Author Archives: shadthecat

Sad Loss at Marwell

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Irina's Cubs

Second day out of the den

As some of my followers will know myself and John love visiting Zoo’s and wildlife parks, especially Marwell Wildlife Park located in Hampshire.

It saddens me today to hear the loss of one my cousins, our sympathies are with all those involved in looking after these wonderful animals.

Below is the statement from http://www.marwell.org.uk/

Late yesterday afternoon (Thursday), the Carnivore team reported the news that Ariun, one of our male snow leopard cubs sadly died. We have some early indications of an incurable underlying condition. However, we won’t be able to confirm the cause of death until the results of a post mortem examination and tests have been completed. Ariun’s brother and sister appear to be well, but we will obviously monitor them closely.
The death of Ariun is a great loss to everyone at Marwell, especially our keepers and the veterinary team who have worked closely with the cubs over the last four months.

Sometimes a walk along the beach can surprise you

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Bognor Pier at Sunset

Bognor Pier at Sunset

This picture is a little reminder to me that its always a good idea to have my camera with me, I was out with John during the spring and spotted this beautiful sunset behind Bognor Regis  Pier…..

http://www.bognorregisbeach.co.uk/information/bognor-regis-pier

How old is the pier? – 148 years old as of 2013 First built by the Bognor Promenade Company, the original Bognor Regis pier took some 18 months to complete and was opened on the 4th May 1865. Costing £5000 to construct, Bognor’s first pier consisted of a basic jetty which was some 1,000-ft in length with a kiosk at the shore end where for the sum of 1d, visitors could stroll down to the end of the pier and admire the views that the pier provided. Unlike the majority of piers that were built at that time, Bognor Pier was a private undertaking constructed with the help of local labour. In 1876 the pier was purchased by the local council for the sum of £1200, after which a small bandstand was added. Some 35 years after initial construction, the first pavilion was built at the seaward end, opening on 9th July 1900. The following year, saw the construction of a landing stage at the seaward end to allow paddle steamers to dock. By 1906 the landing stage had become redundant due to the fact that larger more modern vessels found the docking facility rather inadequate. Due to ever increasing maintenance costs and an estimate for repairs mounting to £ 11,000, the Council of the time made a decision to sell Bognor Pier in 1908 for just 10s. 6d (about 50p in today’s money) to Messrs. Shanley and Carter.  Over the next few years, they invested almost £30,000 into the pier. After this initial investment and major restoration, the pier pavilion was once opened again in 1909, in time for the Easter Bank holiday

http://www.bognorregisbeach.co.uk/information/bognor-regis-pier

Akin

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Akin by Stavros043
Akin, a photo by Stavros043 on Flickr.
Akin – http://www.marwell.org.uk/ Resident

The Amur leopard (Panthera pardus orientalis) is a leopard subspecies native to the Primorye region of southeastern Russia and Jilin Province of northeast China, and is classified as Critically Endangered since 1996 by IUCN. Only 14–20 adults and 5–6 cubs were counted in a census in 2007, with a total of 19 to 26 Amur leopards extant in the wild

Shad Does The Selsey Lifeboat Day

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Cats don’t usually like water.  The closest I’ll come to it, apart from drinking it, is when I perform one of my mad dashes through the shower when John’s about to go in there.  I consider it an integral part of my exercise regime and it gives me a buzz to see if I can run across the shower tray before the water hits it.  Don’t know why, just does!

Anyway, there’s a big puddle of water at the beach that you’ll never catch me in.  Its very popular with humans who enjoy swimming in this salty wet stuff during the warm weather.

But when you come a cropper at sea, who will come to your rescue?  Its the Royal National Lifeboat Institution.  And last weekend the Selsey RNLI put on their lifeboat launch day with lots of exciting activities including a lifeboat launch and rescue display, a raft race,

http://www.selseylifeboats.co.uk/

and an incredible parachute display by the talented ‘Tigers’ (from The Princess of Wales Royal Regiment’s parachute display team).  As part of the army, they are used to carrying out their duties on land, but did a grand job of getting their feet wet today.

