Well, they never really went away, just that they were visiting after we had gone to bed in the wee small hours of the morning. As the days are getting longer, they are starting to come in at a more reasonable hour. However, making the alarm go off just as you’re about to sit down to Spaghetti Bolognese is once again proving a challenge.
Recently we have seen Badgey Badge, Tiny Tufts and a youngster, born last year called Fluffy Tail. We are so pleased that BB has made it through the worst of the winter after his leg injury last September. He looks very well, if you look at him very hard you can see a very slight limp, but if you didn’t know he had injured that leg, you wouldn’t notice it.
TT, whom we think is female, probably has cubs. Her behaviour regarding feeding has changed. Visiting the garden in short bursts to feed and then possibly returning to the cubs; who will have been left with a minder while mum goes off and feeds. She was in three times the other evening.
Badger in a garden looking alert
They are so enjoyable to watch; all have different characteristics, different ways of eating and liking different foods. BB loves dog food, but only if it is Iams, none of the cheap rubbish – he has discerning tastes. TT and FT don’t like dog food or raisins but love peanuts. Recently we have added apple to the mix we feed the badgers. It seems to be popular with BB and TT.
Although the title is “The Badgers are back”, we are now seeing the squirrels more too. The caching time has ended, so they are spending more time eating nuts, giving us better opportunities to watch them. With their thick winter coats, it’s hard to identify them, but we think we have a new female as it was finding it hard to get into the hazelnuts and they do have to learn the technique.
From the night-time trail cameras, we are seeing lots of visits by the Roe deer; who are now coming out onto the lawn more frequently. We’ve had the buck visit us in the daytime, just quite happily wandering through the wood.
Being able to watch these animals is a real privilege, not afforded to many people. Sometimes we look at each other and say wow, what a day. Especially when you have been dive-bombed by a Sparrow Hawk, watched Red squirrels, Badgers, Pine Marten and a vast array of birds including woodpecker, siskin, yellowhammer, hooded crow, pheasant, long-tailed tit, goldfinch; to name a few.
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