Roe Deer @ Ceri Forest

2 ran across the track and darted in to the forest during the early hours of this morning.

Stoat near Welshpool

1 seen darting back and forth from the hedge, on the road between the Severn Farm industrial estate and Leighton around midday today.

Fox, Y Golfa

My usual commute was, this morning, livened up by seeing a live mammal, for a change! Having just passed Sylfaen Farm on the A458, a very healthy looking Fox ran across the road, from the railway towards Y Golfa.

Roe Deer, Kerry Ridgeway

 Report from Mark Wilson, from the Montgomery Bird Blog:

"group of around a dozen roe deer hinds in the open on the Ridgeway first thing this morning - didn't spot them initially as they were hunkered down and gave me the fright of my life when one jumped up no more than 30 feet away"

Posted at 09:37, Thursday November 17, 2001

Polaxed Polecats

This is the time of year when we see the most Polecats dead on the road, as youngsters disperse away from their mother's territory. Keep your eyes peeled and don't forget to let me know if you see one.

Powys Castle....

Ok, so I know they're not wild but with a bit of patients here, there could be some great photo opportunities.

Weasel @ Welshpool

One seen this morning along the canal by Buttington Cross (bridge 115).

Hare @ Carmel

At least 3 (one of them appeared to be a runt?!) seen in one of the fields below Y Glonc hill this evening, also 1 Fox.

Hedgehog @ Newtown

(via Char Burrows) One rescued/helped off the road in Park Lane this morning.

Polecat @ New Mills

Cant remember the exact date, but I saw one just outside New Mills on the Llanfair road towards the end of August - beginning of September. Only just remembered about it sorry, sadly what jogged my memory was seeing another dead one on the road today!
That's 4 now in the matter of a couple of weeks, 1 in New Mills, 1 in Belan and 2 on the bypass by Coed-y-Dinas!!

Polecat @ Highgate

(via Char Burrows) one seen crossing the road around 06:30 this morning.

Deer rut

We are now well into deer rutting season, so now is the perfect time to keep your ears open for the territorial call of the stags. Both Red Deer and Fallow Deer stags vocalise, but they sound different, so get your ear in and you can identify them from call alone.  

Deer parks, like the one at Powis Castle, are worth a visit before you head out into the wider countryside. You can often get quite close to the deer and therefore easily see which species is making the noise!

Hare @ Llyn Hir

At least 4 seen this evening, and on the way back to New Mills a Badger, a Fox and a Hedgehog were also seen.

Water Shrews at Cors Dyfi

Water shrew scuffling around near the hide this morning (Thursday 15th Sept)

Hedgehog @ Glascoed

One seen crossing the road during the early hours of this morning.

Polecat near Derwenlas

Report from Paul Davies, who picked up this brief appearance from a mature male Polecat on his trailcam at Morben Isaf Caravan Park.

Paul was delighted to have spotted the Polecat - "Nearly fell off my chair when I came across this one!". His trailcam has also captured rabbits, mice and hedgehogs.

Hares near Montgomery

2 seen this morning in a field along the road between Montgomery and Marton.

After hours at Cors Dyfi

Many thanks to Sue Fowler for agreeing to let us share this lovely little bit of footage on here. This was shot at Cors Dyfi on Monday 25th July 2011 at around 6.30p.m.
http://static.ak.fbcdn.net/rsrc.php/v1/yW/r/reIZTdNTHIS.swf?v=168259669913851&ev=0

Bank vole and friend

Two different species under one survey sheet - photo taken July 22nd at Cors Dyfi. Young bank vole in foreground, adult toad at rear. The bank vole family consisted of 5 young and one adult, only one stayed after lifting the sheet to have his photo taken.

A fox in the dark

We don't get many mammal sightings on the Dyfi Osprey Project's nest cameras - we did this week though..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hr-cBjO-TYU

Dead Polecat

There was a dead polecat (road casualty) on the B4568 road on the outskirts of Aberhafesp just before the turning to Bwlch-y-Ffridd this afternoon.

Badgers Galore! (Brock's Peanut party!)

