The cricetidae family.

Part one the Bank vole.

After the wood mouse the bank vole is probably the most abundant of Britain`s small rodents. It is more likely to be seen during daylight than the wood mouse, and tends to run and scurry rather than move in leaps and bounds. Although it may sometimes be found in long grass, wet places or on mountain sides, the bank vole much prefers to live where there is dense cover. It is rarely seen far from bramble thickets, hedgerows and other woody scrub, and is also common in country gardens. Each bank vole occupies a home range, and does not normally venture more than fifty five yards from its nest. Males generally range more widely than females. In mild years when there is plenty of food available, bank voles may begin breeding early and continue well into late Autumn. A vole born early in the year may its self be raising a family within a few weeks, so the population builds up quickly. There may be four or five litters, each with four or five babies between April and September. The nest is sometimes above ground, perhaps in a tree crevice but is more often found underground in Chambers that are reached by tunnels. Hazel nuts are their preferred food, the sharp toothed bank vole gnaws a whole in the shell and takes out the kernel in small pieces, but they will also eat berries, seeds, fruit, green plants and fungi. They will either store their food underground or find somewhere safe to eat it. But fewer than half of those born survive after the first few months. After the voles leave the nest at about eighteen days, young voles are preyed on by weasels and may die during cold wet weather. The more robust of voles may live for eighteen months. Bank voles live in the whole of England, Scotland and Wales and have only been found in Ireland since 1964. The bank vole can be distinguished from a mouse by its chubby appearance, blunt nose, small eyes and ears and short, furry tail. Adults have a glossy, chestnut-brown coat that may shade to grey on its belly. Their body is about three and a half inches long with a two and a half inch tail, and they have a redder coat and more prominent ears  than their cousin the field vole. Only about one ounce in weight, a bank vole can climb delicately amomg bramble stems and balance on a side shooy as it reaches out for a berry.

Starlings.

The Autumnal displays of starlings are one of the worlds most wonderful natural displays. At this time of year they put in an amazing display as they come together to roost. Watching their thriving numbers, it looks like we have a thriving British population. But a lot of these birds are migrants that find food over here during winter. These displays are hiding a worrying truth, the fact that British starlings are actually disappearing. Back in the 80`s the British population of starling was around twenty million, they were even considered a pest by some people, but they thrived in our cities and villages. Surveys have shown that our starling population has actually dropped by 80%. So what is causing this alarming decline in one of our most iconic of birds? Researchers are trying whats going on, like most animals the starling first year is quite a hard one. When they fledge they have to survive without the help of the parent birds, this happens after about four weeks. They join flocks of other starlings, this provides protection for them from other predators. They mainly feed on grass lands, they probe the soil for invertebrates with their strong beaks. But its surprisingly difficult for these young birds, taking time to learn how to get their food from the ground and to learn the correct technique. Its also thought the way me manage our grasslands could be a problem. Improved drainage means their is less moisture in the top soil, soil compaction also means that the surface is harder for them when they are probing. Turning from permanent pasture to quick growing grass species means less exposed grass areas. One of these or also a combination of all means that the starlings are finding it harder to find, probe and eat the food. When Autumn descends the pressure is really on as the migrants start to arrive, coming in from mainland Europe. Our young starlings will then have to compete with all of the migrants, which are more experienced at finding the food than our fledgelings.  So its likely that some of this will explain why there is a fifty% reduction in their survival rates in young starlings in the last forty years. The r.s.p.b are starting to research the starlings and their complex food and lifestyle issues, which is good news. Farmers are more efficent in taking away straw etc from their fields and removing some of the leather jackets(young crane fly). Let me know if you see any starlings in your garden,

Spiders.

In Autumn a male house spider faces the most important and dangerous journey of his life. His mission is to seek out a female spider. But to reach her he may have to risk his own life. For the past year he has lived on his web, its an architectural wonder. On tip toes, feathery hairs on his feet stop him from sinking through the web. But a flat footed fly will some become entangled once he has flown into the web. Once the fly in on the web the spider will pick up the vibrations with the sensitive hairs on his body, he then strikes. Venom injected by needle like fangs quickly subdues his prey. Powerful jaws and digestive enzymes soon break down the fly. This will be the spiders last supper, autumn has arrived and the urge to mate has become overwhelming. When the time is right he leaves the safety of his web. Now he must venture into an unknown land where a female house spider awaits. Out in the open the spider is exposed to predators like great tits. When he gets to the house, he`s confronted with a weird landscape.  A world away from his wooden shed and his web. He has to climb a huge wooden mountain,  a staircase. Its a long way up, but he can grip onto all of the cracks and crevices on the staircase. Just like us spiders need to drink so he is drawn towards the water in the bathroom. Into danger, if he falls into the water he could drown if he can`t get out. The water surface tension will keep him afloat for a while. Our baths and sinks are death traps to spiders, but a flannel makes it easier for spiders to get out safely. His hairs on his body and his exoskeleton do repel water, so after a good groom he will soon dry off. In a spare room a female spider has spun a web, as soon as the spider touches the web, receptors on his body sense the females pheromones, he must be careful though as she may mistake him for food. He begins a courtship dance, drumming his pelps and bobbing his ofisfoma. The female listens to the vibrations and is satisfied with the suitor. She allows him to approach, he uses his pelps to transfer his sperm. After mating he takes up residents in her web. But the danger isn`t over. A rival male may approach the web, you see the female stores sperm over the winter, she then fertilises the eggs next spring. So the first male will have to fight any intruders to make sure he is the father  of the off-spring. Each male could deliver a toxic bite, so it could be a fight to the death. But the rival spider is normally pushed away from the web. He will then return to the female spider, his mission is now complete and he won`t survive the winter. He has made sure that a new generation of his will appear next year.

