I know we've had threads like this before but;

Just walking (ok mild stagger) home from the pub tonight I saw a frog (amphibious hoppy variety) and a young owl (as in barn variety) - stood within ten foot of it for a couple of minutes - then it probably caught my breath.

Just one mile from the city centre.

Ain't Sheffield absolutely wonderful.

Yes, it is a beautiful city.

Regularly see a fox near we we live.

Also, we have a pheasent that visits everyday to clear up the seed that falls from the bird feeder.

A little field mice is also a regular visitor and very occasionally we have seen a stoat.

Loops.

Driving home from football I saw a badger crossing the road. The first time I've ever seen a badger in the wild.

Did the 5 Weirs Walk recently, and saw geese, ducks, coots (or are they moorhens - can never remember the difference?) and a kingfisher (seen from Effingham Street).

There are urban foxes around Myrtle Road - I think they've dug into the railway embankment.

In January I saw a flock of approx 50-60 waxwings on Heeley Millenium Park.

Magpies around Norfolk Park (see separate thread).

Butterflies in my garden in summer. Also slugs and snails (not so welcome).

We have a fox - who come regularly - I'm always leaving it bits out to eat. Do foxes eat rats? just since the fox has been about we've not seen any of the rats that used to live at the bottom of next doors garden....

Kestrel - regular
Foxes - regular & raised cubs one year at the bottom of the garden.
Badger - occasional (I think he/she may wander quite a bit according to sightings)
Voles

I used to think wrens were special but now realise how common they are.

I'm just off London Road and we regularly get a heron visiting, so I'm assuming there must be fish in the river! Its also no unknown when I go visit the parents for us to see sparrowhawks in the back garden. One particular day when I was up there for sunday lunch we were all sitting down when a pigeon hit the lawn, rapidly followed by the sparrowhawk that had just killed it, and it had it's Sunday lunch quite hapilly in the middle of the lawn :o

The frogs are back in our back garden, so I expect to be taking buckets of frog spawn to Riverlin in the next month or so.

Yes, Internetowl, Foxes do eat rats and mice.

Originally posted by evildrneil
I'm just off London Road and we regularly get a heron visiting, so I'm assuming there must be fish in the river! Its also no unknown when I go visit the parents for us to see sparrowhawks in the back garden. One particular day when I was up there for sunday lunch we were all sitting down when a pigeon hit the lawn, rapidly followed by the sparrowhawk that had just killed it, and it had it's Sunday lunch quite hapilly in the middle of the lawn :o

There are a couple of Herons around Sheffield South one of which is a greedy git and has filled its belly full of my friggin fish!!! They are beautiful birds but I'd rather they eat the fish in the park ponds rather than my little family of fish in my garden!!! My dog has now been trained to be on permanent 'Heron Watch'.

We have loads of fox's in Beauchief, I know some people think they are vermin but I get really excited when I see any wild animal!! :clap:

I thought I saw an otter in the river outside the Virgin Gym last week, but as I got closer it turned out to be a bloody big rat.

It was still quite cute though, paddling about.

Technophobe - I think the same heron must go between your pond and my Dad's in Greenhill... even the net doesn't seem to stop it knicking all the fish!

My parents also get woodpeckers in their garden - we had a family of three come a few times a day for a while all at the same time. Now, I think there are about four that take it in turns to come.

We also get foxes and loads of frogs and toads (main downfall of having a pond IMO - I have a big problem with green things that hop towards you...!)

Originally posted by Roger_B
Yes, Internetowl, Foxes do eat rats and mice.

Maybe the Council should be encouraging them to help keep the pests (rats) down. Done a fine job local to me...

I've received reprots of a green woodpecker in the Jervis Lum (Norfolk Heritage Park). Haven't seen (or heard) it myself though. Anyone know any more?

They used to sell a range of Ciders in the JerviSlum :)

we get a couple of greater spotted woodpeckers in our garden (owlthorpe) on the peanut feeder.

