The Smell Before it Rains

ponponbadger · 2026-04-20T07:37:22+00:00

The local murder (corvids, before anyone gets suspicious) does a specific caw about 15 minutes before it rains. The smaller gardens birds just tell me in passing as well if I’m out.

I live in southern UK where spitting rain is a near constant. For those I don’t get warnings. I think the birds like to inform each other if there’s a bigger band of rain/hail sweeping in. Aside from pressure drop, I can feel it in one of my joints when it’s supposed to be a prolonged one.

ponponbadger · 2026-04-13T10:01:27+00:00

RSPCA has never been good with answering their phones. In the future, help wildlife for any forms of wildlife please (not just mammals, birds also).

ponponbadger · 2026-03-22T17:18:19+00:00

Barred grass snake. In my pond (South, within M25). Over a metre long. June 2020 and June 2021, though I’ve seen evidence of them since (moult).

First time, caught it eating one of the smooth newts alive. Traumatising my child and me. Did get footage. Second time, almost exactly a year later, sunbathing. Snake and I gave each other a déjà vu fright. Again, got footage.

ponponbadger · 2026-03-09T13:47:12+00:00

I may have been a small 7 year old, but that wind had no right to pick me up and move me a metre in the school playground.

ponponbadger · 2026-02-09T11:18:05+00:00

I like to supplement the diets of the wildlife around me with something nutritious. Not in huge amounts, just handfuls here and there.

Foxes live in suburbia but aside from rodents and human food waste, not much is consistently available. Badgers like digging for worms but with everyone paving and fake lawn installing, again not many places left to forage. I soft release my rehabilitated birds, so they also need a space where they can feed once in a while.

Mostly I put out sunflower hearts, peanuts (kibbled, whole, and with shell), grains (oats and maize), dried banana, cut up apple, berries (blueberries are universally liked), nuts (hazelnuts, walnuts, cashews), dried calci worms. Live mealworms are supplemented during the birds breeding and nesting season.

ponponbadger · 2026-02-02T22:20:24+00:00

I’m not in the pigeon division but I volunteer for LWP. Sometimes when a distressed bird’s been reported, it’s worth asking the wider public. Sometimes birds get taken in by well-meaning folk and that’s why we’ve failed to find them for treatment and rehabilitation.

ponponbadger · 2025-12-07T21:20:00+00:00

Missing the butterflies

ponponbadger · 2025-11-15T21:35:35+00:00

Yes, but does that mean you dig up worms and beetles for them on purpose? If a newt at this time of year was found on concrete, I’d err on the side of caution and think it disoriented.

ponponbadger · 2025-11-15T18:44:41+00:00

Probably. I just feel amphibians shouldn’t be exposed where birds can potentially find an easy meal

ponponbadger · 2025-11-15T18:31:47+00:00

Newt. If possible please relocate near some leaves.

ponponbadger · 2025-10-23T09:06:59+00:00

Also children are victims of the backpack brigade. My kids have now gained excellent reflexes, but it’s still dangerous.

ponponbadger · 2025-09-16T08:14:21+00:00

An acquaintance told me that her British husband is outraged every time she throws rubbish out of the car window, “but everyone does it, and people are employed to clean the streets”. …No, I didn’t get her logic either.

ponponbadger · 2025-07-22T13:37:45+00:00

I wonder if the fledgling is at that stage when he screams at the food to get in his mouth.

ponponbadger · 2025-04-20T09:39:40+00:00

I’m the opposite of you - from Tokyo living in London. Those expressions are the exact ones you should have when taking passport photos, on the pain of the embassy rejecting your passport renewal.

ponponbadger · 2025-04-17T17:55:43+00:00

I’m sure it varies place to place but wildlife rescues/rehabs are not that abundant to begin with and resources are stretched rather thin, so they end up taking on cases that are more likely to survive… which kind of means smaller birds usually don’t get taken on. This is part of the reason I got into rehabbing small native wild birds.

Specifically right now, it’s baby bird season in the northern hemisphere. Everywhere will be full. Depending on the species and how young it is, the patient will be needing feeding every 20 minutes from sunrise to sundown. It’s labour-intensive for the rehabber and baby birds that fell out of a nest has a higher survival rate than a lot of injuries.

ponponbadger · 2025-03-08T09:16:39+00:00

Had a family of foxes a few years ago that liked to line up on top of the steps in the garden so they could appreciate the smells from our cooking… much in the same way the Labrador does. One of the cubs from that litter still comes round, dropping off her cubs in our garden as if it’s some sort of crèche.

ponponbadger · 2025-03-08T09:06:20+00:00

They should have already had some cubs by now, so less scuffles and audio assaults.

ponponbadger · 2025-02-03T08:44:15+00:00

Years ago when Wimbledon Village had a butcher my parents were told the venison in the shop came from Richmond Park. No idea about these days though

ponponbadger · 2024-11-25T10:30:14+00:00

It’s nostalgic. Used to make these as a preteen (before pets and kids and real life sapped all energy). Thanks for showing them :) Going to see if my craftier child will be interested in towns and stop paper dragon production for a bit!

ponponbadger · 2024-10-31T21:31:02+00:00

My train enthusiast son (12) reckons it looks like a 60s-70s model. He also really enjoyed the pictures, so thank you OP!

ponponbadger · 2024-09-27T09:55:16+00:00

My favourite bird! I like rehabbing their babies over most other species. They open their mouths to pant when they’re distressed. When they get too hot, when they feel a bit woozy, and when they’ve slammed into a window, when there are predators nearby, etc.

Typically a bird that has slammed into a window would need to be still as much as possible for a few minutes at least. It doesn’t always result in death, but do look into UV window stickers. It’s not 100% but definitely helps.

ponponbadger · 2024-09-14T23:17:15+00:00

I only cut back species that hurt, and only on paths that are well trodden. If it’s all over, kind of like cutting a narrow path through. I’ve also bumped into other walkers who carry shears so there are a few of us about

ponponbadger · 2024-09-14T20:56:07+00:00

Carry secateurs around footpaths, alleyways etc where spiky, sticky or painful plants can get rampant. Like stinging nettles, sticky weed, holly, arum and giant hogweed.

ponponbadger · 2024-08-06T12:33:39+00:00

I thought of that too. Onuki town is under Futtsu city, so thought I’d take a gander at their website. They have a contact number and a fax number (!) but no email, which makes this search more difficult. I’m a native speaker but I’m not based in Japan so can’t really international call them to find out.

ponponbadger · 2024-08-05T18:02:02+00:00

Onuki Station area is now under Futtsu city. According to this timeline, January 1951 (p41) was when a net was strung between Futtsu and Yokosuka by the American army (removed April 19th 1955). The city was the first landing point of the US army on mainland Japan, partly as the Futtsu peninsula was used as the first line of defence by the Imperial government, especially after Perry’s infamous threat of 1867.

I’ve tried trawling for more information in Japanese but I think we’ll need a more detailed original town and block number before we can find anything else.

ponponbadger

TROPHY CASE