More experiments with BadgerCam

The image quality on my current trail cameras is quite good but is limited by the unidirectional lighting.  Last year I tried videoing the foxes in the garden with two cameras simultaneously so that each provides extra light for the other but one limitation there is that the cameras record in 20s clips and don't necessarily switch on simultaneously.  So the latest idea is to provide extra lighting.  I bought a small 12V infrared LED light and a rechargeable 12V lithium battery.  The light switches itself on at dusk and the battery should last for about 8-9 hours although the light is on permanently rather than being trigged by an animal.  For these recordings camera 1 was to the left, camera 2 to the right and the extra light was to the left of both cameras.  The two stills are frame grabs from the video on camera 1 but I am more pleased with the video recordings.

This is camera 1.  There are one or two flickers as camera 2 switches off and back on again.

This is camera 2.

Here is a nice example of how the badger hunts in the dark by sniffing out its food.

Later another badger turned up and realised there were no peanuts left so it gave up and went off to try somewhere else.

I am pleased enough with the results to order another LED light and battery.  I'll try to find a better setting and see if I can improve things further.

Nest box news

I thought I was doing these birds a favour by leaving in the moss from last year's unfinished nest.  I hoped it would save them a bit of effort but that has proved not to be so.  Mrs BT definitely doesn't approve of the decor and has spent most of the past week clearing it out.  This is how things looked a week ago.

And here she is starting to clear things out.

A day later she had got this far.

And the next day.

And the next.

She does a little dance with her wings outstretched to spread the material and measure the space.

Here is the dance and a bit more removal.

I haven't yet seen her bringing in any new material but I expect she will do soon.

BankvoleCam

If you thought the shrew from a week ago was hyperactive, have a look at this guy.  Recorded in the same place, a pile of stones in the garden, this is a bank vole (Myodes glareolus).  First a few frame grabs to show what it looks like.

And then the video.

Eventually it settled down and got stuck in to some sunflower seeds.

A handsome red squirrel

I called in on the squirrels as I was passing recently.  There was only one about in the short time I was there and it didn't stick around for long - just long enough for a few photos.  It has a dark tail and white elbows and very handsome ear tufts.

A welcome return

Last week I heard a familiar sound that has so far been absent from the garden this year - the cheep of a tree sparrow. Not before time these two were busy checking out the available accommodation.

It looks as though they may have some competition.

As I suspected might happen, the sparrowhawk has been here less often in the past couple of weeks and I haven't seen him since last Tuesday.  The kitchen garden feeder is busy again and finches and woodpeckers are now brave enough to use it.  Here is the latest sparrowhawk photo.

I didn't realise until I looked up the data on the BTO Garden BirdWatch site that sparrowhawks generally leave gardens at this time of year and sightings drop by up to 50%.  So maybe I won't see him again for a while.  If that is the case I hope he comes back in full adult plumage next winter.

ShrewCam

There are several log piles and one large pile of stones in my little patch of woodland, put there especially for things to live in them.  Mostly I don't get to see what goes on but I was intrigued by this gap between the stones and wondered who lived there.  So I set up a trail camera and scattered a few sunflower seeds outside.  And the first animal out was a common shrew (Sorex araneus).  Although shrews are said to be carnivorous this one obviously likes seeds as well.

In the video at the bottom I have put together several very brief clips recorded yesterday.  They are at normal speed - it is just that shrews do everything at high speed.  When this one runs back in it goes so fast that its feet are off the ground.  Not surprising as shrews are on the menu for owls, kestrels, foxes, stoats and weasels.

I am not sure it is all the same animal as the one in the later clips has a short dark line on either side.  I wonder if these might be scent glands as the same mark is present in the shrew photos in my only previous shrew post, although I didn't notice at the time.

Anyway, here is the video.

The videos are recorded on a Wingscapes Birdcam Pro.  It has an adjustable focus but the depth of field is small at close range.  It also has a preview screen but that isn't any use for setting up when the camera is so close to the ground.  It took a few attempts and some trial and error to get the positioning and focus right.  While doing so I also got views of a wood mouse and a bank vole using the same entrance but they weren't good enough to use.  I'll keep trying and if I get better videos of either of those I'll post them here.

OtterCam in March

Otters are mainly nocturnal so obviously it isn't easy to see what they are up to or even to see if they are present.  After the success of February's trail camera recording I have decided to repeat it every month so we can monitor their presence and their progress.  Last week I set up two cameras for two nights, both aimed at the same small area of bank.  There were two visits each night by an otter but I can't tell whether it was the same one or two different animals.

Finding an ideal spot to place the cameras isn't easy.  In the present position the cameras have to be hidden from (human) view and so are a bit too close to the action, meaning that it isn't easy to get the whole animal in the frame.  It also makes it harder to see if there is more than one.  In this clip the otter finds the camera.

One advantage of using two cameras is that if they switch on at the same time there is better lighting.  This attempt wasn't perfect but you can see the potential.  Of course the view from the other camera wasn't any good at all.

If the otter(s) are still present later this month I'll post some more pictures.