The jays and a green woodpecker just do a flypast and don;t stop.....:(

What do green woodpeckers eat?

We did the RSPB birdwatch thingy a few months ago and were suprised by the number of species in just one hour...

(GS woodpecker, dunnock, blue tit, great tit, gold tit, goldfinch, greenfinch, robin, blackbird, nuthatch, wren, magpie, collared dove)

But no sparrows or thrush which used to be the commonest visitors a few years ago.

I think Sheffield wildlife is wonderful, we have this lovely view, with foxes, owls, sparrow hawks or kestrels ( when it's windy)and now some body wants to build on it so they can line thier pockets with more brass.

http://www.sheffieldforum.co.uk/showthread.php?s=&threadid=27418

http://www.littlemesters.com/FacingWest.jpg

I was up at Lodge Moor at the weekend, some bird of prey flew straight past me about 10 feet in front of my car on the way up there, I think it was a kestrel but I'm not very good at my bird of prey identification. Then we saw either a weasel or a stoat just near the car park at Wyming Brook, and heard a woodpecker a little further down the path but couldn't see it.

Last summer, when I used to get up at around 6am and take the dog for an early walk at Crookes Valley Park, there was always a heron sat by the edge of the lake there. We used to do a little dance - me & the dog would walk down towards the lake, the heron would take off and swoop over to the other side of the lake where it would take up its position, then as we got further around the edge towards it, it would fly back again. Then as we nearly completed the circuit the heron would usually give up and fly off somewhere with no humans and dogs around.

Now that it's getting light earlier, I hope we'll be seeing it again. I love herons, and I especially love watching them fly, although I have to say there's a lot less of them around here than there were where I lived in London (although if the Olympics comes to London they're going to be concreting over that part of the river and evicting all the herons :()

I used to live up near Norton water tower and so used to see a lot of wild things, foxes, a badger, various birds including the greedy heron and our long drive at certain times of the year was covered with little frogs and toads . My favorite wild animal is the squirrel and the one's especially in the Botanical Gardens who will accept nuts out of your hand. A really good wild thing that I've noticed at Norton is the man with the immaculate lawn after Mister Mole has paid him a visit.

Originally posted by WallBuilder
My favorite wild animal is the squirrel

My dog's favourite as well. I swear one of these days he's going to come across one that hasn't got a handy tree in the vicinity, and we're going to have roast squirrel for dinner :twisted:

If you care about Sheffield's wildlife, why not join the Wildlife Trust to help protect it for future generations?

Sheffield Wildlife Trust exists to build a better future for the people and wildlife of the city.

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Originally posted by DanSumption
My dog's favourite as well. I swear one of these days he's going to come across one that hasn't got a handy tree in the vicinity, and we're going to have roast squirrel for dinner :twisted:

DanSumption: I mentioned earlier I love all wildlife Iam a bit of a Dr Dolittle really..... talking about Squirels My dog 'George' is completely and utterley obsessed with them. Not only is he permanently on Heron Watch (to save my fish) but he sits at the window and makes noises (like Tubacca off Star Wars) when he sees the squirels.... and when we walk through Strelly Woods through to Beauchief Woods he does in fact catch them - be assured though he spits them back out uninjured as he doesnt know what to do with them.... its just the chase he loves!!! yes hes Male! lol!!!

This Heron (http://www.PhotoShare.co.nz/PhotoShareGallery1/100193/104931/IMG_2937a1917_M.jpg)
Is an almost daily visitor to Hillsborough Park.

I once saw a badger on the traffic island at Norton. Drove round the island several times - but then it disappeared into the undergrowth and out of sight.

Sorry......I keep being told that I shouldn't say island, but roundabout.

A bit further afield but I was driving back over the Snake Pass the other night and saw a pure white hare at the side of the road. Would it be a normal hare in winter coat or are they a seperate species up there ?

