Not in my back yard ... surely? *We have EVEN MORE cubs!*

Certainly Lee, originally I left it at the default settings but I found that I would miss some action at the end of the clip.
I now have sensitivity on 'High' and the interval at 5 seconds. I've had up to 50 video clips during the night (average around 30) and a couple have been of nothing but it has enabled me to see some continuity in activity on clips that are good (most).
I find the Eneloops are easily lasting 3 nights with it being set to come on at around 8:15pm and off at 6:am and then I recharge them just to be on the safe side ... they might last 4 nights or more but I don't want them to conk out mid-flow.
Ok... that's fine.
I am about to set up my second camera and wanted to see if it was worth changing settings, so reading what you've written I'll leave them on what they are(which is the same as yours).
I have set mine up in my 4 acre woodland(which is in the next village but only a 15 minute walk away), so it's a little trickier as there are a lot of trees and ferns etc so I don't have a large clear area, however, I have managed to capture a young roe buck, and doe, and this morning I see she has a fawn.
I am using normal Energizer max batteries, they have lasted a month so far in the first one. I leave mine on all day and night, so how long are your videos for?.
 
Rich great posts ,I wish I could think of a workaround the worms idea is inspired:cool:
:)
Thanks Stu. There’s usually worms about on the surface of lawns at night (I don’t go looking for them but my present terrier likes to “catch” them and sometimes brings them indoors :() especially if the surface is damp, maybe a sprinkler for a short time on the grass in the evening?

My garden isn’t huge but is large by modern standards but I have a tiny 6’x4’ pond full of frogs, newts, toads & spawn at this time of year. Any long grass harbours froglets which I daresay badgers eat. I never burn or discard grass, leaves, branches etc. Branches are arranged along the path and make a fine mouse habitat for the dogs to hunt along but can seldom catch them. At night I can see mice casually cleaning their whiskers in torchlight (mine, the mice haven’t got torches yet) :)) while a terrier is “winding” at it :).

All this dead litter is full of slugs, worms, wood lice & so on, probably wouldn’t suit everyone but it does me and was great when I had the ducks & chickens and would be good for badgers. I’ve always had frequent hedgehogs, which I didn’t always welcome :).
 
I am using normal Energizer max batteries, they have lasted a month so far in the first one. I leave mine on all day and night, so how long are your videos for?.
The videos are set for 30 seconds, I thought a minute was too long battery-wise.
Someone did say not to use rechargeables so maybe I'm not getting good longevity of use from them, I don't know, but as I had them and I can easily recharge and replace it seemed the sensible option.
 
@Solo man I've been using the H55 trail cam for about a year now and, like Gramps, I set the video length to 30 seconds (I don't bother with still images, just video) with 5 second interval, and the sensor sensitivity to 'high'. I use the 720p video quality setting, rather than the 1080p highest quality setting. The reason being that the 720p recording runs at 30 frames per second rate, whereas the 1080p setting runs at 15 frames per second, which I find can make motion look slightly jerky and less life-like.

To get the best out of a typical trail cam, professional trail camera users seem to suggest using non-rechargeable lithium AA batteries such as the Energiser Ultimate Lithium. Using rechargeable batteries isn't recommended as they soon go flat. Using Alkaline Duracell type batteries isn't recommended either; I was told that their power discharge characteristics aren't best suited to typical trail cameras. Also lithium batteries apparently don't suffer as much from voltage drop in cold weather. Hope this is useful.
 
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@Solo man I've been using the H55 trail cam for about a year now and, like Gramps, I set the video length to 30 seconds (I don't bother with still images, just video) with 5 second interval, and the sensor sensitivity to 'high'. I use the 720p video quality setting, rather than the 1080p highest quality setting. The reason being that the 720p recording runs at 30 frames per second rate, whereas the 1080p setting runs at 15 frames per second, which I find can make motion look slightly jerky and less life-like.

To get the best out of a typical trail cam, professional trail camera users seem to suggest using non-rechargeable lithium AA batteries such as the Energiser Ultimate Lithium. Using rechargeable batteries isn't recommended as they soon go flat. Using Alkaline Duracell type batteries isn't recommended either; I was told that their power discharge characteristics aren't best suited to typical trail cameras. Also lithium batteries apparently don't suffer as much from voltage drop in cold weather. Hope this is useful.
Thanks... I do use the 30 second length, and 2 still images. But I am still using 1080p. I may try running one at 720p and see how it differs when I upload.
I leave mine running 24/7, check them every 2 days and format the cards each time in the trail cam, and my batteries are doing well.
 
