A question or two..

[treadlightly]

Did whoever lives here.....

Leave the droppings in the foreground?

 

[Bushwhacker]

It's deer droppings. The individual pellets clump together when they've been eating soft foodstuffs.

 

[JonathanD]

It's deer droppings. The individual pellets clump together when they've been eating soft foodstuffs.

What he said.

 

[treadlightly]

Thank you. So are the droppings in the background also deer?

 

[JonathanD]

They look like rabbit to me. It's a bit too fuzzy for a positive ID, but they lack several characteristics of deer.

 

[treadlightly]

Rabbit would make sense as they were near the warren ( I assume its a warren) in the other pic. I always struggle to tell rabbit and deer droppings apart.

I had thought that maybe the foreground poo was badger.

 

[Bushwhacker]

I'd agree with rabbit droppings but that hole at the front looks more like badger given the shape of it. There should be a latrine nearby if it is in use.

 

[Shewie]

Those little ones look like deer to me, they look almost black and oval shaped rather than spherical I can pick out five or six which definitely look oval shaped, but of course it's hard to be sure with the quality of the pic ...

 

[treadlightly]

Yeah, sorry, taken on the mobile.

So is there any reliable way of telling:

A. Deer/badger/ rabbit droppings apart.

B. A badger sett from a rabbit warren

Just found this online which helps a bit, but any other tips greatly appreciated.

http://badgerwatcher.com/2010/02/21/how-to-recognise-a-badger-sett/

 

[JonathanD]

Deer droppings are dead smooth, usually with a taper. Rabbits are round or oval and look rough.

Badger setts are large and D ( D laid horizontal on flat side) and have definate worn paths and massive signs of excavation outside. Rabbits are smaller and 0 shaped and have droppings outside and their excavating looks more like small scrapings than major earth movement.

 

[treadlightly]

Thanks again Jonathan. From what you say it looks like a rabbit warren.

 

[JonathanD]

Yeah, you would see very clear paths if badgers were using them. They tend to brush their own paths very well due to the fluffy skirts they have. Most badger paths in woodlands can be mistaken for being human made, they are that defined. In fact many paths used by us in woodlands are actually first made by badgers.

 

[Barn Owl]

My local Badgers like their beetles,Dor? I think.

If you look at their feaces, the shiny shells should be evident.