Well I honestly don't know where to begin.... in reply to redrobbo was it? the woodpeckers are at least two or threefold in Norfolk Park, I live in the area and the wildlife is one of the things I am so proud of, Badgers, foxes, owls, a whole variety of birds (a Kezzie being my fave a hovering) ducks at a local pond, frogs, sheesh I could go on for ages listing exactly what I have seen in Sheffield alone!
Proud as punch! Who says cities are cement?:suspect:

:)

Originally posted by Internetowl
They used to sell a range of Ciders in the JerviSlum :)

Ahh.....Another helpful, well informed post from Internetowl :loopy:

There is indeed a woodpecker in Norfolk Park!. I have seen it twice now (heard it lots of times). I was surprised at the size of it though, much bigger than i imagined ;).

I saws a pheasant yesterday, It scared the shhh outa me, the bstd came out of a bush and flew right past me...
that'll teach me going out in the countryside and walking unaware of wildlife ;)

Nice to see there are other animals than flying roddents in Sheffield (sorry, pigeons)

Originally posted by Cols
A bit further afield but I was driving back over the Snake Pass the other night and saw a pure white hare at the side of the road. Would it be a normal hare in winter coat or are they a seperate species up there ?

You were very fortunate to see a white mountain hare. They change colour according to the season I believe. I once saw one on Kinder Scout. Was on Bleaklow the other weekend, when the snow was lying crisp and deep and uneven. Saw plenty of hare footprints - but not a chance of seeing the animal with all that snow around.

You can often see a kestrel hovering over the open land at Buck Wood (one of the ancient woodlands between Arbourthorne and Gleadless Valley). I have received reports of one hovering over Gleadless Common - but have not seen it myself. (If so, it is probably the same one as Buck Wood is not far away).

This is the best time of year to see Mountain Hares. There's a footpath near Strines called "Foulstone Road". We saw about 20 hares there last March/April.

Bats flying at the back of the house earlier this evening.

First of the year - must be the mild weather.

I know some people hate squirrels but I have a lovely one that eats out of my hand every day - he's a little cutie - and while I feed him he leaves the birdfood alone. People don't realise what a wealth of wildlife there is around this area,we are very fortunate.

Originally posted by rooeliza
Technophobe - I think the same heron must go between your pond and my Dad's in Greenhill... even the net doesn't seem to stop it knicking all the fish!

)

I know they are a bit naff, but get one of the plastic herons from your garden centre. Herons won't muscle in on anothers patch. You need to move it about occasionaly so they (the other Herons) don't get used to it.

In the last few months i have seen on this estate:

Fox's (every night without fail)
Woodpecker
Squirrels (ton's of them in Norfolk Park)
Badgers (dissappeared now though)
Kestrel
Sparrow Hawk (although i suppose they both cover a huge distance)
Owls (i love watching these!. So quiet in flight it's unbelieveable)
Bats (crazy little things)
Frog (saw my first of the year last night. I nearly trod on the little fella)

Bats outside, one got into the living room somehow!
frogs in back yard and hedgehogs on pavement, which can actually walk/run quite quickly - all this in Crookes

Not bad.....

Hoping we get a hedgehog back in the garden soon - they should have come out of hibernation by now - great for keeping the slug population down.

Expecting to see fox cubs before too long as well.

Originally posted by technophobe
DanSumption: I mentioned earlier I love all wildlife Iam a bit of a Dr Dolittle really..... talking about Squirels My dog 'George' is completely and utterley obsessed with them. Not only is he permanently on Heron Watch (to save my fish) but he sits at the window and makes noises (like Tubacca off Star Wars) when he sees the squirels.... and when we walk through Strelly Woods through to Beauchief Woods he does in fact catch them - be assured though he spits them back out uninjured as he doesnt know what to do with them.... its just the chase he loves!!! yes hes Male! lol!!!

I'm not sure what Gizmo would do if & when he caught one... he is a lurcher, and so is bred to catch things like that. On the other hand, when he chases the ducks at Crookes Valley Park, if he catches up with one before it flies into the water he just stands next to it barking, I think he just likes watching them all waddle away frantically.

