Close Encounter

[henchy3rd]

When I saw it it would have been the year 2000.

Though pertaining to Darmoor, in fact Bellever a level headed type had 'an experience' , for some facts pertaining to how big cats may have ended up on the moors towards the end of the presentation

When I was in Australia the feral cats were huge, some had me guessing in the twilight?
so I recon it’s the same in the uk..probably elusive by nature, hence why we don’t see them.
In a country where everyone has some kind of camera, there’s not been one proper clear photo or film yet.
We breed cats to look like their wild cousin,Bob cat, lynx, Scottish wild cat,long slender ones like puma, servals, Bengal tiger, Siberian tiger..so could they be cross breeding feral cats?
Or maybe it’s a bit of a hoax like the Loch Ness monster to pull in the tourists..who knows?

 

[Silverclaws2]

When I was in Australia the feral cats were huge, some had me guessing in the twilight?
so I recon it’s the same in the uk..probably elusive by nature, hence why we don’t see them.
In a country where everyone has some kind of camera, there’s not been one proper clear photo or film yet.
We breed cats to look like their wild cousin,Bob cat, lynx, Scottish wild cat,long slender ones like puma, servals, Bengal tiger, Siberian tiger..so could they be cross breeding feral cats?
Or maybe it’s a bit of a hoax like the Loch Ness monster to pull in the tourists..who knows?

When I was in Australia the feral cats were huge, some had me guessing in the twilight?
so I recon it’s the same in the uk..probably elusive by nature, hence why we don’t see them.
In a country where everyone has some kind of camera, there’s not been one proper clear photo or film yet.
We breed cats to look like their wild cousin,Bob cat, lynx, Scottish wild cat,long slender ones like puma, servals, Bengal tiger, Siberian tiger..so could they be cross breeding feral cats?
Or maybe it’s a bit of a hoax like the Loch Ness monster to pull in the tourists..who knows?

I have experience of a Norwegian Forest cat, that thing was fearless.

 

[WoodlandWanderer]

Hope this is the right place to leave a message like this.
Has anyone had a close brush or scare with a wild animal, if so what did you do?
I have & nearly left something childish in my pants..twice?

I've had lots of encounters with venomous snakes, mostly while I was working on a farm in Florida but the closest I ever got was when I was hiking along a trail and nearly stepped on a pygmy rattlesnake. Normally I would be a lot more aware of where I was putting my feet but one of the kids asked me about something and I was distracted. I noticed it move slightly just as I was midstep and a bit too close for comfort. It wasn't like a moment of terror and panic or anything like that but it did make my heart skip a beat as I was caught off guard. I also crossed paths with coyotes a few times and got fairly close but never had a scare or felt in any danger. They would usually stop and observe me for a moment before quickly disappearing into the thick undergrowth that was all around the property. I've heard of people getting frightened by them and feeling a need to back away but I suppose circumstances and people's individual fears vary. I never once felt they were anything more than slightly curious.

 

[Pupers]

When I saw it it would have been the year 2000.

Though pertaining to Darmoor, in fact Bellever a level headed type had 'an experience' , for some facts pertaining to how big cats may have ended up on the moors towards the end of the presentation

I worked on Dartmoor for 3 decades, both night and day, and quite a lot around Bellever. Used, binos, night vision and thermal and saw nothing but pussycats.

Do I believe there are big cats on Dartmoor? That depends on how big Tabby is………….No

 

[Billy-o]

Urban coyotes regularly seen here are pretty reserved usually and scoot if you say boo. But, in the big park at the end of my street they have started biting people. The park is currently sealed off whilst they kill them all. It is very sad. It's all due to people feeding them.

 

[Pupers]

Urban coyotes regularly seen here are pretty reserved usually and scoot if you say boo. But, in the big park at the end of my street they have started biting people. The park is currently sealed off whilst they kill them all. It is very sad. It's all due to people feeding them.

People really are stupid sometimes, in fact often.

One of the beaches where I fish gets regular Seal visits, one has obviously been fed by idiots, because he chased an angler, who was dragging a couple of Macketel, up the beach!…………..It was hilarious!

