Easter Holiday Opening

Good morning everyone... finally it seems we have some nice, or at least drier weather with us, and just in time for our Easter opening!

From today (Friday the 29th of March) we are open every day for two weeks, up to the Sunday the 14th of April. Why not make the most of the nice weather, and come out to see us and what we have been up to over the past few weeks (apart from just surviving the rain!)

If you do manage to visit us, I really recommend that you allow time to visit our stoats and weasels in their outside enclosures opposite the badgers. Of course all our animals are great, but in particular are smaller mustelids have been fantastic recently! Being a huge success with both schools and photographers who have come here over the past few weeks.

Afternoon is always best for them, although we do have a stoat who likes to be out and exploring all day.

Of course, all our usual keeper talks will be on offer. Check out the link in the tab at the top of the page for the current schedule.

If you can't make it this time, then remember we are still open every weekend, bank holiday and school holiday from now till the end of October.

Look forward to seeing some of you over the coming weeks.

Nocturnal house waking up?

Hibernation over?.. I had a lovely post with some nice pics ready to go, all about our nocturnal house waking up for the spring, but low and behold this weather has taken another turn for the worst, and our common dormice and bats are still in hibernation.

However, our hedgehogs and edible dormice have stirred, and can bee seen through the nocturnal house. In fact, our edible dormice in particular are very active at the moment trying to regain some body fat.

It still may take a while for the common dormice and bats to stir fully, but once the weather starts to warm more permanently I am sure they will be as much a success in there as they were last year.

Meanwhile, this coming Wednesday, I will be attending the annual Common Dormouse Captive Breeding Group's meeting to hear about the future plans and possible releases happening later this year.

Last year, with the poor weather, we only had one litter of four young dormice. These four youngsters have all successfully made it through the year and will be taken with me to the meet. From there they will go on to be screened, along with others bred in other collections, before their release in to the wild.

Pine Martens to help Red Squirrels?

It is no secret that I have a soft spot for the pine marten. To me it is the most beautiful animal in the world! Of course I have a passion for all British wildlife, but another of my favourites is our native red squirrel. So with the recent research coming out that the pine marten may be able to help save the red squirrel, I was of course very interested.

It has been thought for along time that the pine marten may be able to help keep grey squirrel numbers down in an area, but not until recently has it been studied further. Over in  Ireland recent studies have shown a decline in grey squirrel numbers where pine martens are present, and grey squirrel remains in the pine martens diet.

Coupled with the European diet for pine martens showing a small percentage is squirrel (which of course would be red squirrel over there), it is thought that the more arboreal nature of the red, and the lighter weight allowing them to get to branches a pine marten couldn't, is one reason why the pine marten doesn't prey on them so much. The more ground nature of the greys, and their larger/slower nature make them easier targets.

So, could introducing the pine marten in to certain areas not only help boost their rare numbers, but also help protect our iconic red squirrel from extinction?

Well, it is difficult to predict of course. Grey squirrels are more established over here, and are arguably in greater densities to begin with. And despite people saying that a pine marten is less likely to take a red squirrel, it certainly still would if it had the chance. Of course the big problem then is how do we get the pine martens in the first place to introduce in to these areas.

One option is captive breeding, but if you have visited the Centre before, you will appreciate how difficult this is to do. Very few places have managed it, and although we have all our fingers crossed that one of our females, Bonnie, may be pregnant now... we have never successfully bred these animals in the past. Working closely and listening to other centres who keep these animals, and in some cases have bred them too, we are hoping we will manage this one day. The more people that are successful  the more we can all help each other out, and that is why many centres that keep pine martens are now trying to co-operate with each other to ensure we can help with the future of this animal if needs be.

The other option possibly could be relocation. The pine marten suffered some bad press earlier last year with the Scottish Gamekeepers Association calling for a cull. The reason... their potential impact on capercaille. How does that work? Both are native, and ironically our current capercaille were introduced from Scandinavia. With less than 4,000 pine martens in the UK it seems unfathomable that a cull even cropped up.

But maybe relocating them could be a way to keep everyone happy. Where their densities are increasing, and they are causing a potential problem not only with the game birds but also moving in to peoples loft spaces,  they could be relocated into other areas? Something that is being looked in to by certain groups.

As mentioned before, my love of pine martens is no secret, and I have a particular bond with Bonnie, one of our females. Therefore I was thrilled when Sandra Palme presented me with this fantastic portrait she had drawn of my favourite girl! If you think this picture looks good, you should see it for real... the detail is simply amazing and it is no mistaking that it is Bonnie.

Have a look at Sandra's website if you get the time... you will get to see some more samples of her work, including some more drawings of our animals including our otters and foxes!