Speaking of kestrels, there is almost always one hovering over the Spider Park on Crimicar Lane.

Originally posted by Lostrider
I know they are a bit naff, but get one of the plastic herons from your garden centre. Herons won't muscle in on anothers patch. You need to move it about occasionaly so they (the other Herons) don't get used to it.

Lostrider:

Great, dont care if its naff will go out and buy one Ive already got a plastic duck which I thought may deter it (put there as a joke by a friend but actually I quite like it).


Dansumption: Seen all your lovely photos have you got any individual ones of the dog (yeh yeh I know Iam sad!)

Originally posted by technophobe
Dansumption: Seen all your lovely photos have you got any individual ones of the dog (yeh yeh I know Iam sad!)

Photos of Gizmo here (http://www.sumption.org/lifeless/002586.html) and here (http://www.sumption.org/lifeless/002584.html).

DanSumption: GIZMO is absolutely Gorgeous what a fantastic specimen of the Lurcher (type) breed!!!

I have been on a rescue site today of Lurchers in Halifax I'd take them all home if I could. Where is Gizmo from???

:thumbsup: :clap: :thumbsup:

Originally posted by technophobe
Where is Gizmo from???
We got him from the RSPCA in town, but apparently they got him from another RSPCA in Cambridgeshire where he'd been (along with a load of other lurchers & greyhounds) for several months without finding a home.

Glad you like him :)

Tonight, whilst in the car I spotted a fox running across the tram tracks at Shalesmoor. This is the second time I've seen the sly little fella in the same area.

Just wondered if anyone else had spotted our vulpine city companion?

We've had a Heron thread recently. Do we know of any other strange wildlife lurking in our city streets?

I've often seen foxes around Myrtle Road, junction with Midhill Road. Suspect they live in the railway embankment.

Lots here (http://www.sheffieldforum.co.uk/showthread.php?s=&threadid=32608) :)

I hear foxes crying most nights.

Woodhouse is full of foxes. People leave chicken bones lying about for them and I've had to fish the brittle dangerous things out of Brude's throat more than once :mad:

Usually a pair of foxes living in the Springvale Road area (bottom end). A couple of years ago on a fine spring morning when I was taking the kids to school there were a couple of cubs sunning themselves at the side of the road......cue big aaawwwwws from kids who wanted to adopt them there and then.

Often have owls, frogs, bats, hedgehogs round here.

Just thought I'd introduce you to one of our garden regulars.

http://photobucket.com/albums/y96/saxon51/?action=view&current=FOX2.jpg

Saw a heron at 4:15 this afternoon at Ladys Bridge! It was stood at the bottom of the weir almost under the bridge taking absolutely no notice of the traffic roaring above it.

I know herons do come into built up areas but Ladys Bridge! Perhaps it was deaf?

i have loads of frogs in my garden but no pond, its awful cutting the grass, we have a large bucket in which we put any frogs that show up in to make sure they dont get the chop!

there was a family of foxes that used to come round which i did not like much as they ripped a cat apart in my garden, i was informed it was probably really ill or roadkill as they do not usually attack cats but it was not very nice finding the remains which was only a head , tail, paws and full skeleton still intact but stripped to bone!

i do not get many birds as my area is full of cats, only the magpies are brave enough to land!

i have seen bats and owls though regulary

soooooooooo sweet.
have an owl outside my house in greystones and see squirells all the time hanging out on my neighbours roof ... more activity from when I lived in the middle of the country !!!

This year's been amazing for wildlife in my garden, to date we've had bats, owls, 2 families of hedgehogs, foxes, frogs, toads (what's the difference?)and the more 'boring' things like squirrils and magpies. My favorite is 'Bob' the tame pigeon who comes into the house whenever the door's open and has a fondness for scalding tea if i should ever leave a cup handy, and will peck anything out from under my fingernails - trouble is he does tend to poo rather a lot (green at first then goes white...).

