Beginning with bats...
A batty slideshow
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When we first came to Ducks we noticed a lot of bats. The more we looked, the more bats we saw. There was obviously a roost under the tiles above the attic room, now christened 'The bat cave.' Later on we saw small bats emerging from the eaves on each gable end of the original part of the cottage. We discovered a Bat Survey was in operation in North Devon via the Devon Wildlife Trust. We signed up and had a detector here that recorded over three nights in June 2023. We had over 7700 detections. Most were attributed to soprano pipistrelle. The next most numerous were common pipistrelle. In total we had 14 species of bat recorded, including the very rare plecotus grey long eared bat, which was 99% certain as to the species identification, but flagged up as unexpected. The Trust have been keen to get data from North Devon as there has been little surveying done previously, so the plecotus grey long eared bat may be more common than was thought. |
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The September 2024 bat survey
Over 5800 detections, consisting of feeding, echolocation and social calls, 13 species, most prevalent being soprano pipistrelle, with common
pipistrelle accounting for about 1700.
We can be confident, due to the amount of detection hits, that the bats living here are the two pipistrelle species, with the others living locally and passing through or feeding here. We regularly see the larger bats flying along the lane in front of the cottage, probably because they fly slower, and
emerge earlier in the evening.
It is a fantastic sight to see them flitting out of the eaves and making their seemingly erratic flights out into the surrounding garden and fields, hunting for insects to eat. The amount of bats here suggests there is a plentiful supply for them.
Below are the results from the two surveys. The 2024 one had so much data it needed to be uploaded in two chunks.
Detection results identifying all species are unverified, but give a good indication of what is going on while we're asleep.
Click the pictures below to open a PDF version
pipistrelle accounting for about 1700.
We can be confident, due to the amount of detection hits, that the bats living here are the two pipistrelle species, with the others living locally and passing through or feeding here. We regularly see the larger bats flying along the lane in front of the cottage, probably because they fly slower, and
emerge earlier in the evening.
It is a fantastic sight to see them flitting out of the eaves and making their seemingly erratic flights out into the surrounding garden and fields, hunting for insects to eat. The amount of bats here suggests there is a plentiful supply for them.
Below are the results from the two surveys. The 2024 one had so much data it needed to be uploaded in two chunks.
Detection results identifying all species are unverified, but give a good indication of what is going on while we're asleep.
Click the pictures below to open a PDF version
We are so lucky to have them residing here, and feel these much maligned and misunderstood animals should be treasured.
For more pictures and information on the bats in North Devon, please look at Devon Bat Group's website, and also The Bat Conservation Trust for all UK bat information.
For more pictures and information on the bats in North Devon, please look at Devon Bat Group's website, and also The Bat Conservation Trust for all UK bat information.
The Bat Survey also recorded sounds from other creatures, including mice. We were surprised, and highly delighted, to see both hazel dormouse, harvest mouse, and pygmy shrew on the list.
The hazel dormouse was given a 0.57 on the probability. Anything over 0.5 is considered to be a definite reading but results are not verified. The sure way to verify an animal being here is to find them, which we hope to do in the future.
Bear in mind that the microphone was pointing upwards at 45° to detect bats, rather than mice. These mice and shrews are excellent, and acrobatic, climbers.
Hazel dormice population has shrunk by 70% since 2000, and have disappeared from 20 English counties. GB Red List: Red list: Vulnerable (VU); a 2023 study suggests the Red List classification should be revised to Endangered (EN).
Optimal dormouse habitat is generally considered to be early successional woodland, a mix of new growth and established trees. But dormice are found in other wooded habitats as well, and may be less strict habitat specialists than was once thought. They are found in scrub, coniferous plantations, hedgerows, and on roadside and railway verges, and appear more adaptable than it was first believed.
The hazel dormouse was given a 0.57 on the probability. Anything over 0.5 is considered to be a definite reading but results are not verified. The sure way to verify an animal being here is to find them, which we hope to do in the future.
Bear in mind that the microphone was pointing upwards at 45° to detect bats, rather than mice. These mice and shrews are excellent, and acrobatic, climbers.
Hazel dormice population has shrunk by 70% since 2000, and have disappeared from 20 English counties. GB Red List: Red list: Vulnerable (VU); a 2023 study suggests the Red List classification should be revised to Endangered (EN).
