Wild Creatures Of Garden And Hedgerow

PREFACE THE following account of some of the commoner birds and beasts around us is written in the hope of interesting boys and girls, and some of the older people too if possible, in the wild life of garden, hedgerow, and field. Scientific language has been avoided, for no facts lose value from being expressed in plain words. I have confined myself to the everyday creatures that may be met with in garden and meadow-the mice, birds, frogs, toads, and other animals that every person comes across-as they are quite as interesting as the more uncommon ones. Indeed from a natural history and scientific point of view there are probably as many, if not more, valuable facts waiting to be discovered concerning the ordinary creatures that we meet with every day than there are concerning animals out in the wilds. We want to know how and why the creatures around us do the v I WILD CREATURES OF GARDEN AND HEDGEROW different things that we see happening daily. We want facts, and the descriptions that are oiven hereinafter are almost entirely the b observations ancl notes made while watching the creatures in question and any value these studies may possess will, I believe, be found due to the fact that they are records at first hand of what has been thus seen and learnt. Four chapters have previously appeared as essays in the Nntioncll Review, to the Editor of which, Mr. L. J . h9assc, I am indebted for kindly allowing them to be republished herein. FRANCES PITT. CONTENTS CHAP. I. BATS. 11. THE BANK VOLE. 111. TWO COMMON BIRDS . IV. SHREWS . C. TOADS AND FI1OGS I. THE LONG-TAILEL FIELD MOUSE . II. THE LITILE GEXTT, EhlAN IN THE BLACK VELVET COAI VIII. THIEVES OF THE NIGHT IX. SOME GARDEN BIRDS . S.THE HELIGEHOG . XI. THREE COMAMOS REPTILES . SII. THE SHORT- FAILED FIELD VOLE . PAGE 1 24 45 7 1 96 118 143 166 192 21 4 239 2 B0 vii LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS THEL ONG-TAILFEIDEL D M OUSE Frontispiece LONG-EARBEADT SA SLEEP . . . To face page 6 LONG-EARBEADT SA WAKE ., j 6 PIPISTREL A L B E OU T TO TAKE FLIGHT . 1 6 THIRTEELNO NG-EARBEADT S . 9 16 BANK V OLES-- STOLEGNO OD S ., , 36 BANK VO LE ON THE ALERT 9 36 YOUNG S ONGT HRUSH-W AITIN O J, 54 YOUNG SONG THRUSH- IS THAT MOTHER COMING . 3y 54 BLACKBI O R N D H ER NEST . 32 64 THEP IGMY OR LESSERSH REW . 9 9 84 THEW ATERS HREW . 9 84 A TOAD C LIMBINO . j j 100 THEL ONG-TAILFIEEDL D M OUSE 2 PHOTOGRAPHS, , l28 THE M OLE 2 PHOTOGRAPH . S, , 144 C WHISKE R A S N D OLDP USS . 9, 174 AN OLDE NGLISBHL ACK RA T BUSY EATING, , 186 A COMMOBNR OWN RA T WITH A HENSE aa, , 186 THEG REAT IT CARRYIN H G OMEF OOD FO R ITS YOUNG ., , 210 A HEDGEHFOAGM ILY-TH M E O THER R OLLED U P, , 234 A HEDGEHOFAGM ILY-THOE LDH EDGEHOG UNROLLS . ., , 234 THEH ARMLEGSRSA SS NAKE ., , 244 THEI NNOCEBNIT, I NDWO . R M 244 THE M EADOW V OLE O R SHORT-TAILFEIEDL D MOUSE 3 PHOTOGRAPH . S 9, 264 CHAPTER I BATS Go out any warm still evening into your garden, whether it be a town or country one wait and watch for a few minutes, and as the light begins to fail you will see the shadowy shapes of the bats wheeling and turning against the sunset sky...