AN environmentalist from west Belfast has said he is on a mission to help young people discover the beauty of wildlife on their back doorstep.
Growing up, Aaron Kelly (25) said he was always fascinated by nature and while other friends were interested in football he was busy growing a reptile and spider collection in his bedroom.
He is now involved in a rewilding project on Black Mountain and will also feature in a BBC programme later this year.
Today, he will be showing an environmental educational film at 7pm in Glor Na Mona, where he will also officially launch the Black Mountain Rewilding Project.
The LiveHereLoveHere film showing what Aaron has discovered on the mountain in recent years will also be used in schools, youth and community and community centres.
"It all started off with a few litter picks on the mountain. While doing that we found a pine martin and started to survey the area for wildlfe because that hasn't been done before," he told The Irish News.
"That's important to do because there's a lot of development encroaching on it as well as vandalisms with fires. So we wanted to show that it's more than just a hill, it's one of the most biodiverse places in the north."
As well as pine martins, Black Mountain is also home to badgers, foxes and hen harriers.
In an effort to preserve the natural habitat, Aaron and friends started to work with landowners and farmers to help manage grazing.
"Hopefully we can start fencing more areas off that will allow it to regenerate itself and working with landowners to allow nature to take its course," he said.
"People in west Belfast don't understand they have one of the best places for wildlife in the north. I think people really miss out on that. The hills are a beautiful mosaic of bog, grasslands, broadleaved forest. It's not something you really get in south Belfast, so people don't realise how lucky they are to have it."
He said his passion for the environment and wildlife came naturally to him at a young age.
"I've always had nature in me. Some people are just born crazy into football or boxing, I was just born to love nature," he said.
"My family always encouraged it. One Christmas I remember I had so many reptiles in my room I had to sleep in a hammock because there was no room for a bed. So my mum and dad always encouraged my interests, thank God they did because it's helped me in the long run."
While most pet owners opt for a cuddly cat or dog, Aaron said for him it always the scarier the better.
"I had snakes, lizards, scorpions and tarantulas. Just all the exotic ones. Cats and dogs don't do it for me, I wanted something that could kill you. People hate spiders but they're one of my favourites."
His environmental film is the result of two years of bringing cameras up into the mountains.
"When I was in school all I got taught about animals were those in Africa or South America, I didn't get taught about animals here," he explained.
"When people think about wildlife, they don't think of Ireland. It's important that we change that for the next generation in Ireland because you can't look after the world if you can't look after your back garden. Ireland's special too and it's worth making an effort to look after it."
Giving tips for young people to enjoy the nature and wildlife on Black Mountain, his main advice is patience.
"There's always a race to get to the top when people go to a mountain, they forget to stop and take it in.
"If you're rushing to get to the top you're going to miss a lot of beauty around you."
