Animal Neighbours

The listed animals are those we have seen since moving into the completed farmhouse in August 2005.

Roe Deer	We see these quite regularly as small groups live within our woodland areas. They obviously thrive as we often see young fawns each year, plus we have nibbled trees.
Hares	The hare is the emblem of the Nidderdale Area of Natural Outstanding Beauty so it is wonderful to have healthy numbers of hares on the farm.
Rabbits	We have very few rabbits, probably because the land is not too suitable for warrens, and far more suitable areas are well populated in close proximity.
Foxes	We see these very rarely, too few secure hens probably.
Badgers	We have had one sighting only, late at night.
Hedgehogs	Quite frequently seen at the right time of year.
Frogs and Toads	Pick up a reasonably large stone and you will find a toad, hiding from weather. Our ponds are full to the brim with both frog and toad spawn in the spring, much to the delight of the pair of herons that visit us each week.
Moles	We have a large number due to the healthy worm population which results from the lack of fertiliser and pesticides. We do try to limit the numbers as a few moles can cause tremendous damage to a field’s surface causing problems for grass cutting and silage baling.
Stoats, Weasels	Seen but not too frequently.
Voles, Field Mice	Not seen too often, but the kestrels and owls must eat.
Pipistrelle Bats	We have a small but faithful group.
Slugs, Snails & Puppy dog tails	They’re all here, albeit puppy is now grown.