Wildlife December 2009

[mark smyth]

Thanks Anthony. I've was bitten when I was a teen but I dont remember any infection. You can see by the angle of the photo how high it was up the tree. I can believe a small shrew would tackle a small snake

Maggi no fear because a shrew eats only insects and mainly worms. Good on for remembering the photo of the ghostly dog in the log

[Maggi Young]

Now I know this Irish cutie presents no danger to bulbs, I feel more kindly disposed towards him...... so long as he wasn't hungry enough to eat Lily!!


 He's not living in the trees under threat as well, is he? Surely the bats alone would mean they must be saved, let alone more rare furries??


In our paper yesterday there was an item about a school, the International School.... (used to be the American School, for all the Oil Company folks' children, but the Americans became fewer and so the balance changed, hence the name change) which is going to be closed and demolished in order to allow the Western Peripheral Route ( grand name for a bypass) to be built on a route which no-one wants and which was decided and decreed by a whim of a former Scottish Executive minister....this means a new scholl is being built about half a mile away from us, at huge expense, largely public money, because the original buildings were  the subject of a compulsory purchase order. BUT.... the existing school is a roost for several types of  rare bats... so it appears no demolition would be allowed, so no road, so no need for compulsory purchase of school or homes at vast expense, plus expense of building new school ( nearly finished) ... if it were not so tragic, from every point of view, it would be laughable.

[mark smyth]

well.... I am telling small white lies about it being rare and tree living but it is living in a tree that is due to be felled probably feeding on insects that are in turn eating decayed wood

good for the bats!

[mark smyth]

http://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/Article.aspx/1514548?UserKey=

Nigel Astell, an environmental consultant and ob-jector who gave evidence at the public local inquiry into the proposed bypass, said: “As the law stands the existing International School of Aberdeen cannot be demolished. European law forbids the demolition of buildings containing bat roosts if there are no alternatives available.”

I added the word no

[Anthony Darby]

If they can't demolish it then they won't need this company?

[johnw]

A report in the newspaper today that an endangered European glow worm  - Phosphaenus hemipterus - has been found thriving in the south end where I live.  I'd bet they came from an old nursery that imported much from Europe and closed in the 50's or so, it was across from Queen Street and the cemetaries mentioned.  They also brought us the giant banana slug and earwig I'm told.

http://thechronicleherald.ca/Metro/1157226.html


johnw

[Anthony Darby]

Interesting stuff John. This species, which is small and wingless, has a southern distribution in Britain where it is certainly scarce. Even the larger species (Lampyris noctiluca) is rare, but I know of a couple of colonies in Scotland. Interesting that it feeds on worms. In Europe it feeds exclusively on snails.

[Roma]

He's back!  The black pheasant which was hanging around in this area last winter disappeared in late summer and I wondered if something had happened to him, but he reappeared last week and I managed to get a (rather shaky) pic of him running away.  He is not really black but a lovely mix of iridescent green and purple.

I often see or hear geese flying north in the morning and south at night.  I do not know where they roost or feed, but that seems to be their usual flight direction.

[angie]

Roma, nice pheasant looks proud of his black colour, we have one that sneaks into the garden and steals the stray cats biscuits, but he is the common colour, nothing special.
Angie

[Anthony Darby]

I was hearing geese flying over in the fog last night after 10 p.m. Why?

[David Nicholson]

One too many Single Malts?

[Anthony Darby]

One too many Single Malts?

Alas no.

[mark smyth]

Full moon?

[Anthony Darby]

No moon visible. Cloudy with some fog. This is not a rare occurrence. I often hear geese passing over at night.

[Stephenb]

Geese migrate at night - so they have no problem moving around in the dark.