Wednesday, April 16, 2008

Toads rule ok!

Spring is trying hard to make itself known and although it is still very wet underfoot the sun certainly has a bit more heat in it than it has had of late and some of the ground is even drying up in places. Not good for those dabbling ducks but much better for the rest of us.

Our splendid Fallow Deer buck Nigel (we think he’ll be 15 later this year- a great age for this breed of animal) is looking a little sorry for himself in the last couple of days because both of his antlers have fallen off. This is completely natural and happens every spring. His scars will have healed up in the next ten days or so and after that the antlers will begin to grow again, but until then I think he’ll be a bit miserable. In complete contrast our young buck is very proud of the inch long pricks on the top of his head. He’s just nine months old and supremely confident. Until today he’s been coming down for a feed but avoiding actual contact with the keepers but this afternoon he took several handfuls of food directly from Mandy’s hand. A very cocky young buck indeed.

We have our first ducklings on the pond- two seen yesterday (but so far not today) -and lots of birds on eggs. Also, and even more exciting, a Tawny Owlet has been seen several times on a tree branch by the waterfall. He’s been seen at various times of the day by a number of visitors. The common factor seems to be that he likes to come out in the sun but isn’t straying far from his nest. He looks to be about four to six weeks old so he won’t be there for very much longer. Tawny Owls are fairly common down here but wage a constant battle for nest sites with jackdaws and crows. Two years ago we even had a pair of Tawny’s build their nest and fledge three chicks from a nest they built actually inside the Bengal Eagle Owl aviary.

The peacocks and guinea fowl are all looking great with their new plumage and they are spending a lot of time and effort on looking good and attracting partners.

The otters are all well and spring is getting under their skin too. They are spending a lot of time playing (and then sleeping) other than Hilda, who rather typically is keeping a low profile and is only glimpsed occasionally.

The cubs are all well. Smalley has made a slight but noticeable improvement in his movement. He can now get up one stair. Not much you might think, but considering what he was like a short while ago we are pleased as punch. He is still a bit of a worry to all of us but we are optimistic. Biggy is fine, pushy and very energetic. He can often be seen playing with Cinnamon and they continue to get on very well.

Leap has improved too; she has put on a lot of weight and is looking very healthy. She still has a nervous (or evil) temperament but can be quite bold at times. Cinnamon is more and more likeable and beautiful every day. She is in superb condition and her coat shines like it has just been polished.

Last week we decided to leave the British cubs at work in a pen overnight for the first time because they were getting to be a bit of a handful; moving furniture whenever they felt like it and completely taking over the vegetable rack and some of their favourite kitchen chairs. They were easy to move from home to work every day but it is in their interests to move them away from us as soon as practical. They coped very well and seem to be adapting to their new, cooler environment without much trouble.

They were joined on Monday night by Biggy and Smalley. We worried about Smalley being cold but when I went in and checked them yesterday morning he was at the centre of a lovely fluffy otter heap and was warm as toast so as long as he burrows his way into the centre of the group he should be fine.

Biggy and Smalley are rather older than the others (19 weeks compared to Cinnamon at 13 weeks and Leap at 10 weeks) but look quite small compared to their British cousins.

We have moved the cubs into a sunnier pen with an electric water pump and they can obviously hear it humming because they have been put off swimming in the ponds. Once they get used to it I’m sure they will enjoy their new home. However, they haven’t been put off exploring and this morning I was in with them when they discovered a toad. They caught it, chomped on it a bit, realised their mistake and spent the next ten minutes with expressions that reminded me of our kids eating limes. They couldn’t get rid of the taste quickly enough but after a good drink three of them went back to it and started licking it again! The toad had been still all along and I thought it was dead and it just lay there as the three otters licked and spat and licked and spat. After a while the otters decided that the toad wasn’t good to eat and left it alone and went to try to find something else to annoy. A few minutes later I saw the toad rapidly heading for cover; I think I could hear him laughing….