We have owls "hooting?" all night, foxes in the gardens, squirrels stealing the bird nuts by chewing off the end of the bag, and today i saw a kestrel swoop down and catch a mouse or something on Leighton Road! wow, in broad daylight. The wildlife at Gleadless is amazing. And there are thousands of cats that look like they are related.

In the field at the side of the house this morning, - two cock pheasants, two very large hares, one rabbit, several crows, four mistle thrushes (two of which took off to chase a kestrel which had landed on the power line, and a curlew flying over.

In the garden, chaffinches, green finches, goldfinches, blackbirds, a woodpecker, robin and several tits of various types...and that damn squirrel :mad:

We rarely see a fox round here, - I think they prefer the pickings available in the gardens down in the village.

The crows were so loud this morning at 6am, sounded like a flock of bloody Pterodactyls.

Originally posted by nick2
The crows were so loud this morning at 6am, sounded like a flock of bloody Pterodactyls.

The crows near us are also in full force - they keep chasing the magpies. Some great fights going on. Think the lady crows must be nesting and the manly macho crows are keeping the naughty magpies away. Fantastic to watch....

As you may have read on other posts, I've recently got back into running and one of the attractions living where we do in Sheffield is that we are surrounded by wildlife. We are very lucky.

A couple of Sundays back I ran down Wyming Brook. The sound of the birds, the spectacle of seeing so many different varieties going about their everyday business, along with the sound of rushing water just made me feel so glad to get out.

Then last Saturday I ran up to Redmires Dams passing horses in the fields and no doubt other wildlife scuttling around. Then on running back towards Sheffield, the views over the city and beyond, and nearer, over Rivelin and further toward Loxley and Stannington with for once, the sun shining, blue sky and a fresh wind.

How can anyone NOT enjoy that?!

Going off of the subject slightly I work in Attercliffe and am always amazed at the amount of wildlife particularly along the canal where kingfishers are a common sight.
however this dinner time I spoke with a chap who regularly walks his dog along the section between Staniforth road ad Shirland Lane.
The variety of animal life on that section is amazing but the squirrels and rabbits have gone from there and the Ripon Street fields.
This chap told me that the City council had been putting poison down or he thinks introducing myxamatosis. He claims to have seen them putting stuff down and collecting bodies of rabbits.

This I believe begs the question why?, it is an industrial area and wild rabbits and grey sqirrels aren't everyones cup of tea surely this is unnessecary. and costly.
Has anyone any info

I can't believe that the council would spend money in trying to kill what are not really vermin or doing any harm in what is an industrial area. Can anyone from the council shed any light on this?

I keep seeing a very large heron in Rivelin Valley. It seems to have little fear of humans. I recently had a picnic near where it was perched, surveying a pond for fish. Several joggers passed near to it and it barely acknowledged them or us, only occasionally giving a disdainful glance. I once saw one in the tiny bit of river next to Staples carpark across from St Mary's church.

Originally posted by ellesbelles
Going off of the subject slightly I work in Attercliffe and am always amazed at the amount of wildlife particularly along the canal where kingfishers are a common sight.
however this dinner time I spoke with a chap who regularly walks his dog along the section between Staniforth road ad Shirland Lane.
The variety of animal life on that section is amazing but the squirrels and rabbits have gone from there and the Ripon Street fields.
This chap told me that the City council had been putting poison down or he thinks introducing myxamatosis. He claims to have seen them putting stuff down and collecting bodies of rabbits.

This I believe begs the question why?, it is an industrial area and wild rabbits and grey sqirrels aren't everyones cup of tea surely this is unnessecary. and costly.
Has anyone any info
Originally posted by Snoopy

I can't believe that the council would spend money in trying to kill what are not really vermin or doing any harm in what is an industrial area. Can anyone from the council shed any light on this?

