Isle squirrel crosses to mainland


Conservationists hope to make Anglesey a red squirrel haven

Red squirrels have found their way across the Menai Strait from Anglesey to Gwynedd, conservationists believe.

Two squirrels were found at Treborth and on the Faenol estate near Bangor - the first time a member of the species had been found in the area for decades.

Scientists are now waiting for the results of DNA testing to establish if they came from the Anglesey colonies.

Over 300 red squirrels live on Anglesey following 10 years of efforts to clear grey squirrels from the island.

Now Friends of Anglesey Red Squirrel think the endangered animals may have found their way across one of the Menai Strait bridges and started to colonise new habitats on the mainland.


The squirrels could have used either of the two bridges

Conservationist Dr Craig Shuttleworth thinks further culling of grey squirrels will be necessary to allow the newly discovered reds to thrive. "The last squirrel recorded at Treborth was in 1976 so this is great news," he said. "It would be nice to have a colony in Gwynedd. The squirrels were two young adult males, which are sort of teenagers - they are pioneering animals, risk takers. I suspect they came along the railway line, which has a gravel path and plenty of light and quiet. From a scientific point of view it quite clearly demonstrates they can get across, either by bridge or by swimming, which is less likely."

Reds are always under threat from greys because of competition for food and because the greys carry the squirrel pox virus which does not affect them but has a devastating effect on reds.

According to Friends of Anglesey Red Squirrels, the mammals were once widespread on Anglesey but the population declined sharply in the late 1980s as grey squirrels started to predominate.

Two years ago, residents on the island were encouraged to call a special phone line to report sightings of grey squirrels so they could be culled in a bid to completely eradicate greys from the island for good.

A vicar from Bredon near Tewkesbury, who caught a grey squirrel in his house, has slammed rules that say he is not allowed to kill or release it.
Douglas Drane caught the animal in a humane trap, but the RSPCA said he'd have to pay a professional to deal with it.
Mr Drane was told he could be breaking the law if he culled the animal, however he was told that it is also illegal to release grey squirrels into the wild.
He told BBC Radio Gloucestershire his garden has been home to the creatures for a number of months. "Over the past two years I've been plagued with squirrels that love my trees but now they've invaded my house," he said. "They've caused quite a lot of damage by first breaking into the loft space, and last year they gnawed through the copper cold water filler tap to my upstairs cistern. You could see the teeth marks on the copper pipe."
Mr Drane then caught one of the squirrels by setting up a trap in the loft.
"I told the RSPCA and they told me that I couldn't kill it, nor could I release it. It's rather absurd."
Mr Drane had to pay ^70 for a pest controller to deal with the animal.
John Bryant, who is an animal welfare consultant, explained why he couldn't release the squirrel: "Where he went wrong was failing to get advice before he started. The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 lists animals, birds and plants which it is an offence to release into the environment once it has been captured. It may seem ridiculous that you can't release a squirrel once you've caught one, even though there are 3 million of them in the UK. But a Grey Squirrel is an American species not a British Species and is in the same category as Japanese Knot Weed. These laws were brought in to stop people from bringing animals into the country from all over the world and releasing them when they could cause problems, as the grey squirrel in this case has."
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) says that it is not illegal to kill a Grey Squirrel, but the species is protected by the Wild Mammals (Protection) Act 1996 which makes it an offence to cause them any unnecessary suffering, therefore they must be killed humanly.

Baby squirrel rescued by gun-dog

An injured red squirrel that was sniffed out by a trained gun-dog is now recovering in Scottish SPCA care.

The seven-week-old squirrel was rescued by the animal welfare charity after a dog walker found him on a forest floor near Auchtermuchty on 10 October.

The springer spaniel, "pointed" to the squirrel, which was struggling to move and his owner picked the squirrel up and carried him home in his hat.

The dog owner then contacted the Scottish SPCA for help. A local Inspector collected the young squirrel and transported him to the charity's wildlife rescue centre in Fife where staff have named him Hamish.

Centre manager Colin Seddon said, "It's likely that Hamish lost his balance while out exploring the trees and landed on the ground. He did have a sore leg when he first came in to us, probably due to the fall, but he seems to be doing much better now. Hamish has started to feed himself so we will keep handling to a minimum from now on. This means that when he's fully fit we can return him to his natural habitat as a truly wild animal with the best chance of survival."

Red squirrels are protected in Scotland, as populations are squeezed out by more dominant grey squirrels.

Hmm... rather feebly, I hoped that might act as a big of a red herring!

stuving is correct.

