CityCyclingEdinburgh was launched on the 27th of October 2009 as "an experiment".
IT’S TRUE!
CCE is 15years old!
Well done to ALL posters
It soon became useful and entertaining. There are regular posters, people who add useful info occasionally and plenty more who drop by to watch. That's fine. If you want to add news/comments it's easy to register and become a member.
RULES No personal insults. No swearing.
Yep, there's definitely a woodie somewhere around the Innocent. Crows can be really deceptively like Woodpeckers, but once you've got to know the proper sound of the Woodpecker it's really distinctive. I can zone in on them in the Figgy pretty well now (including their curious call as well).
The Duddingston Loch otters are annoyingly elusive! There was a short period the dog otter was being seen a lot, but even he seems to have gone back into hiding now!
Are you telling me that that drumming noise isn't a woodpecker, but a crow? :o(
Edinburgh sparrowhawks
A little far away (though monster-rideable) - on Lake of Menteith. Great Crested Grebes and Ospreys...
Great Crested Grebe on Green by blackpuddinonnabike, on Flickr
#105 Great Crested Grebe (podiceps cristatus) by blackpuddinonnabike, on Flickr
#104 Osprey (pandion haliaetus) by blackpuddinonnabike, on Flickr
Osprey from a distance with a Fish by blackpuddinonnabike, on Flickr
Sorry for rubbish photos but there were huge numbers of eider chicks at Musselburgh this evening. V cute
And also an only slightly less cute leech.
On Saturday, saw a red squirrel running high in the branches of trees outside Northmuir Hall, after the Snow Roads riders had departed. Later, on the Potter for Tea, a hare ran in front of me for a few hundred yards before diving to the side of the road and freezing, stock still with ears folded back, trying not to be noticed but keeping a wary, terrified eye on me as I wheeled past. Also two oyster catchers: one standing on a fence post like a statue, the other, alas, squashed in the road by a c*r, recently by the look of it.
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David Miller (@BBCDavidMiller)
29/06/2012 06:20
BBC News - New species of dandelion discovered on St Kilda island http://bbc.in/MEGuk4
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Cool.
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@zsstevens: Tackling a Knotty Problem: Scotland leads the way in battle
against non-native plants and animals
New legis... http://t.co/4rurZntV
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Wildlife Highlight of the NIGHT! Two bats flapping happily in circles around the back green last night.
I'm sure I glimpsed a weasel running across the path in front of me this morning. Either that or it was a very long thin rat.
I may have said this before but weasels are weasily recognised whereas stoats are stoatally different
Weasels smallest of the ferret family reddish scamp very skinny love running in front of bikes and jumping on rabbits' necks
The two ducklings and duck in the new pond on George Square (ducklings appeared ~2 days ago).
I assume that the nest must have been nearby, and she must have laid them about a month ago or so. I don't think the pond has disappeared in that time... shows how wet it's been!
I see now what is meant by nice weather for ducks.
(The new "pond" is on the path at the Library corner of GS).
Out for a run in acharacle this morning. Saw two golden eagles at close quarters and an otter ran across the road in front of me
I'm afraid last evening the duck flew off, and this morning she and the ducklings are not to be seen. I wonder where they went? The nearest bit of proper water is the canal...
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Alex Kinninmonth (@ScottishSeas)
10/07/2012 18:31
Signs of recovery in the Firth of Forth? #sharks
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Exclusive Edinburgh wildlife garden open to public
"This Saturday (14th July 2012), from 10am to 4pm, an exclusive wildlife garden - usually not open to the public - will open its doors, giving Edinburgh locals and visitors the chance to explore a hidden wildlife oasis in the heart of the city and enjoy fantastic views of Edinburgh Castle.
Johnston Terrace Garden is tucked away at the top of the Patrick Geddes steps which run between Johnston Terrance and the Grassmarket"
My first kingfisher of 2012, this morning on the canal just before it goes under the Calder Road.
A wildlife lowlight on the same trip was to come upon a swan asleep on the towpath under one of the old bridges just west of the Scott Russell aqueduct. Being a careful towpath user I was clearly able to stop in plenty of time and under control: the lowlight was making my way past it while accutely conscious that if it decided to go for my ankles I would have nowhere to go...
Gorgeous (and rather accommodating) Kotuku (White Heron) snapped while walking back from the beach this afternoon.
Bit bigger here: http://yfrog.com/o0i1wlxqj
@ Greenroofer. I'm so glad you mention the kingfisher. I saw what I thought might be a kingfisher in exactly the same place the other day. But my glasses were all covered in raindrops so wasn't sure. Also know what you mean about the swans...
Saw a weasel out on the Whang today, also many mamils wearing team sky colours
As I was going out this morning a window cleaner asked me to let him into our back green so he could clean the windows of the flats up the side road. As I was opening the door he pointed out that wandering around the green (which isn't, it's just tarmac with nothing green at all) was a hedgehog! God knows how it got there, it must have fallen in, and god knows how long the poor thing had been there. As I opened the door it came shambling towards us so he scooped it into his bucket and I took it for a little walk up the lane to the banking at the back and let it out. It didn't seem to want to leave me so I poked it to make it scurry into the undergrowth. I don't think it was very bright.
Kirst: Amazing! Maybe you could have adopted it...
You're the fourth person to suggest that. Two people have suggested I should have kept it so they could put it in their garden.
It seemed very tame, was very quick to come towards us when we opened the door into the back green. Our back green isn't at all, it's a horrible lightless tarmaced square with high walls round it and nothing living or growing at all, so it must have fallen in somehow and then got trapped. Nobody in the stair ever uses it because it's so horrible so it could easily have starved to death. It was looking pretty skinny. I released it on St Leonards Bank so I hope it finds itself something tasty to eat soon. My colleagues are calling me the hedgehog whisperer :-D
Aww poor wee thing. Glad you rescued it! I am sure there is tons to eat. All this rain means a whole lot of slugs and worms and other yummy hedgehog sustenance.
Two frogs or miniature toads when I finally managed to cut the grass this weekend. Hedgehogs are good. Not their fault they are killing the corncrakes in south uist. They were introduced to the Islands by a schoolteacher. Farmers have also had to revert to old ways of harvesting all to save a ground nesting birdy.
Not sure if any truth in story of gypsies eating baked hedgehog - will google
"eating baked hedgehog - will google"
Clay (or so I seem to remember), I'll let you google.
Clay tuns out to be a story. On the hunting and shooting site iwas on there was a robust debate and some avatar issues but settled by apparent traveller giving recipe, gut up the back, after scraping off the spikes and then burning the bristles.
As many posters pointed out, why would you want to do this? Also likely to be infringing protected species rights. Hedgehogs or hotchi pigs as my new friends call them, good for keeping slugs down, I wish Ihad one in my garden too
@Kirst: I was sort of only joking about adoption - I'm sure it'll be happy where you put it. There seem to be a crazy number of slugs and snails this year.
I was thinking I might empty out some tins of cat food close to where I released it so if it's still there it will have some easy to find food for a few days to fatten it back up.
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