mega-fauna

Alpaca pitch invader disrupts Carlton Athletic football match

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The latest example of mischief in Hinterland’s on-going  study of the antics of charismatic mega fauna. This article tells us…..

A football match was disrupted by an unusual pitch invader when an alpaca bounded on to the field.

Carlton Athletic’s tie against Ilkley Town in West Yorkshire on Saturday was halted for 15 minutes when Oscar escaped from a nearby farm and joined the action.

Attempts were made to entice it off the pitch with food, before a farmer managed to shepherd it home.

After the bizarre delay, Ilkley went on to secure a 2-0 away win.

The sides play in the West Yorkshire League Premier Division, with Carlton, near Rothwell, “renowned” in the league for having alpacas nearby, Ilkley manager Simon Armstrong said.

“After 35 minutes it escaped, came through the entrance and proceeded to get on the pitch. The referee stopped the game,” he said.

“People didn’t want to go near it in case it kicked. The farmer was then called and eventually it was tempted back in the field.”

New snake species discovered in Britain…despite living under our noses all along

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Back to the recurrent theme of charismatic mega fauna in Hinterland, great excitement this week as a new snake species has been discovered. The barred grass snake (not to be confused with the common grass snake) is found in lowland areas of southern England, where it lives close to water feeding on amphibians such as frogs, toads and newts. It can grow up to three feet in length, but unlike adders, is not venomous!

Government could force landowners to kill nature’s invaders or face jail

I know I sometimes have a bit of a laugh about how imported mega-fauna has changed rural England. This article suggests that Defra don’t see the funny side. It tells us:

People who try to stop officials exterminating “invasive species” such as parakeets, ruddy ducks and Japanese knotweed on their property should face a prison sentence, under proposals drawn up by the Law Commission.

The Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, the Environment Agency and other bodies would be given the power to force landowners or occupiers to either control or destroy the animals themselves or allow the authorities to step in.

The Law Commission proposed people breaking a “species control order” could be jailed for as long as six months or fined up to £40,000.

Nicholas Paines QC, the Law Commissioner leading on the project, said: “Invasive non-native species are a threat to biodiversity. Early detection and eradication are essential to protect native species and minimise damage to the environment.

“There is also an economic price to pay, with some invasive plants and animals capable of causing significant damage to property and costing a great deal to control and remove.

Get with the beasts: a big game hunter’s guide to modern Britain

Yet another piece on charismatic megafauna, this time a top 10 list of all kinds of creatures ‘on the loose’ across the UK – including giant rats in Yorkshire, Siberian chipmunks in the Midlands, sharks off the Cornish coast and boars in Dorset. Meanwhile in Gloucestershire the National Trust is using experts to carry out DNA tests on the carcasses of two roe deer, possible victims of a big cat.