Things you don’t see outside any more

[Howardh]

Sadly...hedgehogs. Not seen one in my garden for over five years; the last time was mummy and baby hedgie and I felt privileged!! Couple of months ago did slow down and stop to let one cross the road nearby, the driver was bemused at first then realised and gave me a cheery wave!

 

[najaB]

Couple of months ago did slow down and stop to let one cross the road nearby, the driver was bemused at first then realised and gave me a cheery wave!

The lack of "other driver" made me think for a moment that the hedgehog was in a little car!

 

[Howardh]

The lack of "other driver" made me think for a moment that the hedgehog was in a little car!

Might not be a bad idea if we could train them to cross the road quicker! Honestly these busy(ish) local roads in leafy hedgie areas should have little tunnels built for them and other wildlife. I'm, surprised when they are built that no-one considers wildlife having to cross.

 

[najaB]

Might not be a bad idea if we could train them to cross the road quicker! Honestly these busy(ish) local roads in leafy hedgie areas should have little tunnels built for them and other wildlife. I'm, surprised when they are built that no-one considers wildlife having to cross.

It has been done in places.

Because so many badgers are killed on the roads here in the UK too, the British highways people are increasingly providing tunnels under roads to provide safe passages for wildlife. As well as helping the local wildlife, this can also cut down the number of road accidents too.

In fact, one of the first British purpose-built tunnels was built for badgers as long ago as 1976. Under the M5 motorway (near Wellington in Somerset, England), the idea of the tunnel was that it should prevent them from being run over by traffic. The tunnel was specially located to intersect a badger path leading from the main sett to badgers feeding grounds.

At first this safe, underground route did not really seem to be working, as the badgers studiously avoided using it. Despite the fact that the tunnel was specially designed to save badgers' lives and to prevent accidents, and that it was filled with suitable bait, and badger smells (called musk), they still didn't use it.

It was only when the badger family had several cubs to rear (and needed better food supplies) that they officially opened the site. All in all, it took the badgers nearly three years to open their tunnel, although they quickly claimed the territory as their own, by placing latrines at either end.

That said, the tunnel has certainly saved the lives of badgers and prevented many potential accidents on a busy section of motorway - money very well spent.

Badger Tunnels

Badgers, Meles meles, Badgerland, Tunnels, Underpasses, Pipes, Culverts, Walkways

www.badgerland.co.uk

 

[Howardh]

It has been done in places.

Badger Tunnels

Badgers, Meles meles, Badgerland, Tunnels, Underpasses, Pipes, Culverts, Walkways

www.badgerland.co.uk

Yes indeed, but not nearly enough!

 

[Killingworth]

That brings me to another thing that was once the norm but is now much less common: counter service shops where everything was kept behind the counter and you had to ask for it, as opposed to self-service shops.

That said, certain items (such as tobacco products) still have to be kept behind the counter by law.

Inside those corner shops there was butter and cheese sliced into greaseproof paper and sugar taken from a sack into brown or blue stiff paper bags - was it one colour for white and the other for brown sugar? Ham and bacon sliced to the thickness preferred. My grandfather had trained as a grocer and taught my mother how to get the best cuts. She'd go back to the shop later if the joint wasn't at the right place!

 

[Busaholic]

It grieves me greatly to say this, but the almost total absence of seagulls now from the seaside town where I live, a mile from what is still one of the top fishing ports in the UK. is now becoming worse than surreal. They have been a huge part of my life in the 34 years I've lived here, for good or ill, but I've neither seen nor heard one now for several days; the last time I saw one, with her chick, was several days ago. My car, left in the open, never went more than a day or two without being soiled by nesting or other seagulls, but it must be a month now. This avian bird flu is very concerning about many species.

 

[Ashley Hill]

It grieves me greatly to say this, but the almost total absence of seagulls now from the seaside town where I live, a mile from what is still one of the top fishing ports in the UK. is now becoming worse than surreal. They have been a huge part of my life in the 34 years I've lived here, for good or ill, but I've neither seen nor heard one now for several days; the last time I saw one, with her chick, was several days ago. My car, left in the open, never went more than a day or two without being soiled by nesting or other seagulls, but it must be a month now. This avian bird flu is very concerning about many species.

Have a walk around Harbour car park with a Warrens pasty in your hand and you’ll soon find one

 

[Busaholic]

Have a walk around Harbour car park with a Warrens pasty in your hand and you’ll soon find one

Eating one of those would certainly finish them off!

 

[GusB]

It grieves me greatly to say this, but the almost total absence of seagulls now from the seaside town where I live, a mile from what is still one of the top fishing ports in the UK. is now becoming worse than surreal. They have been a huge part of my life in the 34 years I've lived here, for good or ill, but I've neither seen nor heard one now for several days; the last time I saw one, with her chick, was several days ago. My car, left in the open, never went more than a day or two without being soiled by nesting or other seagulls, but it must be a month now. This avian bird flu is very concerning about many species.

