Hobbies and Crafts

Sunny Somerset, Ann.

M. :-)

MaryAnna :-D :-D :-D :-D
Which county did you see the geese? I always have to check where you are.

Well, Ann ......... I don't like to say too much, but.......

We had tickets to go and see the latest exhibition at home, sorry, I mean at The Palace.

Yes we did have tea but Her Majesty must have been somehow detained so we had to eat without her. It was a shame as she seemed to invited quite a few other people to tea as well.

I realised I was the first member of the family to go inside since my Gt.. Gt Uncle went to see the King, I think around 1920, as he was at that time, the oldest VC recipient alive.

I was out in the garden earlier, I had to water the tubs and baskets as they were all dying. A huge flock of Geese flew over. Oh dear, that usually means Winter is on its way. Those that don't stay on the nearby ponds during the Summer start to fly in around now.

I just hope we don't get another Winter like the last one. For everyone's sake.

M. :-)

Erm! Not that I don't enjoy the same few of course! :-D :-D :-D

Love Egrets as well.

MaryAnna, name dropping :-D Tea with the 'family' was it? Maybe the Heron was by royal Appointment :-D

I meant to say how nice it is to see Graham adding to this thread, it has been the same few of us for ages. :-)

Yeah, I know where Shapwick is. There's another nature reserve near there called Westhay.

I see the BBC have made a report about those great white egrets:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/18280491

Shapwick is on the Levels, near Meare. It is the first time they have nested in Britain.

M.

I think great white egrets are native to North America. So they would be quite rare over here. There's a nature reserve near me called Greylake and there's lots of little egrets there.

Graham, some friends visited the Shapwick nature reserve last week and saw a Great White Egret, not too many of them about, only a dozen or so, I understand. They also saw Marsh Harriers at Ham Wall.

M.

Stoats and weasels are about the same size; but stoats have black tails ;-)

We get a Heron that flies past our bedroom window nearly every morning, he squeezes in between the house and the apple tree and usually lands in the garden of a house a few doors down, I have no Idea why, they don't have a pond.

Now,.......... When I Was at Buckingham Palace earlier in the week..........

There was a Heron in a Willow tree in one of the ponds in the gardens of the Palace. There were lots of people taking his photo, I don't know if they get them in America or Japan but he was certainly causing a stir.

Yesterday, when we were driving to Taunton, a small creature, I think it was a Stoat or a Weasle, whichever is the smallest, ran across the road in front of us.

Still not much in the way of birds about apart from the usual pesky Magpies and Jackdaws.

M. :-)

There are quite a few stoats and water voles around here. We used to have a few mink; but they seem to have vanished (there was reports of mink being killid off by otters). Voles have a habit of digging tunnels into the banks of the canal.
I don't think there are any badgers near here. I haven't seen any of them or their setts.

Graham maybe a stoat, weasel or mink.

If the ground is VERY dry and hard it could be a mole.

If the soil is wet it could also be a vole.

Lesley x

Crikey Graham they sound big ...Badgers maybe?.Is it night time digging?

I haven't seen any squirrels. And these holes are about 3 or 4 feet long; whereas squirrles normally dig quite small holes to bury acorns in. :-S

Could it be Squirrels digging holes? I know that is what they are doing on our lawn :-S

Kandj, that is my 13 month old Great Grandson Luke.

Graham, you are so lucky to see Herons, I love to see them. Can't think what is digging your holes. Sounds like something digging for grubs of some sort?

We have lots of herons around here at the moment. A heron was nesting on the canal bank near where I live recently. I didn't see how many chicks she had; and it's hard to keep track when they start moving about.

Something keeps digging holes around here. They're not very deep; but quite long. I wonder what's doing that. :-S

I am the same as Vera...... no birds are wanting to come to visit Yorkshire. I think they are all at Jane's house. We do have more spiders and earwigs as well, but they don't freak me out like the mice do.

Ann...... who is the cheeky chappie on your Avator? He is adorable and looks a real little bundle of fun, bless him.

Obviously building up a store for the winter Jane. You are lucky with all your birds aren't you?

Vera. no doubt when the cold weather strikes the birds will return. Quite a menagerie in the conservatory then. Ugh earwigs, horrid things make me jump when I pick dahlias for indoors, and Rudbeckia, yesterday I picked some of the latter and one crawled oud as I was putting it in a vase, even though I had shaken the flower outside.

At least no mice, Ghekos or lizards crawling up indoor walls here.