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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Environment
Steven Morris

‘It’s a special place’: Somerset Levels star in new David Attenborough series

David Attenborough Levels Chris Howard Somerset Simon King RSPB Serengeti Wild Isles Adrian Sherratt United Kingdom
Site manager Steve Hughes, right, with Wild Isles producer Chris Howard at RSPB Ham Wall in Meare near Glastonbury.
Site manager Steve Hughes, right, with Wild Isles producer Chris Howard at RSPB Ham Wall in Meare near Glastonbury. Photograph: Adrian Sherratt/The Guardian

Dawn breaks and four-spotted chaser dragonflies take to the air above the Somerset Levels, skimming the reed beds and dark, peaty water.

They are agile flyers but still a target for the hobbies, nimble falcons that have migrated from Africa to the south-west of England for the spring and summer, and swoop in to grab the insects in their talons, ending up with soggy tail feathers but a good meal.

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