Jos's Baltic Mammal Challenge 2015 (1 Viewer)

[Jos Stratford]

8-10 May. Bats et al, eastern Lithuania.

Warm days and evenings at last, migrant birds pouring in (Thrush Nightingales, Golden Orioles, Hobbies, etc), but better still for the mammal challenge, better odds of finding bats at night. Drew a blank at Dukštos, failed to find any along the river in Vilnius, but stumbled upon a positive soup of bats congregating over and around a small wooded pool north-east of Verkiai ...an hour or so after dark, the bat detector started going crazy, clicks and smacking sounds at various frequencies. At least three species present, with both Daubenton's Bat and Barbastelle both identified and a third species rather less clear, perhaps Leisler's Bat.

Using the detector to point, was also able to spotlight the bats, the Daubenton's Bats zooming around over the water, the Barbastelles zooming in along the edges. Meanwhile, up at Labanoras, Brown Hare seen in the meadows, Red Squirrel and Roe Deer in the forest.


39. Barbastelle Bat



10-23 May. Labanoras Big Ten ...and Two!

The night of the 10th, Bitterns booming, a Savi's Warbler in song, Thrush Nightingales belting out their tunes, time came to spend a night on my land at Labanoras, forgoing the cabin to camp near the pools.

But what a corker for mammals ...ten species on the single evening! Even prior to sunset, things were stirring ...a big Moose by my cabin, a Beaver in my pool, then yet another Beaver in a drainage ditch! Not a bad start, but as dusk descended, Red Fox and Roe Deer also appeared in the meadows, then stars of the night, both Soprano Pipistrelle and Daubenton's Bats began hawking the waters in front of the cabin. Classic stuff, the first confirmed bat species for my land!

And to round the action off, after dark rewards included Brown Hare and Stone Marten, with Yellow-necked Mouse and Bank Vole added thanks to live traps. A few days later, two more ... Red Deer and Red Squirrel also seen, a purple patch indeed at Labanoras!


40. Soprano Pipistrelle

 

[Jos Stratford]

24 May. Lithuanian Dormice, Part Two.

The rare one! Of the three species of dormice in Lithuania, Forest Dormouse is the rarest, known to inhabit only two forest blocks in the entire country. So it was, with many thanks to Lithuania's number one dormouse researcher, I found myself at a forest edge in middle Lithuania on this sunny morning.

In front of us, a quadrate of fairly dense pine fores, light pockets of deciduous mixed in. Not ideal looking dormouse habitat! However, a grid of 60 nestboxes lay across the forest, home in some years to six or even eight Forest Dormice, plus the occasional Hazel Dormouse too.

Thirty boxes we checked, Great Tits and Coal Tits on eggs or young, a few Pied Flycatchers too, but not a sign of a dormouse. In the second half of the grid however, the habitat is rather better, adjacent forest clearings offer better feeding habitat and box number 36 produced the goods! In a ball of a nest, someone was snoozing! Carefully extracting (these critters bite), a smile from my companion ...moments later, I was face to face with my first ever Forest Dormouse! Highway man face mask, chubby cheeks, a right nice ball of fluff! Fortunately, he was a little dozy, so between the obligatory weighing and checking of ring number, he was quite content to allow a few photographs.

Gently returned to the nestbox, we wondered over to box 37 and ...Hazel Dormouse! Super, we'd checked boxes for over an hour and a half with nothing, then got two species in two boxes! Completing the full 60 boxes, we found one more Forest Dormouse, a very active individual, no chance of pictures and quite happy to bite too!

So a successful day, species number 41 for the year!


41. Forest Dormouse

 

[Jos Stratford]

Darn cute critters...

 

[Gretchen]

Yes, quite cute, and just a little fierce looking. I thought the sleeping fat dormouse was also awfully photogenic!

 

[Farnboro John]

Yes, quite cute, and just a little fierce looking. I thought the sleeping fat dormouse was also awfully photogenic!

The sleeper is a Hazel Dormouse, but I agree it is at the upper end of cute!

John

 

[Jos Stratford]

28-29 May. Up the Bats!

Superb thing is the bat detector ...getting quite into the swing of the sounds now, many of the species surprisingly easy to identify by a combination of the frequency, pattern and type of call, along with flight style of the actual bat. Latest bunch to be added to the list ...

