Droppings ID

benjamin d

Hey everyone, looking for your wisdom in IDing these droppings in my back garden. They're quite large (lighter for scale) and contain feathers and iridescent blue insect husks. The little brown spheres may also be insects or else some type of seeds, I don't know. I'm in Connemara near Roundstone if that helps.

Thanks.

TopTec

A lot of mammal hair there so could be fox, pine marten, or mink. Bit large for Otter and I see grain of some kind. I'd swing towards Fox or Pine Marten. Does it have an odour?

TT

benjamin d

TopTec wrote: »

A lot of mammal hair there so could be fox, pine marten, or mink. Bit large for Otter and I see grain of some kind. I'd swing towards Fox or Pine Marten. Does it have an odour?

TT

It looks like it was there a couple of days so no discernible odour. Is it a bit big for pine marten?

TopTec

I used to think that pine martens were smallish delicate creatures until one walked along my garden wall. Bigger that a Jack Russell it was, so I think a large one is capable of the deposit you found.

TT

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

There are no easy ways of telling Fox scat from Pine Martin other than DNA tests but smell and shape help. Pine Martin scat is usually roughly heart shaped and that in the photos is not.

tisgrand

Pine marten scat is normally quite narrow and twisted in comparison. The shape and large size you mention makes me think most likely fox

benjamin d

Probably right with fox, whatever it is is mad for wrecking the bins too so fox is a good shout!