Footage from the MkV Homemade Helmet Cam with built-in flood/spotlight

... early hours Friday July 29th

Fox cub snatches infrared cam vid clip

First part in real time followed by slow mo ...

A TALE OF TWO MICE

For some time I've been trying to film the Wood Mouse who lives in a hole in the hedge which is situated in a fox exit / entry point from a meadow.  Tonight I placed my infrared cam directly in front of the hole and retired a short distance away.  I left a piece of wholemeal biscuit and a few peanuts at the entrance to the hole.  Quite a surprising result - the resident of the hole appears at 50 seconds into the clip - dashing out to secure a single peanut and scuttling back into the hole.  At 1 min 39 secs,  another Wood Mouse enters from the left to seize the biscuit.   They are cute little creatures and have a relatively short lifespan of about 8 - 12 months.

Early hours May 24th

... and a brief excerpt of the action out with Mr Cruisedog's Night Patrol. Featured is one of our newer foxes - a magnificent specimen called 'Croucher' as its trademark feature is a prone position with paws folded underneath - a sign of trust in the animal kingdom.

Back in film mode

It's been some time since I updated with video clips from Mr Cruisedog's Night Patrol. Starting tonight (tomorrow morning actually, as we only commence operations well after midnight) we'll take the cam with us and see if we can get some footage of the new batch of foxes and badgers. Old friends come and go but there's always new faces that appear to take their places here in the combe. You can never 'guarantee' anything out on the cliff paths and meadows, but at least we'll have the cam to hand should anything worthwhile occur ...

Tales of Maidencombe - More Maidencombe Magic

Mr Cruisedog and I have had a quiet time of it on our Night Patrol recently. All vixens are still absent - looking after their cubs who should now be about to leave their earths and watch the adults hunt.
With a full moon and clear skies, we set out on our two mile journey across the cliff paths and meadows. At our first port of call, two heads appeared round a hedge opening - 'Stoker', a slight lesser fox and a young badger sow, side by side. Quite unusual this, as badgers and foxes almost always clash, being competitors for food and territory. The badger sow advanced, her snout held high, sniffing hard and I stepped on Mr Cruisedog's lead as he leaned forward - knowing that he's not keen on badgers. A few slices of dog chub (mainly protein with ash and vitamins) were deposited on the grass and we moved on. Glancing back, I noticed that the dog fox had circled around behind us (a usual trick) and was already at the food.
Entering the meadow, 'Fergus' was waiting and as we advanced, I reached for my bottle of mange treatment and squeezed 5 drops of the tincture onto a chicken thigh. Fergus is undergoing a thirty day treatment period for sarcoptic mange and the spread of the mite has at least been arrested.
Mr Cruisedog turned and stood still, looking back up the hill. A fox was following us about 40 metres away. Not recognising it in the gloom, I threw a piece of chicken towards it. A few seconds later and something came rolling past us. It was a slice of chub and it became clear that it was Stoker who was in the process of carrying the chub (probably back to a vixen in her earth) before dropping it when he saw the chicken.
At our last stop, an old favourite, the one-eyed badger boar advanced fearlessly to claim his nightly banana, taking it quite gently from my hand and retreating backwards into the hedgerow to eat. A large, as yet unnamed dog fox - in splendid condition, with full brush and thick winter coat came in close and lay down with his front paws folded (a sign of trust) and was rewarded with a lamb bone with plenty of meat left on it. Crouched on a wall high above us, a black cat watched proceedings in awe - what it made of the very strange sight of a human feeding foxes and badgers with a large collie cross dog sitting untethered close by is anyone's guess. Night's 'scoreline' ... two foxes treated for mange, 6 foxes and 5 badgers spotted ... a good Night Patrol and more Maidencombe Magic ...

Sunday March 20th:Tales of Maidencombe

The one-eyed badger and the three-legged fox
A fascinating and ultimately rewarding Night Patrol with Mr Cruisedog as we encountered two favourites. Missing for several weeks, the one-eyed badger boar has reappeared. All badger sites and 'experts' state that badgers do not hibernate in the true sense but may stay in their setts for several days if food is scarce. That may well be true, but all of my badgers disappeared virtually on the same date several weeks ago and now have appeared. I wonder how many of these 'experts' go out EVERY night of the year - in all weather conditions - to observe them as I have for over thirty years ... The old boar still recognised my scent - sniffing furiously as he approached - and snatched a banana from my hand before retreating into the bushes.
Limper, my three-legged dog fox was abroad and observed our progress from high up in the woods. Very cautious, he waited from some way off even after I had thrown a lamb shoulder in his direction. Both Mr Cruisedog and I waited, prone on the ground as I didn't want a healthy fox to get the treat. We were downwind of Limper and after about 15 minutes (I had counted to nearly 1000) he decided it was safe to approach and take his meal. Mr Cruisedog watched with ears pricked but as usual, completely silent and disciplined - I've never had such a clever companion, he knows exactly what I do on our clifftop nightly patrol and it's the highlight of his 'day'. The time flies by out there with the magic of the night ... such are the Tales of Maidencombe ...

A SURPRISE VISITOR

It's been very quiet fox wise out on the cliffs the past few weeks as the vixens are absent and in their earths awaiting birth of cubs. Just a few regulars - most in need of help in one way or another.

