Yes and it made the front page in The Times when folk started reporting that they had seen a lioness wandering the streets in downtown Berlin. The first sighting apparently was when someone saw it 'chasing a boar' down a street 'less than three miles' from the capital. Now they think it is hiding in a wood having had a good meal - the boar??
It set me thinking because the other day I had a conversation with my son about wild animals after he had had a conversation with someone over from the US who said how much he missed the wild animals when he was over here.
I was wondering what was our largest really wild animal. I suppose it has to be a stag and yet deer never seemto be really wild here We don't ever have to be wary do we? And I suppose the same applies to ponies in the Moors - Exmoor, Dartmoor and the New Forest. Can we class them as wild or do they all belong to someone?
We don't ever have to be wary of any of our wild life do we - at least not in the sense that they might kill us?
Having been to US and Canada many times I know well how common it is to see bears - in my case almost always my viewing was from inside a coach and even when out in the open it was with other folk.
I guess the dog fox is top of the chain with us. Do you agree? I have often come face to face with an old dog fox trotting along in the shelter of the hedgerow and we have looked at one another with respect - neither of us afraid- and carried on about our business. Being accompanied by a dog/dogs makes the situation slightly different - wariness on both sides I would guess.
Badgers, beavers, squirrels both red and grey, none any threat and not particularly scared of us - they carry on doing what they were doing on the whole - and this applies also to stoats and weasels I think. Hares are more wary and either race quickly away or sink down as low as they can to the ground and watch us with a scared eye,
Then we get down to hedgehogs who don't seem at all afraid or even to take a lot of notice - they just go quietly about their business and if we get close they can always curl up into a ball. I didn't think we would have hedgehogs in our steep gardens with their flights of steps but M, my neighbour found one stuck under the fence between our gardens. My gardener helped her to dig it out and she left it food and water but sadly she found it dead later in the day.
I have field mice living in my garden - I know exactly where their nest is - entry is through a hole in the garden wall and sometimes I catch sight of one. They are more than welcome.
I have a feeling that there are wild boars somewhere in the UK - if there are then I am sure someone will tell me.
But aren't we lucky with our wild life? Wild flowers, wild birds, wild animals - all so beautiful and all there for us to enjoy. But I maybe would not feel the same if I lived somewhere on Africa, where I had to keep a wary eye on my herd of cattle because there would also be a wild wary eye on their next meal not far away.
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29 comments:
There are around 2,600 wild boar in woods around England, with the largest population being in the Forest of Dean in the west of Gloucestershire.
Where I live, there are many wild animals (fox, coyote, rabbit, porcupine, raccoon, opossum, beaver, squirrel, deer, various small amphibians and reptiles, lots of birds including a family of red tailed hawks that live right on my property...). There are black bears if you go a little bit north of us. Some people may have the impression that people in Canada see moose all the time, but they are creatures of more northern forests, or the forests along our east coast. I suppose there are wolves in more northern areas, and polar bears even farther north. There are plenty of animals that adapt to living in urban areas, too. I know that wild boars are a problem in some parts of the U.S., but I don't think we have issues with them here, but I may get corrected in that. -Jenn
I live in Toronto and have seen all that Jen sees near her except opossum. I live near a valley and our boat was docked at the Bluffs in toronto. Pretty cool for living in a huge city. My daughter lives about 200 km north of me and sees wolf and bears and has seen moose but not often. I also have seen quite large turtles by the river in the valley. I am sure Jen missed skunk on her list, we have one that regularly walks through my backyard at night even if we are sitting out. I can’t let my dog out in the evening as she has been “skunked” twice, another time she was out and I heard a kerfuffle so I shone a light and my dog and the skunk were standing beside each other. That was the only time Peg ever came in when I called her and the skunk didn’t let off.
Here in my North Carolina garden I have the same beautiful creatures, other than beaver as we have no body of water - as Jenn mentions above. We also have several snakes, the venomous Copperhead being the dangerous one locally. The only other danger really is that rabies is carried by some animals so we have to watch out for unusual behavior and we never try to befriend/feed any of these animals and risk getting bitten!
During several African safaris I have seen real wildlife up close, both the big five and all others, and found those special times in my life to be probably the most awesome ever. Nature never ceases to astound me in so many ways.
Mary x
There are definitely wild boar in the Forest of Dean not far from where I live. They can sometimes be vicious, especially the large males. I am not worried as I am unlikely to come across one. I once enjoyed watching a fox taking a rest in my garden some years ago. but felt no threat from it. We are fortunate here in the UK not to have venomous spiders, snakes, scorpions, etc., or bears, tigers, lions and goodness knows what. I believe most of our 'wild' animals are pretty benign.
The largest wild animal I have seen near my property is a 250 pound black bear and this was a few years ago. My neighbor was feeding the bear and making videos. Crazy. I asked my neighbor to stop, as attracting the bear put everybody at risk. Bird life, deer, fox, coyote, coyote-wolf, rabbits, raccoons, possums, rat snakes, squirrels...and others surround my property and are largely daily occurrences. I love living in the countryside.
Our wildlife here is generally small and non threatening apart from some very ferocious midges.
Wild boars are a problem here - they have no natural enemies anymore, and roam the fields freely, often destroying much of a farmer's harvest, especially corn - they love to much on the cobs and leave a big mess behind. Add that to the extremely dry and hot summers we've been having for the past few years, and I can very well understand that many farmers give up and find another way to make a living.