Last Friday evening I went badger watching with our very own Montgomeryshire (or mid-Wales) 'badger man' Gareth Morgan from Newtown. I was accompanied by a young woman named Christine Hall who is keen to develop a career in wildlife film making having graduated from university with a degree in TV production. We visited Gareth's badger 'sett' situated on farmland near Newtown which he has been studying closely for 29 years so he knows it very well indeed and of course the badgers that inhabit it. We arrived in good time before dusk and Gareth put a good couple of pounds of peanuts around the most active sett entrance in order to draw the animals out whilst Christine set up her camera about 20 feet away discreetly camouflaged by a stance of nettles. We all waited patiently. At 8.20pm we had what I can only describe as an 'eruption' of badgers as one animal after another appeared out of the entrance hole and each in turn started to gobble up with relish the treat provided for them by Gareth. Christine stood or sat absolutely still her camera rolled capturing the action taking place before her eyes whilst Gareth and I stood a few feet behind her. Gareth gave me a running commentary on the social dynamics of this particular family of badgers. We were able to differentiate between the sexes and the yearling animals and the 'feisty' boar who was obviously in charge! What really excited us most was the appearance of three cubs out of the sett entrance. This was the first time Gareth had seen the cubs this year so it was a special moment for all of us. In total we counted 12 animals all in a little group avidly snapping up the peanuts! I could see from the viewfinder on Christine's camera that she was getting some fantastic live moving footage of the behaviour of these animals. What a privilege this was indeed. Gareth spotted one animal whom he knew well and this was the female or 'sow' badger he had christened 'Tiny' who is about 12 years old. Around us swallows buzzed low over the pasture, a woodpecker called from the great oak tree situated at the sett and a buzzard called nearby. We had earlier seen a downy buzzard chick from a vantage point above the nest. Gareth heard the 'hiss' of a barn owl and the church bell rang out nine bells on the hour. The sett is in an amazing location with two immense ancient oaks towering above it where the animals have excavated their extensive labyrinth of tunnels below the roots. Also here is a fallen thick trunk of a long dead oak tree and on the trunk you can see where the animals had been playing as it had traces of muddy paw prints all over it and scratch marks where they had been cleaning and honing their powerful digging claws or perhaps even 'scenting' by that I mean leaving their distinctive 'clan' scent within the confines of their sett as a territorial marker.
We left the sett at dusk to allow the badgers their privacy and our sudden movements set them scurrying back into the sett. But as we glanced back at the sett from a distance it wasn't long before the animals were out again. They were accustomed to Gareth's voice and his scent because of his regular visits to their subterranean dwelling.
We were all exhilarated by our nights watching of one of Britain's most fascinating and ancient mammals the 'badger' or 'Mochyn Daear' ('Earth Pig' in Welsh), and Christine had a wide smile across her face all the way back to Machynlleth!

Hedgehog, Pontrobert

This little guy caught my eye this morning as he was still out at 7:30am and didn't curl up on my approach!

The nights are so short now and with still so little rain, natural food is not very abundant, that our nocturnal Hedgehogs are struggling to find enough food.

You can help your Hedgehogs at this tough time in a number of ways, but a quick fix would be to provide some food for them. Vine House Farm do an excellent Hedgehog Food which my Hedgehogs love and it also doesn't attract the local moggies.

For more ideas on how to help Hedgehogs, or to find out how you can become a local Hedgehog Champion, check out Hedgehog Street. If you want to help trial a new survey method for these wonderful creatures, then the Mammal Society would love to hear from you!

Hogs don't disappoint

'Noisy' enjoying his food

Just spent a fabulous hour and a half having close encounters of the prickly kind! My back garden truely is the best place to watch Hedgehogs.

Lying only three feet away from the ground feeder, I enjoyed priviledged views of no fewer than five Hedgehogs as they made their way over (more or less) one by one. Each one continued to enjoy the feast whilst I snapped away with my camera and their little personalities shone through.

The first was what Cesar Millan would call 'calm, submissive', walking purposely over to the feeder to calmly enjoy its contents. Suddenly a very bold individual appeared and 'Calm' made a sharp exit! 'Bold' happily ate its fill for three minutes before heading into the night. Barely five minutes later and I was joined by a more cautious hog who initially paused, before heading fully into the light to enjoy the food reward.

'Cautious' exercises discretion when 'Noisy' shows up

It was only three minutes before 'Noisy' appeared (so called because most of the time I spent with him he was grunting away to himself!) and 'Cautious' immediately gave way to him. 'Noisy' clearly had other things on his mind and he quickly chased after 'Cautious'! Courtship ensued only 10 feet away, but it seems that she was unimpressed and soon gave him the slip, at which point his stomach got the better of him and he returned to the feeder! When he had had enough he walked straight over to me, sniffed my hand and then wandered off, perhaps to try his luck with 'Cautious' again!

