Harvest mice return to village where species was first discovered

 Environment secretary credits innovative farming methods for apparent resurgence in harvest mice in Hampshire

By Emily Gosden

12:01AM GMT 22 Jan 2016

Harvest mice have been rediscovered in the village where they were first identified as a species - more than 25 years after they were thought to be extinct in the area.

Elizabeth Truss, the environment secretary, credited "innovative" new farming methods for the apparent resurgence of the tiny creatures in Selborne village, Hampshire.

More than 150 harvest mice nests have now been discovered in and around the village where naturalist Gilbert White lived when he first identified themicromys minutus as a species in 1767.

"As an avid reader of Beatrix Potter in my youth I’m delighted that the iconic Harvest Mouse has been rediscovered in the very area in which it was first identified."

The tiny creatures - Europe's smallest rodents - are classed as a Priority Species for Conservation in the UK and are threatened by the loss of hedgerows and grassland habitats.

In Selborne, local farmers have worked together in a "Farmer Cluster" to coordinate land management across the wider area, including hedge planting and maintaining grass headlands around fields to create habitats for birds, small mammals and insects.

Ms Truss said: "As an avid reader of Beatrix Potter in my youth I’m delighted that the iconic Harvest Mouse has been rediscovered in the very area in which it was first identified.

"The farmers of Selborne should be congratulated for the innovative approach they have taken to managing their land for the good of the environment and local wildlife.

Read more …

Wallaby spotted in Kingsclere gardens

5 August 2014 Last updated at 13:36

An animal normally associated with Australian forests has been spotted in Hampshire gardens.

Police received calls from Kingsclere about a wallaby on the loose.

There have been five reported sightings so far.

Police were investigating but the RSPCA said there were established groups of wallabies in the wild so unless the animal was in distress there was no cause for concern.

Calie Rydings, of the RSPCA, said: "What people might not be aware of is that wallabies are established in the wild in Britain. There have been established populations in this country since the 1940s. There is no need to be alarmed."

An alpaca was on the loose in the same area earlier, but police said they believed they had found its owner.

Read on ...

Rare albino corn snake found slithering up the motorway in Hampshire

Motorway workers got the shock of their lives when they saw a rare albino snake slithering up the highway.

The exotic-looking serpent was found at the side of the M3 in Hampshire by workers carrying out routine road maintenance.

Staff at EM Highway Services were stumped as to how the colourful corn snake, usually found in Texas and North America, ended up at junction 13 of the M3, in Eastleigh..

However, it was later discovered to be a non-venomous household pet that had escaped.

Ricky Taylor, environmental manager for EM Highway Services, said: ‘Operatives were performing routine maintenance when they noticed some movement on the verge.

Continued

Angler confronts 'crocodile' in New Forest

A fisherman has created waves in the angling community - after claiming he came face to face with a crocodile in the New Forest.

Alan Pragnell, 64, was fishing at a lake near Ringwood, Hants, when he says the 2ft croc grabbed hold of a small fish as he reeled it in.

Mr Pragnell, an NHS support worker, was sitting on a raised fishing chair, in around a foot of water.

"It was quite clear enough. It was a matter of inches away, just lying there. It was a crocodile," he said.

"It was about two foot long. I was looking at it in disbelief. It had four legs and a tail. It was there for about ten seconds and then sunk down into the depths."

Mr Pragnell admitted it had been hard to convince some people and that his story had led to considerable ridicule.

But he insisted: "What would be the point in lying? I reckon someone had it as a pet and just chucked it over the fence when it got too big."

http://web.orange.co.uk/article/quirkies/Angler_confronts_crocodile_in_New_Forest

Couple flee new home infested with venomous green-fanged spiders

By Jaymi McCann/Published 8th October 2013

A COUPLE have fled their new home after finding it infested with potentially fatal venomous spiders.

Newlyweds John and Jade Meyers found green-fanged tube web spiders in every room of their house.

More than 50 nests of the spider – segestria florentina – in the walls of their Eastleigh home, reported The Sun.

Their bite is very painful and can be potentially fatal.

John told The Sun: “I heard my wife let out an almighty scream and went running to see what was wrong.

“The spider was huge, jet black and with massive shimmery green fangs.”