I am a city councillor. I have copied this first post and sent it by e-mail to a senior council officer for checking. Will post again when I have a reply.

As promised, I made enquiries with a senior council officer, and I quote his reply.......

"The Environmental Services Division, Pest Control Section have NOT been putting poison down for rabbits or squirrels here, or anywhere else for that matter.

With regard to "myxomatosis" it is of course illegal to use this disease of rabbits as a control method. Myxomatosis is a viral disease, endemic in the rabbit population & is spread via the rabbit flea, which is why wild populations are more susceptible as fleas are more common among wild rabbits. Mosquitoes have also been implicated (but not proven) in the spread of the disease but it is very rare for the virus to be spread simply through close contact of infected rabbits.

I hope this answers your queries.

Regards

Neil Wilkinson
Assistant Manager (Pest Control & Operations)
Environmental Services
Gayton Road
Sheffield
S4 7D"

Can we now stop these new urban myths from being spread.

There is a heron in Rivlin valley that has an injured wing, some say it has been shot, some say it had a short arrow in it, some say this and some say that. Like Red Robbo if you dont know please do not start these rumours.

However, it had an injured left wing last Sept and has survived the winter and Spring. It is unable to fly far and I am quite concerned that it may get abused. I hope not.

I am from an area of the country where the only wildlife was fleas in a docker's sock so I really appreciate Sheffield, the wildlife and the countryside..............oh, and the Sheffield people.

Thanks to Red Robbo for taking the time to reply , but it is still a mystery as to what has happened to the large number of rabbits on the Ripon Street fields and the area behind Alltools on Staniforth Road. Any ideas??

more likely its down to the rats in that area and the increase in urban foxes (not ladies in town at the weekends) - however we have 100's of rabbits by the side of our unit on the parkway - they are funny to watch in the late evenings..

Oh, definitely!

I can hardly sleet at night cos I'm being kept awake by greedy little owls! :-)

I meant sleep, not sleet!

I am not responsible for bad weather!!

I think this outlines the fact that wildlife in Sheffield is wonderful.
In the middle of the roundabout on Shepcote Lane at 6.30 last night was a pair of Lapwings,

it's nice to hear everyones happy remarks on wildlife ib the city, i live on the outskirts of "sheffield" but have an s postcode. i have instant access to fields & woodlands and regularly spend time watching squirrels,pheasants,frogs & lots of bunny wabbits chasing around.
however to my dismay i overheard 2 housewives chatting whilst walking their dogs one day past my daughters stables, they were actually complaining about the local birds leaving their mark on their conservatory roof & they were trying to find a way to ward then off.

no pleasing some people hey!

Sheffield wildlife is good apart from river don full of rats

well this morning as i was bleary eye and going up my stairs to get my daughters clothes i caught out of the corner of my eye a squirrel...it was scaling the house next door! it obviously saw me and froze then proceeded to climb back down the side of the house.. as i was leaving for work the same squirrel was back up the top and running along the wall! i was amazed at how it was holding on to the side of a building.
i

This evening I've had the 'bat in the house' scenario like one of the other posters a couple of pages back. Must have come down the chimney - usually we have a bird do that every couple of years, but this is the first bat. Fortunately I managed to coax him into a cardboard box and took him out to the garden. At least he was a lot more calm about it than the birds have been.

Just as a matter of interest, does anyone know if any of the Sheffield bats carry rabies or any other unpleasant diseases? I put a pair of gardening gloves on just in case!

Along the stretch of the Don between the Bridge Inn, Weedon St & Load Hog (near Forgemasters), if you lean over the wall about halfway along the path there's the most beautifull wild iris growing on the bank. It's a very bright yellow & has massive flowers.
Nice.

I watched 2 men fishing that part of the Don on Thursday morning for about 15 mins; they caught loads of fish! :clap:

At approx 15.30 most days there are 2 huge white geese that appear just under the bridge at the Bridge Inn Weedon St bit too. Aaahhhh! :D

we have lots of birds in our garden.

there are also lots of foxes round here.

its great to see them all!

