Big Red.

A large bird of prey was found grounded at Cawthorne Roman Camp, Pickering on a cold Saturday evening. Luckily Colin Dillcock a raptor worker was walking his dog in the area and gathered the bird up and brought him here.
The bird,a last years male Red Kite, was dopey and cold. I tubed him with warm re hydration fluid and left him to rest under a heat lamp.

Next morning he was still alive , still daft and sat on the floor. I tubed him again and left food in the warm shed.


The next morning I took him over to Battleflatts vets in Strensall for Andy Forsyth to see. Andy is an experienced bird of prey vet and he gave him a thorough examination. Here he is having a look at the back of the eye.

 This x ray shows his skeleton was intact , there was no sign of trauma, no shot, no fractures or wounds.
The birds plumage was immaculate and his feet were clean and pristine.
What ever had happened to him had been quick and sudden.
North Yorkshire has a terrible reputation for bird of prey poisoning and looking at this big birds predicament leads me to think that this Red Kite had been poisoned.
One of the illegal substances used is alphachlorose, it stupefies birds and drops their temperatures. If the victim is found quickly enough then keeping them warm and giving lots of fluids can save their lives.

 The bird improved over 2 weeks ,ate heartily and was moved into an aviary .
Red Kites are odd birds to care for, they have a tendency to sulk under stress and it can be difficult to tell when they are ready to go. I rely on observation and a knowledge of big birds of prey here in rehab.
I went into the aviary to feed him after a fortnight and he clearly expressed his readiness to leave !
I was reluctant to return him to Pickering and after speaking to Craig Ralston of N.E. one of the best birders I know, he was released onto the NNR near Wheldrake.
He was BTO ringed by Mike Jackson and took to the big blue skies once again. To see him soar and own the sky was a moving and uplifting sight, I'm a lucky woman.

Later on that same day Craig saw the Kite on a goose carcass on the reserve.

I can ask for no more.

Snared Badger Release.

I released this snared badger sow last night on pasture near her home on the A170 near Lockton.


These descriptive pictures give a flavour of how badgers caught in snares react, they were taken by RSPCA Ins Geoff Edmond who went out to collect her. He took her to vet Mike Jones at Battleflatts Vets Stamford Bridge ,York. He cut off the snare and put her on a course of antibiotics.

This first photograph shows how a badger tries desperately to get away from the tight thin wire cutting into its flesh.
She had dug and scratched and tried her damnest to move away and get away from the wire fastening her to the fence. Badgers are strong and determined and she will have given it her all to no avail.

 Here is the pressure necrosis wound on her neck. The snare tightens and cuts off the blood supply to the skin directly below the wire. After 4 to 6 days this wound opens like a pusy zip where the skin has died . It is almost impossible to bathe these wounds without k.o.ing the paitent. So she was filled with antibiotic injected every other day. She was given a warm heat lamp plenty of food and water and peace and quiet.






Here she is hiding in a short barrel which is really useful when rehabbing badgers. She hides in the barrel head first and her fine ample backside sticks out at the back. It is then possible to inject the drugs needed. If you're quick and carefull the badger finds it difficult to swing round and bite from this position. This not for the beginner !
She faired well and was good and tolerated the rehab with good grace.
She boxed well and was released in the moonlight back to her home territory.

It is illegal to set a snare to catch a badger. It should be illegal to set a snare to catch a fox for they suffer just the same in this antiquated method of control.

Raptor Rescue.

I've just done the returns for Raptor Rescue, gathering all data on birds of prey through my hands for 2011.

There were 31 Tawny's, 11 Sparrowhawks,and a smattering of owls, Long Eared and Short Eared included.Also the odd Kite, 2 Peregrine, Marsh Harrier and one or two Buzzards just for a bit of variety, near enough 70 birds in all.  I've a fondness for birds of prey and Raptor Rescue is a charity run to help injured birds of prey find professional care with a strong desire to get them back to the wild.




One of the Barn Owls looking stunning and ready for the off,
always the best part of looking after wildlife.