Essentially it is the start of the access road to the Stoke Gifford IEP depot - or will be. Can anyone confirm whether Volker Fitzpatrick are involved in constructing this?

Norfolk red squirrel 'supermum' stuns Pensthorpe wardens


Tortoiseshell (right) has given birth to three kittens in her latest litter

A red squirrel at a conservation centre in Norfolk has stunned wardens by producing her 48th kitten in six years, despite having lost her first partner.

The seven-year-old, part of the East Anglian Red Squirrel Group (EARSG) at Pensthorpe, has given birth to three kittens in her first litter of 2014.

Wardens feared the squirrel, know as Tortoiseshell, would never breed again when her partner died two years ago.

Chrissie Kelley from EARSG said she is a "wonder-mum" doing a "fantastic job".


The kittens first venture from the drey after six to seven weeks

Tortoiseshell and her former partner Tweedledum were considered one of the most successful breeding pairs in the Pensthorpe Conservation Trust's history.

When he died in 2012 there was concern she might never breed again.

Her latest litter, which is beginning to venture from the drey, has two males and one female.

Ms Kelley, the trust's head of species management, said: "Tortoiseshell is simply a 'wonder-mum' of the squirrel world. She's been a consistently good breeder and is a fantastic mother to litter upon litter of her young. At seven years old she's doing a fantastic job - we're thrilled that she's managed to breed once again after losing her first partner. Red squirrels only survive in a handful of locations in the UK, which is why we're so fortunate to have successful breeding pairs here."

Tortoiseshell and her new partner Bryn are one of two active breeding pairs at Pensthorpe.

Janet Wickens, of the Red Squirrel Survival Trust, said the high number of kittens showed the mother was "obviously not stressed and enjoying life".

Call me a sentimental ol' soul...

Alright then...You're a sentimental ol' soul.


 

I, too, am rather sentimental about the little furry people: that's partly why I posted this topic. 

I, too, am rather sentimental about the little furry people: that's partly why I posted this topic. 

Swindon water voles to be released in Hampshire river

The endangered mammals have been taken to a breeder in Devon and will be released in the River Meon in Hampshire in the summer


More than 60 endangered water voles captured on canals in Swindon are to be released into a river in Hampshire.

Keystone Ecology, under licence from Natural England, trapped voles on the Wiltshire and Berkshire Canal and at Studley ahead of bank rebuilding work.

The voles were taken to a breeder in Devon and will be released into Hampshire's River Meon this summer.

Sarah Jackson, from Keystone, said no suitable sites were available nearby, making live capture "the last option".

The water vole is one of Britain's fastest-declining mammals but according to Ms Jackson, there are "too many" on the Wichelstowe stretch of canal in Swindon.

"There are lots of water voles in Wichelstowe and in the bad weather this winter, there were burrows popping up everywhere," she said.

"On a 560m (1,840ft) section of canal, we assumed a population of around 45 to 50 voles and caught around 40 animals - which is a decent number."

'Large scale reintroduction'
 

More than 100 traps baited with apple were set up along both banks of the Swindon canal at the beginning of April.

In weeks, 40 voles were captured, along with 20 more on an old section of canal running through Studley Grange.

 More than 100 traps baited with apple were set up along both banks of the canal in Swindon at the beginning of April
"All the animals have been taken to purpose-built holding facilities in Devon," said Ms Jackson.

"It's not ideal to transport them quite so far away but they are being incorporated into a large-scale reintroduction project for the species."

The voles, along with hundreds of others from across the UK, are being reintroduced into the Meon Valley in Hampshire, where the mammal is considered "locally extinct".

Just spotted him!

We may need more clues: Is this on a heritage line?

Is it the cafe located in the old signalbox at Totnes?

Much more than a footbridge, and not parallel to the Feeder...

Possibly the only redeeming feature of the BRT scheme is that this bridge, Grade II listed and currently at risk, will be thoroughly repaired.

'A disused railway tunnel somewhere' still leaves a fair few possibilities.

Well... I thought FT, N might have taken a punt at this one!

I now know the answer to the latest picture posted by Sciurus Vulgaris having been told it from the horse's (or rather, squirrel's) mouth.

Kicking myself as well because I considered posting what would have been the correct answer. I didn't, simply because I could find nothing online to confirm my suspicions.

I'll leave it to Red Squirrel to give any more clues should he feel it necessary.

I'm still trying to think of a suitably crypt-ic clue...

