Contents Introduction
4
The Urban Desert: town centres 6 Fox 8 Brown Rat 12 Feral Pigeon 14 Peregrine Falcon 16 Swift 18 Herring Gull 20 Urban Birds 22 Urban Plants 24 The Urban Grasslands: green spaces Rabbit Kestrel Starling Black-Headed Gull Grassland Plants Grassland Insects The Urban Wetlands: rivers, lakes and canals Otter Water Vole Daubenton’s Bat Mallard Kingfisher Common Frog Water Birds Snakes, Terrapins and Newts Dragons and Damsels Fish
26 28 30 32 34 38 42 44 46 48 50 52 54 56 60 64 66 68
The Urban Forests: town trees 70 Grey Squirrel 72 Wood Mouse 74 Noctule Bat 76 Muntjac 78 Tawny Owl 80 Ivy 82 Woodland Birds 86
wild_town.indd 3
The Urban Scrub: forgotten corners Bank Vole Slow Worm Common Lizard Common Shrew Scrub Birds Scrub Plants Scrub Butterflies
90 92 94 96 98 102 104 108
The Urban Caves: homes and buildings House Mouse Pipistrelle Bat House Sparrow House Martin Jackdaw House Insects Spiders
110 112 114 116 118 120 124 128
The Urban Mosaic: a little bit of everything Hedgehog Badger Roe Deer Sparrowhawk Little Owl Magpie City Birds City Butterflies Bees, Wasps, Slugs and Snails
130 132 134 136 138 142 144 146 152 154
Urban Nature Words
158
Index
159
28/07/2012 08:48
Introduction You may think your town is a wildlife-free zone, but you’d be wrong. Many animals have decided that towns and cities aren’t that different from their original homes. To a peregrine falcon, a tower block can look very similar to a tall cliff, and lots of foxes have decided the ‘urban jungle’ is just as good a place to live as wooded countryside. In this book, find out what might live or grow near you on buildings, bridges, railway lines and in parks, get top tips about where to spot your local wildlife and learn how your new neighbours find food and shelter on the town streets. Also, discover fascinating animal facts such as how the little owl protects its nest or which spider hitched a lift around the world in ships and trains to live in your house. So why not take a look around your town or city? Our towns have a wild side and it’s up to you to track it down!
4 wild_town.indd 4
28/07/2012 08:48
5 wild_town.indd 5
28/07/2012 08:48
The Urban Desert: town centres At first glance the town centre might seem like a dry urban desert of glass, metal and concrete with little or no space for wildlife. But look closer and there are all sorts of tough animals and plants which love our city streets.
wild_town.indd 6
27/07/2012 12:31
wild_town.indd 7
27/07/2012 12:31
Fox The Fabulous Mr Fox is known by everyone, with his reddish-brown coat, bushy tail and big black-tipped ears. Foxes can be found in mountains, moorland, woodland and farmland. In the last 50 years foxes have discovered that town centres are full of ripe pickings to eat too.
Super scavengers The key to their amazing urban success is an ability to eat virtually anything. Over half the diet of these super scavengers is made up of thrown-away food, which we leave in waste bins, dustbins or littered all over the floor. A hungry fox will polish off a half-eaten pizza, a curry or even a kebab without a second thought! Towns also offer plenty of places to hide out of sight during the day, whether resting under a garden shed or sunbathing on a roof.
Fox talk During the winter, as the mating season approaches, listen out for their barks and screams when you are tucked up in bed. Foxes use these sounds to keep in touch with each other. A female fox will usually give birth to a litter of four or five cubs in March, but they won’t come out until May – after which it’s playtime!
8 wild_town.indd 8
27/07/2012 12:31
Living dangerously Urban foxes may take the occasional pet rabbit or chicken, but foxes and pet cats tend to keep away from each other. Sadly urban foxes often live fast and die young. Many don’t even reach their second birthday before either being hit by a car or catching an unpleasant foxy disease called mange.
9 wild_town.indd 9
27/07/2012 12:31
Your town is wilder than you think...
Take an amazing journey through the secret world of wildlife in Britain’s towns and cities. The ultimate urban safari!