When I first heard about the Eels in Schools Project last year I thought it was a wonderful opportunity to get involved by raising money to help fund the release of young elvers in Potteric Carr Nature Reserve.
There are enough suitable reed beds to hold nesting bitterns and by releasing eels into the wetlands both fish and Bitterns would benefit from the reintroduction.
I decided I could raise funds by donating some of my paintings to be raffled and YWT agreed it was a good idea.
The Four Seasons Raffle comprises four large paintings, one for each season of the year, each one to be raffled separately in the appropriate season throughout 2014.
The tickets at £1 each or a book of 5 for £5 went on sale at Potteric Carr in winter 2013.
The raffle for the third painting “Peacock Butterflies - Brockadale” will be drawn on August Bank Holiday Monday and tickets are still available from the nature reserve. The final painting, portraying autumn colours at Potteric Carr is yet to be started, but will be raffled this December.
Last Tuesday 24th June, the elvers were driven up to Potteric from the Severn and Wye Smokery and children from local schools put them in the water at Potteric Carr and Sprotbrough Flash nature reserves. see,
http://www.ywt.org.uk/news/2014/06/23/primary-school-students-release-eels-local-doncaster-nature-reserves
I had the wonderful privilege of also putting some into the water on Hawthorn Field at
A second delivery today and more elvers were put into Decoy Marsh this morning. Fantastic.
Sheila Bury, Volunteer Artist in Residence/Fundraiser. Potteric Carr Nature Reserve.
