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Wildlife spotting

Started by Twit 2, August 06, 2018, 12:59:58 PM

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BlodwynPig


Flatulent Fox

Last summer I was camped along the Macrihanish coast.After a late night camp fire booze up* I awoke and started to get a brew on the stove.
I happend to look up across the road into the hills was a large herd of Llamas watching me quietly with interest.
Unexpected and surreal.

I hit the vodka while I observed them,they are cool animals.

*During which the wind was almost gale force and my brothers new tent dissapeared in the darkness leaving only a bag of cans where it once stood.

Saw a muntjac while walking my dog this morning. Pretty mundane for those of you that live in more rural spots but for me, living in an urban area less than two miles from Molineux stadium as the crow flies (or the muntjac trots), it was quite a thrill. Perhaps I should get out more.

BlodwynPig

#243
Pretty productive day on the first warmish day of the year

- downy woodpecker
- bald eagles and chick - parent being hounded by seagulls for the fish in its claws
- wood ducks
- vultures
- fed some trumpeter swans and canadian goose from hand - dont know if peanuts will kill them
- heard the frog chorus but they were hidden in the dry reeds
- the canadian hells angels doing a funeral cortege for a fallen comrade, it was awesome and slightly scary. Last week my colleague drove me through the seedy industrial area of Hamilton and pointed out their former club house. I asked if they were the real deal criminal gang... "yup". Anyway it was impressive to see them in full regalia with the coffin riding side saddle, but there was a tangible menace, even in the full sunlight. Later a few came down into the marshes for no apparent reason (perhaps dead angel liked the wildlife), i thought they were going to crush the goose but they went around him

BlodwynPig

Oh and a pair of canadian kingfishers courting

Buelligan

Couple of boars ran away terrified from me last night, I could see their full hoggishness in the moonlight.  And a stone marten.  Pretty nice.  Also lots of swallowtail butterflies flipping about.  No hoopoes.



BlodwynPig

Those poor hoggers - they normally use the hoopoes as lookout for human disturbers, but I guess the hoopoes had other things on their minds

BlodwynPig

Vultures on the church in Westdale


Banded woolybear (coincidentally the last creature I saw on my last hike before winter kicked in)


Gartersnake


Trumpeter swan


Downy woodpecker

Ferris

Hamilton seems to be like a zoo with town/university attached

BlodwynPig

Quote from: FerriswheelBueller on April 14, 2019, 06:50:31 PM
Hamilton seems to be like a zoo with town/university attached

Canada, in general, outside of Downtown Toronto.

Buelligan

Nice woolybear especially.  I was made terribly ill by handling a similar-looking caterpillar (that was in Africa though).  Be on your guard, nevertheless.

BlodwynPig

Quote from: Buelligan on April 14, 2019, 09:35:56 PM
Nice woolybear especially.  I was made terribly ill by handling a similar-looking caterpillar (that was in Africa though).  Be on your guard, nevertheless.

thanks - didn't realise

here's one not to mess with - the puss caterpillar


Mr_Simnock

There has always been a couple bats fly round my back garden every night from around early April to the end of September. Tonight though there are about 4 of them farting around, wonder if some of them are young ones?

Dex Sawash

Wasn't driving my truck or we would be having Carolina Possum-N-Buzzard Supper tonight.


Dex Sawash

Quote from: Mr_Simnock on April 17, 2019, 08:56:42 PM
There has always been a couple bats fly round my back garden every night from around early April to the end of September. Tonight though there are about 4 of them farting around, wonder if some of them are young ones?

Dadadwdadadadadada batnonce!

Buelligan

Weirdly my exact thought too.  Which is odd.

The nights here are currently full of nightingales, singing and singing, all they're good for really.

Bennett Brauer

Wren breath. This must be what avian musical notation looks like.


Heard my first cuckoo of the year the other day, a strangely cheery and reassuring sound for a bird that had probably just carried out bird-ocide on a family of meadow pipit fledglings.

BlodwynPig

Red-bellied woodpecker
Downy woodpecker
Blue jay
Various warblers
Mourning dove
Tree swallow
cedar waxwing
Trumpeter swan
Bald eagle
Turkey vulture
Grackle
Double crested cormorant
Blue heron
Treecreeper

all in one frantic 2 hour spell on Sunday

Ferris

Quote from: BlodwynPig on May 09, 2019, 12:49:30 AM
Red-bellied woodpecker
Downy woodpecker
Blue jay
Various warblers
Mourning dove
Tree swallow
cedar waxwing
Trumpeter swan
Bald eagle
Turkey vulture
Grackle
Double crested cormorant
Blue heron
Treecreeper

all in one frantic 2 hour spell on Sunday

What a trip to the pet store it was!

BlodwynPig


BlodwynPig

Also a beaver.

Just one month left of this adventure. Sad

Ferris


BlodwynPig

Some species will happily come to hand (chickadee, nuthatch), so will come when coaxed (these downy woodpeckers, the red bellied one shown above also came, surprisingly) and others (the boisterous ones surprisingly won't) (Red winged blackbirds, blue jays)

Dex Sawash

The birds all seem to love your p'nts

Attila

Our hedgehogs have fucked off, apparently, as an enormous badger has muscled his way into the party palace. He's already attacked one of the hedgehogs (judging from the noise and almighty amount of quills all over the paving stones a few weeks ago.)

We have a camera pointed at the party palace, so when we see his fat arse now, we rattle the keys in the back door and he runs away, but there's been no sign that the hedgehogs have come back :(

phes

Quote from: Clatty McCutcheon on May 09, 2019, 12:03:16 AM
Heard my first cuckoo of the year the other day.

Likewise a couple of weeks back in Eyam, the PLAGUE VILLAGE.

Blackcaps in the garden today. Last year I would've mistaken the sound for dunnocks but I can recognise the difference now. Recommend the free app BirdNET. Records birdsong and returns a probability based answer, often identifying several at a time. Almost always correctly. And you can play your recording back to familiarize yourself with it (or just use UK bird sounds app). I think I'm up to about 20 that I can identify now which improves the chances of spotting them

NattyDread 2

Quote from: phes on May 09, 2019, 07:40:15 AM
Recommend the free app BirdNET. Records birdsong and returns a probability based answer, often identifying several at a time. Almost always correctly. And you can play your recording back to familiarize yourself with it (or just use UK bird sounds app). I think I'm up to about 20 that I can identify now which improves the chances of spotting them

Oh you beauty. Just what I'm after. Cheers!

I saw what I thought was an injured hawk on the pavement recently. As I drove past I got a better look and could see a red kite tucking into a crow.
Lots of slowworms out at the moment. And a seal came to have a peek at me and my daughter swimming in a loch.

Buelligan

Fantastic pics, Blods!  Lovely, lovely, stuff, thank you for sharing them with us. 

Sorry to hear about the Party Palace Attila, I hope they come back.  Have you considered making another feeding station for the badger further away, perhaps it would be possible to support both?  Whatever happens, please keep us up to date with developments, I am very invested in this hog saga.

On the identification of birdsong, the most remarkable experience I've had was when the 'net was young, I heard a nightbird calling, found a birdperson's site and wrote to the forum, describing the sound.  Just a description.  Very shortly after, I got a reply with a sound file attached, with the correct call on it and a full and detailed description of the bird, a Scops Owl

Dex Sawash


Mockingbird chasing snake (possibly a black racer) across road yesterday. Happened too fast to get phone out for pix.