Wild Animals on the Loose ?

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BENIDORM
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Wild Animals on the Loose ?

Postby BENIDORM » Mon Jun 01, 2020 10:18 am

I've noted many reports about unusual observations of wild animals wandering around areas that normally they wouldn't approach.
Obviously the quiet times have encouraged them, I've only noticed one fox running along our street, never seen any that close to my house before...
Over the years I've seen many rare animals and birds whilst walking in remote areas, fantastic to see them and probably my rarest sighting was a Lynx up in the Aitana region, Costa Blanca, it appeared on a rock just in front of me for about 5 seconds and then it was gone, not sure if it was the Lynx or me who was most surprised !
I also saw a Timber Wolf in the same region, apparently several had escaped from a zoo in the area many years ago..

It would be interesting to know if anyone has seen anything unusual...animal and birds.. I mean..

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Gordon

olive
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Re: Wild Animals on the Loose ?

Postby olive » Mon Jun 01, 2020 10:27 am

I have seen an Hispanic Cabra in our veg garden.

My two favourite spots are Beech marten and Stone Curlew. Neither particularly rare. The locals in the village bar poo poo'ed the idea until a neighbour filmed it(or one) cornered in his chicken run.

I would sort of love to see a wolf in the wild in Spain!

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costakid
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Re: Wild Animals on the Loose ?

Postby costakid » Mon Jun 01, 2020 10:45 am

The Lobo park near Antequera is worth a visit. You can call in for a coffee and see some of the wolves without paying to enter the actual park.

BENIDORM
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Re: Wild Animals on the Loose ?

Postby BENIDORM » Mon Jun 01, 2020 1:49 pm

I agree with Costakid about the Lobo park , we've been numerous times always enjoyed the visits, but even better when you come to meet a Wolf face to face...as I did... :shock:

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Gordon the Werewolf... :D

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Re: Wild Animals on the Loose ?

Postby Beachcomber » Mon Jun 01, 2020 3:30 pm

We went to the wolf park probably fifteen or twenty years ago and there was a man who had allegedly been raised by the the wolves but one day they turned on him attacked him and although he survived he was quite badly disabled. I was just wondering if he is still there telling the same tale.

BENIDORM
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Re: Wild Animals on the Loose ?

Postby BENIDORM » Mon Jun 01, 2020 4:08 pm

Interesting story BC. , when we visited we were told that one of the handlers, a German I believe, had worked with some of the wolves for many years and was able to work closely with them without fear.
However the guy you met was probably just a barfly or a nutter, unless his name was Mowgli or Romulus... :D

Having said that though I can think of many feral kids that I've come across who behave as if they've been brought up by a pack of wild animals. :shock:

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Devils Advocate
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Re: Wild Animals on the Loose ?

Postby Devils Advocate » Mon Jun 01, 2020 4:12 pm

Don't know if anyone else has seen or noticed it but Foxes in Spain? We had loads of them around us at our place there........the noise every night and mornings at the time of year they had their offspring was amazing.

But what truly amazed me was the speed of them if you spotted one. We have foxes in the fields near us in the UK and see them running across fields, nothing startling...............but honestly I've never seen anything as lightening quick as the Spanish Foxes, simply blistering pace, even when running up a campo hill. Amazing to witness.
Property owner in Andalucia since 2002. How time flies.

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peteroldracer
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Re: Wild Animals on the Loose ?

Postby peteroldracer » Mon Jun 01, 2020 4:56 pm

There are too many guns around in Spain for anything living to feel at ease..
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spanish_lad
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Re: Wild Animals on the Loose ?

Postby spanish_lad » Tue Jun 02, 2020 4:13 pm

The people that run lobo park are german, they have been here for years.

She drives a dusty red imported bmw 3 series with lobo park on the side - they have parked with us at the airport since i started there in 2011.

Nice couple actually, they dont travel together much, its mainly her.

Last time i saw them they were getting on a bit, it must be becoming a struggle for them, and the amount of raw meat they go through every day is amazing !
Alhaurin el Grande since 99, working at the airport since 2011.

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Re: Wild Animals on the Loose ?