Deer and fox as well as badgers, red squirrels and nearly all members of the weasel family are common in our woods, with some foxes having become very urban, same as rabbits. Hares are a different matter, they are very careful and avoid humans as best as they can.
Birds of prey (buzzards, kestrels, harrows, kites) and all of the corvid family are a regular sight, as are herons (in my area) and storks (in O.K.'s area).
All wildlife deserves our respect - usually it's us who intrudes in their habitat, and not the other way round.
It would be nice if everyone could go on an African safari once in their life I saw the big five on the first day in Kenya. I didn’t really want to see a kill and we only saw animals eating their kills..Amazing to see the numbers of wildebeests and zebra on migration. We must protect our animals.
We have several wooded acres and have seen deer, foxes, coyotes,rabbits, squirrels, chipmunks, unwelcome groundhogs, a black bear,and a hairball from a bobcat (confirmed by the county agent!). We have many beloved songbirds and several raptors here: turkey vulures, peregrine falcons, and eagles. Canada geese stopover on their migration and some seem to stay. Global warming?
May the wild parts of our planet and the inhabitants be protected.
Hugs!
New Forest and Dartmoor ponies are owned by people who are allowed to turn them out on the moor or forest. In the case of the New Forest they are ' commoners ' who have the right to turn ponies out on to the land.
I didn't realise there that many wild boar around Derek. Are they proteted or could somebody go out and shoot one for the barbecue? If so would it be eatable?
Ha ha, yes I missed skunks and groundhogs and chipmunks…
Oh, and most of all, Canada Geese ( or cobra chickens as some call them) . Ughhh, geese! - Jenn ( don’t know why it showed me as anonymous)
Jen, we call Canada geese shit hawks! Up north we also have rattle snakes, down here garter snakes.
If you Google the latest attacks by dingoes on Fraser Island,(K'gari) and indeed how many snakes there are (mainly around picnic areas) you wonder why any tourist goes there at all- especially as, according to the Guardian, rangers have asked that teenagers and children should always be as close as arms length away from an adult. A determined pack could do serious damage to all I'd think! Best not to go out jogging alone, as happened in the latest incident, where the attack continued into the sea.- Pam, Aust.
Here, in Canada, we have the odd very unfortunate cougar attack. Usually they stay well hidden and we don't know they are there. Polar bears are unpredictable but are certainly dangerous. By the way , I had two polar bears in my house one time. Inuit hunters had shot the mother and took the cubs live. They were miserable little critters.
But you have the famous Hound of the Baskervilles! I would never go out on the moors at night for fear of it…
Bears and wolves are common sights here. I never think of deer as wild as they do no damage here as we have no garden. They don't like hanging around the cattle much.
I did come face to face with a very big wild boar once, and both me and the dog froze. Only when the boar had gone did the dog become brave enough to bark at him.
Like Librarian said, wild boars are a problem here. They break through fences and destroy gardens. Some years ago we had a fox who liked to take shoes left outside the houses. And now there are wolves who came from the forests in Eastern Europe. I really don´t know what to think about this. I am not afraid of meeting a wolf when walking in the wood, they are too shy for that. But there have been attacks on sheep, and electric fences or dogs don´t seem to help. Maybe wolves are too much nature in a densely country like Germany? Of course, the Greens are very happy about it, but they surely don´t know any sheep.
Hilde in Germany
In answer to your question Pat, several places, the Forest of Dean included, offer the opportunity to go out and shoot wild boar. Having eaten wild boar myself a couple of times I can say that it is very tasty.
I can confirm what Derek says about eating wild boar. We have it frequently here, knowing a licensed hunter who regularly shoots boar in the Black Forest near O.K.'s village. It is fine meat, not spoiled by medication and the completely unnatural raising and fattening the poor pigs in the meat industry have to endure. A boar that has lived the way it was supposed to live, freely roaming the woods and fields, and quickly killed by one good shot, is certainly to be prefered to mass-produced pork.
The hunter lets us know when he has delivered meat to a local butcher, and we can order our share. It's not cheap, but it's really, really good.
About 20 years ago I visited a friend who was living in the outskirts of Berlin and when I took her dog out for a walk I noticed that all the houses had very sturdy metal fences around their gardens, apparently to keep the wild boars out ! Otherwise they would get in and wreck the gardens.
Another interesting post and comments. Thanks Pat.
In answer to your question Weave, are wild boar a protected species, the answer is no.
Anybody can go out and shoot one for tea.
I'm going to add to the wild boar topic. I agree with Derek - they are very good to eat. There are so many now that I am surprised that I almost never come across wild boar for sale at game dealer butchers. Same with deer, and there are even more of them than boar. All we are offered in this part of the country is farmed venison and farmed wild boar.
We have a farmed venison farm near here - not keen on it myself - I find all game a bit strong for my taste and suspect wild deer would be stronger than farmed just as I am sure wild boar bears no relation to pork.
Thanks Rachel - I shalln't be getting my gun out any time soon.
Fresca - yu made me smile - thank you for your comment.
Red - interesting - I did think of including them in my post but then forgot.
Thank you everyone for such very interesting comments
I have been used to our own wildlife as I walked over the downs. Foxes, deers and the little muntjac, have nursed hedgehogs, sadly declining at a wicked pace. But what you haven't mentioned Pat is 'wild' cows.
Don't ever near a cow with calf, they are very protective and will give your dog a run for the money. There again if you have a smart collie like Moss who avoided them like the plague and would take off and skirt the fields to join me later perhaps you would be saved ;)
Edit: Don't ever go near a cow with calf,
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