 

[WoodlandWanderer]

Urban coyotes regularly seen here are pretty reserved usually and scoot if you say boo. But, in the big park at the end of my street they have started biting people. The park is currently sealed off whilst they kill them all. It is very sad. It's all due to people feeding them.

I'm sure people do these things innocently but just don't think about the possible repercussions of encouraging human/wild animal interactions. All too often it ends badly for the wild animals involved unfortunately. It's frustrating to see this with so many species now and especially with species that common sense would tell anyone to give a respectfully wide berth.

 

[henchy3rd]

People really are stupid sometimes, in fact often.

One of the beaches where I fish gets regular Seal visits, one has obviously been fed by idiots, because he chased an angler, who was dragging a couple of Macketel, up the beach!…………..It was hilarious!

Seals may seem slow, but they have fast reflexes & can shift on land.
I was at Donna Nook years ago before they put the barriers up to protect the idiots or to keep the seals safe?
A woman with her children was trying to feed some pups.. she had her hand nearly severed off in a flash.
There called wild animals for a reason.

 

[Robson Valley]

For years, I sat in ground-level blinds on deer hunts. Been investigated by Black Bears three times. I just picked out a log and decided you get drilled if you step over the log. I think they understood that it was safer to walk away.

Flyfishing alpine rivers for trout and grayling, I have seen grizz tracks ON TOP OF my riverbank footprints, maybe 30 minutes apart. You get snorted at and the hair on the back of your neck really, really will stand up. Got into the habit of wearing a Boito s/s 12 coach gun with buckshot. Never needed it but as I mostly fished alone, I guessed it might be useful in a "wildlife encounter."

I've been challenged with BIG SNORTS from bull moose hidden in the understory.
What can you do, the beast will come out as fast as a freight train, intent on doing you mortal harm. All safeties off.

 

[WoodlandWanderer]

For years, I sat in ground-level blinds on deer hunts. Been investigated by Black Bears three times. I just picked out a log and decided you get drilled if you step over the log. I think they understood that it was safer to walk away.

Flyfishing alpine rivers for trout and grayling, I have seen grizz tracks ON TOP OF my riverbank footprints, maybe 30 minutes apart. You get snorted at and the hair on the back of your neck really, really will stand up. Got into the habit of wearing a Boito s/s 12 coach gun with buckshot. Never needed it but as I mostly fished alone, I guessed it might be useful in a "wildlife encounter."

I've been challenged with BIG SNORTS from bull moose hidden in the understory.
What can you do, the beast will come out as fast as a freight train, intent on doing you mortal harm. All safeties off.

I've never seen a moose in person but I've watched enough videos of them behaving aggressively when they unexpectedly encounter people and I have to say the thought of having a close encounter with a moose now scares me more than the thought of having a close encounter with a bear. I think the fact that moose have a disarming appearance makes them all the more dangerous... they are like a guy who dresses like a clown but who is actually a professional MMA fighter.

 

[Robson Valley]

The big game herbivores here, bison included, are the most dangerous critters in a close encounter. Same for the hippos and Cape Buffalo. The cats, the bears and the dogs are far and away more predictable. What's with the all the coyote attacks in Stanley Park in Vancouver is really up in the air for interpretation.

 

[C_Claycomb]

What distance is "too close" for the different animals folk are discussing?

I have seen moose in person, but only at a distance of hundreds of yards, or youngsters setting out on their own at the 50-60 yard mark. Does a moose becoming aware of you at 50 yards count as too close, where they might choose aggression as a defence of their space rather than just melting away into the thicket?

From the videos I have seen, the brown and grizzly bears do seem more likely to close on a person out of curiosity or aggression even when the starting distance is over 100 yards, compared to the herbivores.

I know it is risky to over generalise, but for the sake of this discussion, lets generalise a bit.

 

[Broch]

From my experience - grey squirrel, about 10m

Seriously though, on a night trek in Namibia, we came across a pair of young male lions at a waterhole, our guide said we were safe because we were closer than their 'chase' distance - never did understand that!

 

[C_Claycomb]

The big game herbivores here, bison included, are the most dangerous critters in a close encounter. Same for the hippos and Cape Buffalo. The cats, the bears and the dogs are far and away more predictable. What's with the all the coyote attacks in Stanley Park in Vancouver is really up in the air for interpretation.

