It's been another very pleasant day and I'm looking forward to spending some time down in the hide; my daily fix of nature! I follow the normal routine tonight and I'm in the hide before eight. It is a lovely evening and with little wind about, it seems very relaxing and just right for badgers. The first thing to show tonight is a fox, however. He moves in a semi-circle in front of the hide, never coming closer than about four metres. He knows there is food there, but won't come any closer. A badger shows up and the fox stays out of the badgers way. I've found that once a badger has moved into the feeding area, foxes don't tend to stay for much longer. Possibly with the awareness that a human is sat in the hide plus the fact a badger may decide to have a chew on it, the fox trots off as the second badger arrives. In the picture, below, you can see the fox keeping a close eye on the badger. It's also interesting to note the badger is sitting down, like a dog really. They tend to eat like this quite a lot and on the odd occasion, they lie down too! Hopefully this is a sign that they are relaxed and not under any stress.
A fox keeps a wary eye on a badger
Meaning to get home a little earlier tonight, I decide not to feed any additional nuts. It's slightly concerning that the badgers, the smaller one in particular, are now waiting for additional food to be thrown out to them. If they hear movement, they are moving slightly closer in anticipation of something being thrown out to them. Normally they would baulk at the sound of movement within the hide, but because they hear movement as I get some peanuts out of my pocket, they are now associating that with some extra food being thrown out, they put up with it and sit and wait. It puts me under pressure, being a bit soft for that stripey face, to feed them more, but I am being sensible and only feeding a certain amount; never throwing all the food I carry out to them.
A number of wild owls are about tonight, all Tawny's. I can hear them calling from several directions. One is right up by the centre and calling consistently. Hopefully I will see him when I walk back up. One badger wanders off down the main path, the other is circulating around the feeding area and keeps coming back to the hide looking for more food. He eventually gets the hint and wanders off into the dark. It's important to me that they leave of their own accord and don't see me vacate the hide. I see a badger on the path on the way back up, but don't get close to it. The wild Tawny is still calling from a tree next to the flying area. I can see him quite clearly as I walk back up and move closer for a better look. I get within about twenty yards, but he then flies off to a tree a little further away.
Badger Fact
Badgers live, on average, between twelve and fifteen years!
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