I used to walk the riverside path from Weedon St. to the back of the Carbrook hotel on the way to work and saw plenty of wildlife along there.

Kingfishers, Dippers and Grey Wagtails on the island below the weir, - quite often a Heron perched on the weir and Coots nesting in the banks by the bridge.

And as you say,- plenty of fish in the river there, including some good size trout.

Originally posted by Internetowl
We have a fox - who come regularly - I'm always leaving it bits out to eat. Do foxes eat rats? just since the fox has been about we've not seen any of the rats that used to live at the bottom of next doors garden....

A couple of years ago I saw a fox catch a rat in next door's garden, it played with it the way a cat will play with a mouse - it took about two hours for it to finally the finish the poor thing off. Quite recently I saw a fox walking through the garden with a squirrel hanging out of its mouth.

Dragging up this old thread again.

1 am in the morning and have spent five great minutes watching a pair of foxes (dog & vixen I assume) slowly wandering around opposite our house staking their patch out for their next batch of cubs (I hope).

Originally posted by Longcol
Dragging up this old thread again.

1 am in the morning and have spent five great minutes watching a pair of foxes (dog & vixen I assume) slowly wandering around opposite our house staking their patch out for their next batch of cubs (I hope).

Wow! Urban foxes Longcol? What's opposite where you live - green fields?

Originally posted by Longcol
Dragging up this old thread again.

1 am in the morning and have spent five great minutes watching a pair of foxes (dog & vixen I assume) slowly wandering around opposite our house staking their patch out for their next batch of cubs (I hope).

Tax credits are so great !

No - a narrow but steep bank of woodland - which - praise to the council planners - they have designated as - not sure of the technical term but basically - to be kept green and not for housing.
:thumbsup:

I've received reprots of a green woodpecker in the Jervis Lum (Norfolk Heritage Park). Haven't seen (or heard) it myself though. Anyone know any more?

We see Green and Great Spotted Woodies here in the Rivelin Valley.

They are often pecking at my nuts.

I have seen and caught brown trout in the city centre :D these fish are a sign of how clean the rivers are around sheffield as you can usually only see them in upland river/streams

Support all this fabulous wildlife...

Support Sheffield Wildlife Trust

"Protecting Wildlife for the Future"

Call 0114 2634335 to enquire about membership, or visit the website at www.wildsheffield.com (http://www.wildsheffield.com)

On a couple of occasions I've seen an urban fox on Endcliffe Vale Road. It was by the junction with Wiseton Road, running off into someone's front garden.

I've also seen rats on three occasions by the Endcliffe student village though, so he can't be that proficient a rat-catcher. :P

I have seen a fox along our back garden. A heron visits occasionally (not put off by the plastic one). There are loads of mice and voles (mostly brought in alive by the cats) and hedgehogs (followed but not caught by the cats). In our pond, we have the usual selection of frogs and toads, which provide endless amusement to the youngest cat - he will creep round the pond, touching them with his paw just to watch them jump! We also have newts, including the rare Great Crested Newt. There are the usual assortment of birds; coal tits, great tits, blue tits, robins, blackbirds and thrushes etc and a kingfisher turned up once, last winter.

At my old flat we used to stay up all hours of the night watching the foxes in the woods next to us, feeding them, and so on. We also used to scare off the men who would bring terriers and try and dig them out by calling out the Wildlife Trust people (saying they were badgers ;) ). The little ones were SOOOOOOOOOOO cute and one of them was so brazen, he never ran off when cars came along or anything. I see one occasionally padding around since I've moved but not very often.

Always see loads of squirrels (even more so around work) but never seen a hedgehog since I've lived my end. I once saw a kestrel scare the living s**t out of a load of pigeons which was quite funny and I've seen a heron fly slowly over once or twice, possibly to the pond in the woods.


