AT HOME WITH NATURE (2)

Now fit & well the little hedgehog has been released back in to the wild where he belongs having had successful treatment & a week of nourishing meals to send him on his way. I do hope he stays away from the roads & finds a prime hibernation spot for the winter. God speed little hedgehog

A poorly Hedgehog we found wandering the road with a nasty deep cut behind his ear & a very swollen face. Here he is being given an antibiotic which he was happy to take by himself in a little cat meat.

A very busy Bee

This beautiful little Grass hopper watches you.
Just like the Woodpecker moves round behind the branch he's sitting on to hide from you, so the Grass hopper moves round behind the grass or reed he is sitting on so that you cant see him.

Deadly Nightshade

The Foxglove
Tall slender chain of bells.

Peace at last

Well a lot of screaching up above cught my attention. Here was the problem. A crow tormenting a Red Kite.

This is a regular occurrence. The young Magpies taunting the cat.
It is ALWAYS the Tabby cat & I am guessing it is the same young Magpie.
The cat is happily rolling around under the branch fully aware of the Magpies presence.
He looked disappointed when the Magpie flew off due to my photographing it.

Long awaited Heron. He often flys over & lands at the brook. Having the camara at the right time can be a problem.

There are 'eight' Red Kites in this tree at the top of our field.

I rescued a Squirrel just after Christmas. She was a terrible mess, crouched in the middle of a lane covered in blood. I didn't expect her to survive the journey home from Malvern. As it was a car that had hit her, I was sure there would be jaw & skull fractures & she had swelling of the brain, so I fed her on very soft foods to start with & she drank water from a table spoon. Her injuries were such that her teeth are out of line & so we will not be able to release her back into the wild. She is very happy in a huge area she calls home, being waited on hand & foot.

Photo taken at the vet's. These are her teeth befor being cut. The bottom left is actually digging in to the top lip & they are out of line too. It is difficult to see what is going on in their mouths when they are not sedated.

Here her teeth have been cut back. Her poor top lip will feel better before long. She is now on hard food again but we keep a close eye on how much she is eating just incase she isn't managing.
We discussed our options with the vet & basically there weren't any.
It was unfair to 'keep' sedating her to cut her teeth back as it is to much for a Squirrels heart. The teeth cant be removed as they are too deep & grow differently to ours. They grow around 6 inches a year too, so sadly we had to have her put to sleep. It was a very sad day loosing such a lovely creature.

A little Wagtail.

Our lovely visitor the Nut Hatch