Postby El Cid » Tue Jun 02, 2020 4:48 pm

Last week, visiting a friend on a fairly densely built Urb on the side of a big hill, I saw 4 Iberian Ibex (aka mountain goats) on the road. Almost tame and were not worried about the car. They walk over my friends roof and eat the plants on the patio.

Sid

markwilding
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Re: Wild Animals on the Loose ?

Postby markwilding » Tue Jun 02, 2020 5:29 pm

Just donkeys and wild cats around here, Even in areas quite close to cental London I used to see foxes.
I've heard of bears and boars futher along the coast in the Picos etc

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cantabria ... the%20wild.

http://www.iberianature.com/material/wi ... spain.html

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Re: Wild Animals on the Loose ?

Postby katy » Wed Jun 10, 2020 1:15 pm

We used to see foxes in Spain, usually when driving home late at night. Had Boars outside the bottom of our garden too and they used to make a real mess of the golf course. Saw mountain goats when we used to go walking near Ronda.
Lots of foxes in UK. I feed them leftovers but recently the badgers have taken over. Saw an amazing sight one night when a fox was lurking watching the badgers eating. Yesterday evening quite a bit of leftovers and I took food out in two tinfoil trays. When I looked later a Badger was eating on one tray and what seemed to be it's baby in the other. Have some good photos and a video. They eat anything but lettuce, strange.

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Re: Wild Animals on the Loose ?

Postby katy » Wed Jun 10, 2020 1:22 pm

A bit off topic but the mention of donkeys reminded me. A friend adopted 2 rescue donkeys here in UK. They are lovely. One fell sick last year and had to stay at an equestrian centre for many months. It was advised that the other donkey should go too as company as it would pine. She had them insured for £12000 sickness. The final bill came to £23000! They had to cancel their Caribbean holiday. I had been thinking of adopting one but it put me off.

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Re: Wild Animals on the Loose ?

Postby olive » Wed Jun 10, 2020 3:16 pm

katy wrote: Wed Jun 10, 2020 1:15 pm We used to see foxes in Spain, usually when driving home late at night. Had Boars outside the bottom of our garden too and they used to make a real mess of the golf course. Saw mountain goats when we used to go walking near Ronda.
Lots of foxes in UK. I feed them leftovers but recently the badgers have taken over. Saw an amazing sight one night when a fox was lurking watching the badgers eating. Yesterday evening quite a bit of leftovers and I took food out in two tinfoil trays. When I looked later a Badger was eating on one tray and what seemed to be it's baby in the other. Have some good photos and a video. They eat anything but lettuce, strange.
20 years ago, our neighbours in the UK (on our left) used to make a roast chicken dinner EVERY night and put it out for the foxes. The foxes often brought the whole chicken through into our garden and we would watch them and their cubs. The foxes had an earth , mostly under our neighbours garden (on the right) with the entrance behind our greenhouse. It was a huge system and I spent hours each year barrowing away the spoil so it didn't break the glass. One day the inevitable happened and our neighbour was gardening and the ground swallowed him up. We were in our garden at the time and knew exactly what had happened before we looked.

Was it wildside that used to post on here some years ago? I generally am finding that there seems to be less and less wildlife each year. I put a lot down to the systematic loss of habitat. Weed spraying and reducing the verges, clearing piles of rocks in olive groves to plant yet more trees. I cannot remember the last year I saw a vulture near our house. 10- 15 years ago they were a regular sight. maybe the introduction of the chemical they use on cattle in India has had the same decimating effect. Have seen them elsewhere in Spain - perhaps they have just moved.

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Re: Wild Animals on the Loose ?

Postby Wicksey » Wed Jun 10, 2020 4:35 pm

We certainly see less birds of prey now. We have a couple of resident kestrels but rarely see the big eagles and buzzards. Even my favourite bee eaters are thin on the ground. I heard a flock or two in April and May but nothing since.

We've seen snakes regularly and the chameleon. We did have 3 living in the oleanders a couple of years back but I've only seen one this year. The foxes are quieter too. We used to hear them most nights. We still have our rabbit warren. We take them any lettuce or carrots that are past their best and it's always eaten up. There are boar around but we've only ever seen their footprints after rain. A long time ago we saw a Genet ... the most exciting thing ever, but only just the once in all the years we've been in Spain.

Not sure where the wildlife is going. Loss of habitat, food supply, use of pesticides may all be involved.


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