Anyone noticed a change since stripey numbers were reduced?

[foxdropper]

There in biblical numbers in some places arent they

They were here mate but not any more .Would be worth a mention if one was seen now .I got caught up in the killing as well mate ,for the first time in history it was legal but soon grew tired of the “one more push regime “that clearly wanted no badgers as opposed to 70% reduction .

 

[Strongman]

Loads of hedgehogs round this way now. Couple of years ago you wouldn’t see one, now I see several every night I’m out.
I have met no one, even farmers who are down with TB, that would want them eradicated. It’s just there needs to be a control as there is no natural predator other than the car!
The fact is that man has made such an impact on the landscape and nature that we need to keep a light control to keep things in balance. I am convinced that TB wouldn’t be an issue if there wasn’t such a high population density, just my opinion.

 

[Free range rob]

There in biblical numbers in some places arent they

Yes, we’ve always had a few, and it used to be something special seeing them, something to talk about and enjoy.
Now they are in plague proportions, nothing unusual to count double figures in one field now.

I’ve seen foxes do same though mate and cats ,rats and hedgehogs ,all capable of transmitting bovine Tb .

Yep, agreed, some farms I’ve seen are dirty horrid sh*t holes with vermin crawling all over the shop.
I’ve got most everything under control on my farms, rats and foxes included, we don’t have cat issues, and what’s a hedgehog ? I’ve not seen one for 5-6 years.
My farmers are keen to keep the place clean and tidy and vermin controlled, but the biggest culprit is untouchable, and due to numbers are spreading and filling every available space, competing for areas, and moving into yards and buildings.

 

[foxdropper]

Hedgehogs are about here ,not common but did see two in one field last summer .I like to think I keep a balance here as well mate but never again will I fall for the rhetoric .

 

[AGR]

No one has mentioned bee nests dug out by badgers. As numbers started to increase probably 30 years ago I started seeing bumble bee (and wasp) nests being dug up in the woods.
One part of the estate I keepered never once had a pheasant nest hatch, everything got eaten. Certainly hedgehogs are returning, but the grey partridge boys may not be so happy.
I'm not so sure that roe or muntjac are such a problem with tb as they don't herd like the larger deer.
Eventually I think that badgers will be controlled where they aren't wanted and left alone where they are.
Completely agree with some the comments regarding the state of some farms though. Some farmers should be ashamed of themselves.

 

[foxdropper]

Agreed on the bees especially bumble varieties .Wasps are ,were fair game .
Walking the dogs today i found several holes that had been blue masonry bee colonies ,a type of bumble bee that burrows in either soil or soft pointing on buildings .The holes were too small and delicate for brock to have dug ,about 2 inches round and 4 inches deep .No idea what dug them to be honest .Remains of bees and larvae were still in the holes .

 

[Strongman]

Loads of bee and wasp nests dug out round here too. Caught one on camera pulling at a breasted pheasant I had out as fox bait. Quite a violent display for what most people think are serene mammals.

 

[foxdropper]

I’ve a vid on thermal of a sow killing a chicken then offering part dead bird to 5 cubs .Ive witnessed brock eating lambs whether dead or killed by them unknown .They are opportune omnivores .

 

[Strongman]

They certainly are. I’ve found the remains of lost lambs on the top of sets on several occasions. After a couple of days there is nothing but a spine and skull! Seen a few rabbit nest burrows dug out and all the kits eaten, not that there are many rabbits round this way now though.

 

[Dunwaters]

I don't begrudge them a living, but they’ve increased way beyond reasonable levels and they’re very hard in the ground nesters,
Hav‘nt seen a decent brood of pheasants around here in years.
Its not just the badgers, clean farming, ravens, scaldies, buzzards foxes, stoats, mink, otters and pine marten all take their tithe too.

 

[Longstrider]

When I was a kid I was already well into the 'being outdoors and doing stuff' way of life and even then it was a remarkable thing to see a badger in a lamp-light (as it was to see a buzzard at any time). The only setts I knew of were long abandoned and 'dead'. Hedgehogs were ten-a-penny anywhere you looked.
It has now been several years since I saw a hedgehog at all, but I see badgers a-plenty during dusk and in the lamp when foxing.
Omnivore that the badger is, it is a simple fact that they are also a top-line predator, and left un-checked their number grow to a point where they threaten the survival of other species, the hedgehog being just one. I wouldn't want to see that last of them gone, but a dramatic reduction in numbers in my area would see a rise if species diversity I'm sure.

 

[RescueMe0007]

Q? when you take a badger, do you eat them? I saw an article on TV a number of years ago, which indicated that previously slices (cold cuts) of badger were common in country taverns in the UK. The presenters indicated that they were good eating due to their omnivorous diet. If anyone has partaken, what is badger meat like flavour, texture etc?

 

[foxhunter]

Totally agree about badgers and hedgehog density .We have loads of hedgehogs because we dont have a lot of badgers thankfully.

 

[foxdropper]

Previous to the cull ,all our rabbit warrens were dug out and used as setts ,rabbits are gradually making a comeback but I doubt their numbers will ever return to my childhood numbers here .Just been out with dogs and for the first time ever they flushed a covey of English partridge under a hedge sheltering from the rain ,nearly had one actually .
I just hope there are pockets of badgers left untouched that will once again spread a bit ,not too much but a few would nice .
All the training costs and the expense to the tax payer could have been avoided if the gov had only given the very same marksmen free reign to control as and when the issue arose .Beurocracy at its worst .

 

[plonker]

Previous to the cull ,all our rabbit warrens were dug out and used as setts ,rabbits are gradually making a comeback but I doubt their numbers will ever return to my childhood numbers here .Just been out with dogs and for the first time ever they flushed a covey of English partridge under a hedge sheltering from the rain ,nearly had one actually .
I just hope there are pockets of badgers left untouched that will once again spread a bit ,not too much but a few would nice .
All the training costs and the expense to the tax payer could have been avoided if the gov had only given the very same marksmen free reign to control as and when the issue arose .Beurocracy at its worst .

Whilst you may not see badgers around you,there are still plenty about.
They are not stupid and if disrurbed will up and move to somewhere quiet and undisturbed, they will be back on your ground pretty soon

 

[Wilbur]

Totally agree about badgers and hedgehog density .We have loads of hedgehogs because we dont have a lot of badgers thankfully.

Not yet

 

[skywull]

 

[Jon P]

No culling in our area, we have 3 big sets in 100 acres at the family’s farm, not seem a hedgehog in 8 - 10 years, no ground nesting birds, and rabbits very few.

 

[Bo Diddley]

Q? when you take a badger, do you eat them? I saw an article on TV a number of years ago, which indicated that previously slices (cold cuts) of badger were common in country taverns in the UK. The presenters indicated that they were good eating due to their omnivorous diet. If anyone has partaken, what is badger meat like flavour, texture etc?

Badger hams were quite a dish back in the day

 

[Dunwaters]

Q? when you take a badger, do you eat them? I saw an article on TV a number of years ago, which indicated that previously slices (cold cuts) of badger were common in country taverns in the UK. The presenters indicated that they were good eating due to their omnivorous diet. If anyone has partaken, what is badger meat like flavour, texture etc?

They taste a bit like hen harrier but not as stringy.