Wildlife - Summer, Autumn 2008

[Martin Baxendale]

Martin that's a mouse in your photo

Ivi and a couple of other people who happened along thought it was a shrew. But you seem to be a wildlife expert, so I'll take your word for it. At a lower altitude and amongst my bulbs, I'd have been setting traps. Couldn't help admiring any small mammal that manages to eke out an existence in those conditions (though it probably lives on bits of climbers' discarded sarnies!)

[Michael J Campbell]

Mark.I have 10 collard doves that feed in the garden every day, and in the last two weeks that little turtle dove has come in with them.
I must try and get a better picture of it. That pic was taken through the bedroom window upstairs.

Michael.

[mark smyth]

I just reported your Turtle dove to a bird recorder. Dont worry you wont have hordes decending on your garden

[Lesley Cox]

I must have been amazingly fortunate then, in that the one time I climbed Snowdon (1981) the weather and all the day were perfect. With a friend, the locals thought two slightly (!) overweight women shouldn't be attempting such a climb but we pointed out we were New Zealanders and thought that little hill wouldn't be a problem. It wasn't!

Martin I see you and Ivi are suitably dressed for the British summer.

[Anthony Darby]

Martin that's a mouse in your photo

Ivi and a couple of other people who happened along thought it was a shrew. But you seem to be a wildlife expert, so I'll take your word for it. At a lower altitude and amongst my bulbs, I'd have been setting traps. Couldn't help admiring any small mammal that manages to eke out an existence in those conditions (though it probably lives on bits of climbers' discarded sarnies!)

Martin, it has visible eyes and large ears so can't be a shrew. http://www.countrysideinfo.co.uk/forest2/FOLDER01/Shrew.jpg

[Michael J Campbell]

Mark,here are a few more pics of the dove that I got this morning, they were taken through a double glazed window so the quality is not good.

Collard doves.
Dispute at the pool.
Dove feeding.
Dove feeding

[Martin Baxendale]

Martin, it has visible eyes and large ears so can't be a shrew. http://www.countrysideinfo.co.uk/forest2/FOLDER01/Shrew.jpg

Thanks, Anthony. I'll show the link to Ivi as I don't think she's actually seen a shrew before, and obviously neither had the passers-by who were watching it as well. Botany is more her forte.

Lesley, I think I actually prefer Snowdon's summit when it's shrouded in cloud with howling winds (it's much more usual state). It's very atmospheric (in every sense of the word) and sometimes quite sinister and even un-nerving at times, especially if you reach the summit late in the day as the light's starting to go and the summit's dark and brooding  with swirling darkening clouds and howling winds. Then you have to race back down before dark sets in, getting a hint of what it would be like to have to spend a night on the mountain (something I've always wanted to do and must try one of these days).

For a comparatively small mountain, parts of the Snowdon massive can be quite scary in bad weather and dangerous - two or three lives are lost on it every year, mostly in winter, and the rescue helicopter is a common sight, patrolling the ridges for lost climbers (and sometimes lost soldiers on mountain training!)

[Anthony Darby]

Martin, a shrew is the fiercest animal on earth and can eat its own body weight in one sitting and still be hungry. A Californian herpetologist once caught one and put it into a cage with a small rattlesnake. The next day he looked in the cage only to find the shrew desperately looking round the cage for more snakes to eat! I once came across a cat that was playing with a shrew in the gutter not far from my house. Thinking my approach would cause the cat to grab its prey and scarper I approached the pair. The cat did the latter but not the former, leaving the supposedly comatose (!?) shrew at the side of the pavement. I touched it with my foot, it immediately came round and shot up the inside of the leg of my jeans! I had to walk home with this fiercesome beastie roaming round my nether regions in search of a tasty morsel! I stripped off in the snake room and then had to try to catch said shrew. Needless to say it was later released!

[ranunculus]

... a shrew is the fiercest animal on earth and can eat its own body weight in one sitting and still be hungry

Anthony ... we must not forget the other dictionary definition of 'a shrew'...   

shrew
     n 1: a scolding nagging bad-tempered woman [syn: termagant]
     2: small mouselike mammal with a long snout; related to moles
        [syn: shrewmouse]

[Anthony Darby]

This one was definitely not for taming! Even so, I reckon it knew when it had met its match! I can still sing bottom C!

[Lesley Cox]

Lesley, I think I actually prefer Snowdon's summit when it's shrouded in cloud with howling winds

But then, you'd have to say that, wouldn't you? 

[Lesley Cox]

[quote author=Martin Baxendale link=topic=2080.msg56785#msg56785 date=Then you have to race back down before dark sets in, getting a hint of what it would be like to have to spend a night on the mountain (something I've always wanted to do and must try one of these days).[/quote]

You better first discuss this with Modest Mussorgsky!

[Lesley Cox]

I once came across a cat that was playing with a shrew in the gutter not far from my house. Thinking my approach would cause the cat to grab its prey and scarper I approached the pair. The cat did the latter but not the former, leaving the supposedly comatose (!?) shrew at the side of the pavement. I touched it with my foot, it immediately came round and shot up the inside of the leg of my jeans! I had to walk home with this fiercesome beastie roaming round my nether regions in search of a tasty morsel! I stripped off in the snake room and then had to try to catch said shrew. Needless to say it was later released!

Rowan Atkinson could make something of this.

[Lesley Cox]

My pics of Otto's kookaburra aren't better than Paul's (see Reply 145) but perhaps they have a more Maggi-enticing background. It was just a matter of angle. Otto's window was perfectly clean both inside and out but there was a whitish haze which comes through in the pictures.

[Paul T]

Lesley,

Otto's windows were TOO clean.  They were reflecting the inside room while trying to photograph the outside world.  I found that a little with my camera as well, but it was a bit easier as I was facing directly through the window and therefore photographing through my own reflection, which was fairly dark.  You were getting the reflections of the kitchen tiles etc.  Still better than my pics though.

Anthony,

That has to be the most elaborate story I've ever heard to justify having a small furry animal down your pants!!