Yeah, I know you think Baa's lost it and if you didn't previously, you will now!
The other day saw Bo and I on our usual plant/stick hunting expedition across the forest when what did I see pass not 50ft in front of me but a huge, upright rabbit with small ears and a pointy face. Hand on heart, it was a wallaby/roo thing bounding across my field of vision.
Now, I do wear specs for when my eyes get tired in front of the computer or telly but otherwise have excellent vision especially for animal behaviour and general shape. After all that's what I was trained and paid to do for a number of years. Besides I'd need to wear bottle end glasses to not recognise this great lump! I struggled to pull the camera from my pocket but we were so close to the tree line and it bounded away into the brush before I could get a pic.
I searched for possible exotic animal sightings in the New Forest but could find no information on the net. In fact information on the area and it's flora and fauna is sorely lacking (project number 52 for Baa, if I can just get the hang of bird identification).
DEFRA is fairly non-commital about what it will do if a sighting is reported and I want to know if others have seen the same thing in the area. Does anyone know what organisation I should contact for this that won't spent 10 minutes shrieking with laughter?
Grockles are out in full force right now so I doubt I will see the roo for a while but if I do manage to catch a pic I'll post it up.
Anyone else spotted a strange creature (other than those coming out of the pub at kicking out time)?
Exotic animal sighting
Oh, Baa. Did this roo reach in his pocket and pull out a big gold watch and chain? Better get the tea kettle boiling. I'm going to be watching this thread to see how it ends.
Maybe it's someone's pet? Every so often someone's exotic pet escapes here and it makes the news (gotta love living in a small country :-). I remember reading somewhere on the net that you also have wild cat sightings in the UK, although I can't recall the area. No one can quite figure out what kind of animal it is but it does exist.
Have you thought of calling the police or is there a zoo close by? Maybe they could help? I look forward to hearing about any more sightings as well. Too cool! You have the greatest stories, Baa. :-)
Oh, as for those strange creatures out at kicking out time....we can spare you more than a few, if you'd like. :-)
Grockles?? I've not heard that word since I was in Devon at a Boys Brigade camp in my teens.
I was walking in the Cuillin Mountains on the Isle of Skye, when I just happened to meet a wildcat guarding the nest. I just got the hell out as fast as I could with a cat hissing behind me.
I even dropped my rucksack, and just kept running downhill. When I got into the next little village, I warned the police about the cat, and they went up with me, and a couple of game-wardens to get rid of the cats and nest. They had been looking for them for a couple of weeks, since the sheep were lambing, and the wardens had found a couple of lamb cadaver.
I happened to be the unlucky one to stumble over the nest.
Those are frightening animals, luckily this was my my only run-in (or 'run-away') with them thanks be to whoever.
Another time I went up Doune Hill (sounds strange for a Scot to go up-doon hill, lol), which is close to Loch Lomond. It was a lovely day and I had a view right across the Loch, and into the Western Highlands and, for some strange reason, I had the hill all to myself.
Then it struck me that my cousin, who lives in Arrochar on Loch Long, told me that this was the snake hill, where the heather was so thick, you couldn't see the ground, and thousands of vipers bred there.
It is the only time I have ran UP a mountain, to get past the tree and heather line and onto bare rock.
I didn't see any but I'm sure they were there and all watching me with their little beady eyes.
*scared stiff*
Wintermoor
Ha ha, going up-doon hill. I love it! :-) I also seem to have found a nice new word for those out of towners who step into the bike lane without looking because they don't know we're coming......much nicer than the terms I normally use. Thanks!
Wintermoor, glad you didn't meet any vipers. Scary! I've been trying to think of interesting wild life stories but the only things I can think of is the time a white tailed deer got lost in our city back in Nebraska and ran thru our yard (drove the dog crazy!) or every time I see a squirrel here in Copenhagen, it's exciting because there are so few.
WZ
LOL, I didn't notice a watchchain and didn't hear him mutter 'I'm late! I'm late! For a very important date'. I know there are magic mushrooms in the forest but I don't recall chewing on a handful ;)
Thanks Deblynn ;) You could well be right about it being a private zoo escapee, there are some expensive properties on the Forest with a lot of enclosed land with them. I might ring Marwell Zoo near to me to see if they have any more info on what I could look out for next time on a roo spotting expedition. You can keep the creatures of kicking out time though LOL we have enough of our own *G*
I couldn't imagine seeing a deer running around in the city. I saw deer traks in the snow in Bellevue but that's on the outskirts isn't it. I bet your dog went nuts!
ROTFL Wintermoor, I'd have run h*ll for leather too! Was it a Scottish Wild Cat? (Some how I just can't imagine you in the Boys Brigade *G*)
As for snakes, we have Adders in Hampshire too. I once worked for a farm that had a field surrounded by trees and big yellow warning signs about Adders nests. I'd not thought about them nesting in the heather. That's just curtailed my heathland trips in the forest! Thanks for the warning and impending paranoia :0
Come to think of it, Baa, it's not so surprising you saw deer tracks in Bellevue. We used to see deer in the cornfields not all that far out of our town. Yep, the old dog was nuts for the all the wonderful new smells. :-)
There was a moose that wandered down into Iowa years ago. It ended sadly when some idiot felt "threatened" by the moose and shot it. Now, I do realize moose are dangerous BUT the autopsy said the bullet went into the back of the poor moose's head....hmmm.....pretty darn threatening when the animal is running away! [profanity removed] yahoos!
Baa -
Any Cropcircles in Hampshire this season? AliceInW. is all very fine, but consider an Encounter of the 2nd Kind. (C'mon you guys - you saw the movie!)
Druids used to hang out there, right?
ROTFLCHGTKTFE
Deblynn,
A moose? Wow, theres a creature I wouldn't like to upset. Poor thing didn't deserve that though!
Lophophora
Chuckle if you must! ;)
No encounters of the second kind in the local wheat fields, they are definitely of human making. Last year there was a good crop circle in the north of Winchester. This year I spotted one which was just a circle with a huge R stuck in the centre ... could be an alien sign for their version of MacDonalds *G*
Ah, Baa, you have the misfortune of living in a country that is on a first name basis with antiquity. Whether rabbits with watch chains or crop circles, your neck of the woods is just teeming with adventure. I just knew it when your bracken grew above your heads... makes a poor Alaskan feel like a newcomer!
Awww (((((WZ)))))