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Suddenly They Were Here
By Angel Alma You wait and wait, and one morning you’ll notice it. Chirps and shouts, cries, songs, all the typical tunes of migratory birds. They are eager to announce their arrival and declare: “This is my territory.” Some species arrive overnight, like fieldfares. Mum usually walks a certain route to listen until she can…
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Badger Article 5
Badgers cubs Cubs having snuggled down in the sett since February, it is time from May to venture above ground Badger cubs in the UK are typically born in February. They spend their first eight to ten weeks underground in a safe sett, only emerging above ground for the first time in late spring, usually…
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Inventing Your Own Seasons
by Angel Alma Finnish humans like to repeat the mantra about how lovely it is to have four proper seasons. You know the rhyme: Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall… But there are more, namely “mid-seasons”. Summer-Fall, Spring-Winter, and so on. Also, crossings between seasons aren’t as clear as they used to be. Mum loves the…
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Weather Article 2
Northern Blocking in the UK Northern blocking is one of the most influential drivers of UK weather. High pressure building interrupts the jet stream’s usual westward flow in the high latitudes of Greenland, Iceland, or Scandinavia. This “block” forces weather systems to divert around it, often locking the UK into a particular pattern for days…
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Badger Article 4
Badgers in Spring….. Badgers are very active in spring after keeping warm and conserving energy throughout winter. February marks prime cub birth season within the UK. A litter normally has 1-5 cubs, and they will remain tucked up in the sett, feeding from their mum. They will stay underground for a few months. February and…
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Dancing in the Dark
Guest Post–Angel Alma Friday the 16th of January was a special day in Lapland. For the first time in roughly six weeks, dawn broke. It peeked above the horizon at 12:02 p.m. and disappeared at 12:43 p.m. This happened in Utsjoki, in the northernmost part of Finland. Winter nights are long in other parts of our…
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Weather Article 1
#Weathercat: My mummy and I both love the weather. She maintained a weather diary using paper for many years during her youth; now, our garden features a weather station we’ve had for quite some time. She finds it so interesting, exciting, and scary. The UK’s weather feels the impact of its island status plus its…
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Video: The Tigers of Scotland
Narrated by Iain Glen, this independent natural history documentary investigates the Scottish Wildcat, their endangered status and the conservation efforts being undertaken to prevent their extinction. Scottish Wildcats are affectionately known as Highland Tigers. The name originates from their striped fur and that they’re not only one of Britain’s largest predators, but the UK’s only…
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Badgers–Scent Glands (Badger Article 2)
Why you see a badger pop its bottom down on the ground… Scent plays a pivotal role in group and territory maintenance. Valuable tools in the act of scent-marking are the subcaudal gland (SCG), which is close to the anus, and the paired scent glands located just inside the anus—anecdotal observations suggest that scent glands between the…
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Badgers in Winter…(Badger Article 3)
Badgers slow down so much that they can happily go into a deep sleep for days or even weeks during times of harsh weather. This sleep state, torpor, requires a significant sound for awakening, unlike hibernation’s deeper state. Badgers build up reserves of fat during the autumn when there is plenty of food to eat.…
The Anipal Times 