On the 28th, a Nathusius's Pipistrelle 20 km west of Vilnius ...one fast-flying individual zooming around over my head at the edge of open woodland adjacent to reeded pool. Call frequency peaking at almost spot on 40 kHz, wet slaps and clicks.

On the 29th, several Noctule Bats and one Serotine Bat feeding along the well-wooded banks of the River Neris in Vilnius city.



42. Nathusius's Pipistrelle

43. Serotine Bat


Picture: city centre bat locality

 

[Jos Stratford]

5-8 June. Teddy Bear's Picnic, Return to Estonia.


Day One.
675 km slog north again, destination the forests of Alutaguse in north-east Estonia. Departed Lithuania mid-afternoon for a fairly uneventful drive up, one American Mink in Latvia, one Red Fox and one Roe Deer in Estonia. Arrived near midnight, a quick drive around the forest revealing little other than a couple of Woodcocks and several Nightjars. Bed at 1.00 a.m.


Day Two.
4.00 a.m., the temperature a mere 1 C, weak sun cutting through mists rising over damp meadows. A male Montagu's Harrier at roost, a racket of Corncrakes calling from all quarters, a male Red-backed Shrike on a bush. Into the forest I went, my first serious attempt to locate a Brown Bear in this, probably one of the best areas for the species in Europe.

Five hours later, the day warming up to a pleasant mid-teens affair, the mammal quest was looking a bit of a flop ...one Brown Hare all I had for my efforts. Still, Goshawk, Lesser Spotted Eagle and regular Common Rosefinches and Thrush Nightingales were not so bad! Breakfast retreat, then another sortie into the forest ...one Roe Deer and one cracking set of fresh Brown Bear tracks, neat stuff plodding through wet mud! Following on from this, relaxed for much of the day, adventures were to come!

Deep in a chunk of the Alutaguse pine forests, a small clearing exists. Echoing to the calls of Cuckoos and distant Cranes, a nondescript clearing perhaps, but on the edge, tucked up against the pines, there stand a couple of rather special hides. Constructed by NaTourEst, an Estonian wildlife company, these are the bear-watching hides! From spring through to autumn, daily offerings of grain, fruit and other tasty morsels tempt in an array of nocturnal visitors, Brown Bears the top billing. And so it was, a little after 5.30 p.m. I arrived in my little hide and settled down. Till 8.00 a.m. next morning I would be here, but would Brown Bears grace me with their presence? Most nights they do appear, but by no means are they absolutely guaranteed!


And so the evening ticked by:

5.50 p.m. One Black Woodpecker calling, Great Spotted Woodpeckers at a feeder, Pied Flycatchers in and out of a nestbox, Cuckoos calling all around, a trill of a Wood Warbler.
6.00 p.m. A Red Fox appears, hesitant and brief, trots off into the forest beyond.
6.20 p.m. The first Raccoon Dog of the evening arrives, sniffes about, meanders off.
6.25 p.m. Two Raccoon Dogs together, thereafter a constant coming and going of Raccoon Dogs, animals always in view, mostly in pairs, a maximum of four together, probably 6+ visiting.
7.50 p.m. A Red Fox reappears, looks to be the same individual as earlier, Raccoon Dogs still present.
8.40 p.m. The first lull of the evening - Raccoon Dogs absent for the first time in over two hours. Great Spotted Woodpeckers feeding, nothing much else.
8.53 p.m. Single Raccoon Dog briefly, Crane calling in background.
9.20 p.m. Remaining quiet, Great Spotted Woodpecker still active. After a grand total of three hours sleep the night before, almost dozed off ...could have been a critical mistake!
9.23 p.m. Pair of Raccoon Dogs return.
9.30 p.m. Raccoon Dogs still present, Great Spotted Woodpecker returns to feed for last time this evening, Cuckoos still calling.
9.33 p.m. Raccoon Dogs depart.
9.47 p.m. Two different Raccoon Dogs arrive, feeding on bait.
9.54 p.m. Raccoon Dogs depart. I nearly fell asleep again!
10.05 p.m. Single Raccoon Dog walks in, present for duration.
10.20 p.m. Raccoon Dog departs.
10.27 p.m. Light beginning to fade, two Wild Boars appear in the forest to the right, trot through clearing and exit left. A slight worry about the lack of bears!
10.40 p.m. Presumably the same animals, two Wild Boars appear in the far edge of the clearing, slowly edging in to feed.
10.48 p.m. The Wild Boars depart, a final Raccoon Dog of the evening passes through, one Nightjar begins to sing.
11.00 p.m. Pretty dark, main bait area bathed in low light, but Raccoon Dogs either absent or missed in the twilight. Several Nightjars calling.
11.30 p.m. Half an hour passed with almost nothing happening, still light enough to scan well with binoculars. Beginning to think there will be no bears this night!
11.40 p.m. Heart jumps, from the forest to the left, one big beast moving in. One fantastic Brown Bear, a large blond-headed individual. Saunters over to the feeding area, remaining light catching the animal a treat. Feeds constantly for next 50 minutes, ambling around on occasion, sitting up and looking around. Truly an atmospheric end to the evening, a wild Brown Bear less than 100 metres distant, ambling around in the perpetual light of an Estonian night. Magical.
00.30 a.m. With the Brown Bear still feeding and me most content, I unroll the sleeping bag and retire for the night.


