Nature on your farm.

RockOrBog

A lot of hares around this year on my hilly ground, way more than normal. Lots of foxes shot last year by the contract killer.

minerleague

Let bullocks into field of grass and saw them all surrounding 1 spot after a few moments, unfortunately two baby hares, they must have walked on one and killed it ( managed to fence off area with white cord electric fence, other one never moved an inch throughout it all ). Years ago wetter fields were hay meadows and not grazed in spring time - probably not cut till late june or later - giving hares and ground nesting birds somewhere to have young. Now the experts want you to finish cattle younger ( see ABP are to bring in " sustainability " payment ) based on it being lower carbon footprint, but that requires better silage ( drainage/ grazed early/ cutting May) and no store period. Have a couple of fields that I already farm more traditionally, think I will pick a few more wetter fields and leave alone till later in year.

kevthegaff

Hilly land here, have spotted minks, pine martens, red squirrels, buzzers, badgers, foxes, deer, haven't seen owls but their on neighbouring farms. Haven't seen as many hares, perhaps buzzers took care of them!

RockOrBog

Ive an old home made bale spike here made of 4' channel welded together to make 4' box which I only use to feed in winter.

A small bird, grey and black with a yellow breast has 4 chicks inside it. I couldn't understand for the life of me where the tweeting was coming from.

Stephen_Maturin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120643352#Comment_120643352

A coal tit?

RockOrBog

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120652535#Comment_120652535

I have no idea tbh, both birds have a yellow breast and are grey and black

Say my name

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120655596#Comment_120655596

Great tit.

_Brian

https://youtube.com/shorts/0QZsu9r1ig8?feature=share

Found bees nesting in a bolthole in a wall in the yard.. I've been told they are reusing an old bird nest

kirk.

Large black spider in the shed about twice the size of what I'd normally see, large main body

Any idea what type that might be , didn't look like the false widow anyhow ?

Stephen_Maturin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120832070#Comment_120832070

I would wager it’s this

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giant_house_spider

Native to Ireland, not a bit dangerous - leave it to eat pest insects for you

kirk.

Looks like that

kirk.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120839848#Comment_120839848

Scarpers anytime it sees me

kollegeknight

My eldest (8) and I went barn owl watching about 150m from the house.

they usually come out at 10:30pm.

she was delighted. The usual pair are there and we can hear their young.

memorystick

This oak tree blew down during Storm Ophelia. It landed on its side so I cut it until she went to her original position. I had a digger so I pushed her in tight to the bank so the drain wouldn’t block. It’ll be interesting to see in a few more years how she goes.

IMG_4588.jpeg

Say my name

Duck!!

On the dairy farm..

Base price

I went to the local bottle bank yesterday and the wasps were like exocet missiles flying outta the bins at me. Stand corrected but I think its at least a month earlier than you'd normally see wasps at the bottle bank. I presume it's due to the inclement wet weather.

I read up on the live cycle of the common wasp (Vespula vulgaris) and in fairness I now understand why they hang out in the bottle banks at the end of Summer. Apparently all adult worker wasps are infertile females and they actively kill and collect protein (other insects and carrion) to feed to the larvae in the hive and in return the larvae secrete a sugar rich soluion which the adult wasps feed on. Adult wasps cannot digest/live on protein. At the end of the Summer the Queen wasp stops laying female worker eggs and instead lays eggs that will turn out to be new Queen's and male drones and then the Queen dies. When these larvae develop, mature and take flight the worker wasps in the hive are left without a sugary food source so they go in search of a substitute and that is why we get plagued with wasps coming into our houses, vehicles, sheds, etc. In fairness they are trying to survive.

I don't like wasps and avoid them as best I can. However I leave a few jam jars (braced horizontally between stones) with jam in them along a wall in the upper yard for last of the worker wasps to feed on before the colder weather kills them off.

older by the day

I never knew that. About 20 years ago I was rotavating a rough spot and went over a wasps nest. In to the cab they came. 5 stings, ran out the door.left the tractor running with the PTO on. They would eat you.

Birdnuts

Nice piece about local farmers coming together to honor the memory of a famous local naturalist by restoring some of their farms original features

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/jul/27/gilbert-white-pioneering-naturalist-rude-magnificence-restored-aoe

Water John

Lovely read. I should be noted that farmers voluntarily contributed which was essential, to the success of the project.

kollegeknight

the OH spotted The barn owls this evening on way home from work.

Base price

I think the swallows have gone. There was about 20 on the esb line yesterday and I haven't noticed any today. The house martins are still here with two nests at the gable end of the house.

Base price

They are back this morning, chattering as they fly about.

pauly58

Good year for butterflies, loads of Red Admiral's & Peacocks, pity they are always late for the buddleia flowering only a few flowers left for them.

Castlekeeper

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120969999#Comment_120969999

We've a late clutch here,hatched two weeks ago and left the nest yesterday.

Deub

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120969999#Comment_120969999

I am in France currently and they are starting to group on electricity lines as well which is very early (2 weeks earlier than usual). Do they know something we don’t…

magicbastarder

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120832070#Comment_120832070

something like this? this lady lives in my shed, easily more than two inches front to back. we leave each other alone.

RockOrBog

Can stoats be black, I saw what I thought was one earlier but any I've seen before were red or brown... Almost had a photo but it disappeared..

Lime Tree Farm

I saw what I thought was a black stoat, it ran along an old stone then darted into an opening, pouncing on some unfortunate creature who squealed for a some seconds, then all went silent. When i tried to identify it, based on memory, it was suggested that it might be mink.

Base price

Mink are a lot larger than Irish stoats and have really dark brown (almost black) shiny coats. Stoats move with a unusual gait and hump their back as they run whereas mink don't - they keep their back level. Stoats have a distinctive black hair on the end of their tails but otherwise are brown/chestnut in colour with a white underbelly. We have a family of stoats living around the farm and I occasionally get to see them during the Winter when they come into the yard after rats and mice.

charlesanto

https://www.vincentwildlife.ie/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GuidetoSmallMustelidsofIreland20Feb2023.pdf

A guide to identifying the small mustelids of Ireland.