Locating different animals.

Most of us only get to visit our local park or woodland during the day. The problem is a lot of British wildlife is nocturnal. So how can we tell what is going on in our woods when we are tucked up in bed? There are clues everywhere, first of all you can look for one of the most obvious ones, an animal trail. This could be a deer print in the mud which are called slots or a badger footprint. When you are looking you will probably come across domesticated animal prints as well(sheep,cows etc). What you really want is a number of different clues, then put them all together and you should know what you are trailing. Keep a look out for animal poo, some times (scat) animal excrement is hard to identify. Badgers are quite easy to recognise as they dig a little pit called a latrine and poo in the middle of it. Some poo has a characteristic smell.The smell is normally diagnostic of the animal, otter spraint smells like violets, pine martins smeel quite sweet and badgers poo normally smells woody. If you identify a badger set, look out for badger runs and you may be lucky enough to find a footprint. Once you have found all of the clues you should then be able to follow a trail, you can then see what the animal has been doing at night. I followed a badger trail the other night, first of all it trotted along sniffing from side to side, it stopped at a mole hill to have a root around or to eat an earth worm. It then carried on along the path until it went under a barbed wire fence, catching some hairs on it as it passed underneath. If you do find lots of signs from a certain animal, it may be a good idea to stake the area out at night time. You can then see if there is any activity while yoy are there, wait for a dark night when there isn`t a full moon.

Deer in the forest.

Roe deer are particularly numerous in the coniferous forests of northern Britain, but are shy creatures that will disappear into the trees if disturbed. They are most likely to be seen as they cross a forest ride. At about two years old a roe buck acquires a territory that he normally occupies for life. The size varies, and may cover between 12-75 acres. During spring and summer, the buck patrols of his territory, marking it by rubbing scent from his head glands against trees and fighting with intruding bucks. Roe does also have territories, but do not defend them. They often overlap with those of other does and several bucks. Deer of any species may cause considerable damage to trees by fraying bark when they clean their antlers, by breaking branches when they thrash with their antlers at rutting time and also by stripping bark to eat.  A tree`s growth may be distorted, and if bark is rubbed or stripped off all  round, the tree will die. Deer also browse on accessible shoots, large deer reaching as high as 6-7ft when standing on their hind legs. In commercial forests the damage can be serious and new plantations in traditional red deers areas are normally fenced off. All deer like to browse on the brambles that grow in clearings, with roe deer being especially fond of them.

Santuary and sustenance in the wetlands.

Marshland and waterside areas are attractive to many mammals because they offer good shelter and varied food. Waterside plants are often luxuriant and include dense masses of tall rushes, reeds and sedges where animals can hide. Clumps of alder growing growing at the water`s edge provide roosting spots for bats in crannies behind fissured bark, alder leaves are also favourable with beavers as they don`t contain many tannins. On wetlands, animals are safe from disturbance because few people, and fewer vehicles, venture for over squelchy ground. Some mammals- bats and water deer for example- live near the water and take advantage of what it offers without getting too wet. But beavers, coypus(these are smaller than a beaver, their is debate whether there are any still living in Britain), water voles, water shrews and otters spend a lot of time in the water. Water voles and coypus feed on waterside plants. So in a few places , do chinese water deer.Leaf eating larvae, including many moth caterpillars, also live on plants and both the larvae and the adults are good food for bats. The water itself also provides a food supply for bats, because the larvae of gnats, mosquitoes, mayflies and many other insects live in the water, emerging in their thousands as they become adults. Damp waterside soils are full of earthworms, which shrews and moles feed on. Fish, frogs and other creatures in the water provide food for the carnivorous otter and mink.

The muridae family.

Part four the house mouse.

Unlike other mice, the house mouse has a strong smell and greasy fur. It taints the places it lives in, which include houses, warehouses, hospitals and other public buildings. Mice also leave their black droppings and their urine wherever they have been, which carry diseases and parasites, they also cause damage by their gnawing. Although house mice only live for about eighteen months, and many die in their first winter, it is hard for humans to get rid of them. They breed so fast that in one summer the mice from one nest will have multiplied many times over. Females bear from five to ten litters in one year with each litter containing up to six young. The young will leave the nest after about three weeks, the females are then ready to breed after about another three weeks. House mice normally live within a couple of metres of their food supply, moving on when food is short. Mice have chisel like front teeth that grow all of the time,  they use to gnaw their way through wires. Many different kinds of stored foods will attract house mice, which is mostly active at night. Alert and nimble, it has prominent ears, big eyes and a pointed face. Its grey-brown coat is greasy and glistening and its tail long and scaly. The male is about seven inches in length including tail, with the female being slightly smaller.  They are widespread, mostly found around buildings but may also be found in hedgerows and on farmland. Males will fight to establish social dominance and a territory. Highly adaptable, house mice can live in all sorts of places. Some even thrive in frozen meat stores, developing longer fur to keep them warm. Where food is plentiful house mice may live in fields and hedgerows during the summer. But few will survive cold weather outdoors, most spend the winter in buildings.

niche seperation.

