Catching up Saturday 3rd November 2018

An overcast, milder day with the threat of strong winds and heavy rain so why not get out for an hour or two.

I started by checking the sheep, yes sheep, which are grazing in one of the four foredune fields on the seaward side of the country park  at Pembrey.

We have a mixed flock of 47 ewes and rams of the Glamorgan or Nelson breed, perhaps better known as the South Wales Mountain Sheep. They are conservation grazers in the same way as the cattle on the nature reserve are, we are hopeful that they will graze the wide mix of plants in these foredunes, whilst their trampling will open up the ground creating bare areas of sand so loved by invertebrates.

A last look at home before a holiday by the sea!

More detail about the breed can be found here

https://southwalesmountainsheep.co.uk/

The field is fenced with sheep netting and barbed wire and the gate is padlocked, there is no public access to the fields, with plenty of signage explaining why the sheep are there.

With an eye cast skywards I managed to see a large white bird fly over from the direction of the burrows, a Great White Egret, lovely to see there are more and more sightings of this relative newcomer to Carmarthenshire.

Other birds this morning were, Sparrowhawk a male and female, plenty of Jays and a few mixed flocks of tits in the woods.

I'm about to set up a winter bird feeding project in the Country Park which will, hopefully, turn up a few goodies.... I'll keep you informed.

Cough it up, Sunday 28th October 2018

I've often commented that you don't have to see a creature to know that it's been around, all animals will leave a clue to their presence, this is no better illustrated than in birds which produce a "pellet" of the indigestible parts of their food.

People are often surprised and often misunderstand what is going on when a bird regurgitates one of these pellets, many think that the bird is vomiting, I guess in a way they are, except of course it's essential to their wellbeing that they remove the indigestible parts of the food via their mouths rather than letting the materials pass right through their gut, think of an owl trying to pass a mouse skull, ouch!

Barn Owl

All sorts of birds produce pellets, here are just a few; Owls, Crows, Gulls, Herons, Kingfishers, Hawks, Falcons and even Penguins (not that we get many of these in Carmarthenshire).

Carrion Crow pellets

This week I watched a bird produce the bright purple pellets in the photograph, they were about the size of a garden pea, I'd be interested if anyone can identify the bird from the pellet.

What bird produced these

Dissecting owl pellets is a great way to engage children, its easy to do, (once you have the pellet) and there are plenty of great reference materials out there to help identify the bones and skulls found, it's not smelly or dirty but washing hands afterwards is a must.

Short-eared Owl pellets, 

with a bird ring from a Meadow Pipit (see a previous blog for the details)

The Field Studies Council, FSC, produce loads of great easy to use guides, including this one on Owl pellets.