The ones that got away

We have been busy controlling giant hogweed at several sites but overlooked a fairly big stand on the Longman landfill site.

Dressing up in full PPE was no fun on a hot day, and after cutting a few flowerheads, we decided to spray smaller plants around the edge of the colony, and come back next spring to deal with plants when they are a more manageable size.  Caution is the better part of valour.

Mink attack

Amazing footage of a mink raiding a kingfisher nest from tonights (06/06/12) BBC Springwatch, here is a link to the site which shows some stills of the attack but you will probably be able to watch again if you go to BBC iplayer.
Highlights how devastating a predator the mink can be wiping out a kingfisher nest in a matter of minutes.  This is the case for many ground nesting birds and water voles.
Link:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/natureuk/2012/06/kingfisher-mink-predation-last.shtml#more