My most memorable moment is the HM Coastguard Helicopter which flew in to help with the rescue display.  Its got an on-board automatic vessel identification system and loads of other 21st century techy stuff that makes it ideal for helping people in distress at sea.

The brave crews and dedicated staff at the RNLI consist mostly of volunteers and the organisation is entirely supported by voluntary contributions.  Their rescue equipment and kit is very expensive and last year they launched their lifeboat 27 times to help swimmers, kayakers, anglers and sailors out of trouble.

I captured some of the action on camera as you can see.  The boats kicked up quite a spray on the calm waters and I got a sore throat from meowing in support of the raft racers.  In case you’re wondering, I make it across the shower without getting wet almost every time!

http://www.selseylifeboats.co.uk/

Shad Does The Hawk Conservancy Trust

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Now I know domestic cats have a reputation for hunting birds, but you’d have to be a very brave cat to go after these magnificent birds of prey.  The photos of these brilliant birds were taken when John and I visited the Hawk Conservancy in Hampshire last week.

These beautiful birds feed on insects, other birds and small animals and rely on their keen senses, acute hearing, powerful talons and strong beaks.  We strolled around the grounds looking in the large aviaries and across the grassland area and viewed the local wild birds from the hides and saw some spectacular flying demonstrations.

One such display was part of a re-enactment of medieval village life which saw staff and visitors dress up in costumes to play a variety of roles including beekeeper, hay-turner, washerwoman and ploughman.  Everyone was enthusiastic and looked up in awe as the birds glided, circling overhead, before swooping down towards us.  The vultures came so close to me that I felt the breeze from their huge wings brush against my whiskers as they soared past.  I swear they were targeting me, possibly due to my sweet feline scent, apparently vultures have a keen sense of smell.  Its a good job I’m generously proportioned – any smaller and I might have been grabbed as a juicy snack!

Hawk Conservancy Trust

The Hawk Conservancy do much more than look after birds and entertain the visitors.  They fight for the birds who cannot speak for themselves, especially as many of them are in decline and at risk of disappearing from the countryside altogether due to habitat loss and peculiar humans who want to trap and kill them.  The charity works in conservation, education, rehabilitation and the research of birds of prey as well as breeding and environmental enrichment projects.  It was a remarkable day and hats off to the keepers and handlers who train the birds and work in perfect harmony with them.  The skies were blue with a few puffy clouds so as not to be too bright, and the winds were gentle, ideal for flying.  This experience has given me a renewed sense of respect for my flying friends (except perhaps the pigeon that taunts me from the tree at the bottom of my garden)!

Hawk Conservancy Trust 

Chainsaw Carving

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Chainsaw Carving by Stavros043
Chainsaw Carving, a photo by Stavros043 on Flickr.

As regular readers will know, John and I support wildlife and animal organisations as much as we can, and we enjoy having a stroll round some of our local zoos.

We took a wander through Marwell Wildlife Park the other day and came across a talented man with a chainsaw.

This man can work a log of wood into the most intricate and unique sculptures of natural and abstract objects from wizards and sharks and dragons to flowers and giant love-hearts. His latest project at Marwell is a totem pole and with a crocodile at the base.

http://www.forestrycrafts.co.uk/Marwell-Wildlife-Park.html

The chainsaw was really noisy and he was wearing protective equipment and clothing but he used that chainsaw professionally and, like a hot-knife cutting through ‘whipped-cream’, he created some impressive and realistic shapes.

As a member of the feline species, I have an impressive shape myself, sleek and sassy, so I sat for a while posing near-by just to peak his interest!

DSC_9695DSC_1111-EditAn update shot from 21st August

http://www.forestrycrafts.co.uk/Marwell-Wildlife-Park.html