Advertisement
If you have a new account but are having problems posting or verifying your account, please email us on hello@boards.ie for help. Thanks :)
Hello all! Please ensure that you are posting a new thread or question in the appropriate forum. The Feedback forum is overwhelmed with questions that are having to be moved elsewhere. If you need help to verify your account contact hello@boards.ie

Nature on your farm.

Options
1…1819212324…48

Comments

  • Options
    #602
    NcdJd
    Closed Accounts Posts: 994 ✭✭✭NcdJd


    Capercaillie wrote: »
    7 calling male corncrake this year up from 5 calling males in 2019. 5% of national population, so happy enough with that.

    Fair play to ya man.


  • Options
    #603
    JoeCasey
    Registered Users Posts: 52 ✭✭JoeCasey


    Seems to be a good year for the Red Squirrel, I've seen three this week.
    Usually i see one or two a month.


  • Options
    #604
    _Brian
    Registered Users Posts: 18,538 ✭✭✭✭_Brian


    JoeCasey wrote: »
    Seems to be a good year for the Red Squirrel, I've seen three this week.
    Usually i see one or two a month.

    This is a great time to see them as they are gathering winter stores.


  • Options
    #605
    TooOldBoots
    Closed Accounts Posts: 604 ✭✭✭TooOldBoots


    Nice to see the red ones, they are lovely small animals. I thought the grey squirrel had displaced them but looks like I am wrong


  • Options
    #606
    Rows Grower
    Registered Users Posts: 7,943 ✭✭✭Rows Grower


    Plenty reds around here too, this poor fella was extremely unlucky to be hit by a car as there is very little traffic ever on the narrow road I found him on.

    "Very soon we are going to Mars. You wouldn't have been going to Mars if my opponent won, that I can tell you. You wouldn't even be thinking about it."

    Donald Trump, March 13th 2018.



  • Advertisement
  • Options
    #607
    _Brian
    Registered Users Posts: 18,538 ✭✭✭✭_Brian


    TooOldBoots wrote: »
    Nice to see the red ones, they are lovely small animals. I thought the grey squirrel had displaced them but looks like I am wrong

    Increasing pine Martin numbers are killing the greys and allowing the reds recolonise again. Great to see it but when greys are gone the line martins will be a real bother. Hard to keep them away from chickens.


  • Options
    #608
    Rows Grower
    Registered Users Posts: 7,943 ✭✭✭Rows Grower


    _Brian wrote: »
    Increasing pine Martin numbers are killing the greys and allowing the reds recolonise again. Great to see it but when greys are gone the line martins will be a real bother. Hard to keep them away from chickens.

    Funny you should mention that because just the other morning a young pine Martin chased a leveret under the wife’s car and down the lane just as she was walking towards it.
    We’ve seen a lot more of nature this year in comparison to previous years and 100% it is down to the lack of traffic on our roads around here due to Covid.

    "Very soon we are going to Mars. You wouldn't have been going to Mars if my opponent won, that I can tell you. You wouldn't even be thinking about it."

    Donald Trump, March 13th 2018.



  • Options
    #609
    Donegalforever
    Registered Users Posts: 405 ✭✭Donegalforever


    Capercaillie wrote: »
    7 calling male corncrake this year up from 5 calling males in 2019. 5% of national population, so happy enough with that.

    I havn't heard one in many years.


  • Options
    #610
    Lime Tree Farm
    Registered Users Posts: 2,705 ✭✭✭Lime Tree Farm


    Rows Grower wrote: »
    Plenty reds around here too, this poor fella was extremely unlucky to be hit by a car as there is very little traffic ever on the narrow road I found him on.

    unfortunate, such a shame, he looked so fit and healthy before that.


  • Options
    #611
    Capercaillie
    Registered Users Posts: 1,732 ✭✭✭Capercaillie


    Donegalforever wrote: »
    I havn't heard one in many years.

    Declining in Donegal unfortunately.


