2012

Forest animals shed antlers, change fur colour and indulge in love affairs

The time of antler shedding has come. The middle of October is a period when roebucks let go of their antlers and the young grow their first sets. The red deer are done with mating and can be spotted pasturing. They abstain from food during the mating period. The middle of October is also a time when does and other animals try on their winter furs, since frost is not far away.

Meanwhile, raccoon dogs and two-and-a-half-year-old beavers are busy looking for mates. Unlike racoon dogs, which spend only one winter together, beavers form lifetime relationships. At the moment, however, beavers have many matters to attend to – they must gather food for winter and adapt their homes to the cold season. At the same time, they are also preparing for the spring, fortifying their dams and other structures.

Some small rodents, bank voles and pigmy wood mice, who spend the warm season in nature, just like every autumn, move into human homes. By listening really carefully, it is possible to hear them working hard, gathering and hiding food supplies and preparing their wintering dens.

Rivers are livelier as well. The brown trout, salmon and European river lamprey migrate to their spawning grounds. Other species of fish, including those fonder of warm weather conditions, are still more or less active in their daily errands.

Just like fish, beetles are also rather active still – many of them have evaded the grasp of frost. Under the sun and hiding from winds, various dipterans – flies, deer flies, mosquitoes and others – demonstrate their liveliness. Ants, wasps, hornets, grasshoppers and dragonflies are active as well. Night-time still belongs to moths.

Insects, of course, are the most noticeable ones. Nevertheless, many active invertebrates – brown centipedes, millipedes, rough woodlouses – are still around as well. During night-time hours, ants make their way to the surface due to peculiar reasons – to empty their intestines, leaving small rows of soil in early hours. Many of invertebrates living in waters or beneath serve as fish fodder.