Optimal dormouse habitat is generally considered to be early successional woodland, a mix of new growth and established trees. But dormice are found in other wooded habitats as well, and may be less strict habitat specialists than was once thought. They are found in scrub, coniferous plantations, hedgerows, and on roadside and railway verges, and appear more adaptable than it was first believed.
The pygmy shrew was flagged up over ten times on the bat survey, but with low confidence in the detection.
Pygmy shrews are actually very common, a tiny mammal with greyish brown fur above and off-white fur below.
They are highly territorial and mostly solitary, living for not much more than a year on average. They are voracious hunters. Their diet includes beetles, spiders, woodlice and crickets, which we have in abundance.
As with all shrews they are very feisty, with the sharpest of teeth, as anyone who has attempted to rescue one from a cat will attest to.
Due to their small size and metabolic rate they have to consume up 1.25 times their body weight a day in order to survive. They weight no more than 6g, but that is a lot of beetles and woodlice.
They are found throughout mainland Britain and Ireland, as well as the Isle of Man and Outer Hebrides where, interestingly, they are in fact the only shrew species, it appears they thrive on islands, probably where there are less predators. This is the case on Lundy Island where there is a colony. Some live, and are regularly spotted, in Castle Cottage and Tibbett's.
Pygmy shrews are actually very common, a tiny mammal with greyish brown fur above and off-white fur below.
They are highly territorial and mostly solitary, living for not much more than a year on average. They are voracious hunters. Their diet includes beetles, spiders, woodlice and crickets, which we have in abundance.
As with all shrews they are very feisty, with the sharpest of teeth, as anyone who has attempted to rescue one from a cat will attest to.
Due to their small size and metabolic rate they have to consume up 1.25 times their body weight a day in order to survive. They weight no more than 6g, but that is a lot of beetles and woodlice.
They are found throughout mainland Britain and Ireland, as well as the Isle of Man and Outer Hebrides where, interestingly, they are in fact the only shrew species, it appears they thrive on islands, probably where there are less predators. This is the case on Lundy Island where there is a colony. Some live, and are regularly spotted, in Castle Cottage and Tibbett's.
The harvest mouse is Britain’s smallest rodent, known by the scientific name Micromys minutus. They make some ultrasound calls, which can be picked up on bat detectors, hence our detecting them on our bat survey. There were few detections, but probability was over 0.70.
What makes them special is that they have a prehensile tail. This means they can use it like a fifth limb, curling it round stems as they go up and down, or to grip on like an anchor to help them keep their balance.
Having an opposable outer toe also helps them to hold onto stems as they climb. Another interesting feature about harvest mice is that they build distinctive spherical nests above ground, amongst vertical stems, made out of woven grass.
They live approximately a year to eighteen months in the wild, and unlike hazel dormice do not hibernate.
Harvest mice weigh approximately 6-8 g and not including their tails are about 5-6cm long.
We are going to be keeping an eye open for evidence of these little creatures. They are on the GB Red list, classified as Near Threatened.
What makes them special is that they have a prehensile tail. This means they can use it like a fifth limb, curling it round stems as they go up and down, or to grip on like an anchor to help them keep their balance.
Having an opposable outer toe also helps them to hold onto stems as they climb. Another interesting feature about harvest mice is that they build distinctive spherical nests above ground, amongst vertical stems, made out of woven grass.
They live approximately a year to eighteen months in the wild, and unlike hazel dormice do not hibernate.
Harvest mice weigh approximately 6-8 g and not including their tails are about 5-6cm long.
We are going to be keeping an eye open for evidence of these little creatures. They are on the GB Red list, classified as Near Threatened.
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We think one draw for the mice is the vast amount of crickets, which were detected by the bat survey also, and the other insects we have, which are scurrying or flying all around the garden and paddocks, due in large part to local farming being mostly animal-based and not using insecticides, compared to monoculture fields of crops that need pest and disease controls, which are not compatible with nature.
