You might have noticed that the Wild Card website has had a little revamp. As part of this makeover we’ve now got a blog area where we’ll be inviting our core team to post their latest thoughts, updates and news as well as inviting guest bloggers to post on specific subjects.
This new addition should hopefully make the site a bit more dynamic and engaging whilst giving you a reason to keep checking back!
It’s been an exciting beginning of the year for us and lots of work has been going on behind the scenes to ensure that 2023 has the greatest positive impact it can for wildlife and humans alike.
Last weekend we joined 3000 other nature lovers on Dartmoor to demand the right to wild camp (thanks for the photo Eddy). We believe having a strong connection with nature instills a desire to protect it. We firmly believe that everybody should be able to access truly wild places.
Whilst on Dartmoor we took the opportunity to explore some of the last remaining fragments of temperate rainforest in the area. Yep, you read that correctly – RAINFOREST!
Temperate rainforests occur in mid-latitude, temperate zones, in places which receive heavy rainfall due to an ‘oceanic’ climate. Put more simply: temperate rainforests are very damp woodlands – so damp that plants grow on other plants.
A UK temperate rainforest is one of the rarest and most diverse ecosystems that we have in the UK. A good example of this habitat could contain up to 400 different species of bryophytes and lichen and the tree canopies can support a rich diversity of birds; wood warblers, pied flycatchers, redstarts, treecreepers, green woodpeckers, jays… the list goes on.
Since the death of the Queen, Prince William is now the largest single landowner in England and as the new Prince of Wales, he is now officially the custodian of ⅓ of Dartmoor. Despite always being outspoken about the environment… much of this land is an ecological disaster.
Dartmoor falls under Britain’s ecologically significant ‘rainforest zone’ and believe it or not, should be covered in ancient lichen and moss covered trees, just like Wistman’s Wood.
We’ll be launching a new campaign very soon; together, we can help encourage Prince William to take simple steps, like fencing off existing areas of rainforest and allowing it to spread naturally without being grazed by domestic animals.
More on that coming very soon. For now please enjoy and explore our new website.