The last entry for 2011.

A very mild week  with a rainy end to the week, fortunately we finished the ground work including reseeding around the ponds and the new “badger skyway” while the soil was dry.

A badger in the image below was the first to scale the entrance to the “skyway” and did so with obvious ease, I will be posting more images as I move the camera around the “skyway” during the early part of 2012.

A jay was picked up on my camera during yesterday along with some chaffinches, (see images below) I often hear jay’s shriek but rarely see them in the woods.

I followed a sparrow hawk in my car this morning at a sedately 30 mph, I have seen them fly a lot fatser than 30 mph paticularly when they are making a kill!

As 2011 draws to a close it is interesting to me (and hopefully anyone who looks at our website)  to look back and see  how our conservation project started 20 years ago and how it has progressed  todate : 

Below are two photographs of our ponds and our artificial sett for comparison.(click on the images to full size  them)

The pond 20 years ago

The same pond on 23rd December 2011 (20 years on)

 Our artificial badger sett was construted about 20 years ago

The artificial sett 20 years ago

 The artificial badger sett today

The artificial badger sett as it is today

 A Big Big thank you to all of our hundreds of visitors over the past 20 years who have helped us in many ways to acheive our wildlife sanctuary as it is today.

 There was badger activity last night in front of our lower hide  with maize cobs and peanuts being taken from mice proof placements.

The mice quickly dispaear when there are  badgers  around I guess they fear for their lives.

NEW for 2012

We have extended the badger skyway by around 23 metres (see photograph and video below)

The new badger skyway to the ponds

Happy Christmas

 (Click on the image to full size it)

Do badgers hibernate? 

Not when there is maize or sweetcorn around.

The dance of the wood mice? 

Lastly

Lincoln’s digger dance?