"Below the railings here can be seen the eastern mouth of the railway tunnel underneath St Mary^s churchyard"

http://www.bristolfloatingharbour.org.uk/harbour-trails/heritage-trails/railway-route/


Purely from the logic of the clue - the tunnel on the harbour railway that used to link towards Temple Meads?

Hugh Fearnley-Whttingstall adds fresh squirrel to the menu

Television chef Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall has added fresh grey squirrel braised in a tomato and red wine sauce to the menu of his Devon restaurant.

The unusual dish appears on the River Cottage Canteen menu in Plymouth as the food world is still reeling from the horsemeat scandal reports the Daily Mail.

"It will be interesting to see how the guests react to it, because it is nice for us to offer something different,' said front of house manager Marie Mitchell.

Mr Fearnley-Whittingstall believes in promoting wild food from sustainable source.

Would you eat squirrel?

Anyone killing and eating red squirrel would be in a lot trouble. Protected species.

Everyone can do their bit in protecting the red squirrel, by eating the grey ones. 

Prince of Wales orders grey squirrel cull on estate


Prince Charles has ordered a cull of grey squirrels on Duchy of Cornwall land

The Prince of Wales has ordered a cull of grey squirrels on the Duchy of Cornwall estate in an attempt to protect the indigenous red variety.

The estate will employ "humane and lawful" methods to control the grey population.

Grey squirrels carry a poxvirus which is deadly to the red species. There are thought to be approximately 2.5 million grey squirrels in Britain compared to an estimated 140,000 red squirrels.

A spokesman for Prince Charles said: "The red squirrel is a most cherished and iconic national species, and, as patron of the Red Squirrel Survival Trust, The Prince of Wales keenly supports all efforts to conserve and promote their diminishing numbers. Where appropriate, this includes the humane and lawful control of grey squirrels as well as other measures to enhance the natural habitat of reds across the Duchy of Cornwall estate, in accordance with established estate management practices."

The Forestry Commission said grey squirrels were "extremely destructive" in woodlands and have a "major impact" on conservation, biodiversity and sustainability.

I still have my Tufty Club badge... not that that means much as you can buy the same for 99p on eBay!

I refused to join any club that would have me as a member.

So you're a Marxist, eh? 

And a Thatcherite, when I've got my cider head on!

I presume you appreciate I mean Groucho rather than Karl...

An interesting discussion may arise from a comparison between a verbal contract (that is, one generally expressed in written words) and an oral contract (that is, one using spoken words rather than written words). 

Vote cast.

Although disappointed that there was no option: 'Eat Grey, spare Red.' 

Project launched to up Gwynedd's red squirrel numbers


There are now more than 700 red squirrels on Anglesey

Conservationists are working to boost red squirrel numbers in north Wales.

There were fewer than 40 adult red squirrels on Anglesey 18 years ago but now, largely down to a major cull of grey squirrels, numbers have grown to more than 700.

Community groups on Anglesey will now advise residents in Gwynedd on ways to improve woodland habitats, erect nest boxes and monitor populations.

Anglesey has the largest single population of red squirrels in Wales.

Ambulance called for dead Epping Forest squirrel

An ambulance service has urged people to think before they dial 999 after they received a call about a squirrel injured in a "hit-and-run".

The caller told the 999 handler how the animal had broken its neck after the accident in the Epping Forest area.

At first, the East of England Ambulance Service call handler assumes the victim is a person and seeks to confirm if an ambulance is needed. But it then emerged the victim was in fact a squirrel - which was dead.

Gary Morgan, eastern regional head of emergency operations centres, said: "We prioritise all life-threatening calls to get the quickest possible response. However, that response can be affected if our call handlers and front-line staff are dealing with inappropriate 999 calls."

A "drunk" squirrel has caused hundreds of pounds of damage at a private members' club.

The secretary of Honeybourne Railway Club said he originally thought someone had broken into the premises, near Evesham in Worcestershire.

The floor was covered in beer and glasses and bottles smashed, Sam Boulter said.

Mr Boulter, 62, said he then saw a squirrel "staggering around" after coming out from behind a box of crisps.

'Turned on the taps'

He added: "There were bottles scattered around, money scattered around and he had obviously run across the bar's pumps and managed to turn on the Caffrey's tap.

"He must have flung himself on the handle and drank some as he was staggering around all over the place and moving a bit slowly.

"I've never seen a drunk squirrel before. He was sozzled and looked a bit worse for wear, shall we say."

Mr Boulter, who estimated he lost about ^300 in the incident, eventually caught the squirrel in a waste paper bin and released it out of the window.