The way different animals make use of it. An oak tree is beautiful, and an oak woodland is an incredibly rich habitat in the United Kingdom. It supports a vast amount of life and the reason for that is the oaks have been growing for longer than any other species. So lots of invertebrate herbivores like caterpillars, bugs and beetles have learned to feed on them. This the food for birds, so that's why its such a rich habitat. But how do they all live in a oak woodland, feeding on the same trees at the same time. This is  something niche separation.They portion themselves so they reduce the amount of competition. They find different ways of feeding in the same place at the same time. How does it work? Lets start at the bottom of the oak tree. The ground beneath the oak tree has plenty of insects and other invertebrate's living on it. This is the food for robins, blackbird, thrushes and even redstarts. Then we have the trunk, this home to some charismatic members of the oak community, the treecreeper and nuthatch. Treecreepers climb up the tree closely examining all of the crevices, into which they put their very fine bill to remove their prey. Nuthatches will go up and down the tree looking for similar things. The nuthatches bill is slightly larger than the treecreeper and they will also eat a little bit of fruit. Then you have the greater spotted woodpecker, if there is any dead wood the greater spotted woodpecker will peck it open on the trunk. The greater spotted woodpecker will even excavate a nesting hole. As we go higher the trunk will separate onto its boughs and branches. You then have a different set of birds living up there. Most notably, members of the tit family. The smaller the bird the further it will go out, away from the main trunk. Turning the leaves over looking for caterpillars, hanging onto little branches. Because of all of this it means that all this can survive on an oak tree at exactly the same time. This is why a walk in an oak woodland during spring is so rewarding.

Are cats a problem to wildlife?

With about nine million cats in the U.K and with some garden birds in decline, should we worry about the impact cats have on our birds. Now millions of years of evolution have led cats to be fairly tuned ambush predators, excellent at catching tiny animals. Years of domestication have done nothing to undo it. But how much effect these hunting skills have might not be as clear as we think. A recent mammal society survey estimated that cats bring in around 55 million dead birds every year. But how significant is that? It sounds like a huge amount, which certainly upsets a lot of people. But to find out if this is an issue this is what the r.s.p.b said. Research into the reason why some urban birds are declining has so far not revealed a link between cat predation and what the populations are doing. British birds have evolved over thousands of years to deal with a wide range of predators ,mammalian predators which include, stoats weasels, foxes, badgers and otters. Birds will also lay lots of eggs to combat these predators, but sadly most will not survive. Evidence is also there to say that cats will take weaker or sick birds that are unlikely to survive their first year. So they don`t think cats have a major impact on bird population. Some scientists though doubt the accuracy of the research being used. The stats say that cats bring in 30% of what they kill, so with 55 million birds being brought home there is roughly 128 million dead birds that we don`t see. Could we be underestimating the number of birds that cats kill. We have rely upon figures derived from other studies, unfortunately those other studies come from non urban habitats and even from other countries, so the reason for using 30% is its the only accurate figure we have to go on. What we need is a new technique that enables us to see what the cats are doing in our gardens. Cat com is being fitted to some cats so we can actually see what our cats get up to. This should give us some more accurate data to go on, showing us the impact cats have in urban areas.

How horseshoe bats and ordinary bats differ.

There are nineteen families of bats throughout the world, comprising nine hundred and fifty different species. Only two of the families are found in Britain, the rhinolophidae, or horseshoe bats, and the vespertilionidae, or ordinary bats. There are two British species of horseshoe bats and sixteen different species of ordinary bats. Many people dislike bats, but they are harrmless and very interesting creatures. They are the only mammals capable of flying long distances, using a modified form of the limbs common to all mammals. Scientists classify bats as the order chiroptera, which means hand-wing. Bats do not walk far and have poorly developed hind limbs. When flying fast and in the dark, bats can still avoid obstacles and track down prey by means of elaborate echo- location systems similar to the radar scanning equipment used by shops and aircraft. Bats normally hunt at night, but if we have lots of heavy rain they be seen in the daytime, which is very dangerous as raptors will predate them. The two British bat families have different echo- location systems. Horseshoe bats emit sound through their nostrils and it is focuse into a narrow beam by a fleshy, cone shaped trumpet on the snout. The bat moves its head from side to side to scan what is ahead of it. Ordinary bats emit sound through the mouth, and have in each ear a fleshy spike known as a tragus, which is part of their sound reception system. All British bats eat insects, and as these are scarce in winter the bats hibernate during the colder months. British bats will have summer and winter roosts, female bats will also have maternity roosts. Many bats make seasonal migrations to hibernating places, and some foreign bats turn up on north sea oil platforms or ships, having been blown of course.

The shapes of trees.

Every tree is an individual, whose adult shape reflects the conditions under which it lives. Trees growing close together in a forest are narrower in outline than trees of the same species standing alone in the middle of a park. Winds blowing off the sea make coastal trees grow lop-sided, harsh, mountainous conditions make trees stunted. Young trees put most of their energy into growing upwards, reaching for the light. Later they will broaden to assume the typical adult shape of the species. Pruning also drastically changes the natural shapes of a tree. Coppicing and pollarding are well tried methods for encouraging the growth of new shoots, for firewood, tools or fencing. In coppicing , the tree is cut off at ground level. In pollarding it is cut off higher up the trunk, out of reach of grazing animals. New shoots and branches grow quickly, because there is an excising root system. Trees all grow into different shapes, or managed by humans into different shapes. Here are a few of them, flat topped mainly pines, drooping mainly willows, rounded mainly oaks and ash and beech, up swept mainly cedars, columnar mainly lombardy poplars, triangular mainly western red cedars and lovenge shaped mainly pines and common alders.

Bio mass-living weights of birds.

