Today's Wildlife Encounter

[Hes]

Over the last few days I've seen loads of hares up on Scout Hill. It's great to see the way they move and the speed they can reach over the snow.

I was wondering whether they are always there, but well camouflaged so I never notice them, or whether they move to places where they can feed when the weather's bad like this?

Anybody know about hares?

I know a little as DT kindly said...I'm a bit of a hare fan. They live above ground and do move about a lot although they favour certain places if the feeding is good and for mating. They are really hard to spot when there isn't snow as they get low down in their scrapes if disturbed and won't run away until the last minute so you don't see them until ou are almost upon them. I often go and watch them in a field about dusk time. They eat all sorts of plant material and will eat tree bark if it is snowy and they can't get to the grass etc. They will be starting to mate around now until March and so that might be why you saw them in a place you don't usually see them.

[Mark Smith]

A pair of very lesser spotted snow ravens.....??????????
Can't say i've ever seen or heard of them before.I think the cold has got to you or it is a fell running euphemism for something very naughty,i have led a very sheltered life!

Take a closer look at the photo old bean....esp the snow in the foreground.

[tinyman]

I know a little as DT kindly said...I'm a bit of a hare fan. They live above ground and do move about a lot although they favour certain places if the feeding is good and for mating. They are really hard to spot when there isn't snow as they get low down in their scrapes if disturbed and won't run away until the last minute so you don't see them until ou are almost upon them. I often go and watch them in a field about dusk time. They eat all sorts of plant material and will eat tree bark if it is snowy and they can't get to the grass etc. They will be starting to mate around now until March and so that might be why you saw them in a place you don't usually see them.

Thanks for the info Hes, really interesting stuff. I was contemplating building them into my training plan by trying to catch one or two next time I'm up there Those critters are fast!

[Feet in the Cowclaps]

I saw some wild boar hoof (trotter? whatever) prints in the snow today. Does that count?

[Dick]

Plenty of hares round my way too - I love to see them. I also see quite a few owls too but unless it happens to be a barny, my owl ID is too lame to name them. Always a pleasure to see buzzards out hunting too.

[Margarine]

Fieldfare on Longdendale trail. Pleased with my twitching skillls as I remembered it asa sort of cross between a thrush and a pigeon and whe I looked in the book - there it was.

[wormstone]

I spotted a grouse, he didn't see me under my umbrella though....

[noel]

This is actually two days ago, but I didn't think I should start a new thread.

A stoat which played on one side of the road, then crossed the road in time for me to point it out to my kids (we were driving at the time). Then a bullfinch in a hedge next to the A54 (which still has a road closed sign up due to the snow!)

[Multiterrainer]

Two quite young deer strolling nonchalently across my path today in Danefield Forest(Chevin).

[Grouse]

Insouciently?