Had a look at the coyote thing in Vancouver.

Reminds me of something I read about coyote attacks in another park, in the US. If memory serves, that park had a large number of stray cats that people fed. The coyotes came in for the cat food, and to make the cats food. People didn't do anything effective when they were witness to the coyotes catching cats and the lack of challenge from people emboldened the animals. As the cat numbers dropped and people ceased bringing cat food into the park the hungry coyotes started stealing food from picnickers, often using aggressive body language to scare people into abandoning food. It was but a small step then to start seeing people as potential prey and there were a number of attacks.

 

[Robson Valley]

Grizzlies can sprint at better than 35 mph, fast enough to bring down a galloping horse. Get between a sow and her cubs, distances no longer matter = she will kill you. They have the manuals dexterity to pick open the brass of a rifle shell. You stumble across a partially buried kill? You need to me a 1/4 mile or more away, as fast as you can go. Gun shots mean gut piles and they want to see what you killed for them. I worked with a guy who just about got pushed off his moose kill by a wolf pack.

Ranch bison are really curious. They will walk over to meet you and greet you and crush you against the fence posts then gore, maim and stomp you to a pulp just for fun. I used to hunt Canada geese in the adjacent field. If I ever winged a goose that sailed into the bison pasture, I was NOT chasing it. The bison seemed to have trust in the rancher. Although every time he went into the pasture, one of their pals had a "dirt nap" and didn't get up. They never figured it out.

My Black Bear encounters? Open pine forest with good visibility and little understory. I had the rifle in my hands already. I'll guess 30-50 yards. Stand up. Try to make yourself look really big. Make noises. In the autumn, all the bears are looking for quick easy kills to bulk up before hibernation. Try to look and act like you are just too much effort to tangle with.

Moose? How can an animal, the size of a horse, disappear in the forest like a ghost? But they can and they do. Might be 5 yards, might be 50.

 

[Billy-o]

The big game herbivores here, bison included, are the most dangerous critters in a close encounter. Same for the hippos and Cape Buffalo. The cats, the bears and the dogs are far and away more predictable. What's with the all the coyote attacks in Stanley Park in Vancouver is really up in the air for interpretation.

Just from observation, its clear that there used to be a lot more skunks and racoons in the park three or four years ago. And, I've seen people releasing raccoons into park too. Possibly pests trapped in their garages or gardens. They can stink out a garage or shed pretty quickly if they find a way in.

The coyotes used to trot about in and around the houses adjacent to the park seemingly unworried. I'm not sure who, if anyone knows the immediate reasons for individual attacks or how many of the population are responsible. But about 30 of them are getting topped for it anyway, and Vancouverites have something to be scared of/scandalized by. A few years ago it was Snakehead fish. There is general surprise that the City hasn't yet been sued.

 

[Robson Valley]

Crop them off and call it "sustained yield." That also alleviates competition for resources so the people bites might drop as well. Run a coyote hide tanning course to really insult the posh!

I can still recall seeing 'coons up on people's decks in Vancouver, wanting to get into the kitchen and prepared to fight over it. What a way to spoil a Friday evening garden party.

 

[santaman2000]

The biggest reason coyotes are becoming so widespread is there adaptability. They can adapt to just about any habitat: from cold to hot, from desert to swamp, from wilderness to urban. Add that to their amazing fertility (both their litter size and number of breeding sessions vary to accommodate their mortality rates) and they will inevitably become troublesome. The only thing that’s ever successfully controlled their numbers is a healthy wolf population.

 

[Robson Valley]

BIG, BIG noises about how effective the coyote cull in Stanley Park was going to be (the 'Yotes are invasive here). Recall that they were going to take out 30+.
Whoopee freakin' dooo! Read that they shot 4.

Just round up a bunch of experienced fur trappers and let them go about their business.

Still no bears in the village, people are getting better about apples and garbage.
The deer are gone. Probably true that the cats got them all.

 

[Danqrl]

Not dangerous but a *** moment, woke up on cold morning on Salisbury plain and unzipped my sleeping bag staring down towards my chest to see a massive toad sat there enjoying the warmth lol

In the woodland of Germany when going off at night with my shovel to take care of some business a wild pig/boar that i came across chased me for a hell of a distance.