How productive is your garden? A pigeon can weigh upto 400grams which is equivalent to 40 blue tits or 80 goldcrest. Normally the number of birds are counted and number of species. The higher the bio mass of birds, the better your garden is. I would like you to take one hour to count the maximum number of any species you see in your garden. So if you see one pigeon that is the equivalent of seeing forty blue tits for the bio-mass.

The Muridae family.

Part three the harvest mouse.

One of the worlds smallest rodents, the harvest mouse weighs less than a 2p coin. Because it is so tiny it can climb fast and confidently among thin stalks. As their name implies, harvest mice have always been associated with corfields, but now that these are reaped by machines and then ploughed up, it is difficult for them to live their permanently. They more often live in the long grass at the base of a hedge, invading the growing corn crop in early summer so that they can nest and feed. Tall vegetation such as brambles and rushes is, however, their main summer home, and they are common in reed beds despite the water below. Their peak breeding season is between August and September. When young harvest mice become independent at about 16 days old they are grey-brown, they later moult to their adult colouring. Although harvest mice are threatened by urban development and modern day farming methods such as stubble burning and scrub and hedge removal,( to be fair to farmers they are putting some hedge rows back in to their estates) they may be able to benefit from the huge, motorway embankments. Because they are active by day and night, the mice are likely to be caught by both daytime and nighttime predators, because of this threat most harvest mice only live for a couple of months. The harvest mice has a blunt nose, small ears and yellow-brown fur, they are very agile, this is important because they use their tail as a fifth limb to grasp stalks as they are moving around. They are about two and a half inches in length with their tail being about the same size in length. They are quite widely spread in coarse vegetation and hedgerows, but are not found on higher ground. Their nest is a tennis ball shape fixed about eighteen inches off the ground, they are normally built in grass or reeds. They are about two and a half inches across , the framework is woven from neatly shredded living leaf blades, so the nest hangs between stems. Seeds, grains, grass shoots and soft fruit, as well as insects such as weevils, are all part of the the harvest mouses diet. Because the harvest mouse is very active, it has a large appeteite for its size. There are usually from three to eight young in a litter, born onto a layer of chewed grass leaves. Females are pregnant for 17-19 days and may have three litters in a year, each one in a new nest. When tall plant stems die back in Autumn, the harvest mice are left exposed and seek cover in low vegetation or sometimes in barns . Many mice die during winter, but for the surviving mice their coat is darker so they can blend in better to their surroundings. They build a winter nest which is low, usually in a clump of grass or under a hedge.

Why snakes and lizards bask in the sun.

Although reptiles such as snakes and lizards are usually described as cold-blooded,they spend much of their lives with their bodies nearly as warm as in a warm-blooded animal. What they lack is a means of producing and maintaining their own body heat. To reach a body temperature at which muscles, senses and digestion are fully active (about 77-90f and 25-32c), they have to rely on outside heat-either conducted from their surroundings or, more often, direct from the sun`s rays. In Britain, reptiles are dormant in winter because they cannot reach their working temperatures. In spring they emerge on sunny days, but the sunshine is so weak they need to bask almost all of the time.  As the sun gets stronger, basking time is shorter-mainly early and late in the day- and there is time for hunting and breeding. By midsummer basking is hardly necessary, but as autumn comes the need increases, and finally the animals are forced into hibernation. Reptile species that bear live young can usually survive in cooler climates than those that lay eggs, by basking during pregnancy, they can get enough heat to ensure faster development of the young but warmth cannot ensured for the eggs. This is one reason why the adder and the common lizard, which bear live young, can live further north than the grass snake and sand lizard, which lay eggs.

Summer in a fallow deer park.

Fallow deer are a pleasure to watch at any season, and one of the best places to see them is in a deer park, particularly in late June when most of the fawns are old enough to gambol together in the cool of the evening. Fawns spend much of the day trotting after their mothers and grazing, but are suckled several times a day. Many does suckle their fawns into the new year. The bucks cast their antlers at any time from late March to early June. They spend summer in a bachelor group while new antlers are developing. When the antlers are fully grown, towards the end of August  for older bucks- the soft covering, or velvet, is cleaned off by rubbing them against trees until they are clean and hard, ready for rutting in autumn. In winter, many park deer are provided with extra food, usually hay, which is placed in racks, or root crops such as swede, which are spread on the ground. From two years old a doe normally bears a fawn every years for perhaps ten years or so, herd sizes increase rapidly. To prevent overcrowding and disease and the destruction of their habitat, the deer are regularly culled, bucks from August to April, does from November to February.Animals of different colour varieties interbreed. A fawn is not necessary the same colour as its parent.

The muridae family.

Part two the yellow-necked mouse.

Not only does the yellow- necked mouse resemble a large,sandy coloured wood mouse, but it is very much like the wood mouse in its behaviour. Both mice are strictly nocturnal,with the big ears and eyes of creatures that need to pick up in the dark the faint sound or slight movement that warns them of approaching danger, and both climb well and often search for food among high branches. Both are found in woods, hedgerows and gardens. This seems to contradict a basic biological principle that no two animals can live in the same place and share the same food supply without one ultimately displacing the other. The yellow-necked mouse might be expected to become dominant as it is large, but it is the wood mouse that occurs over most of Britain. Yellow-necked mouse occur in the south, the welsh borders and in some parts of the midlands. Where they do occur, yellow necked mouse may increase to considerable numbers and then inexplicably disappear a year or two later. In parts of the south east, where yellow-necked mice can be quite common, they often go into peoples gardens and even their houses in autumn, perhaps seeking a dry,sheltered place for the winter. Yellow-necked mouse looks very much like a wood mouse, but it is distinguished by its distinct yellow collar, it is also bigger and heavier than the wood mouse,and its sandy brown coat has more orange on the flanks. In total the yellow-necked mouse is about four inched in length, with its tail being as long or longer again. Better climbers than the wood mouse, the yellow-necked mouse are more likely to be found in an attic, they may also be found at the top of a tree searching for new buds. The record they have been found at is ten meters. Like wood mice, yellow necked mice eat mainly seeds and fruit, such as acorns,hazel nuts and blackberries. In summer they also feed on insects and small animals such as snails and spiders. Their nest of grass and leaves is made underground within the burrow. There are five or more babies in a litter, they emerge from the nest when they are about eighteen days old. They rarely live for more that two years in the wild.