Nine minutes now went by before a very nervous hog appeared. This poor thing took quite a while to pluck up the courage to fully come into the light and then flinched every time my camera shutter fired. Sadly, my assumption that it would get used to the sound was flawed and after only a minute on the feeder, it slunk away.

At this point, I decided to call it a night and after a moment enjoying the view of Saturn in the clear sky, I headed inside to review my images!

Fox cub, Cors Dyfi

Dyfi Osprey Project staff report that a fox cub has been seen on the reserve around the hide and the centre on three separate occassions this week, day and night.

Neighbourhood watch for Hedgehogs!

From the PTES - "Hedgehogs are instantly recognisable and much loved creatures. All the more distressing then that a new report (The State of Britain’s’ Hedgehogs) provides definitive evidence that their numbers have declined by at least a quarter in the last 10 years – confirming their status as a conservation priority species. This alarming figure has compelled wildlife charities: the People’s Trust for Endangered Species and the British Hedgehog Preservation Society to join forces to launch Hedgehog Street. This initiative aims to empower whole communities, encouraged by volunteer Hedgehog Champions, to take small steps to improve their neighbourhood for hedgehogs in a bid to create a giant patchwork of hedgehog-friendly areas across the British Isles."

So if you want to help Hedgehogs, click here to find out more.

Mad 'erm May hares

Just to prove that boxing hares can be seen outside of February/March, I saw two going 'at it' this afternoon, just outside the village of Pontrobert - fabulous sight!

Polecat @ New Mills

One seen at 23:30 this evening on the straight to Tregynon.

Bats at Cors Dyfi

Worked my first ever night shift (of any kind!) on Saturday night, Sunday morning, helping to maintain 24 hour suveillance on Monty & Nora, the Dyfi Ospreys. When not keeping my eyes glued to the screens watching Nora's every move whilst she incubated the eggs, I was trying to record the bats on the reserve (Cors Dyfi).

When the rain stopped, about midnight, a walk around the reserve with my Batbox Duet revealed Soprano & Common Pipistrelle, Noctule and even a Daubenton's briefly over the first pool. The real highlight was watching  a Clous of Noctules (yes apparently that is a collective noun for bats; I'd not heard it either!) whizzing around over the reserve at about 5am, foraging for their last snack before bed! Fantastic!!

St. Servatius' Day

I hope everyone enjoyed St. Servatius' Day today!

What the...? you may well ask! Well this day was invoked to ward off rats and the bubonic plague carried by their fleas!

Roe Deer @ Ceri Ridgeway

A pair of Roe Deer were seen in a clearing in the Ceri Forest (SO181868) this evening as the sun was setting beyond the hills.

Weasel near Welshpool

Lovely weasel seen crossing the road near Welshpool.

Best mammaling day ever!

Ran a woodland mammal workshop today for Dyfi Woodlands, near Machynlleth. I set six longworth small mammal traps last night and was delighted to catch four Wood Mice; two male, two female. One of the participants then set one trap and barely two hours later, a male Bank Vole was captured!

We then looked for nibbled nuts and several people discovered a remarkable number which had been nibbled by dormice!!

But the real icing on the cake was saved 'til last! A search along the stream revealed two otter spraints and whilst we were admiring one, we spotted an otter making his way towards us!!! Despite being upwind and talking loudly, he didn't notice us until the last minute, probably because the noise of the stream here was considerable. A really special moment which none of us will ever forget!

On arriving home, I persuaded the other half to go for a walk and on the way back I spotted a Stoat!

What a lucky day!

Polecats......

I don't know whether it's coincidence or whether there's a reason for it, but I have seen 2 fresh road kills of Polecat in 3 days, 1 at Berriew on Friday and the other in Tregynon today. 2 other road casualties of Polecat in the county have been mentioned to me this week as well. Coincidence, or can someone help?

Hare @ Ceri Ridgeway

1 seen on the monts side of the ridgeway this evening.

Otters at Cors Dyfi

Two otters seen swimming in the lower pool at around 9.45 this morning, after a short wait one came out on to the boardwalk.Images by Maria Wagland.

Noctule Bat @ Pwll Penarth

At least 2 possibly more seen hunting over the reserve at 18:20 today, other bats were seen on the way back to Aberbechan, some of them were definitely Pipistrelle but there were some others which were a little bigger that I couldn't identify!