  • Advertisement
  • Options
    #612
    ganmo
    Registered Users Posts: 7,748 ✭✭✭ganmo


    Spotted this fellas yday


  • Options
    #613
    NcdJd
    Closed Accounts Posts: 994 ✭✭✭NcdJd


    On the surface of a pumpkin this morning. If you look at it long enough starts looking like an alien in a battle mask.

    6034073


  • Options
    #614
    Fluppen
    Registered Users Posts: 90 ✭✭Fluppen


    I does at that :).
    I thought this looked pretty alien too

    527221.jpg


  • Options
    #615
    The Rabbi
    Registered Users Posts: 329 ✭✭The Rabbi


    NcdJd wrote: »
    On the surface of a pumpkin this morning. If you look at it long enough starts looking like an alien in a battle mask.

    Would that frighten a 2FM DJ J ?


  • Options
    #616
    NcdJd
    Closed Accounts Posts: 994 ✭✭✭NcdJd


    The Rabbi wrote: »
    Would that frighten a 2FM DJ J ?

    Even the lads in Red FM would get a shock if they found that in their bowl of cornflakes.


  • Options
    #617
    Lime Tree Farm
    Registered Users Posts: 2,705 ✭✭✭Lime Tree Farm


    NcdJd wrote: »
    On the surface of a pumpkin this morning. If you look at it long enough starts looking like an alien in a battle mask.

    A green shield bug aka stink bug. I see these on the raspberries and once accidentally popped one on a raspberry into my mouth. It tasted dire, it had a lucky escape when I spat it out and saw it beat a hasty retreat. Aptly named a stink bug.


  • Options
    #618
    NcdJd
    Closed Accounts Posts: 994 ✭✭✭NcdJd


    Was chopping up a field today and there was two young buzzards flying around. I think they were after frogs and rats as saw a couple of each running away in front of tractor. Unfortunately due to a problem with the pto lever not staying engaged i had a rope in one hand holding the pto lever in the engaged position and the other hand for the steering wheel, i couldnt get a better photo of it. The little feckers would disappear when i was at the headland and camera in hand and only appear again when i was rotovating..


  • Options
    #619
    gozunda
    Registered Users Posts: 18,996 ✭✭✭✭gozunda


    NcdJd wrote: »
    Was chopping up a field today and there was two young buzzards flying around. I think they were after frogs and rats as saw a couple of each running away in front of tractor. Unfortunately due to a problem with the pto lever not staying engaged i had a rope in one hand holding the pto lever in the engaged position and the other hand for the steering wheel, i couldnt get a better photo of it. The little feckers would disappear when i was at the headland and camera in hand and only appear again when i was rotovating..

    Buzzards around here too. They circle the area high up looking for prey. The sound they make whilst hunting is like nothing else Ive heard tbh. I have seen flocks of crows try to mob them but they don't make much impact tbh.


  • Options
    #620
    Fluppen
    Registered Users Posts: 90 ✭✭Fluppen


    I've got a pair here too, they often sit on the phone poles along the lane to spot prey in the fields. But as soon as I stop the jeep and reach for the phone they're off. The closest I ever had them was when I was turning hay and they were picking frogs out of the freshly turned hay.


  • Options
    #621
    NcdJd
    Closed Accounts Posts: 994 ✭✭✭NcdJd


    Lovely birds they are if you can get up close to them.

    Found this fella sitting on a post out the back of the house this morning. Not a red unfortunately.


  • Advertisement
  • Options
    #622
    Fluppen
    Registered Users Posts: 90 ✭✭Fluppen


    Do squirrels leave the shells of hollowed hazelnuts or is that something else? I have lots of hazel along the lane and in the hedgerows and I rarely see a squirrel but always find nutty leftovers. I've never spotted anything actually eating them, except for one of my dogs who likes to crush them spit out the shell and eat the nut.


  • Options
    #623
    Say my name
    Registered Users Posts: 11,304 ✭✭✭✭Say my name


    NcdJd wrote: »
    Lovely birds they are if you can get up close to them.