Scottish wildcat.

Final part.

A relatively new charity, the Scottish wildcat association has a range of projects, including the establishment of a wildcat haven and captive breeding to boost numbers and the long term survival of this magical animal. Wildcats also have the same range of vocalisations as domestic cats, including purring,meowing,hissing and growling. Except during the mating season, they tend to be quiet animals, vocalising only when they are close to each other. The wildcat is extremely wary of humans, and tends to avoid approaching human settlements. Legends of cats hanging from tree branches by a hook at the end of their tail, dropping onto passing crofters and tearing out their throats are the stuff of fantasy, left over from the middle ages suspicion of cats as agents of witches and maintained through the Victorian era to fuel and justify the persecution of the cats.

The nest building treasure hunt.

Have you ever stopped to consider all the materials a bird must collect for its nest? Take a blackbirds shopping list. The blackbird will use fine grass for the lining of the nest, along with over one hundred sticks that are not to brittle to make the nest. Along with these materials the blackbird will also use straw for the cup of the nest, many beakfuls of moss and some damp mud will also be used to hold the nest together. Other garden birds need feathers, rootlets, spider silk, animal fur and lichens. Will they find what they need in your garden? It doesn`t mean that you have to be untidy- just leave little piles of suitable materials for birds to find rather than burning or binning them.

Honey bee- the queen`s role.

The queen bee presides over a colony of about 50,000 sterile females, known as workers, and 300 males known as drones. The functions of the queen are to lay eggs and maintain cohesion among the other members of the colony. She mates several times, and stores sperm in her body for the rest of her life. She uses it to fertilise most of her eggs, which will develop into either workers or queens. If she lays unfertilised eggs they will develop into drones. The worker bees decide whether fertilised eggs become workers or queens by controlling the food they give to the larvae. If a larvae is fed nothing but royal jelly, a protein secretion from the workers mouths, it will become a queen. But while the reigning queen is active she gives off a substance which inhibits the workers from producing more queens. The queen can live for up to five years. Drones exist simply to mate with a queen, and several from different colonies assemble on fine days to attract virgin queens. When the mated queen returns to the hive from her nuptial flight the drones are denied access and left defenceless to die. Most honey bee`s in Britain live in man made hives, but colonies are quite able to flourish in trees or old buildings. From October to April the hibernating bees steadily eat their store of winter food, moving up through the combs as a cluster. As the queen`s life draws to an end, she leaves the hive in May in a swarm, or dies in the hive.

Scottish wildcat.

Part three.

Wildcats typically breed only once a year, from January to March, with most births between April and May. Litters of kittens are typically between one and five. Males tend to hold larger territories than females, and their ranges often overlap with three to six neighbouring females. Wildcats of both sexes mark their ranges by depositing faeces in prominent locations and by leaving scent marks through urine spraying, cheek rubbing and scratching the ground. Female wildcats come into heat once a year for a short period in January or February and advertise their readiness for mating through scent marking and night time caterwauling miaows. If a male is in the locality, the  pair come together for a brief mating before parting forever. The wildcat is a carnivore, most of its prey consists of small mammals, mainly rodents and rabbits. Wildcats are less fearful of water than domestic cats and are thought to occasionally fish, dipping their paws into shallow burns or loch edges to try and scoop out passing fish.

Scottish wildcat.

Part two.

Originally a forest creature, Scotland's heavy deforestation has forced the wildcat to evolve and utilise everything available to it. They require some degree of cover from which to stalk or ambush their prey, but almost any form of cover is suitable, including scrubland, rocky terrain and agricultural land. The main threats to the survival of the wildcat are hybridisation, and competition with feral domestic cats. Other significant threats are on-going habitat loss, fragmentation and degradation in some areas. Road kill and in some areas, persecution are also problems.

Scottish wildcat.

Part one.

The wildcat is, pound for pound, one of the most impressive predators in the world. The secretive feline used to roam across the UK, just as the lynx and the wolf once did, but today, there are fewer than four hundred wildcats remaining in the sottish highlands. They may look a little like your pet cat but they are tough, untameable and sometimes called the tiger of the highlands. The wildcat resemble a very muscular domestic tabby in appearance, with yellow/ medium-brown fur and black spots or stripes. Most apparent is the beautiful tail , which is thick and ringed with perfect bands of black and brown ending in a blunt black tip. The Scottish form is the largest in the wildcat family, with males typically between 6-9 kgs and females between 5-7 kgs. This is about 50% larger than a domestic cat. A study suggests that current house cats are descendants from a group of self-domesticating wildcats 10,000 years ago, somewhere in Eastern Europe. Fossil remains suggest that the biggest ever wildcat measured 1.2 m from nose to tail and may gave weighed 14 kgs.

