Yes- spent my childhood in UK- and my "adult" life in the US. I would have freaked out if a bear stuck it's head in my tent. They can be dangerous... wouldn't have wanted a Coyote looking in at me either. Never been afraid of foxes... they eat bugs and rodents, and are barely bigger than cats. Sometimes when I go camping here in the US- if it's a busy campsite I'll be watched by raccoons when having breakfast/dinner... campsite raccoons get very brave. Have to lock all food in your car- because they have great smell and if they smell any food in your tent they will rip through the fabric to get in.
Yes he swapped foxes for raccoons. I just like the wildlife to stay in the wild and not my back garden - when did they start wanting donuts and crisps instead of insects and littler creatures?
There are foxes in the US too... just not as many- and they tend to be more grey in colour rather than the nice red foxes at home. Deer are the only ones that bother me... batards come through our property several times a year and eat all our plants. I planted a bed full of Lilies one year. Over 100 bulbs planted... they were just about to flower... then one morning sodding deer had come by and eaten every last one. Foxes, coyotes, raccoons, oppossums, I've seen 'em all in my property at one time or another but they've never once caused me any grief... I enjoy the rare glimpses of them... it's those damn deer that cause all the problems. One of the most dangerous species too... hundred of people die because of deer... (car accidents). Deer cause more deaths than wolves, mountain lions, sharks, alligators, and bears combined.
I think if man is taking great swathes of land that is home to hundreds of species, from insects right through to bigger wildlife, then it's not surprising that the animals will invade residential areas or industrial estates or whatever is built on 'their' land. If people go camping in the animals 'backyard' surprise, surprise they might actually encounter some of them so can't really complain that the wildlife 'spoiled' their trip or whatever. My problem is with wildlife encroaching on houses with no obvious reason as to why. Are fox populations, for example. growing at a quicker rate that there isn't enough food to sustain them? Are deer populations growing? Are more roads being built through their habitats? Are they just getting more adventurous?
Oh, I know... it's not really the deer's fault... yes their land is being taken... especially where I live it is fast growing human population, lots of houses being built. I chose to live in a wooded area too... so, plenty of wooded areas for deer to hide in between the neighbourhoods and I'm sure they feel protected by all the trees we have. I plant only plants that are "deer proof" now- the deer still eat them, just not as much. Funny how things like Buddleia which are labeled as deer resistant will get eaten when the deer population grows. Where I am is gradually becoming less rednecky... so that means fewer people with shotguns killing all the deer- so their population is rising at the same time that human population is rising in the area. It is a problem though- I've known people who have been in hospital after deer collisions- and collision with deer does cause a lot of deaths.
They're stupid, and they just don't grasp the concept of property no matter how often you tell 'em. Their only understanding of territory is if it's marked by scent, so I suggest you go around pissing on your boundaries every few days. Plus, no animal will turn its proboscis up at free food, regardless of how ****ty it is. No matter how unwholesome doughnuts(correct spelling) and crisps are, they have the distinct advantage of not running away.
cant remember what i was watching, but frogs rings a bell in regards to that, they have always migrated along this route and had to cross a busy road where lots of them was getting squashed.
We have a dog to do the territory marking, which should be a deterrent, and visiting foxes don't get any food from us because we have wheelie bins which they aren't trying to open ... yet, in fact before we had the bins we had plastic bin bags which were put out night before bin day and were never [or very, very rarely and usually by cats] disturbed. Donuts or doughnuts - the former is shorter to spell.
Definitely evolution in that regards. Doughnuts and crisps (not together) are way yummier than insects. Next our furry friends will be demanding Beef Wellington... give it a few years and then mark my words- Foxes will be eating Beef Wellington and drinking red wine on a daily basis.
Don't really have snails around here much for some reason... Ocasionally see some micro snails about the size of a pin head- but no garden snails like back home. Slugs, yes... we've got tonnes of them. I have a cat named Badger and he is very well treated! My wife has a badger and it is well treated too!
Fantastic Mr. Fox? I remember reading it as a kid and I know they made some film out of the story but it's been so long since I read it that I don't remember much about it other than he was trying to escape from some farmers whose farms he had been raiding.
That's the one. It was the anthropomorphous nature of your fox comments that reminded me of the book!
Speaking of Wildlife... another boring Milk story: ... was hiking in the mountains once- day after an ice storm passed through. Place had warmed up, it was actually a very pleasant day, but there were bits of ice here and there melting... sides of the mountain was very drippy. Walking along on a high narrow trail near a big drop to the river below... somehow didn't spot a wild turkey on the path ahead of me, and apparently it didn't spot me. When I was almost on top of it it suddenly took off into the air... Those batards are loud when they fly- scared me and made me stumble back and slip somewhat. (fortunately not down the mountainside). Turkeys are so loud when they flap their wings around and take off; for a split second I thought it was a helicopter coming up the side of the mountain. Pretty scary creatures...
