Today's Wildlife Encounter

[Eleanor]

Never!

Looks as though he's still got his velvet covering the new antlers; I'm surprised that the velvet hasn't been shed by now?

I found this on a website...

[I]During its development, the growing antler is covered in a grey furry membrane known as velvet. This carries the blood vessels and nerves for the developing antler; the antler is bone growing on the outside of the body from the pedicles unlike horns, which are hollow and not cast each year. Should the velvet become damaged during the antlers’ growth, deformities can occur. The antlers are usually fully developed between March and April (earlier in older animals), when the increasing length of daylight causes a rise in testosterone levels.

Hi Wharfee

Well spotted - yes I love his velvety antlers. I think he's quite a young one, plus I took that photo two or three weeks ago and hadn't downloaded it from the camera until yesterday. So the velvet has probably gone or nearly gone by now. He was there last night but I didn't have the camera and it was too murky to see him properly.

[Hes]

You are so lucky Eleanor, my friend on Bute has a couple that he thinks are living in his garden too. Wish mine was big enough for a deer. They are one of my favourite animals. Could maybe fit in a muntjac

Attachment 5976

Deer in the garden again. It's pretty well moved in - at what stage does it stop being 'wildlife'?

[bigfella]

Deer in the garden again. It's pretty well moved in - at what stage does it stop being 'wildlife'?

When it eats all you plants and you want to shoot it.

[molehill]

Attachment 5976

Deer in the garden again. It's pretty well moved in - at what stage does it stop being 'wildlife'?

A Roe buck - if he stays I'm afraid he will probably eat everything - not much you can do about it except scare him off the garden. Down in Sussex (years ago) they used to decimate the Missus garden, come right up to the windows at night and take all her roses and flowers. And when it went into the veg garden there wasn't much left. Missus would be in tears after all her hard work.

[molehill]

On the hill yesterday, we were sitting by some rocks and a Goshawk flew just below us, then perched on some rocks 50 metres away. Nice to see, but apparently causing devastation with the local chickens. Everyone keeping free range birds are losing them all to the hawk - which looked very well fed and was eyeing up by sisters chickens in the valley below

[Hes]

Aww, that's a real shame. She must have been really upset. I know how pissed off I was when next door's cat used my herb garden as a toilet. Perhaps its a good thing that I don't have a resident roedeer after all.

A Roe buck - if he stays I'm afraid he will probably eat everything - not much you can do about it except scare him off the garden. Down in Sussex (years ago) they used to decimate the Missus garden, come right up to the windows at night and take all her roses and flowers. And when it went into the veg garden there wasn't much left. Missus would be in tears after all her hard work.

[Alf]

Lapwings, Skylarks and Curlews over Rishworth Moor today. Quite a few new born lambs in fields staggering on unsteady legs (a bit like me today really )

[Eleanor]

A Roe buck - if he stays I'm afraid he will probably eat everything - not much you can do about it except scare him off the garden. Down in Sussex (years ago) they used to decimate the Missus garden, come right up to the windows at night and take all her roses and flowers. And when it went into the veg garden there wasn't much left. Missus would be in tears after all her hard work.

Yes they do eat everything. We fence off the bits of the garden that we use for growing and that's worked okay, until the storm blew down some of the gates and fencing earlier this year, but there's not much to eat at the moment anyway. We were careful to protect the new fruit trees that we planted last year and they are thriving alongside our little friends. I don't think anyone has yet threatened to shoot him but the gardens are all on the, err, wild side up here. Not so many manicured flower beds!

[wharfeego]

...and was eyeing up by sisters chickens in the valley below.

Sounds like tha's getten a cold molehill.

[Hes]

Saw oystercatchers, curlews, lapwings and loads of hares on my run last night and also some snipe near Hawes yesterday. Really love this time of year.