
Britain and we hope to be ultimately able to
supply them as grazing animals for nature
reserves and “rewilding” projects. Though
the breed has a poor reputation as being
bad tempered there are many herds in
Europe which are drawn from manageable
individuals and we intend to repeat this
selection process at Upcott Grange.
We have a small valley with mixed
woodland and marshland on our farm which
we put the cattle into for purely film or
photography purposes on request.
More information on Heck cattle here