I awoke several times through the night and peered out, but saw nothing more. Next morning, as sun dappled the forest, Pied Flycatchers were in song, Cranes flew over. My adventures in Alutaguse were over. Retracking my route through the forest, I reclaimed my car and hit the road south. Close on 700 km later, I was back in Lithuania and home.

 

[Jos Stratford]

Photographs of the evening to follow...

 

[Jos Stratford]

Photographs from the bear night, poor photographic light for the critters!

1. Tracks in the mud.
2. Home for the Night
3. Raccoon Dog
4. Raccoon Dog
5. Wild Boar

 

[Jos Stratford]

And from the cam that offers 24 hour live view of the site (see HERE), the midnight Brown Bear...

 

[Jos Stratford]

13 June. Success on the Little Front.

After months of turfing out Bank Voles and Yellow-necked Mice from my live traps, finally I caught one of my target species! Setting four traps in the early morning along a grassy ditch just north of Vilnius, I returned a little later to find three out of four triggered, quite a good result in itself!

In the first of these, a very large snail was responsible (!), while in the second a Common Toad had flipped the door close. Hmm, so one out of four containing a small mammal, rather more typical. Fully expecting it to be yet another Bank Vole, into the little observation tank I released the individual ...then the full critter was on show, long tail and black stripe running the length of the back! Striped Field Mouse, nice!

A common species in Lithuania, but nevertheless, an animal that always seemed to evade me. So, species number 44 for the year, and one that I was rather chuffed with.

And then, hot on the heels of that little mouse, some luck on the bats ...spent the evening with the bat detector at various spots around Vilnius - a few localities along the River Neris, then at Verkiai and finally at a pool near Kairėnai. Strange absence of any pipistrelles, but one Daubenton's Bat hawking the lake at Kairėnai and quite a number of Noctule Bats, including some doing impressive dives to catch prey items. Amongst the Noctule Bats, picked up one bat with a slightly different call, similar frequency peaking at a little over 20 kHz, but not quite as forceful and seemingly with more clicks. Recorded the bat and comparing to recording on the internet, Leisler's Bat seems to match. This species is not abundant in Lithuania I think, but does occur in and around Vilnius, so perhaps not that unusual a record.


44. Striped Field Mouse
45. Leisler's Bat.

 

[Jos Stratford]

Unlikely to get any more in June (will be out of the Baltic States), so the basic state of play at the six month mark ...45 species recorded, all but four actually seen.

Still some relatively easy species to add to the list in the coming months, Brown Rat, House Mouse and Fallow Deer amongst them (that said, I have never actually seen a House Mouse in the Baltic States). Could also get Black Rat (but also only ever seen one of these in the Baltic States) and one or two other rodents and hopefully a shrew or two.

