Animals appear to be smarter than most at Aberglasney at Llangathen, Carmarthenshire. Head Gardener Joseph Atkin tells how the otters in the River Tywi at the edge of the estate come up to the gardens and feast on the freshwater eels in the pool. ‘It is usually once a fortnight,’ he says. The local fallow deer have their eye on the lush planting in the gardens too. ‘We put up a tall deer proof fence to keep them out – but then noticed they were avoiding the fence and trotting along the road to come in through the visitors’ gate. Without a thought to paying!'
 
River Tales
If you’re a nature lover, combine a visit to Aberglasney Gardens with exploring the River Tywi, which is protected for its importance to wildlife including threatened species of fish. Nearby Cilsan Bridge is a great vantage point from which to see more of the otters and the best times to look are at dawn and dusk. Bring your binoculars for bird watching too – kingfishers, grey wagtails and sand martins are among prize sights along the Tywi. Little ringed plovers gather on the shingle banks between March and July, while in winter huge numbers of wildfowl and whooper swans may be seen on the oxbow lakes. Tree sparrows are also in unusual abundance – Dryslwyn car park, where they are fed, is the place to go.