It seems the rats have been breeding down by Falmer Pond. The young ones were out in force today, closely monitored by the adults (which may explain why they’ve become bolder recently in hunting down the food left for the ducks and geese).
There were more rats just along from where I took those shots. These ones were down by the edge of the water.
Others had taken to the heights 😉
The young ones are also learning to climb (just a little bit).
The local population of rats fluctuates through the year, and I have seen them in these numbers before; but clearly too many rats can be a problem which is not helped by the continual duck feeding that goes on several times a day. That’s something that ultimately may need to be controlled. Meanwhile, I’ll photograph them. They do make great subjects and I do find them very entertaining to watch.
Camera note: all photos taken with the Canon 7D Mark II and EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens.
Darko
21 Mar 2015You are right about feeding birds (and them at the same time). The worse is that even feeding a ducks and geese with bread is not good for them because it is not their natural diet. And rats, of course, would eat everything.
Rats in Vancouver are still hiding during the day – haven’t seen them at all except early in the morning. But lately I’ve seen quite a few mice; mild winter was probably in favor of their population.
Words
23 Mar 2015Darko, yes even if people feed grain (and some do) or vegetables the rats will still feel well looked after. A few years ago we stopped putting vegetable peelings into our compost bin when we realized a rat was just waiting inside to be fed. It had learned to hear us coming and sit and wait! Now it’s just garden cuttings that go in there and we don’t have a problem.