My mum has loads of bird feeders on her patio at Wincobank and on a good day it's like the main runway at Heathrow with birds flying in and out.

my husband works at a factory near to meadowhall,and they have ferral cats coming in and last night a fox wandered in to take a look.

I was driving up Chesterfield Rd tonight and a fox ran accross the road in front of my car......I missed the verminous creature though :rolleyes:

There's loads of wagtails wandering round Sheffield City Airport, as well as lots of crows (or ravens - not sure what the difference is!!) - not sure if any of them have landing permission! I even saw a grouse sat outside once, and a rabbit on the roundabout by the airport.

Also seen herons flying past my window at Riverside Exchange

going with the wildlife theme whats the opinion of the grey squirril cull good or bad thing

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/4635330.stm

going with the wildlife theme whats the opinion of the grey squirril cull good or bad thing
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A neccessary evil, though it will be unlikely to affect the numbers of grey squirrels in Sheffield parks and gardens. Bark stripping seems to be the result of overpopulation, - the squirrels don't actually eat the bark, but what they do eat are the eggs and nestlings of songbirds so a cull should help many species of these recover.

Personally I think a sterilisation programme is more acceptable than mass murder, but the situation has become critical in some areas, ie they've left it too late for any other course of action to be effective.

I used to work in Meltham, and my morning commute would take me over Strines Moor, where I would regularly see a Short Eared Owl hunting, and on one occassion it flew along the road, in front of my car for fifty yards.

Not only are brownies returning to the Don, but salmon too. There is a project to put Salmon Ladders in all the weirs and locks between here and Doncaster, so that Salmon Pastures may yet fill with Salmon again.

I have seen a kingfisher on the Don opposite Aizlewood's Mill (although that was before the Exchange Brewery was redeveloped, and occasionally you see sparrowhawks taking pigeons round Nether Edge.

And there are Badgers, Squirrels, Jays and Amphibians in Brincliffe Edge woods.

Upto 1990 I worked at a factory on the banks of the River Don at Neepsend. I was lucky from about the mid 1980s owards to see king fishers daily.

When work was rubbish it was a real pickup to stand at the window, and see if I could spot that flash of blue as a king fisher darted along the river.

Any urban twitchers should get themselves to the general cemetery. I'm not a bird expert myself, but the visitors 'in the know' that we get are amazed at the number of birds we have so near the city centre. Birds of prey, water birds, kingfishers, owls, lots of species you don't get in the average back garden (so I'm told), as well as foxes, bats and loads of frogs and butterflies. I even saw a weasel dancing about at close range. Although the cemetery looks very tidied up now, the are still enough habitats to encourage diversity. Oh, and there's even trout in the river by the Gatehouse. The volunteers are a bit wild too!

We used to have foxes near us on the Callow flats at Newfield Green; spent many an early hour up watching and feeding them.

And although blue tits aren't particularly rare, I was sat at my desk on Friday and a little fluffy one came flapping frantically looking for somewhere to land. Then its parent arrived so I'm guessing it had just bailed out of the nest for the first time. There's also a magpie (again, not strictly wildlife or rare) that keeps bin-diving outside our window, which is highly entertaining as there's no graceful way of getting into the bin, it just falls in. Then there are the squirrels which sit on the wall licking empty yogurt pots ....

I saw a lot of wildlife up in north yorkshire yesterday, including several kestrels, pheasants, a badger, couple of foxes, handful of rabbits .... unfortunately only the kestrels were actually alive :(

i live at kelham island, overlooking the river - its about 0.5 mils from city centre, I regularly see herons, owls, kingfishers, otters, water voles, gooseanders, mallards, geese, long tailed tits, great tits, woodpeckers, blue tits, robins - sheffield is great for wildlife. I'm all into protecting trees etc - I was in the paper not long ago for chaining my self to a tree!

I regularly get a varied selection of birds, heron and ypung kestrel .. plus, bats, fox, frogs, hedgehogs, squirrels and recently a couple a badgers in our garden.