A common garden tick and some scummy individuals

I've been struggling to get some creative blog writing time in recently but with it being a rainy Spring day I have finally got time to get going again. I'll begin with this which happened a few weeks ago when I returned home from an afternoon walk to the old Oak which is a new spot I've recently found. I ended up looking out of the window to see 2 young women feeding a male and female mallard at first they fed the birds and I thought that was innocent enough and went on with cooking dinner. About 10 minutes later and the women had started leading the ducks out of the cemetery gate and to the nearby main road with it making the ducks nervous they stopped following the food trail so one of the women started lunging and scaring the ducks. I thought enough was enough so I shouted at them to leave the ducks alone the young women quickly ran away and I thought to keep the ducks safe it would be best to bring them in the garden so they could be safe away from the road. I got some bird seed and they followed me into the garden as we have a pond they settled in and got quite cozy.

They stayed for a few hours and left at last light, I thought that was the last we would see of them but over the last 2 weeks, they have returned each day. At first, they would arrive at the gate and quack until we let them in but now they circle each day and land in the garden to feed and bathe in the area we made for them including some straw as I thought the female may want to nest in the garden.

On the 23rd April, the male returned alone to see if his female had returned but she did not so I'm guessing she may be nesting somewhere nearby probably by the river as I noticed sand in there clear feeding pond we set up so they would have some deeper water to wash in. All I hear now a few times a day is Drake quacking to the sky in the hope his lady Daffodil would return so now he keeps coming back to feed in the water seed tray then he heads off to where he came from. A common bird but a wonderful addition to the garden even if they defecated everywhere the enjoyment was to see them sitting in the sun in the Nature area we have created in the garden.

I'm glad they stayed for a while as I've been out and about photographing spring wildlife I've bumped into 2 individuals in camouflage going up and down the canals targeting birds(Doves/Pigeons) nests in the tops of trees with catapults. I think in order to knock the babies out of the nests for some reason whether for sadistic killing satisfaction or to feed themselves or a pet they have is still unknown. I have more investigating and evidence to gather as and when I see them. I have seen them a few times on weekend evenings and one evening I followed a line of feathers where they was blood and a clear trail to a dead baby pigeon by the Big lock a local canal pub in the direction they went. I was informed by one of my local informants who keep an eye for the same suspicious things I do which is rather handy as I have quite a few people keeping an eye out for wildlife crime locally and on the North Wales coast.

I'll update on this soon once more information is gained. There are more people like this locally that I have also caught out and they are ongoing cases which are slow going but once they make that one mistake hoepfully I'll be there to capture it as this will be the year where wildlife survilence cameras will come in handy to show local people what goes on in there local countryside and the local people that commit these scummy activities from illegal Hare killing with Dogs to Badger baiting, it happens in my local town of Middlewich and if I can disturb and disrupt the senseless killing of our wildlife and the stunning countryside we have then I feel like I have done my part.

Regards

Mike

Otter signs aplenty

While out walking with my camera on my local patch lately I have seen lots of signs of Otter signs. I have still yet to see one swimming in the waters right on my doorstep my spirits are still high and I won't give up as I think I am so close. River kayaking with my DSLR is on the top of my list this summer especially on the early mornings when the mist is rising on the waters surface as the sun heats up the water.
Local lake on the outskirts of town

By the local canal

Hidden in a thick river blockage

Down by the river there are plenty of footprints and I always seem to miss the maker

An Otter I filmed on the River Dane a few years and I was bouncing of the walls when I got this piece of footage on a cold winters morning.

One day I'll get to see a Wild Otter right in front of me and I am sure it will be a moment to remember.

Thanks for reading my blog

Stay wild, be happy and be safe
 

Mike

Camera trap night 3 of 5 results and checking out an possible otter slide

For night 3 of camera trapping week I thought that I would put the camera by a small woodland stream that comes off the river Dane. I hoped to see if anything was coming off the river to rest or entering the river via the stream but all I got was a cat. I also recorded a Buzzard and Owl calling at 11pm in the darkness of a woodland on the opposite bank. Also today I went to check out a small stream on the edge of Middlewich where otter signs have been seen in 2007. I have only just found this information so I decided to check it out. The first thing that I noticed was a few scratch marks in the clay close to a bank. The bank which leads into a small woodland and the second thing I noticed was a few bare patches of mud leading up the bank into the woodland in various places. I will place a camera trap sometime by the stream to see what I get. I found no clear signs so I could not sure of what animal was making the marks and due to the rain this week most things are getting washed away.

   Regards

Mike

Camera trap night 2 of 5 results and an early morning canal walk

Sticking with the project on the river I retrieved the camera trap for the 2nd time and the camera had 3 videos on it. Two of which were recorded between 4am and 5am in darkness guessing as first light. It was set off by a Magpie and then a Mayfly which shows how sensitive the Prowler HD is. The last one was recorded at 8pm the night before in daylight and it was a Magpie so still no luck.

I was getting a little down about not capturing anything exciting so Later that morning I packed up my camcorder and set off down the canal for a long relaxing walk. I ended up passing by the canal reed beds to search for the Reed warblers and Reed buntings. As I went passed a farmers field I noticed a brown bird that was calling in the long grass. I could not be sure if it was a young starling or a  Dunnock as its call seemed very different from both of the juvenile starling and Dunnock calls.
I later found out that this was a Grasshopper Warbler and there very difficult to see.

Adult Coot and its baby

The Heron gets its fish

 Regards

Mike