You're more than welcome to re-home some of ours. This year they've been particularly vicious - there seemed to be more chicks than normal and there was one that slid off a neighbour's roof and took to hiding behind my bin! I was being swooped on every time I left the house, but I couldn't see why I was being attacked.

 

[Gloster]

I must admit they seem to be a little less obtrusive here and I have seen fewer of them in the garden. Still plenty of pigeons and red squirrels to see.

 

[birchesgreen]

Tax discs in (usually) the bottom of the nearside windscreen, though some older cars still have the last one issued still in place when the owner hasn't bothered to remove it!

I left mine on my old car until it was sold in August, to be honest i was thinking about the tax disc today, i wish i'd kept the last one!

 

[david1212]

It grieves me greatly to say this, but the almost total absence of seagulls now from the seaside town where I live, a mile from what is still one of the top fishing ports in the UK. is now becoming worse than surreal. They have been a huge part of my life in the 34 years I've lived here, for good or ill, but I've neither seen nor heard one now for several days; the last time I saw one, with her chick, was several days ago. My car, left in the open, never went more than a day or two without being soiled by nesting or other seagulls, but it must be a month now. This avian bird flu is very concerning about many species.

You don't say even vaguely where you live.

There were plenty at Weymouth in July. I has two infants right outside my room for a couple of days and not wanting to fully close the patio style door blocked the bottom and closed the blind when out. My car did escape unsoiled.

Plenty nest on the roof at the rear of where I work in the landlocked midlands, cars invitably get soiled several times each spring / summer.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 23 Oct 2022 ==

Sadly...hedgehogs. Not seen one in my garden for over five years; the last time was mummy and baby hedgie and I felt privileged!! Couple of months ago did slow down and stop to let one cross the road nearby, the driver was bemused at first then realised and gave me a cheery wave!

I had one in my garden earlier this year, with only one way in and out I watched it didn't become trapped.

 

[STEVIEBOY1]

I must admit they seem to be a little less obtrusive here and I have seen fewer of them in the garden. Still plenty of pigeons and red squirrels to see.

You are so lucky yo have the Red Squirrels. There are only a very few areas in the UK that theyhave survived.

 

[Busaholic]

You are so lucky yo have the Red Squirrels. There are only a very few areas in the UK that theyhave survived.

I'm 74 and have never seen one in the wild.

 

[STEVIEBOY1]

I'm 74 and have never seen one in the wild.

Me neither, I did see one in Switzerland, at a Railway station in fact.

 

[AM9]

Me neither, I did see one in Switzerland, at a Railway station in fact.

The only one that I've seen jumped onto the track immediately after our train had passed on the line from Jenbach up to Achensee in Austria.

 

[Gloster]

Red squirrels are just tree rats with good PR.

 

[32475]

I saw two in Scone, Perthshire last week and one near the bottom of Ben Vrackie near Pitlochry. It’s wonderful to see this indigenous species rather than the common greys.

 

[Ediswan]

The only one I have seen was crossing the road at Randolph's Leap in Scotland. Looking at distribution maps, that area is a stronghold. Locally, we have the black variety.

 

[swt_passenger]

Red squirrels are just tree rats with good PR.

Well they did quite a lot for childrens road safety at one time…

 

[61653 HTAFC]

I'm 74 and have never seen one in the wild.

Used to see them in Thornes Park in Wakefield, early to mid 1980s. All greys there now.

 

[Trackman]

I suppose it depends where you live, orange sodium vapour street lighting?

 

[najaB]

I suppose it depends where you live, orange sodium vapour street lighting?

Mentioned a couple of times already up thread.

 

[Western 52]

Mentioned a couple of times already up thread.

On a similar theme, concrete lamp posts? All metal here these days.

 

[py_megapixel]

On a similar theme, concrete lamp posts? All metal here these days.

Still common in certain local authorities - albeit often with new LED lights at the top

 

[32475]

Well they did quite a lot for childrens road safety at one time…

The Tufty Club! I was a member of that circa 1964

 

[Ashley Hill]

The Tufty Club! I was a member of that circa 1964

A short film of Tufty and his friends having a day at the seaside was shown on Talking Pictures TV last Saturday morning. It is available on their Encore service.

 

[johnnychips]

I can’t remember seeing any squirrels in my northern childhood in the 60s and 70s. I went with mum to see a cousin in Wokingham in 1970 and was delighted by their grey squirrels in the park. Presumably they have spread everywhere since. I do remember seeing red squirrels on a Geography field trip to Formby Point in about 1978, and I hope they are still there. (Not the same ones, obviously).

EDIT: And I saw a black squirrel in Switzerland in 1979, which impressed me as I didn’t know they existed.

 

[Butts]

Forget Red Squirrels ten a penny - has anyone ever seen a White (Albino) critter ?

Apparently there are only about 50 in the whole of the UK