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earthstar

~ a celebration of nature

earthstar

Category Archives: mammal

Three cheeky rats

15 Monday Mar 2021

Posted by sconzani in animals, mammal

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Tags

British mammals, brown rat, Cosmeston Lakes Country Park, rat, rats eating bird seed, Rattus norvegicus

Three cheeky rats. Three cheeky rats.

210315 rats (1)

See where they hide. See where they hide.

210315 rats (2)

They poke out their noses to check all’s clear

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Then rush out to grab seeds, showing no fear

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Even when people like me are quite near.

210315 rats (5)

Three cheeky rats.

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Claws and nails

11 Thursday Feb 2021

Posted by sconzani in animals, mammal

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British mammals, claws, grey squirrel, Grey squirrel claws, nails

Despite the Grey squirrel being an invasive non-native pest, as a non-native myself I have some sympathy for these much-maligned beasties. Today, though, rather than get into a discussion about the presence of Grey squirrels in the environment, I’d like to focus on their claws and nails, if only because I hadn’t really noticed how long their nails can get until I took this photo.

210211 claws and nails

Of course, having long nails makes perfect sense for these furry acrobats. You only have to look at them leaping nimbly from branch to branch or running headfirst down a tree to realise that they need very strong powerful claws to help them perform these amazingly agile and gravity-defying feats. And, presumably, having strong long curved nails helps the Grey squirrel grip tree bark in the same way that a mountain climber uses crampons and an ice axe.

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169/366 Fox

17 Wednesday Jun 2020

Posted by sconzani in animals, mammal, nature

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

British fox, fox, fox in long grass, Red fox

This was a bonus on Monday’s long walk …
I first saw its red bottom and tail walking away from me and thought I wouldn’t see it again but then it turned and sat in the long grass, keeping an eye on me while I took several photos. After about 5 minutes it spotted something more interesting on the other side of the field and trotted off. A delight!

200617 fox

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132/366 A sanguine sight

11 Monday May 2020

Posted by sconzani in birds, mammal, nature

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

bird eats rodent, birding, birdwatching, British birds, Magpie, Magpie eating rat, rat

Warning: the photos in this post are a bit gory!
The highlight – if this can be called a highlight – of my early morning local walk was this Magpie, feeding on the grass in a local park.

200511 magpie (1)

Although Magpies mostly eat fruit, seeds and small insects, they are also opportunists who will quite happily scavenge household food waste, eat the eggs and chicks of other birds, and graze on road kill and other carrion. This bird had found a dead rat and was happily pulling it apart for a bloody, but presumably nourishing breakfast.

200511 magpie (2)
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At least, I hope it was nourishing – the rat could, I suppose, have been poisoned, and I’m not sure whether that would have an adverse effect on the bird. I hope not.

200511 magpie (4)

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66/366 Three Brown rats

06 Friday Mar 2020

Posted by sconzani in animals, mammal, nature

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

brown rat, Cosmeston, Cosmeston Lakes Country Park, Rattus norvegicus

I found some kind soul had left a scattering of bird seed and peanuts, still in their shells, on the dirt by the side of the east lake at Cosmeston, when I walked there this afternoon. A Mute swan, a couple of Mallards and a few Tufted ducks were milling around at the water’s edge, presumably having just been fed, but they couldn’t reach these extra seeds. The food didn’t go to waste though. As I watched, first a set of twitching whiskers and then a pair of dark bulging eyes appeared over the edge of the bank … a Brown rat!

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And then another …

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And another … three Brown rats! One at a time, they ran out, grabbed a peanut shell, and scurried away to stash their finds somewhere safe. And on they went until all the peanuts had disappeared. They were so cute to watch.

200306 Brown rat (3)200306 Brown rat (4)200306 Brown rat (5)

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49/366 Pieces of hedgehog

18 Tuesday Feb 2020

Posted by sconzani in mammal, nature

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

British mammals, hedgehog, hedgehog jaw bones, hedgehog quills, hedgehog teeth

I almost didn’t notice these hedgehog quills during a recent woodland walk. It was grey, the path muddy, the portion of well squashed hog sitting among a drift of brown leaves so well camouflaged.

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I have no idea what befell the poor hedgehog. This spot was well away from any roads and I think the creature must have been long dead as there was no smell. Perhaps it had died in the woods somewhere, a dog had found the carcass, and brought it to the path to show its master.

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As I scanned the surrounding area for clues, I noticed these two pieces of jaw, one upper and one lower, which a quick internet search revealed must also once have belonged to the deceased hedgehog. It was a somewhat gory but quite educational find.

200218 hedgehog (3)200218 hedgehog (4)

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350/365 Ratty stocks up

16 Monday Dec 2019

Posted by sconzani in mammal, nature, winter

≈ 6 Comments

Tags

British mammals, Cosmeston, Cosmeston Lakes Country Park, Water vole

One of the Cosmeston water voles was out and about today, munching on vegetation and also hauling in supplies, taking them under the dipping pond’s boardwalk and presumably stashing them somewhere.

191216 water vole (3)191216 water vole (1)

Luckily, I was the only person around and, by staying quiet and still, I was able to watch it coming and going for quite some time. It was a delight!

191216 water vole (2)191216 water vole (4)

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339/365 Hungry squirrels

05 Thursday Dec 2019

Posted by sconzani in mammal, nature, trees, winter

≈ 7 Comments

Tags

grey squirrel, red berries, squirrel eating berries, winter berries

191205 grey squirrel (2)

It’s not just the birds that are consuming winter berries at the moment.

When I’m out walking, I often hear scurrying noises in the tree branches above my head and look up to see Grey squirrels, their cheeks stuffed with berries, their paws reaching out for the next delicious morsels.

And it’s not just a berry dessert they crave, of course, as they’re also well known for their liking for nuts. In the photo, right, the squirrel is holding Alder cones, which it has just been munching on.

191205 grey squirrel (1)

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303/365 Packing on the fat

30 Wednesday Oct 2019

Posted by sconzani in animals, autumn, mammal, nature

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

British mammals, grey squirrel, pre-winter fattening, squirrel

It’s that time of year when the Grey squirrels prepare for the colder months both by stashing away as many non-perishable titbits of food as they can and by eating fit to burst, fattening themselves up to help cope with the cold months of winter. If only we could all use that excuse!

191030 grey squirrel

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262/365 Ratty’s second breakfast

19 Thursday Sep 2019

Posted by sconzani in animals, birds, mammal, nature

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

British mammals, Cosmeston Lakes Country Park, juvenile Moorhen, Moorhen, Water vole

It’s been a while since I’ve walked past the dipping pond at Cosmeston but I’m glad I did today as one of the resident water voles made an appearance.

190919 water vole (1)

It was quite well concealed amongst the reeds at the side of the pond – that brown fur really helps them to blend in.

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In the past I’ve only seen them eating lily pads but today this little chap was munching on reed stems.

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Eventually, it noticed me standing on the boardwalk but didn’t seem too bothered and carried on eating.

190919 water vole (4)

But it sure freaked out when one of the juvenile Moorhens came by to say hello!

190919 water vole (5)

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About me

sconzani

sconzani

I'm a writer and photographer; researcher and blogger; birder and nature lover; countryside rambler and city strider; volunteer and biodiversity recorder.

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