大象传媒

Waterton was a naturalist who lived at Walton Hall near Wakefield, not that he was there very often as he was busy travelling the world observing rare species! From when he was a small boy, Waterton was fascinated by animals - he was even made the rat-catcher while he was at school. He was happiest when he was chasing around, climbing trees and, probably not so popular among the eco-friendly today, collecting birds' eggs.

Squire Waterton collected many species!

The animals he had collected on his travels would be enough to make anybody famous - Waterton Lakes, one of Canada's National Parks is named after him - but he really made his mark on the history of conservation back home in Wakefield. After one journey to foreign climes, Waterton听decided to enclose his 250 acre estate with an eight-foot high wall which ran for three miles and then he proceeded to set up a wildfowl reserve to protect local animals from being trapped, hunted or shot. Although he fought invasions from poachers he even opened his land to the public so they could enjoy the sanctuary he'd created.

Inside Walton Hall he displayed the animals he had collected while travelling and these are now on display at Wakefield Museum. Here you can not only see the specimens of rare species he brought back to England, still in their original cases, but you can follow his journey through South America. These animals, though, didn't meet quite the same fate as many of the more local species he looked after in his reserve in Wakefield. The Squire was a fan of taxidermy, what the dictionary describes as 'the art of preparing, stuffing and mounting the skins of animals so as to appear lifelike'. A very different sort of nature conservation...

One of the Squire's odder creations!

In fact, Waterton had developed his very own system of taxidermy, using the scary sounding mercuric chloride to stop the deterioration of the animal skins he'd collected. Having seen specimens in museums and other private collections he decide that he could do a much better job and all of his specimens are hollow. He famously told a visitor to his house: "Allow me to inform you that there are no stuffed animals in this house." His collection has survived in very good condition!

Perhaps one of the oddest things about Squire Waterton, and there were many, is that though he enjoyed closely watching animals in the wild, when it came to his stuffed animals he quite liked to combine parts of different species to create his own grotesque imaginary specimens. His 'Nondescript' is said to have been a likeness to the Treasury Secretary of the day and, being a Catholic, he created a monkey with horns and a grin which became 'Martin Luther After His Fall'. Another of his weird creations was a porcupine which is made to appear weighed down by Britain's national debt.

Stuffed: Part of Waterton's collection

An odd man, then, but Charles Waterton was certainly ahead of his time in setting up his wildfowl reserve - even if his egg collecting and taxidermic exploits would certainly tax the patience of any self-respecting 21st century naturalist!

Today Walton Hall is a hotel, conference and leisure centre and the Park is a golf course although there are several public footpaths. However, you can visit the Waterton Countryside Discovery Centre nearby where you can enjoy interactive displays and even meet the Squire's ghost!

The Waterton Discovery Centre is is situated near Wintersett and parking is available. The Heronry is signposted from the A638 and the A61.

All pictures on this page 漏 Wakefield MDC Museums and Arts.