Other scurrying creatures we have encountered in the garden are the ubiquitous vole, a family of whom are in the woodshed, and common shrews, along with hedgehogs, rabbits and hares, and Andy has seen a weasel darting around the stone wall below the guests' lawn, He believes it was too small to have been a stoat. It was certainly long and thin, and very quick. In the fields around us we have seen red and fallow deer, and foxes. Badgers are hereabouts, but remain unspotted. Being so close to Meshaw Moor and the corridors of woodland emanating from it, we have a lot of creatures that can travel here safely and make their home here. |
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Avians
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Unsurprisingly, Ducks has a lot of birdlife. Aside the hens and bantams, who provide an egg or two as they see fit, a plethora of species including robins, blackbirds, sparrows, wrens, chiffchaffs, woodpigeons and dunnocks reside, and are constant companions in the garden, along with pied, and grey wagtails, tits (blue, great, marsh, coal, long -tailed and willow varieties), nuthatches and treecreepers, greater -spotted woodpeckers, willow warblers, goldcrests, thrushes (both mistle and song), redwings and starlings are some of the regular visitors and residents. Tawny owls can be heard, frequently during the day, and sometimes seen. A barn owl regularly swoops along the lane, and over the house. Little owls are heard too. An occasional heron makes an appearance. Although in our first summer here the heron lurked around the fish pond, after clearing the garden it seems to no longer take interest in the fish, so far… A few swallows return in April and nest in the old workshop. They have raised two broods these last couple of years. As we have not been here long, we do not know how many used to stay here. As for birds of prey, sparrowhawks and kestrels are regulars, along with buzzards, and a kite is sometimes visible, floating around, along with the ubiquitous corvids. All have their place. Every year new birds appear. We had not seen a treecreeper or willow warbler until the summer of 2024. They were undoubtedly here, but we did not see them. Yellowhammers are also nearby, on Meshaw Moor, we have yet to see one, but the song sounds very familiar... |
Insect life & pond dwellers
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We are fortunate to have two ponds: one with fish, and a larger one on the other side of the bank at the top of the guests' lawn, which is a wildlife haven, providing shelter, breeding sites, nursery and food sources for the creatures who live on, or in, it, and the ones who take advantage of those residents for food.
Water boatmen, whirligig beetles and predaceous diving beetles are always seen in the water, making use of the water tension at the surface. The water boatman is so aptly named. Various freshwater snails live in both ponds. The number of dragonflies, mayflies and damselflies the pond supports is astounding. A vast array of their larvae live in the safety of the aquatic plants, some for years, until they emerge as the stunningly beautiful and delicate, effervescent masters of the air. Hearing the helicopter-like drone of the dragonflies and seeing these fabulous creatures darting around the garden, and the colourful red or azure blue of the damselflies' appearance in late April onwards, suggests summer is imminent. In the garden, shieldbugs of all types are very common, as are the aphid loving ladybirds, whose larvae and adult forms abound in summer. |
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The most numerous insects that we actually notice are bees. There is at least one colony living in the warm Devon banks, particularly on the east side, which is warmed by the sun from dawn onwards. In spring and early summer we have heard a loud buzzing coming from the bank near the house. We believe it is the colony flapping its combined wings to increase the temperature of the hive.
The Verbena and Lavender are favourites of the bees and butterflies. It is interesting to see the bees descend on certain plants at certain times of the day. |
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Amphibians, lizards & molluscs
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Insects are not the only frequenters of the pond and garden. Amphibians are often seen. There are frogs, newts, freshwater snails and leeches in the ponds, all either living in the pond or around it and the garden. The frogs and newts appear in unexpected places. We found a newt on the outside of a patio door. It didn’t photograph too well due to the two panes of glass but you could see the suckers on its toes. Hardly 20mm long, and utterly gorgeous. Frogs and toads are encountered under piles of wood and in the polytunnel, so we have to be watchful for a family of amphibians lurking when moving logs or rocks in and around the garden. As well as the ponds themselves, the leats or ditches, around the perimeter are good hiding places for the frogs, and toads. Generally running with water, even in high summer they are at the very least quite damp. 
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Although we have yet to spot any, there is a high likelihood of lizards and slow worms living here. Previous residents regularly encountered Adders. We have yet to see any, but the warm and easily excavated soil of the Devon banks will provide a safe haven for these retiring creatures. Hopefully there are more species of snakes and lizards that we may see in time. 
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