    Found this fella sitting on a post out the back of the house this morning. Not a red unfortunately.

    I was walking through a Coillte plantation yesterday of softwoods. A big one at that!
    Anyway I saw a red squirrel going up a larch tree. The place was full of bird life too.
    The natural habitat of this place would be open mountain moorland. Which I walked across too up there and found it a very quiet place of wildlife.
    Only for the forests were there there'd be none of these birds or indeed red squirrel there. It's a bit of a different message than the one that's broadcast far and wide now I know.


  • Options
    #624
    NcdJd
    Closed Accounts Posts: 994 ✭✭✭NcdJd


    Fluppen wrote: »
    Do squirrels leave the shells of hollowed hazelnuts or is that something else? I have lots of hazel along the lane and in the hedgerows and I rarely see a squirrel but always find nutty leftovers. I've never spotted anything actually eating them, except for one of my dogs who likes to crush them spit out the shell and eat the nut.

    I have alot of empty hazel nut shells about too. You must have a squirrel about.


  • Options
    #625
    gozunda
    Registered Users Posts: 18,996 ✭✭✭✭gozunda


    Fluppen wrote: »
    Do squirrels leave the shells of hollowed hazelnuts or is that something else? I have lots of hazel along the lane and in the hedgerows and I rarely see a squirrel but always find nutty leftovers. I've never spotted anything actually eating them, except for one of my dogs who likes to crush them spit out the shell and eat the nut.

    Fallen nuts will also be eaten by mice etc. Some birds seem to be able to get them open as well.


  • Options
    #626
    Fluppen
    Registered Users Posts: 90 ✭✭Fluppen


    Time to get out the camera trap maybe :). Only problem is I tend to forget I set it up. Last time I used it was to catch rats and magpies stealing eggs, forgot it was there and ended up with a memory card full of pictures of curious hens and two rats :D


  • Options
    #627
    Waffletraktor
    Registered Users Posts: 2,424 ✭✭✭Waffletraktor


    Spot the leveret


  • Options
    #628
    Say my name
    Registered Users Posts: 11,304 ✭✭✭✭Say my name


    I see a Heron out in the paddock with the cows this evening along with crows inspecting the ground.
    Now this is dry ground so I doubt there's frogs. The only thing else I can think of is possibly dung beetles they're after.

    (Local name here for the Heron is a Johnny Crease).


  • Options
    #629
    ABitofsense
    Registered Users Posts: 664 ✭✭✭ABitofsense


    Say my name wrote: »
    I see a Heron out in the paddock with the cows this evening along with crows inspecting the ground.
    Now this is dry ground so I doubt there's frogs. The only thing else I can think of is possibly dung beetles they're after.

    (Local name here for the Heron is a Johnny Crease).

    These last couple of weeks there's always one or 2 heron with the cows in the mornings. Lovely to see. There's one particular calf that chances them away though.


  • Options
    #630
    Say my name
    Registered Users Posts: 11,304 ✭✭✭✭Say my name


    ABitofsense wrote: »
    These last couple of weeks there's always one or 2 heron with the cows in the mornings. Lovely to see. There's one particular calf that chances them away though.

    There's been sightings of cattle egrets in Wexford here lately.
    They'll be the new kids amongst the livestock now.


  • Advertisement
  • Options
    #631
    Birdnuts
    Registered Users Posts: 9,682 ✭✭✭Birdnuts


    Fluppen wrote: »
    Do squirrels leave the shells of hollowed hazelnuts or is that something else? I have lots of hazel along the lane and in the hedgerows and I rarely see a squirrel but always find nutty leftovers. I've never spotted anything actually eating them, except for one of my dogs who likes to crush them spit out the shell and eat the nut.

    Could be Dormice?? They arrived in Garden centre material from the UK about 20 years ago and have been recorded from Kildare and surrounding counties in recent years. They hibernate and like fatten up on the likes of Hazenuts at this time of year


Advertisement