These berries are plentiful on four ornamental rowan trees outside the former Kwik Save store Brynmawr at the moment. This was the venue for a healthy party of waxwing the last time they visited in numbers a few years back. But it seems the current invasion has yet to filter this far south, but we live in hope.
Another site worthy of a check is Tesco car park Pontypool where a similar range of berry bearing trees exist - some nice whitebeams. Although beware, using a pair of bins in a public place anywhere in the valleys is likely to result in disapproving glances or even possible arrest. You can fell some nice woodland during bird breeding season, put a terrier down a badger sett, discharge a firearm in a public place in full Rambo attire or drive your 4x4 repeatedly through an upland bog but demonstrate any affinity to the natural world and you're in trouble. The only way of avoiding a spell in the slammer is to plead insanity by claiming you're a birder/naturalist/ecologist.
Tour of the Heads of Valley forgotten blue network produced the following:
Bryn Bach Park - c125 mallard, c75 coot, c50 tufted duck, 4 great crested grebe, 17 pochard, 5 moorhen and several redwing.
Beaufort Ponds - 1 little grebe, 7 wigeon, 4 mute swan, 11 coot, 13, tufted duck.
Machine Pond - 1 little grebe, 1 tufted duck, 17 coot, 10 mallard.
Dunlop Semtex Pond - 1 little grebe, c30 tufted duck, c50 mallard, 6 moorhen, c35 coot, 3 great crested grebe.
I totally agree with you. Shooting, trapping,injuring and distroying birds and wildlife habitat seems to be acceptable macho behaviour, where watching, photographing and recording wildlife especially in public places is looked upon as perverse and makes people who enjoy wildlife feel apprehensive like they're breaking some kind of sex law. Because of this I feel that most wildlife enthusiasts especially if they do their hobby alone tend to keep to bird reserves and quieter places. I commend you on sticking your fingers up to the above and filling your website with pictures and information on our local wildlife wherever it is on the blorenge, newport wetlands, tesco's in pontypool or the middle of brynmawr well done.
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