Today's Wildlife Encounter

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Originally Posted by tinyman

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?

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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.

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Originally Posted by William Clough

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!:D:D

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

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Originally Posted by Hes

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.

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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:D Those critters are fast!

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

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. :)

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. ;)

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

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

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!:mad:)

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

Insouciently?

A fox half way up the big end of Pendle this morning. I don't know if it was doing hill reps or foraging for food :D

Hare on Ilkley Moor :cool:

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Originally Posted by Derby Tup

Hare on Ilkley Moor :cool:

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I saw loads on my ski trip up Cut Gate last week, Came across a few hare holes, like mini snow holes, and grouse by the hundreds all sheltering in the valleys

A question for all you twitchers.

Whilst out running y'day...i passed a small flock of birds ive seen before but no idea what they are.

They are maily black, abit bigger than a blackbird but with huge wings. The underneath of their wings is white and their call reminded me of a dogs toy being sqeeked.:D

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Originally Posted by Al Fowler

A question for all you twitchers.

Whilst out running y'day...i passed a small flock of birds ive seen before but no idea what they are.

They are maily black, abit bigger than a blackbird but with huge wings. The underneath of their wings is white and their call reminded me of a dogs toy being sqeeked.:D

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Magpie???:D:p

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Originally Posted by IanDarkpeak

I saw loads on my ski trip up Cut Gate last week, Came across a few hare holes, like mini snow holes, and grouse by the hundreds all sheltering in the valleys

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Relatively large flocks of Grouse have been a feature of recent local moorland runs :)

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Originally Posted by iandarkpeak

magpie???:d:p

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Lmao. No!

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Originally Posted by Al Fowler

A question for all you twitchers.

Whilst out running y'day...i passed a small flock of birds ive seen before but no idea what they are.

They are maily black, abit bigger than a blackbird but with huge wings. The underneath of their wings is white and their call reminded me of a dogs toy being sqeeked.:D

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on second thoughts it could be a Hooded Crow

Don't think I've ever seen one but they do occur in winter in the uk

Where were they Al? On the ground, up a tree, by water?

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Originally Posted by IanDarkpeak

on second thoughts it could be a Hooded Crow

Don't think I've ever seen one but they do occur in winter in the uk

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Jackdaw? ;)

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Originally Posted by Derby Tup

Where were they Al? On the ground, up a tree, by water?

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I was definetly of no relation to a crow etc etc.

I was running across a very open, rural set of boggy, fields.
The fields where ploughed late last year...i'll have a google and see what i come up with. - no trees about. They would fly about sqeeking like a dogs toy and land. Strange wing shape.

Ive got a british countryside book upstairs from when i was a wee nipper...i'll have to find that and see if i can find it.


....its not in the books and ive googled and used some free bird search thingys and cannot find it.

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Originally Posted by Al Fowler

A question for all you twitchers.

Whilst out running y'day...i passed a small flock of birds ive seen before but no idea what they are.

They are maily black, abit bigger than a blackbird but with huge wings. The underneath of their wings is white and their call reminded me of a dogs toy being sqeeked.:D

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Fieldfare or Redwing? I can never remember the difference (although I suspect there is a clue in the redwing's name):rolleyes:

Saw a cormorant on Bottoms res, Longdendale a couple of weeks ago.

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Originally Posted by Fnstein

Fieldfare or Redwing? I can never remember the difference (although I suspect there is a clue in the redwing's name):rolleyes:

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Fieldfare seems most likely. Although not black, it is the largest member of the thrush family. Redwing is smaller than a blackbird.

Could be both, of course. They do flock together. Both are winter migrants.

Could have been a shag...

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Originally Posted by Al Fowler

A question for all you twitchers.

Whilst out running y'day...i passed a small flock of birds ive seen before but no idea what they are.

They are maily black, abit bigger than a blackbird but with huge wings. The underneath of their wings is white and their call reminded me of a dogs toy being sqeeked.:D

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Sounds like they could be Fieldfare Al. Winter visitors from Scandinavia / Russia.

Migrants? I'll be onto the Daily Mail Hotline right away.

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Originally Posted by grouse

migrants? I'll Be Onto The Daily Mail Hotline Right Away.

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:d:d:d

That made me laugh too Navigator. Nice one Grouse! :cool:

Nowhere near your head, I'll be bound :D

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Originally Posted by Derby Tup

Hare on Ilkley Moor :cool:

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Originally Posted by brett

Nowhere near your head, I'll be bound :D

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Predictable, but fair :o:p:D

To be fair, no where near mine either :D

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Originally Posted by Multiterrainer

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

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Wonder if it was you I saw heading up Chevin towards Danefield today?! I saw two roe deer at Hackfall woods yesterday on my run and on my drive back from Richmond cinema this evening: a barn owl & a tawny owl as well as loads of rabbits and rats.

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Originally Posted by Al Fowler

A question for all you twitchers.

Whilst out running y'day...i passed a small flock of birds ive seen before but no idea what they are.

They are maily black, abit bigger than a blackbird but with huge wings. The underneath of their wings is white and their call reminded me of a dogs toy being sqeeked.:D

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Could be Lapwings ?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mouse111/4202199841/

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Originally Posted by Al Fowler

I was definetly of no relation to a crow etc etc.

I was running across a very open, rural set of boggy, fields.
The fields where ploughed late last year...i'll have a google and see what i come up with. - no trees about. They would fly about sqeeking like a dogs toy and land. Strange wing shape.
Ive got a british countryside book upstairs from when i was a wee nipper...i'll have to find that and see if i can find it.


....its not in the books and ive googled and used some free bird search thingys and cannot find it.

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Lapwings? Also they sound like dogs toys being squeaked. I think the reference to blackbirds put people off. When you get close to them they're very different to blackbirds, but you normally see them in flight, with their big strange-shaped wings and odd calls.

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Originally Posted by Alf

Could be Lapwings ?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mouse111/4202199841/

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You beat me to it. I should have added a shorter explanation.

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Originally Posted by Hes

Wonder if it was you I saw heading up Chevin towards Danefield today?!

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Probably wasn't me Hes -I was up there Saturday 2pm onwards, saw just one other runner (male) pulling up into Danefield car park as I was setting off.

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Originally Posted by Alf

Could be Lapwings ?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mouse111/4202199841/

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Might even be a green plover or peewit? (tee hee!):)

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Originally Posted by William Clough

Having been enroled in the" Young ornithologist club"at the age of 8 (complete with a metal eagle shaped YOC badge),my Barn owl sightings have been very poor.Today i was treated to a 2 minute display of swooping floating effortless flying.I can honestly say it was one of the most beautiful things i have seen.

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They are beautiful aren't they? Similar experience to you...Mum is a Dr of Zoology and I've spent most of my early life on nature walks. However, until last year I hadn't seen a barn owl since my teens. Saw one being mobbed by crows at about 4pm last summer and it ducked down to escape and flew alongside my car for about a minute. I was so excited I nearly drove through a hedge. Then last weekend I saw one hunting at night and watched that for about a minute too. They are are so ghostly and gorgeous. I feel very privileged to have had those experiences.

Red kite soaring above Ilkley moor whilst on rombalds recce this morning. (me doing the recce,not the bird)