However, tonight a surprise visitor - as I was kneeling down way out at the farthest northern point of our nightly patrol - I became aware of a presence to my right. Mr Cruisedog was some way off in another field but I sensed that it wasn't him - a sort of sixth sense which has only been acquired over many years of night walking, told me it was a wild animal. The animal moved in to perhaps five feet away and I could make out a young fox or vixen in immaculate condition. Moving very slowly, I reached in my bag for a chicken thigh (reserved for My Vixen or Meadow Vixen - my favourites) and threw it just in front of the fox. It snatched it up and dashed away into the darkness. I stayed perfectly still and sure enough, the fox came back after a few minutes. It took another two pieces of chicken and then disappeared as Mr Cruisedog sauntered up behind me. A perfectly wild fox which I had never seen before - another magical and rewarding moment out on the clifftops ...

Early hours Wednesday Dec 22nd :

A frosty wonderland greeted us as we entered the meadow leading to the cliffs. With no wind - which is the killer at low temperatures - it was surprisingly 'warm' even at minus 4 Celcius and the virtually full moon overhead made spotting easy. Four first season dog foxes closed on us and two of them skirmished aggressively - still competing for top slot in their group. 'Limper' - my crippled dog fox - had to be called and appeared after a few minutes though he was disturbed by two other regulars who had also heard the calls. For three nights both Mr Cruisedog and I have been observed by an unknown fox some quarter of a mile away high up in the woods. Its eyes can be seen reflecting from my LED headlight - and it never changes position - merely holding station and watching as my foxes come and go. It's always fascinating and quite exciting when a newcomer appears and we'll see what happens. Just under 2 hours out on the cliffs and it is startling how the time flits by when we are out each night. Mr Cruisedog never tires of our nightly adventures and waits patiently untethered even if I'm up to 50 yards away ...

MONDAY 01:55 hrs - just back from the Night Patrol

The foxes know that bad weather's approaching - they were out in force to stock up with chub and chicken scraps. Meadow Vixen appeared suddenly by my side while we were en route and was clearly not relishing the biting wind sweeping in from the sea. Normally very timid foxes were coming in close to ensure a meal - snatching a mouthful and fleeing into the night. My crippled dog fox Limper was given a special treat - Mr Cruisedog's lamb bone with plenty of fat still left on it (Mr Cruisedog is not allowed fat or oily chicken as it always makes him sick) .. Mr Cruisedog watching intently untethered as always and didn't make a fuss. Yes, they definitely knew about the snow coming in a few hours from now but hopefully it will thaw quickly with temps. of +4C forecast.

A flurry of long tailed tits on the bird table

Another mini epic out on the cliffs

Sustained drizzle throughout our Night Patrol on the cliff paths and Mr Cruisedog was pretty wet on getting back. Foxes were thin on the ground but Meadow Vixen made her second appearance within three nights, bounding towards me enthusiastically to be rewarded with freshly cooked and still warm chicken thighs. After feeding the cattle (once more) in the barn, I realized that one of the plastic food bags was missing and a by now bedraggled Mr Cruisedog and I (also bedraggled) had to retrace our footsteps to find it. A mile away, we found it - minus the food - as an alert fox must have found it soon after I dropped it ... never mind, the bag was the most important thing as any sort of plastic could cause an animal to choke on it. Temperature now a balmy +6C and much better for all of us ...

First cattle feed of the winter

Mr Cruisedog and I were out longer than usual with extra tasks to perform. Not many foxes abroad as after a protracted spell of rain earlier, many were loath to venture out. A couple of 'strange' foxes (strange as in aware of our presence and knowing the game but not prepared to approach, preferring to stay at some distance and move in when we depart) in evidence but the real news was the sighting of a single badger boar - the first badger seen in nearly 3 weeks ... though I knew they were visiting as the banana was disappearing soon after being put down - foxes (or rats for that matter) rarely take bananas. The cows have now been put under cover in the barn and needed feeding as they had eaten their way through the bales of hay put up against the outside rail and could no longer reach the rest. Mr Cruisedog sat patiently watching as I peeled off several large layers of compacted hay to feed the ever-hungry cows. As we wended our way back up the hill, the skies had begun to clear and the wet lane was starting to freeze as the temperature dropped away. Final score: 6 foxes, 1 badger and a low-flying barn owl sighted.

Keeping a count from Dec 1st

A few strange events taking place since November 12th when My Vixen disappeared and then November 25th Meadow Vixen was last fed in the top meadow. Now decided to log all sightings. Eight stations will be recorded. So far: Dec 1st (after midnight each time) 8 foxes 0 badgers. Dec 2nd 9F 0B. New fox sighted at last station (B) - seemed to know me and Mr Cruisedog and approached to take food. Cold but dry.

Night Patrol Wednesday am

A laborious effort walking in slow motion round the cliff paths and animal trails. Not a single badger sighted now for three consecutive nights - something's amiss. My Vixen and Meadow Vixen both absent for the second night running but not too bothered about them - both are in good health and probably seeking out potential dens. By the time we'd got back to our gate, I had had enough and it was such a relief to sit down.

Many missing

... the past few nights have seen many animals missing, though there are various reasons for this. November is the time for vixens finding dens for their offspring - a laborious task as at least two locations have to be found - if one is disturbed, the young can immediately be removed to safety.
Foxes and badgers also dislike any changes and there have been some in the valley of late. Two nights ago, I was so unwell, I left Mr Cruisedog at home for the Night Patrol as I wouldn't have had the strength to dry him off after. Still very weak but we both managed to get round okay last night.