Beltain

Beltain is a celebration of the fertility and rampant potency of the life force. All of nature is growing and manifesting now in a wild whirl of creative energy. This is the time to celebrate unions of all kinds, fertility and manifestation on many different levels, love, sexuality and fruitfulness. It is a time to be in touch with the instinctive wild forces within and without, to be aware of the potency of the life force and its power on the physical, spiritual and mystical levels. This is the beginning of the final and most actively potent of the waxing phase of the sun`s cycle. All of life is bursting with fertility and the power of its own potential. Everything is in the process of becoming. This is the peak of the spring season and the beginning of summer, the onset of the growing season when the earth is clothed in green, the vibration of love and the heart chakra. Flowers are everywhere, birds and animals are having their young, the sounds of birdsong fill the air. It is a time of sunshine and rain, swelling and bursting, rising sap and fresh new growth. The earths energies are at their most active. The dragon paths can be intuitively sensed or dowsed. This is the perfect time for walking these ancient energy paths.Beltain energy of one of reverence for all of life, celebrating and honouring the fertility which grows from the union of opposites. It is about the sacredness and spirituality of love and sexual pleasure, and deep connections of the heart. These life changing forces are not just the focus of sexual union, but unions of all kinds. Integrity of spirit and power brings the physical and spiritual into balance. This creates a strong life force energy which becomes the light and eternal love of spiritual energy.

The muridae family.

Part one the wood mouse.

The wood mouse or the long tailed field mouse is probably the most widespread and abundant of all our British mammals. It is not just confined to woodlands though as its name suggests, it will thrive in hedge rows along with more open spaces including moorlands, mountains sides and our gardens where it will live in our sheds and out buildings. Wood mice do not have a strong smell to them unlike house mice. The wood mouse is very active, running and bounding from place to place with their front feet tucked up and venturing into open places where other small mammals will rarely go. As quick as they can be though if you listen out for them as you are taking a walk you will come across them in the undergrowth. Wood mice used to only move under cover of darkness, but they now seem to be moving alot during daylight hours. They are still taken frequently by owls and cats and some raptors. Most wood mice will stay in a general area, but may travel up to a quarter of a mile during the day or night. During a cold winter they have been known to go into a torpid state(almost like hibernation) during this state the use less energy than normal. This enables them to survive food shortages. The population is always at its lowest after a cold winter, but their numbers soon pick up. They start to breed in March, the female might bear up to four litters during one year. Each of the litters may contain up to five young. They rarely live over two years in the wild. Its sandy brown coat and large ears and eyes help to distinguish the wood mouse. Their underparts are white with a yellow streak on the chest with their long tail being slightly haired. They are about three and a half inches in length. When a wood mouse becomes frightened, they often wash and groom themselves. They do this by sitting on their haunches and licking vigorously at their armpits, forelimbs and belly. Wood mice dig their own burrow system, where they store food and spend their time when they are not foraging for food. The young mice are born in the nest chamber. Autumn fruits such as hawthorns and other berries are part of a wood mice`s diet, often using an old birds nest to store them.Seeds are the wood mouses main food, along with shoots and buds. They will also eat snails by nibbling their way through its shell. Wood mice are always cautious when approaching something they are not sure of. They have an acute sense of smell and rely on odours as a means of recognising other mice. They have large hind feet that enables them to leap almost like kangaroos.

Butterflies of sunny downlands.

The gently rolling downlands of southern England provide a warm and bountiful home for a multicoloured population of butterflies. On sunny days in summer the grassy hills come alive with bright patches of colour as groups of butterflies flutter around their favourite plants. Clusters of blue butterflies, coppers, green hairstreaks and marbled whites sparkle like jewels in the sunshine. The chalk soil of the downs favours chalk-loving wild flowers such as marjoram,thyme ,vetches, knapweed, scabious and yellow carline thistles. And the butterflies reap a harvest of nectar, particularly in warm hollows and on slopes facing south. A butterfly`s, life in the sun is spent establishing territories and fighting off rivals, having minor tussles with bumble-bees and hoverflies, courting and mating, feeding from flowers and basking in the sun. One active common blue might see off half a dozen other butterflies in a lightning chase over the grasses. Fleabane, with its yellow nectar-rich flowers, attracts common blues, small coppers, small heaths and small skippers, especially where the chalk soil is overlaid with clay and flint. Hawthorn, whitebeam,dogwood and spindle bushes provide vantage points for butterflies, such as green hairstreaks, that seek out territories. Where downland meets woodland, sulphur-coloured brimstones patrol the edge of the trees in search of buckthorn and ivy.

The first cuckoo.

I havn`t got a lot of time today to blog, so i thought it would be a great idea for anyone who comes onto my blog to start listening out for the first cuckoo. As we enter spring tomorrow,(i have a blog about the spring equinox) this wonderful bird that has evolved to lay her eggs in other birds nests. For me its magnificent to hear my first cuckoo calling. So let me know when and where you are when you hear your first cuckoo of 2012.

The cervidae family.

Part eight the axis deer.

Native to India and Sri Lanka, the spotted axis deer can be seen in Britain in a few parks at woburn and whipsnade in Bedfordshire. It is the most attractive of India`s eight species of deer, and its hindustani name is chital, which means spotted deer. In its homelands, the axis deer lives mainly in lowland forest areas where there is good cover along with good grazing. It will also wander from the forest to feed on crops of nearby villages which has led to alot of the deer being killed by the locals. At the start of the twentieth century herds could be reckoned in their thousands, but now they number much fewer in their native India. As like most deer, axis deer graze by day or night. When they are alarmed, they emit a shrill whistle. They have no fixed breeding season, the young calves may be seen among the herds in Britain parks at any time of the year. A stag rubs its antlers against a sapling in order to remove the velvet or to mark its territory. Nor is there a fixed season for stags to shed their antlers, so all stages of antler growth, as well as hard antlers cleaned of velvet, can be seen among animals in the herd at any time. The attractive axis deer has a rich brown summer coat heavily dappled with white spots, and it has a white bib. Winter colouring is slightly darker. A stag`s three tined (pointed) can grow up to thirty inches. The stag is about thirty seven inches at its shoulder, with the hind being slightly smaller.

