# Mountain bikers saving wildlife.



## Muddy Ground (8 May 2011)

Today I was climbing up a hill, slowly of course, and I noticed something ahead moving on the trail. I stopped and in front of me was a little snake no more than 30cm long. It was stuck in a gravel gulley and appeared to be having some difficulty climbing the walls - it's a popular route for speeding cyclists so he was in some danger there. So I stopped, picked it up and moved it off the trail. Otherwise the next MTB'er along would have crushed the poor fellow. Can't remember the last time I saw a snake in the UK, so I felt quite good at having been able to remove it from harms' way.

www.muddyground.blogspot.com


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## Zoiders (8 May 2011)

It might not have been a snake.


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## Muddy Ground (9 May 2011)

Slow worm?


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## Panter (9 May 2011)

We rescued a tiny bunny last week, it was sitting in the middle of the trail doing the "If-I-keep-really still-they-won't-see-me" thing.


We gently shooed her into the undergrowth and seconds later a large crowd of MTBr's going hell for leather swept past!


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## david1701 (9 May 2011)

I end up rescuing a lot of escapee sheep but no actual wildlie


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## ColinJ (9 May 2011)

david1701 said:


> I end up rescuing a lot of escapee sheep but no actual wildlie


I've rescued a sheep and a lambs on separate rides.

The sheep was trapped in a bog on a remote lane near Oban. It looked absolutely knackered and would probably have eventually just given up and died there. It looked too firmly trapped to do much for, but my friend was really upset by seeing it stuck in the quagmire up to its nose. She was all set to ride to every farm in the area until she found a farmer willing to come out and attempt a rescue.

I didn't hold out much hope, but decided to have a go. I managed to get close enough to it to get hold of its horns and pull and I'm talking a 100% effort from a 6'1" 14.5 stone man here. I though I might break its neck or pull its horns off. I almost put my back out doing it but I finally managed to drag it out onto dry land. It was too tired to stand up and I thought it was a goner, but then it spotted some delicious grass nearby and rolled its head to the side and began to eat it! We left it there to recover.

I've twice found lambs trapped between a wire fence and a damaged dry stone wall. Farmers had taken the cheaper option of erecting fences rather then repairing the walls, but that creates traps for small animals. 

Each lamb had wandered down the gap between wall and fence and then couldn't figure out how to back up the way it had come came when the gap fizzled out. There wasn't enough room to turn round to see the way out.

Have you ever tried pushing a terrified lamb backwards in a confined space? The little darlings insist on trying to jump over your hands and go forwards! What's more, you tend to find a very agitated mother sheep butting you from behind for messing with her family ...

I don't know who was the most stupid - the lamb for getting trapped, the sheep for trying to stop me rescuing its lamb or me for trying to hold a sensible converstion with the pair of them about what I was trying to do for them!


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## Muddy Ground (9 May 2011)

It was a slow worm - so I've still yet to see a snake wild in the UK. Still happy about helping the little chappie along in life...

MG


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## david1701 (11 May 2011)

ColinJ said:


> I've rescued a sheep and a lambs on separate rides.
> 
> The sheep was trapped in a bog on a remote lane near Oban. It looked absolutely knackered and would probably have eventually just given up and died there. It looked too firmly trapped to do much for, but my friend was really upset by seeing it stuck in the quagmire up to its nose. She was all set to ride to every farm in the area until she found a farmer willing to come out and attempt a rescue.
> 
> ...



the bog sounds quite scary, the stuck between fence and wall thing happens a lot here what can work is pulling the fence out so the sheep can turn round if its too big to push/carry back


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## cycleGeoff (12 May 2011)

Yeah it's pretty rare to see snakes in the UK. I once went over a slow worm hiding in some long grass in my lawnmower. Seeing it chopped in half like that made me sad...


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## Muddy Ground (12 May 2011)

Oy! That's not in the spirit of saving things now is it? Need to start a new thread there my friend; Rare animals I have killed.

Moving back.... We have these huge golf ball sized snails that populate the North Downs; I'm always moving those off the trail.

MG


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## Melonfish (12 May 2011)

Muddy Ground said:


> Oy! That's not in the spirit of saving things now is it? Need to start a new thread there my friend; Rare animals I have killed.
> 
> Moving back.... We have these huge golf ball sized snails that populate the North Downs; I'm always moving those off the trail.
> 
> MG



Have you considered collecting and eating them? after all that's what the romans brought them over for?
stick em in a closed tub with some air holes and some carrot. when they poop orange they're purged of anything they've been eating (about 24 hours) as snails can sometimes feed on poisonous mushrooms or plants prior to eating.
pete


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## Muddy Ground (12 May 2011)

Blimey, that would add another dimension to a ride wouldn't it? What an interesting observation. Wife loves them in garlic butter.....

MG


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## Cubist (12 May 2011)

Or a new competition: how many golf-ball sized snailscan I get my jersey pockets.......


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## Melonfish (12 May 2011)

Cubist said:


> Or a new competition: how many golf-ball sized snailscan I get my jersey pockets.......



"Whats he got in his pocketses precious, Hmm?"

i wish i had those snails up by me. i have to content with the usual wild garlic roadside greens and protein provided by flies.


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## Muddy Ground (12 May 2011)

Helix Pomatia - sorry, but they have legal protection so one can't collect and eat them. http://www.uksafari.com/romansnail.htm So once again MG comes to the rescue of a semi endangered species! Et voila.

I thought this was a cycling chat room?

MG


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## funnymummy (12 May 2011)

Muddy Ground said:


> Helix Pomatia - sorry, but they have legal protection so one can't collect and eat them. http://www.uksafari.com/romansnail.htm So once again MG comes to the rescue of a semi endangered species! Et voila.
> 
> I thought this was a cycling chat room?
> 
> MG



Bugger! I was just about to pop out with my bucket!!


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## Muddy Ground (12 May 2011)

So was I! All set to get the kids collecting them whilst I sat at the cafe on Reigate Hill shooting the breeze with other middle aged but like minded cyclists. Bummer.

MG


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## Melonfish (12 May 2011)

Oh well i guess its back to regular snails then 
still tasty.


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## tradesecrets (15 May 2011)

The Adder is the UK's only poisonous snake this Country has and is the most elusive ..


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## c00ke5ter (25 May 2011)

Rescued a duckling hellbent on playing with traffic, posted it through the hedges several times only for it to run back out. No sign nor sound of mother / others so took it home and raised it in a hutch in the garden. Once big enough, it lived "wild" but would still follow me round / quack when I got too far away. Would waddle into the house if we left the door open, watched too much TV tho!

Never been able to eat Duck since!


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## screenman (25 May 2011)

Seen two Adders up here and followed a Deer along the cycle track for a mile yesterday, we have rescued sheep, dogs, owls and a few humans.


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## Ludwig (28 May 2011)

You have to way up the balance between human interefence and habitat loss. You could say that having mountain bike trails leads to habital loss but on the other hand many of these trails are quite wild and the mtb community with the partenship of wildlife organiasations help to preserve unique habitats that may otherwise be intensively farmed, built on or filled with conifers.


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## hotmetal (30 May 2011)

Two things I don't eat: 
Snails that have eaten poison mushrooms.
Snails that may have eaten poison mushrooms but are now sh*tting orange (clever trick though for snail munchers). 

Would make a good car sticker though: "I slow down for snails!" 

PS Well done for saving wildlife on your rides. Especially slow worms. They're kind of cool, and don't deserve to get squashed.


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