skip to main |
skip to sidebar
This is the coldest May I can ever remember and it is serving the predators well. Today another Mother duck turned up on the river with 5 ducklings and I watched as 3 were taken one after another over about 30 minutes by a Crow.
This evening she had lost the last two, I have no problem with predation as long as it continues right to the ultimate predator - us, however I do have a problem with predation stopping at Crows !! It is so depressing to witness this constant slaughter. The cold weather means a distinct lack of insect life, not suitable for young birds.
The cygnets are growing and making full use of the renovated Moat and nest site.
Last weeks flood completely reshaped the entire river, with massive trees and amounts of destruction wreaked along the riverside.
The Swans Island moat has many tons of gravel dumped into the top half, which will have to be removed for the Swans safety.
I also noticed today that a large piece of wire mesh has been torn from the base of the Merryton bridge, which is also a danger to the swans. Scottish water will have to rectify this ASAP before we have an accident !
A massive tree is lodged on the old mooring pole, must weigh at least 5 tons and probably shifted thousands of tons of gravel on the way down the river!
