After several weeks of the futile efforts to save the life of the injured badger, I was taken by surprise when I noticed that there’s a set of new and fresh holes just a short walk up the hill from the injured badger’s sett. Here’s the video about it:
So I added a trail camera to the area and pointed it at the double hole, which seemed to have the most activity around it, based on the animal tracks. That however only extended the mystery, as no fox went in or out of the double hole. The video is here:
In response, I move the trail camera to point at a hole on a slope forming the small ravine which passes past the injured badger’s sett.
And that has solved the mystery of the freshly carved den in the immidiate proximity of the injured badger. As what the trail camera captured, was that a fox which seems to wear a permanent smile on her face lives there.
Because of her cutely beautiful face with the shape of the mouth which makes her look like she’s always smiling, I named her the Smiley Vixen.
I haven’t been to the area for a few days, so the compilation of videos captured by the game cameras includes footage from several consecutive days.
00:00 Disclaimer
00:11 Knocking on Smiley Vixen’s door
00:44 Animal tracks in the snow
01:18 First video of the Smiley Vixen exiting the den
02:10 Smiley Vixen returns to the burrow
02:18 Smiley Vixen passes by Injured Badger’s hole
02:37 Smiley Vixen caught on camera in daytime
03:37 Smile for the camera after a nice rest
04:03 Intruding fox attempts to enter Smiley Vixen’s den
04:32 Smiley Vixen still the queen of her hole
04:47 Smiley Vixen in heavy snow
Keep rocking :o)
Mark
https://www.nophoneman.com/
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