Description
Inspiration for my Cormorant Ornament
As soon as I took up sea swimming, a cormorant necklace was always going to be on the cards. The Hythe (Kent) coastline is characterised by steep shingle beeches to defend Hythe from flooding. So the beach is split into sections by groynes to prevent all of this shingle ending up in Folkestone. We swim next to the groynes as they offer a degree of protection from the waves.
There is a post at the end of each groyne, which indicates an undersea structure when it is hidden at high tide. Where my friends and I regularly swim, (year-round – brrr!) there is a post in the water. And, invariably, there is a cormorant – wings spread to the sun. I simply love to see them in this position. They have such character.
The cormorant is widespread across the globe and makes its home on coastal cliffs from where they dive to catch their meals. Apparently the fishermen in Hythe often consider the cormorant as a good luck charm, seeing one ensures a plentiful catch.
This ornament is the same model as the Cormorant Necklace – except that is has large, cormorant sized feet, rather than the slightly reduced ones I had to model for the necklace
For more information on Cormorants by the RSPB click here or from the British Trust for Ornithology click here.