Red deer cull.

Part three.

Keeping deer numbers low on private estates is unusual as the land owners normally want high numbers of red deer for hunting. But the land on these estates is grazed like sheep by the deer. After there has been a cull on a private estate its completely transformed, it becomes a beautiful wild blossoming habitat full of heather and young trees. These young trees will grow into the caledonian forest of the future. Its a difficult decision to make for the land owner, but in the long term these habitats might become home to some of Scotland's most spectacular species. For the landscape as a whole, the highest numbered animal the red deer do need to be culled. This is for the balance of the eco-system and to benefit the red deer, even though it is a very difficult decision. Man has manipulated the landscape for so long that conservation issues like this one are hard, emotionally as a human it is hard to watch a cull but you must understand that its about a fine balance. Could indigenous predators be re-introduced? I think yes as long as it is correctly monitored, but those decisions are not for me to make. Red deer also bring lots of money into the highlands, so there is a lot of conflict between land owners. Let me know what you think.

Red deer cull.

Part two.

Red deer's are monitored across the highlands by Scottish natural heritage. Red deer are normally in herds of between forty and sixty. This is then looked at to see what effect the deer have on the landscape. Because of these herds, the treeless landscapes are under stress as a result. On the lower slopes of the highlands, their are dying remnants of the old caledonian forest. For many years , the older trees have not been able to establish a younger crop below them. This is because the young pine sapling are being eaten by the red deer, they are a great food source for the red deer. Some of the highland estates have put in a management programme to protect the saplings, reducing the impact the red deer has on the saplings. In some areas, woodland is much more dense, there are so many more trees. Most importantly there is clear evidence of the young trees coming up through the vegetation. From a great height its easy to see that high numbers of red deer result in grazed and barren moors. Where there are low numbers of deer, rare caledonian pines are making a come back.

Parasites in meadow brown caterpillars.

A few people have told me that they have seen white meadow brown butterflies. The reason they are white is that a parasite will sometimes get into their developing larvae during the pupil stage. This is the stage of the metamorphose when the butterflies colours are put into their wings. They have little scales, which are like millions of bags. Blood is pumped sequentially through all of these. The blood carries the pigments, when each colour is completed the scales are sealed, then progressively the scales are filled with the pigment. When the butterfly then emerges they dry out and typically turn into the wings and scales. While the pupae is metamorphosing, a parasite has disrupted the distribution of pigments into the sacks that become scales. Meadow browns are brown for protection, blending in with their natural background. White meadow browns will stick out and be predated.

The cervidae family.

Part seven the Chinese water deer.

The reed swamps and grassy river valleys of north-east china are the original home of the Chinese water deer. They were introduced to England at woburn park, Bedfordshire, early this century. Animals bred there were supplied to whipsnade park and also to private landowners, who in return sent them to other parks in several counties. After several escapes occurred and a few feral populations have become established. The two main spots are the cambridgeshire fens and the broads of east anglia, where there are wetlands and dense reed beds and clumps of alder that provides thick cover. Unlike any other male deer in Britain, the Chinese water deer has no antlers but has tusk like teeth protruding about two and a half inches below their upper lip. The deer is slightly higher at the haunch than at the shoulder, and in summer is a sleek red-brown. It has large, rounded ears which are very furry on the inside. The buck stands about twenty four inches high at its shoulder, with the female being slightly smaller. Feral Chinese water deer are usually solitary or in very small groups. In contrast, the deer that live in parks gather in large groups, because of this they are easily seen. They leap and bound through the long grass, their hind legs are flung high in a manner like hares. Their rutting season is between November and December. They bark, whicker and squeak as they chase each other. Fawns are born about June and are spotted. Twins and triplets are usual, but sextuplets may occur. Many fawns will die not long after birth. The tail is short and held close to the rump. It is inconspicuous, especially during winter, the deer's coat is a pale grey-brown colour during winter. The Chinese water deer feed mainly on grasses, rarely browsing on shrubs or trees. As with other ruminants, a period of grazing is followed by a period of rest, during which the deer chews the cud.

Red deer cull.

Part one.

The caleodian forest is a lovely mix of pine, heather and all of the animals associated with it. But as beautiful as this is, something is out of balance. One animal is having a huge impact on all of the other species. The red deer. The cull is one of the most contreversal conservation issues in Britain today. Without natural predstors like wolves and bears , we humans eradicated both, deer numbers have increased dramatically in the highlands over over the last hundred years. They belong in the highlands just as much as any other animal, but humans have created an eco-system with no natural method of controlling them. Some people believe red deer population is so out of balance that it needs culling. Its an uncomfortable situation for most of us, but its a reality of whats happening in the highlands. The forestry comission of Scotland work hard to keep the deer numbers low. They believe that the red deer numbers are to high. One problem is they eat all of the heather, right down to the moss. The heather is essentail for all of the red grouse, but grazed heather is just the tip of an ecological iceberg. The caledonian forest struggles to regenerate because the deer eat all of the young saplings, its literally dieing out along with the species that live within it. This is what motivates the forestry comission to cull the deer, to help keep a fine balance within the eco-system. But the actual deer stalking is tough , sometimes it can take upto five hours to find a deer. A deer can smell a human upto one mile away if the wind is behind the humans, so blowing their scent towards the deer. The final part is to crawl amongst the heather to get close to his quarry. When the gun comes out of the bag it would really challenge me, but i know its essential for consevation. This is a a key part of a very difficult debate.

