Category: wildlife

Wildlife Wednesdays: Seals

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5 Fun Facts about Seals

1. Only common and grey seals breed in British waters, though vagrant northern seals can be seen around our coasts. Common and grey seals are difficult to tell apart when in the water. The common seal has a relatively smaller head and its nostrils form a V-shape. The grey seal has an elongated ‘Roman nose’ and its nostrils are parallel.

2. Because seals hunt in the open sea and usually travel long distances in search of prey, returning to land means a significant drain on their energy reserves.  Therefore, seals tend to fast when ashore and minimise the time they spend on land.

3. Blubber is a good insulator at sea, but seals can overheat on land, even on cool days, so they often fan themselves with their flippers.

4. Because seals are evolved from land carnivores and, unlike whales and dolphins haven’t evolved ways of giving birth at sea, they must return to land to give birth to their pups.

5. Pups of both species are fed for up to four weeks, during which time they can more than double their body weight. Their mothers then abandon them.

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Where to see Seals? 

While seals can be seen basking at any time of year, they primarily return to land to moult (common seals from August to September; grey seals from February to April) and breed (common seals from June to August; grey seals from September to December).

Common seals are not actually uncommon in fresh water rivers and have been known to travel several hundred miles upstream. Grey seals, on the other hand, are much less likely to enter rivers.

The top 10 seal watching spots in the UK can be found here.

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Links to my previous Wildlife Wednesday posts can be found here and here.

Thanks for Reading.

London Vegan Bird

Check out my Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/londonveganbird

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SOURCES : RSPB, Discover Wildlife, Countryfile

Wildlife Wednesdays: Foxes

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This weeks’s WildLife Wednesday is all about the beautiful fox. Adaptable, clever and unmistakable, here are 5 fun facts about this wonderful animals.

 

5 Fun Facts about Foxes

  1. The fox’s success is mainly due to the fact that they are willing to eat almost anything. They have become particularly good at living alongside humans in farmland and urban areas.
  2. Foxes are traditionally  thought of as being sly and cunning, they are very clever and adaptable creatures.
  3. They often only live for one or two years, although they have been known to survive for up to nine years.
  4. Foxes are territorial, and for most of the year they live in small family groups. Foxes mate in January, and cubs are born in March, looked after by the ‘vixens’ (females) of the family.
  5. You are most likely to see foxes at dawn or dusk and you may also hear them howling in at night, particularly in the breeding season.

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What’s the deal with fox hunting? 

Whilst hunted in the past, fox hunting is now banned, but foxes are not welcomed by everyone and still suffer cruelty in some areas. Campaigners claim that illegal fox hunting still continues.  Despite public opposition, it was reported in September that Theresa May is planning to go ahead with a vote to repeal the Hunting Act in Parliament, a pledge included in last year’s Conservative election manifesto. This would lift the ban on hunting. Keep a watch for petitions and other ways to get involved in the Keep the Ban movement. https://www.facebook.com/AntiFoxHunt/

Where can you find them? 
Foxes inhabit almost every habitat – sea cliffs, sand dunes, salt marshes, peat bogs, high mountains, woodland and particularly abundant in urban areas.
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Thanks for reading.

London Vegan Bird

Check out my Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/londonveganbird
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Sources: Animal Corner , British Wildlife Centre , Telegraph 

Wildlife Wednesday: Robins

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I have always been fascinated by animals and Wildlife. My holidays as a child were spent looking for nature in some shape or form and always involved at least a few animal related activities , be it visits to local farms or dare I say it, zoos. I no longer visit zoos (a subject of a future post) but there are still so many ways of seeing, discovering and finding out more about British Wildlife.

Which brings me on to my new weekly topic. Each week, I will focus on a new beauty of British Wildlife so we can all learn about these amazing animals that are right on our doorstep. As it’s December, I thought I would start with the Robin.

5 Fun Facts about Robins

  1. The robin was declared Britain’s National Bird on December 15th, 1960 and again in 2015.
  2. Robins are one of the only UK birds to be heard singing in the garden on Christmas day, warning off intruders with their songs as well as using their sweet tunes for finding a mate.
  3. When the male robin has found a mate, he will strengthen their bond by bringing the female food, such as worms and caterpillars, which she begs for noisily.
  4. Robins will defend their territories to the death, and so in the poem “Who killed Cock Robin?”
  5. Their nests are made from grass, moss and dead leaves and usually in a hole in a tree stump, bank or wall.

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Where can you see Robins?

Robins breed throughout the British Isles, and on almost all of our offshore islands. They can be found all year round across the UK in woodland, hedgerows, parks and gardens.  The best way to see a robin in your garden is to dig.  Within minutes one may perch on a fence or branch nearby waiting to inspect the newly-turned soil for earthworms.

I hope you enjoyed the first Wildlife Wednesday post.

Thanks for reading.

London Vegan Bird

Check out my Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/londonveganbird
Follow me on Twitter @londonveganbird
Follow me on Instagram: London Vegan Bird

Sources: http://www.discoverwildlife.com, https://www.rspb.org.uk, http://www.garden-birds.co.uk, https://onekind.org/animal/robin-european/