Badger snaring

Missed out the badger story !
I've a big adult badger in found "sitting under a fence ".
This usually means the badger is fastened to the fence by a snare.
RSPCA Ins Geoff Emond was called out and had to search for this badger as the
directions were not very good. He found her next to a wood hunched up with a snare
around her neck and front leg. He graspered her before cutting off the wire leading to the
snare tight on her body. She was taken to the vets where Mike Jones knocked her out to
remove the tortuous wire cutting into her flesh. She's here now on copious amounts of antibiotic
with the hope of a good revovery. She's decided not to eat any processed food or ddolds but is tucking
into road kill pheasant and rabbit. So I am trawling the countryside looking for dead bodies.
I will let you know how she goes. SNARING SHOULD BE BANNED, I say it again and again.

Badgers, Owls and Otter.

On 15th February this juv Tawny owlet was perching out with its sibling in trees near York. It was fat and fiesty and doing well. How early must its parents have nested ? I left them looking thin and inscrutable and hope they survive.The land owner heard the parents calling them that evening.

I collected this adult Barn Owl after an rta.She was x rayed and found to have a badly dislocated shoulder joint and sadly had to be put to sleep. She was the most unusual colour, pure white apart from very faint ginger markings and deep blue eyes.









This sleepy otter cub was found on the road side near Kelk, East Yorkshire and taken into the vets. I went over to have a look and see what could be done. She had a badly broken back leg and was very flat. I took her carefully across for Andy at Battleflatts vets to examine. On close examination of her x rays we found she had spinal and pelvic damge and think a car had run right over her.She was quietly put to sleep.Putting a wild animal to sleep after exploring all possibilities should not be thought of as a negative. Difficult yes, but a kindness when the casualty would find the treatment long and stressful or would not survive in the wild. 

Imprisonment for Badger Baiters.

The badger baiting gang were given some serious sentencing at Scarboro Magistrates Court.
4 were sent down for 16 weeks, the reality is 8 weeks inside.The 2 who pleaded guilty at the last moment were given 12 weeks suspended .
Prison sentences are rarely given to badger persecutors but the seriousness of this case demanded it.
It was a long drawn out case , it took nearly a full year to come to court, days in court were long and harrowing.
Determination is needed, concentration,a will to see it through. The over whelming thoughts of those poor badgers that were baited and killed remained upper most in my mind throughout.
I'm glad its over and wish the 6 months limit to prison sentences for badger crime was higher.

Since then I've been involved with 3 more cases and so it goes on. North Yorkshire has a bad reputaion for wildlife crime. It is now geting a good hard reputaion for persecuting wildlife abusers. Long may that continue , they need to know if caught here they will be treated with the full force of the law.
The intended badger cull continues to rumble on with the news of 2 trial areas in the south west where badgers are to be culled , free shot in the countryside. This can't be right and should not happen legally.The Badger Trust continue to fight the badgers corner , I just hope they are successful.

This fine pregnant badger was brutally baited and died of loss of blood and trauma on a riverside field close to home.
8 men with 13 dogs , shotguns and rifles were amazingly observed at the scene by the well known wildlife painter Robert Fuller.
He had the courage and presence of mind to photgraph them and call the police.
Sgt Paul Stepehenson arrested the men and spent the next 11 months putting together a well informed and precise case to put before the courts.

I visited the scene on the day after to help gather evidence and produce an expert witness report
for the court process.

We found this foetus torn from the pregnant sow scattered on the field of battle.

This week 7 of the men were convicted at Scarborough Magistrates Court of killing and baiting these animals.
Sentencing will be on 10th January 2012.

It was a harrowing eventful case both at the time and in court.
My grateful thanks to Robert Fuller for standing up for badgers and for being so the right man in the right place that day.
Also to Sgt Paul Stephenson of Malton Police for his diligence and determination to bring these low life's to court.
Thankyou to PC Jez Walmsley the Wildlife Liason Officer at Malton for his help and support throughout.
Also RSPCA Insp. Geoff Edmond, a good friend and supporter of wildlife and badgers in particular for his
expertise and support.
I buried the baited badgers yesterday in sloping woodland in thier home territory.