I FIRST moved to Swansea about two years ago after landing a job in the city. I'll freely admit that I had never been to the area before, only knowing that I wanted to live and work in Wales. Imagine my delight to find that right next door was the Gower Peninsula with its wonderful mixture of history, scenery and wildlife. Things only got better when I discovered the nearby Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust site at Llanelli and the frankly outstanding Kenfig nature reserve within the shadows of the Port Talbot steel works. However, these sites are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to what can be found in this area. I have spent the last couple of years exploring extensively and now have what I consider to be some excellent local knowledge of where to go and what to see when it comes to wildlife. It is this knowledge that I hope to share through this blog in an effort to both educate and encourage you, the reader, to get out there and experience these things for yourselves.

My main passion is for birds and mammals, though I am increasingly turning my attention to include insects, plants, flowers and reptiles. The most important thing to realise is that you don't need to be an expert to observe and learn about these creatures. You don't even need to go beyond your house if you don't want to. You just need to be curious and willing. Simply putting some food out in your garden can bring in upwards of ten different bird species, as well as hedgehogs, foxes and badgers if you are particularly lucky.

In my experience watching wildlife is often seen as being a bit 'uncool' and not very fashionable. Let me point out that the most recent series of Springwatch on the BBC pulled in almost four million viewers each night, and a recent BBC survey revealed Britain's list a bird feeder as one of their must have possessions. With climate change in the news people are starting to really appreciate their surroundings and the best way to do that is to get out and experience them. Most importantly do not think that this is a solo activity. Get out there with a bunch of mates and most importantly have a great time.

Through this blog I will be taking you through the best places to go and see wildlife, as well as keeping you up to date with recent news and the awesome rarities that frequent the area. I will never attempt to baffle or impress with overly complicated language or terms, but instead hope to share some of the great enjoyment that I get out of it. If you want to get in touch or discuss anything that I post further, please don't hesitate to do so through the comments on this blog or my own website at www.atilt.co.uk. Thanks for reading and I hope that you continue to check back.