Full list so far:

1. Western Hedgehog
2. Eastern Hedgehog
3. European Mole (signs only)
4. Serotine Bat
5. Northern Bat
6. Barbastelle
7. Brown Long-eared Bat
8. Noctule Bat
9. Leisler's Bat
10. Soprano Pipistrelle
11. Nathusius’s Pipistrelle
12. Brant’s Bat
13. Natterer’s Bat
14. Pond Bat
15. Daubenton’s Bat
16. Wolf (tracks only)
17. Racoon Dog
18. Red Fox
19. European Lynx (tracks only)
20. Brown Bear
21. Stoat
22. European Polecat
23. American Mink
24. Stone Marten
25. Pine Marten
26. Badger (tracks only)
27. Eurasian Otter
28. Grey Seal
29. Ringed Seal
30. Wild Boar
31. Red Deer
32. Roe Deer
33. Elk (Moose)
34. European Bison
35. Brown Hare
36. Mountain Hare
37. Red Squirrel
38. Eurasian Beaver
39. Forest Dormouse
40. Hazel Dormouse
41. Bank Vole
42. Water Vole
43. Common Vole
44. Striped Field Mouse
45. Yellow-necked Mouse

 

[rosbifs]

And from the cam that offers 24 hour live view of the site (see HERE), the midnight Brown Bear...

Thats live right? Just seen a racoon dog - about to write and say nothing doing! cuckoo calling - mega windy! 12.55 french time.

Redwing calling...

 

[rosbifs]

another racoon dog about 9 oclock on a clock face - below sloping dead tree....

18.45 french time

 

[rosbifs]

now a woodpidgeon and a woodpecker (great spot) on the deck feeding...

 

[Gladiator96]

Wow that's a fantastic live stream. Great quality and no stuttering. Just been staring at it for a few minutes and already seen a raccoon dog.

 

[rosbifs]

and heres the bear 23.48 according to the webcam time! he moved pretty quickly from the top left...

23.50 now there's two.

 

[Jos Stratford]

Wow that's a fantastic live stream. Great quality and no stuttering. Just been staring at it for a few minutes and already seen a raccoon dog.

and heres the bear 23.48 according to the webcam time! he moved pretty quickly from the top left...

23.50 now there's two.

Thought it was worth having a thread dedicated to the bear cam so others might have chance to see too ...please update in BEAR CAM THREAD rather than here.


Leaving the Baltics tillt he end of the month now, so nothing more from me on this thread.

 

[Jos Stratford]

Lithuanian Dormice, Number 3

After time-out for explorations in the Sahara, then a distraction with butterflies, my Baltic Mammal Challenge has been stumbling a little!

Mammals in July proved few and far between and I also failed to catch anything at all in small mammal traps! Not all was doom and gloom however, as one classic mammal was added – with much gratitude to a post-graduate studying them, I accompanied a student on a nestbox check in Dukstos Regional Park. Our quarry was Fat Dormouse, a rare species in Lithuania restricted to just ten known localities.

Forty nestboxes to check, monitoring and repairs to boxes the basic aim, but mine clearly to find one of the elusive dormice, which, if successful, would not only result in a new species for me, but also complete the grand slam of the Lithuanian dormice! Two sectors for us to check, 20 boxes in each. So round we plodded, scrambling through high vegetation, checking box after box. Droppings of Fat Dormouse in a few, empty nests in a couple, dead Wryneck chicks in one, but as we approached box 16, no actual dormouse! Hmm, not looking good.

As the box 16 was opened however, a wry smile ...somebody was home! One Fat Dormouse asleep in the box! It turns out that this was actually an animal that had been injured earlier in the season, its snout badly injured and skull exposed, quite possibly in a close shave with an owl. After a period of recuperation in captivity, the animal had been released again and now seemed to be doing well. Nice, but not wishing to subject the animal to undue disturbance, I can't say the views were very very good – a bundle of fur asleep with a big bushy tail over the top, then in the hand for quick examination! Maybe better views in another box, but not a single further individual did we find in the remainder of this sector.

Still, another 20 boxes to check on the opposite side of the forest. With more hazel in the mix, this was apparently better habitat for Fat Dormice ...and so it turned out, very soon we found another one, this time peeking out of the nest at us, then an amazing pair in another box, then incredibly two more singles in another two boxes! Superb, nice views of them watching from the boxes, plus one deciding that he had enough enough of us and running out of the box and straight up the tree to watch from a branch up above.

Edible Dormouse, species number 46 for the year.


Photographs: beasties and home...

 

[rosbifs]

Thank god you're back. With permanent working here I have been restricted to very little birding activity over the last three weeks - occassional bear cam and a couple of detours on the way back from the cash and carry.