You will not have to give up your hobby, nor even travel very far, trust me, you have so much on your doorstep. Yes, it's not quite the countryside, though not far off, and you have to accept that you probably more than the wildlife will be disturbed by more people being around, but it is definitely there. There is a woodland not far from Oakwood in Oakhill Park, East Barnet, which was, last time I checked, home to lesser spotted woodpeckers. I read up in them a couple of years ago, so hopefully they still have a home there, though actually seeing them might be a different matter
Oh, Trent Park also has deer, don't ask me what type, I have no idea, so far I haven't personally seen them, only tracks & faeces and at a guess, a smaller species, muntjac maybe. I did once meet a lady walking her dog early one morning who had seen a group of 6 or 7 in the woods 20 mins earlier, so I keep hoping
We also saw grass snakes there this summer, right by the woodland car parks too. The whole area is managed to encourage wildlife.
In Autumn we regularly get a Tawny Owl in the trees just along from our garden, love just listening to the calls and just occasionally seeing that dark shadow swoop overhead not much higher than the roofline.
I am not a regular wildlife photographer, but enjoy it as a hobby when I get time/motivated so if I get chance over the next week or so, will try and put a set together on flickr or something of everything I have shot locally for you.
Finally, a bit further away, but fine if you have transport, is the RSPB centre at Rye Meads, an excellent place I have visited several times and perfect for bird/wildlife photographers. Its on their site for more info.
Meanwhile, Happy New Year, and I hope you can look forward to discovering a whole new area in 2012
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