Other Animals

Unfortunately, this is not a page showing actual badgers seen in the meadow but rather the results of their foraging - at least that is the assumption. It was noticeable that several of the many ant-hills in the meadow had been attacked by some animal over the years but which animal was responsible never became clear. While pheasants (and our cats!) liked to lie in the partly hollowed-out mounds, it was very unlikely they were the culprits and so suspicion fell on the deer that were known to visit, although this seemed unlikely. The mystery then deepened when a dug-out underground bumble bee nest was found. Surely no deer would dig out bees? Might it have been a dog?

The discovery of a second dug-out nest after a large wire fence had been erected by neighbours, which would have excluded any local dogs, showed that something unexplained was definitely going on so an Internet search was undertaken. This showed that a very likely candidate was badgers, as they are well-known for digging out bumble bee nests. A further search indicated that it is also common for them to attack ant-hills - in both cases in order to eat the grubs hidden inside.

Where the badgers are coming from, if indeed they are the answer, is still unclear. Although apparent badger setts have been reported along the embankment of a former railway line about 500 yards away there are none known to be in the immediate vicinity. They would thus have to travel a good distance to get to the meadow, and why should they choose this meadow in particular when there is other open grassland between us and the embankment? The mystery is thus still not entirely resolved!

Click on any picture to view a larger version

	Dug-out ant nest	Close-up of nest

Dug-out bumble bee nest	Close-up of nest	Bottom of nest showing bee cells

While evidence of activity is one way of demonstrating the presence of certain elusive animals, there is a second but somewhat less pleasant way - from their droppings! Having realised we might have been visited by badgers, special attention was given to anything of this sort found in the meadow and a little more than a week after after the discovery of the dug out bee nest we were rewarded by the finding of a "deposit" almost on the lip of the hole. This had many of the classic signs of a badger dropping (as shown in a number of "what is this dropping" Internet sites), in particular the presence of what seemed to be the remnants of fruit. Patrolling the meadow every day is not always possible though, and it was clear that the dropping was not fresh as it was a little dried up. The finding of not one but two clearly very fresh samples about a week later, showing clear signs of various types of fruit having been eaten, was therefore very welcome - not just because they confirmed the presence of badgers but showed that the badgers had recently been active in the meadow over a period of more than a fortnight.

Presumed badger dropping next to dug-out bumble bee nest	Close-up of dropping - note probable fruit pip in section nearest to camera	Dropping from a different angle - note possible small fruit fragments to far left and in centre section

	Fresh badger dropping, showing multiple pips and seeds together with possible fruit skin fragments	Close-up of dropping, showing these constituents more clearly

If the discovery of the dug-out bumble bee nest was unexpected, the finding of a second "excavation" a fortnight later was quite a surprise. To top it all, a third one appeared after barely a further week and a fourth in early November! They were all in the same general area as the first but did not seem to be attacks on bumble bee nests as no remnant cells were visible - maybe earthworms, grubs or roots were the target. These findings also suggested that the small pits & scrapes that had often been seen in the meadow but assumed to be due to deer or possibly rodents were also actually the work of badgers.

	Further dug out area	Close-up of area - note fragment of dropping on the right edge of the hole

The third excavation	Close-up of excavation	Typical "scrape" digging, with nearby meadow plants to show scale

Taken together, the evidence of the excavations and the droppings would certainly seem to indicate that badger activity in the meadow was quite regular, at least in the autumn of 2023, and had possibly been going on, unrecognized, for some time. However, nothing definitely attributable to badgers was noticed in 2024, although a number of the large anthill mounds did become rather "eroded". This could have been due to weathering though, particularly if the mounds had become unused by their ant inhabitants (and we had had an unusually wet spring), or maybe it was just pheasants and/or cats finding a place to sun themselves.

I was thus rather surprised to find, in late May 2025, a large vertical pit fully 12 inches wide and 15 inches deep with an area of spoil to one side and a track through the grass leading off on the other. The spoil contained not just earth and stones but also the remains of an iron implement of some sort! Further investigation around the meadow revealed quite a number of other excavations, some in former anthills but others in grassy hummocks, plus a strangely flattened area of vegetation which for all the world looked like a large animal had curled up there to doze. No droppings though, but the digging looked very like it had in 2023 so I'm reasonably confident that Brock and his family are still around!

The large vertical pit. Note the corroded metal item at the left-hand edge of the spoil and the track leading away to top left	Close-up of large deep pit - the bottom is barely visible	Smaller "pit-like" excavation
Excavations in grassy hummocks	Multiple excavations - in eroded anthills to the left, in grassy hummocks to the right	Strangely flattened area of vegetation - a resting area?

Foxes

While badgers have yet to be photographically captured (which is unlikely in any case, as they are nocturnal and thus not usually seen during the day), one fox has posed for the camera! This was seen on two consecutive mornings in early October 2023. The first appearance was a total surprise as, although foxes were known to be in the area (their cries often being heard at night), one had never been seen in the meadow. It scampered off quite quickly though before a camera could be brought to bear. On the second occasion the fox was lying down, facing away from the entrance to the meadow, and so didn't notice a very hasty dash back into the house to get the equipment! Fortunately, it was still there upon return and so a few (somewhat long-range) shots could be taken before it became aware of the activity, looked up, and finally moved away.

Click on any picture to view a larger version

Fox enjoying a sunny morning in the meadow	Beginning to stir - I think he (or she) has noticed us	Yes! We've definitely been spotted! Shortly afterwards foxy decided it was time to go

Once there was visual evidence of foxes in the meadow, it became clear that certain droppings seen around the place on several previous occasions and assumed to be dog or cat were, in fact, fox. As with the badgers, this was amply confirmed by Internet searches which noted that fox droppings tended to be pointed at one end and usually contained fur (and other indications of a carnivorous diet) together with seeds & berries. Furthermore, such "scat" would usually be dark in colour in rural areas and that was exactly the case for clearly fresh droppings found the day after seeing the fox, in a place where there had been nothing the day before. A more extensive search then revealed a number of fox "latrines" with both old and new deposits.

Old fox dropping, showing classic signs - pointed end and fur	Close-up of dropping - note the pointed end	A further close-up, showing furry inclusions
Fresh fox dropping, showing dark colour	Close-up of smaller portion, showing fur and seed inclusions	Fox latrine - old scat to the right, new to the left

The recognition that many of the deposits seen previously were from foxes, and the finding of a number of well-used latrine areas, would seem to provide definite proof that although sightings of actual animals were limited (just two, in fact!) there had clearly been extensive fox activity in the meadow for some time.

Return to index