Favourite pair fine, but bit of a Backwoods Shocker later

A mild sunny day saw us walk 30 mins to school, thereafter it was off to check on one of my favoured Long-eared sites over the river near Durham City.
Id had a call to say "an owl" had been "found shot".

This site has recently changed ownership, but the neighbouring farmer put a word in for me ensuring access.
No sign of any dead owls, infact a relief to discover the resident pair relaxing in the warmth of what felt like a spring day - many species now singing including Skylarks, Yellowhammer, Chaffinch & several Willow Tit (a dozen pairs noted today).

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The afternoon saw another discovery - this one slightly more sinister.... a real Backwoods Shocker.

Whats this household waste bin doing burried within this old pit heap....?

Whats these pipe entrances, with 'blocker rocks' leading from the bin.....



 

 

I could smell death all around, but couldnt resist lifting the lid........             empty......

I could still smell something rotten close by,

i turned to see these 2 slung into the undergrowth....

Long dead Dog Fox & recently slaughtered Vixen

A pityful sight of the Vixen

 

Can only assume that someones gone to all this trouble digging in the pipes etc, to create a false earth /  use as a baiting pit - to set dogs onto the foxes....

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Towards the end of the afternoon, a more positive encounter with a Short-eared Owl hunting & heading off north - the last 2 years have been abismal for shorties here - whereas 3 winters back we had in excess of 20 birds.
Todays is my first this winter - obviously a passage bird, along with Skylarks, Shoveller duck, Green Sand & Pied Wagtails that were also reported as moving through the area today -
Is Spring here.... ? not quite yet. 

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The previous day i managed to find a new roost site
no telescope, so these pictures of 'twigs' were all i could manage with my iPhone hand held up to my binoculars ! ;-)

another location to keep track on - 9 out of 10 winter roosts sites in Co.Durham hold Long-eareds year round, so hopefully this will turn out to be an additional breeding location....

We are apparently set for a return to winter conditions, but only a couple of weeks now untill the month of March, when Long-eared territorial activity is a daily occurance.