Hog attack

It's Hedgehogs again, but how could I not post this amazing footage of a vicious attack which took place over my feeder, in the early hours of this morning!

I can confirm that both walked away seemingly unhurt!

Merlin & the Hedgehog

I know it is another post about Hedgehogs, but when you can get such great views of them right by your back door, it is hard not to be entranced! This time I would like to share a moment from last night when my old dog, Merlin, showed how dogs and Hedgehogs can mix!

It's a good job my other dog, Cerrig, was out with me (Glow-worm hunting!), as he is not so tolerant. After two years, he is still frightened of them and would have been shrieking his head off, had he been there!

D Day

No, not the military landings, but a 'landing' for me... today I handled my first ever dormouse! In fact, by the end of the morning, I'd had the pleasure of six of these cutest of all mammals in my hand! If you think they look cute in photos...

...you should see them in the flesh! And their fur feels soooo soft.

Five of the six were, like the one above, very sleepy and endearingly snuggled into my hand, whilst the sixth nearly escaped, she was so active!

Out of 50 boxes, 6 dormice is a good number to find. This delightful patch of woodland, near Machynlleth, obviously provides all they need.

Many people will be aware that the Hazel Dormouse receives the highest level of legal protection in the UK, meaning you need a licence to even look in the nest boxes, let alone handle them. As I am currently working towards my licence, I am very grateful to Nick Young for sharing this experience with me today.

The Fabulous Four

Finally a gorgeous summer's evening - not a cloud in the sky (for a while), calm & quite warm. The insects were out in abundance and so were their main predators. Within 300m of home, in just 30 minutes, I saw and heard (on my Batbox Duet bat detector) four different species of bat!

First it was our largest, the Noctule, which was flying quite low, foraging over the fields on the outskirts of the village. Shortly after I heard and then saw a Common Pipistrelle, on a commute. Wandering on to the bridge and leaning over the parapet, I was treated to a cacophony of bat sound, as below me, Daubenton's skimmed low of the water's surface, catching their prey, whilst a little higher, Soprano Pipistrelle's sought the smaller aerial invertebrates, such as midges.

Well worth taking the dogs for an evening stroll on a night like this!

Sickly hog?

"You didn't tell me that Cerrig was still outside!"

This is what Kevin said when I returned from a mouse deportation to find him outside with a Hedgehog. Thankfully, Cerrig (one of our dogs) has never harmed our Hedgehogs, he just shrieks his head off, making everyone jump!

At nearly 8pm, it was still far from dark, so this little one was out rather early. This is not unheard of by any means, but typically when a hog is out during the day, something isn't quite right. I can't say it was the most spritely Hedgehog I have ever seen; the poor thing looked poorly to me. Hope it is soon on the mend.

Dance of the Draenog

Privileged to witness and film Hedgehog courtship in my own back garden tonight! Unfortunately my camera does not have sound, so you will have to imagine the huffing, which was emitted constantly by the lighter-coloured, smaller female. I have to admit to feeling a little bit sorry for the male, who received several firm rebuffs, but still persevered! I hope his persistence pays off!

This behaviour can last for hours and doesn't necessarily end in mating. Often one or the other runs off, or the loud noise attracts other suitors, causing a sparring match between the males. Since there is no evidence that Hedgehogs form any kind of pair bond and promiscuity appears to be the rule, this tedious courtship seems a complete waste of everyone's time! But, I guess the female has a right to be choosy given the bodily contortions she has to undertake to actually mate!

New mouse record

Whilst waiting for the Hedgehogs to emerge from hibernation, I have been kept amused by a mouse who has taken advantage of the uneaten food.

It's size made me curious, as it looked a little larger than your typical Wood Mouse, although it was a mature breeding male (as evidenced by it's obvious swollen testes). It also seemed a little bolder than normal, spending long periods of time on the feeder. Consequently, I was keen to catch it for a closer look.

Testing out some new small mammals traps for the Montgomeryshire Wildlife Trust (BioEcoSS Tube Traps), I set one by the Hedgehog feeder, hoping the mouse would oblige. However, it wasn't until he came last night and found all the food eaten (by the Hedgehogs) that he was caught.

So, on emptying the trap this morning, I was able to confirm my suspicions; it was a male Yellow-necked Mouse (Apodemus flavicollis).

 

This is the first record for this part of Montgomeryshire, but still within the known range. As yet, this species has only been found in the eastern side of the vice-county.