60
MAMMAL TRACKS AND SIGNS, 16TH OCTOBER, 1988
A morning ramble was held at Tilty Hill Farm to
look for signs of wild mammals. After recent
rain the mud was soft on the farm tracks and
ideal for footprints. We soon found fresh
tracks of Fox and Badger side by side, near the
stream. This gave members a comparative view
of these two very different prints. We
examined the local Badger sett to find five
entrances freshly dug out. Loose Badger hairs
and claw marks on logs, together with a fresh
latrine all bore evidence of current use. In
fact, I had watched the family of five Badgers
in the late spring.
The party walked along the lower edge of a
small wood into which disappeared many deer
paths, impossible to follow due to fallen trees
and undergrowth. We examined the Deer slots
and droppings and found two distinct types, the
larger Fallow prints and those of the smaller
Muntjac Deer. Roe Deer were not thought to
occur here, being rather far south for their
range. In the wood we found hazel nuts on the
ground with typical Grey Squirrel tooth marks.
Returning along a meadow mole' hills were to be
seen and some six or so Rabbits were seen in
the well grown hedgerows.
I have been studying the Badger population in
the area for twenty—five years. Numbers have
remained constant and in the Dunmow, Bishops
Stortford, Thaxted area I know of nine setts in
current use. I expect the Stansted Airport
works to cause some movement of Badgers
possibly to the quieter arable land. It will
be interesting to see how the Badgers fare