John,29 and Jane, 26, moved into their marital home last month but saw their first spider within days.

They decided to move into a friends house when a spider ran out of a sofa Jade was sitting on.

Continued

Ringwood's Gorley Road toad crossing volunteers sought

Volunteers are being sought to save hundreds of amorous toads from being killed on a road in Hampshire.

Common toads cross Gorley Road in Ringwood to spawn in nearby lakes, from early March until the end of April.

Ringwood Amphibian Conservationists runs an annual patrol by volunteers who assist the toads with the crossing. Last year they saved about 400.

Volunteer numbers have declined from 28 to 12 this year and organisers are worried this will affect toad numbers.

'Painful death'

Common toads are believed to be declining across the UK because of habitat loss, according to amphibian and reptile conservation group Froglife.

Continued:  http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-hampshire-21655030

Two kittens have '18 extra toes' between them

Two kittens have been discovered with 18 extra toes between them.

Ned and Fred were handed in to the Gosport Town branch of Cats Protection in Hampshire.

Normally cats have five toes on their front paws and four on their rear, but Ned has an extra eight toes and his brother Fred has 10 extra.

Dr Andy Sparkes, from the Feline Advisory Bureau, said the four-month-old kittens were "very unusual" due to the large number of extra toes.

'Poor condition'

Cats Protection field veterinary officer Karen Hiestand said Fred's extra toes on his back paws as well as his front paws were also an "extreme case".

She added that the extra toes did not affect their health.

The kittens had come from a "multi-cat household" and arrived at the charity branch in a "poor condition".

They are still with the centre, but are due to be rehomed with a new owner in two weeks.

Cats with extra digits are known as polydactyl and usually have just one extra toe on each paw, but some can have two or three extra on each paw.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-hampshire-16474354

'Lost' lichen found after over 100 years near Andover

One of the UK's rarest lichens has been rediscovered in a field in Hampshire.

Before the discovery at Goodworth Clatford, near Andover, the lichen, which has an orange disc-like fruit, was thought to be extinct in the UK.

It was found growing on a twig by Neil Sanderson from the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust during biodiversity survey work.

The last recorded sighting of Caloplaca Haematites which resembles a vol-au-vent was 122 years ago, the trust said.

Mr Sanderson said: "I'm thrilled to have made this discovery of a small but beautiful lichen known to the Victorian pioneers of the study of lichens but long thought to have been extinct in Britain."

The lichen, which is a cross between a fungus and an algae, was found growing on a twig of a white poplar tree near the River Anton.

It was last collected from fruit trees and white poplar twigs in Cambridgeshire, South Devon and Worcestershire but had not been seen 1889.

Also referred to as "firedot lichens", conservationists feared it had been wiped out due to a decline in traditional orchards and air pollution.

The rediscovery was verified by Dr Brian Coppins, a lichenologist at the Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-hampshire-14515352

Sparsholt woman's encounter with mystery animal (via Rebecca Lang)

A WINCHESTER woman is recovering from the shock of seeing an large unidentified animal near her home.


Marion Robinson was driving along Sarum Road last Saturday when she spotted a large animal in the middle of the road.

She said: “I saw it in full beam. It was walking along the road; it was very white-haired with big feet. It is hard to say what it was. It wasn’t a dog.”

Mrs Robinson, secretary, 53, of Ham Green, Sparsholt, added: “It was very peculiar and it freaked me out. I have never seen anything like it. It was a big-cat size, bigger than a dog, the size of a small pony.

“I watched it for five minutes as it walked down the road, a good few hundred yards. I just wish I had taken photographs. I’m kicking myself.

“It was swankering down the road. He wasn’t going to get a move on.”

The latest sighting comes only weeks after a spate of incidents involving a large cat-like animal in Valley Park, Chandler’s Ford.

Experts at Marwell Wildlife near Colden Common are sceptical of the likelihood of big cats in Hampshire, even though there have been numerous sightings over the years. The zoo argues big cats need big meals and would need to hunt animals like cows and horses which would rapidly lead to its exposure


by Andrew Napier http://www.hampshirechronicle.co.uk/news/8451873.Sparsholt_woman_s_encounter_with_mystery_animal/