The winter season has begun, with the clocks going back and dark evening ahead. Our evening wildlife hide continues to have visitors and the wildlife is still looking for food. The first of the low-lying snow also arrived this week.
Male and female Pine Marten (Kate M)
The large male and young female Pine Marten are still being seen at the hide, often waiting on the roof of the hide until it is safe from Badgers. One evening the Pine Marten pair were heard on the roof tiles stumbling around. When they came down, the male heads onto the table, leaving the female on the ground. A behaviour I haven’t seen before, the female starts to roll round like a dog in the grass, trying to get the males attention. Her ‘flirting’ didn’t work as the male still didn’t let her on the table. She wondered around climbing up onto the window of the shed to look in at us before finally joining the male for some food.
Badger in snow (Kate M)
The Badger family has been split in two, with the males obviously more interested in earthworms rather than peanuts. One surprise visitor to the hide this week however was an old friend. If you have read previous blogs, you will know about the old female Badger with a scar on her leg. She is approximately twelve years old and she hasn’t been seen at the hide since April. One evening she suddenly appeared with the other Badgers, only for a minute before running off with them, but was lovely to know she is still alive.
Old Badger (Kate M)
The Badger cubs are now fully grown as they prepare for their first winter. They are very healthy and have been feeding enough, that one is now bigger than its mother. To add to their bulky appearance all the mammals are now sporting their winter coats. From October they grow an extra thick layer to get them through the coldest nights during this season until the warmer weather of spring arrives.