Solitary bees.

The great majority of bees in Britain do not live in organised colonies like honey-bees and bumble-bees. They are solitary insects that make small nests in soil, hollow stems, decaying stumps or mortar. The female lays a few eggs in the hole and then moves on to build other nests. Once she has laid all her eggs she usually dies, leaving the nests stocked with food for the developing larvae to eat. Some species build their nests close together and then guard the entrances from predators, such as cuckoo bees which may try to take over the nests and lay their own eggs in them. Britain has 227 species of solitary bees, compared to only one species of honey-bee. Many solitary bees  look like honey-bees in shape and colour but are usually smaller. They do not have a worker caste- just males and females. They are dependent on flowers for food and are a major force in pollinating plants.

Why does air pollution occur?

The burning of fossil fuels associated with industrial processes and transport produces large amounts of oxides of nitrogen and microscopic particles. Large urban areas and places close to busy roads have the highest concentrations of nitrogen dioxide. These levels are not generally sufficient to cause harmful effects to most people. The highest ammonia concentration's are found in the countryside. Ammonia is particularly associated with agriculture. Levels of ammonia may be high in areas of arable farming, where fertilisers are used to improve the growth of crops, and in areas of livestock farming, where ammonia is released in animal wastes.

Finn whale.

The finn whale is the second largest animal on earth. They are found in every ocean on earth,  the west coast of Ireland is a great place to see them. November is the peak period for finn whales. The first sign to look for is the large column of steamy breath that they blow into the air as the finn whale exhales from its lungs. Common dolphins feed on the same prey as finn whales so are a good indicator if spotted. Dolphins will be seen coming to the boat as they swim in the bow wave that's created by the hull of the boat as it moves through the water.The dolphins move in front of the boat to save energy as they swim, but i also think they do it for fun as well. Good dolphin numbers show that there is lots of fish. The finn whale`s fin is about two thirds of the way along its back. They are dark in colour, they may be seen for a short while before they disappear to hunt below the surface, only resurfacing to exhale from their lungs before they dive down again. Very little is still known about these magnificent animals.

What is air pollution?

Air pollution is often associated with the deposit of black particles seen on windows, leaves and buildings in urban areas. However, much of the air pollution in Britain today is largely invisible and so more difficult to detect, although you may be able to smell the pollutents from car exhausts, farmyards and heavy industry.  Some pollutents contain ammonia and oxides of nitrogen (nitric oxide and nitrogen dioxide). Although nitrogen is essential for the growth of all living organisms, too much nitrogen can cause problems. Ammonia and oxides of nitrogen can stimulate the growth of some plants and fungi but stop others from developing, thereby changing the natural around us. Lichens do not like excessive nitrogen in any form, but may grow particularly well when they are growing close to sources of ammonia. There is also a fungus, commonly known as tar spot that is found on sycamore trees, that we believe is sensitive to air pollution including nitrogen dioxide.

Habitats.

Part fourteen mammals of the mountain sides.

Britain`s mountains are not very high-only one, Ben Nevis is, above 4,000 ft (1,200m)- but they are bleak places for warm blooded creatures to live, especially in winter. For roughly every 500ft (150m) of height above sea level, it gets almost two degrees colder. Rain and mist as well as stronger winds also add to the chill. Trees rarely grow on high, windswept uplands, so there is little shelter. Consequently, few mammals live on the exposed high ground. Although they forage on the heights in summer, red deer and, to a lesser degree, mountain hares move to lower ground for the winter. Small mammals, such as field voles that live amid the upland grass, do not make long migrations. Although they lose a lot of body heat because they have a large surface area of skin in relation to their bulk, they can find shelter in burrows or among thickets of heather or bilberry. Despite the cold, small spiders and insects are surprisingly numerous amid upland vegetation, and provide food for pygmy shrews. Stoats thrive on field voles but will also take meadow pipits and other upland birds. Crows and foxes search the mountain- sides for carrion such as dead hares and sheep. Small herds of feral goats may be seen in a few mountainous areas. They vary widely in colour, ranging from white to piebald, skewbald, dark brown or black. Young goats are not likely to be seen before April. In their winter pelage, mountain hares look like snow against the dark heather. They show up only when they move. On upland slopes they take the place of rabbits and brown hares. Many upland areas now have commercial plantations of dense conifers(some wildlife trusts are now taking some of these out). They rob mountain hares of their living space, but may provide homes for pine martins. Red deer move down the valley during winter, returning in spring. Stoats have great camouflage in winter because of their winter pelage. It also helps to preserve body heat, because white fur radiates less than dark fur. Where there are meadow pipits there may also be pygmy shrews. Both feed on tiny insects among the stones and heather. Pygmy shrews remain well hidden but nay be heard squeaking.

Where to find lichens?

Lichens will grow on almost any surface including trees, rocks, earth and artificial surfaces such as concrete and tarmac. Lichens grow best in light  where they are not competing directly with tall grass, shrubs and climbing plants. Lichens that are highly sensitive to air quality and have been used to detect sources of pollution. In the past, when the air in many places was highly polluted by sulphur dioxide, few lichens could survive, creating lichen deserts around many industrial and urban areas. Lichens are now returning to British towns and cities, and they can still provide a great deal of information about our air quality.