Mammals - Silverband Falconry Cumbria UK
For as many years as we have worked with birds people have brought rescued animals to us, for first aid and recuperation. Over the years we have cared for countless birds, and we have also dealt with our fair share of exotic animals and wild mammals, including Foxes, Polecats, and a Badger Cub. Many of these mammals have been youngsters which have needed feeding regularly necessitating us taking them with us to work where they have generated huge interest.The result of this attention prompted us to start a program of work with Mammals. The mammals we use are captive bred. Rescue animals are destined to be released back into the wild where ever possible to help maintain the natural population and live out a normal life.
Humbug a Baby Badger we hand
reared during 2006
Herbie the Armadillo out for his daily exercise
Cute and furry, many mammals are kept as pets, often in conditions that are far from ideal for their requirements. Our programs have been developed with this in mind, one of the aims being to encourage people not to get pets or to get the pet appropriate to their situation.
fluffy our kids
want it.
Mr Tiggywinkle the Hedgehog
Many
mammals are under pressure in the wild now with some on the verge of
extinction in Britain. Birds often draw more publicity than mammals
because
they are more visible but mammals require just as much help. Again our
mammal programs cover these subjects.
All
of our Wildlife Interpreters have extensive knowledge of mammals, are
experts in their fields and are trained to pitch sessions at any level.
| Herbie the Southern 3 Banded Armadillo comes from South America where he likes to eat termites ants and other insects which he finds with his brilliant sense of smell. Armadillo means "Little Armoured One" in Spanish. This is the perfect name for him as he carries his armour round with him. Unfortunately these strange little animals are a risk in the wild because people hunt them to eat and for souvenirs; turning their shells into things like ash trays. The H on his forehead doesn't mean he's a hologram it is unique to him like our finger prints are to us and just happens to look like an H. |  |
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Tiggywinkle the Hedgehog was found in front of the house as a youngster after a fight with a Combine Harvester he wasn't fully grown and had obviously been hurt, we found another small brother or sister who died. Tiggywinkle survived but cannot be released back into the wild now as he is unable to roll into a ball fully making him an easy target for predators who might try to eat him. He now lives with us and visits schools to let children who have never had chance to see one of these funny little animals meet one in person. |
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| Gizmo the Sugar Glider is a marsupial from Australia: His wife carries her babies in her pouch until they are old enough to leave and move around themselves. They do Glide rather than fly and have a large flap of skin which runs from their wrist to their ankle which works like a parachute. They are very active little animals and need lots of room to run around glide and chase each other. |  |
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Charlie the Chinchilla is a rodent that comes from the Andes in South America, they are common in captivity but almost extinct in the wild after being hunted for their fur which is amazingly soft, thick and warm perfect for surviving the cold weather on the mountains. Chinchilla's can make good pets but need lots of room and need to chew lots of things to wear their teeth down, this means if they are out they have to be supervised very closely |
| Felix the Polecat is in the same family as Skunks, he is a mustelid. Native to Britain, Polecats used to be very rare, they are beginning to recover now and can often be seen running across the road at night in the car headlights. Their domestic relatives are the ferrets we suspect that Felix is a ferret with polecat markings as he was found at a local holiday park wandering round in broad daylight trying to play with people. He could never be released into the wild as he is far to tame. |  |
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Lottie the Baby Polar Bear All the way from the North Pole she has lots of growing to do; once fully grown she will stand over 3 metres tall. People have mistaken her for a dog, but we know otherwise; four legs, white fur, a tail, black nose and able to walk on her back legs. That's a Polar Bear if ever we saw one, look she even likes the snow. |  |