Bats galore......

Driving back from Llanfair Caereinion to New Mills this evening at around 19:00, I was amazed to see so many bats! During the short trip I must have seen 30+. I didn't get chance do I.D. them all sadly, but many of them seemed to be Pipistrelles.

Busy Voles

Lots of bank vole activity at Cors Dyfi today

Fantastic day of mammals!

Well, what a mammaly day! After seeing the hare reported in the previous post, I heard the high-pitched squeeking emitted by shrews, part of their territorial battles over that particular section of hedgerow. Just before arriving home, I peered over the parapit of the bridge to view the river, as I do every day. With my binoculars I could clearly see a fresh otter spraint prominently displayed on top of a rock, in the middle of the river. This is not the first time I have seen spraint here, but it's good to know they are still around and I live in hope that one day I will be lucky enough to spot the real thing!

The day's mammal sightings reached their peak this evening. Whilst out admiring the wonderful starlit sky in my back garden, a parade of no fewer than four Hedgehogs took their turn at the feeder! These gorgeous little spiny friends can be very confiding indeed when there is a regular supply of Vine House Farm Hedgehog Food to enjoy!

Brown Hare, Pontrobert

Only the second time I have seen these wonderful mammals in the village, despite walking round nearly every day! This one was hunkered down in the glorious morning sunshine in the middle of a field, probably hoping to be mistaken for a clod of earth!

Stoat @ Trefeglwys

Sadly, 1 found freshly dead on the road this morning!!

Fox @ Dolydd Hafren

1 seen from the second hide this morning casually walking across the shingle bank. 3 Hares were also seen in the first field from the car park.

Hares.....

As Tammy has put in her last post, now is a great time to see Brown Hares. At least 10 Hares have been showing very well from the 1st hide at Dolydd Hafren for the past couple of weeks. The 1st couple of hours of daylight seem to be the most rewarding with lost of activity, but they can bee seen throughout the day.

At least 3, possibly as many as 5 Hares also have been seen recently, in the fields surrounding Llyn Hir.

Mad 'March' hares

Our Brown Hares can be madder in February than March and with little vegetation to get in your way, now is the perfect time to try and spot them. Like many of our secretive mammals, they are more active at dawn, so consequently this is the best time to see them.

It was once believed that boxing hares consisted of two males sparring for a female. However, we now know that it is in fact the female rebuffing the males amorous intentions!

The best place in Montgomeryshire (that I know of ) to see Brown Hares is Dolydd Hafren Nature Reserve, near Forden. So whilst dawn is not too early, why not get yourself down there to witness this spectacular display?

Badger births

Badger cubs are born underground from mid-January, but births are peaking about now. This also marks the start of the Badger's main mating season, leading to increased territorial behaviour.

All this means that now is a perfect time to start looking for signs of your local Badgers. If you find an animal path, see if you can follow it; if it is a Badger path it will eventually lead to either a latrine or a sett.

Badger latrines are distinctive, being a series of scrapes in the ground, filled with piles of, often sloopy, poo.  If you manage to find a sett, the D-shaped holes, freshly 'ploughed' spoil heaps and discarded bedding should give it away.

Badger - Mochyn Daear

Well done Tammy for starting up a mammal blog for our county - I look forward to reading what different folk see throughout the year, and hopefully contributing myself with some interesting sightings. Here's a cheeky chappy that comes, sometimes with his family, to our garden on a nightly basis.

Stoat at Cors Dyfi

Rob Haigh, Reserves Officer for the Montgomeryshire Wildlife Trust reports seeing a Stoat in the car park at Cors Dyfi Nature Reserve; some people have all the luck!

2010 record collating time

No, I am not cataloguing my record collection! At the beginning of each year, a local recorders first task is to ensure that all of the previous years biological records are safely in the database, before sending an update to the local record centre.

So, January and February finds me inputting & verifying records from all my merry mammal recorders.  If you have spotted any mammals in Montgomeryshire in 2010, now is the time to send your sightings to me!

If you are not sure what information I need, check out the Montgomeryshire Wildlife Trust's biological recording page.

Send me your records, or the Water Vole 'gets it'!

From one blog to another!

Check out the lovely photograph of a Brown Hare on the Montgomery Bird Blog, taken at the Montgomeryshire Wildlife Trust's Dolydd Hafren Nature Reserve; the best place I know (in the area) to see hares!