Well the mystery of the rat taking the bait from the humane trap without tripping it was solved this morning.
The 'killer' rat trap inside the humane trap cage contained a very large mouse!
So the rat probably wasn't visiting the humane trap at all ... time will tell if it does.
Had a busy evening and realised this morning that I had forgotten to put the SD card back into the trailcam :jawdrop: ... I'm not very good at this!
 
Ha no mystery there we just needed proof;) a wood mouse Roger?? Curious as to what you see. in an urban garden?
Ahh mate I've got a turtle dove calling right by home yippee :D We had none last year but somebody is back from traveling oh and cuckoo yesterday.. But the turtle is wonderful as I've noted the decline each year:( once the the purring stopped completely I wondered if they would be seen here again.

stu
 
Ha no mystery there we just needed proof;) a wood mouse Roger?? Curious as to what you see. in an urban garden?
Ahh mate I've got a turtle dove calling right by home yippee :D We had none last year but somebody is back from traveling oh and cuckoo yesterday.. But the turtle is wonderful as I've noted the decline each year:( once the the purring stopped completely I wondered if they would be seen here again.

stu

Yes large Wood Mouse Stu, was hoping it would be the rat.
Didn't seem like much activity last night, (even though no video due to me forgetting the SD card!), as the few bits of food leftover from Wednesday night were still there ... hope the foxes and badgers are all okay.
Great you have the turtle dove & cuckoo visiting.
My Heath Robinson bird feeding station (random apple tree branches) is now starting to get more use so I am hoping that before lonf it will be worth setting the camera & tripod up at the back door ... I have had a delivery of some camo sheet.
 
Thanks, it's surprising they can be quite big can't they and great stuff on the feeding station. Roger I guess the camo will be needed but frankly I just sit in the front door way,mind those feeders have been running for years so most visitors are used to us . . Heath robinson is good, I've just finally knocked up something my self I've been musing for ages. I'm looking forwards to your results and plotting myself.

Turtle dove is hugely special, fastest declining brit bird say birdguides 98 yes 98% lost since 1970. I knew it was bad but didn't realise just how bad !! I hope he finds a lady. He must have just got here we would hear heard him that call carries. He wont come to home well they never have before,just wonderful to hear that sound
 
Thanks, it's surprising they can be quite big can't they and great stuff on the feeding station. Roger I guess the camo will be needed but frankly I just sit in the front door way,mind those feeders have been running for years so most visitors are used to us . . Heath robinson is good, I've just finally knocked up something my self I've been musing for ages. I'm looking forwards to your results and plotting myself.

Turtle dove is hugely special, fastest declining brit bird say birdguides 98 yes 98% lost since 1970. I knew it was bad but didn't realise just how bad !! I hope he finds a lady. He must have just got here we would hear heard him that call carries. He wont come to home well they never have before,just wonderful to hear that sound

The camo sheet is sort of one-way, easy to see through from your side but camoflaged from the birds side. :)
Local company via eBay.
 
Thanks... I do use the 30 second length, and 2 still images. But I am still using 1080p. I may try running one at 720p and see how it differs when I upload.
I leave mine running 24/7, check them every 2 days and format the cards each time in the trail cam, and my batteries are doing well.
I never bother with still photos on mine, I use the video only setting. There are a couple of reasons for this, firstly, I find I have more chance of spotting a distant or peripheral trigger animal if it's moving, rather than playing 'where's Wally' with a grainy night vision photo and not seeing that tiny wood mouse in the leaves at the edge of the frame, etc. Secondly, trigger rate; it takes the photos first, then the video, and by the time the video has started the trigger animal may well have left the frame. Add to this the fact that photos + video will also fill the SD card up and drain the batteries quicker.

The only time I might consider using photos, would be the '3 photos' only setting if I had the leave the camera out somewhere for a month or two without returning to it, purely to stop the memory card filling up too quickly in the hope that it remained operational throughout the full period. I've not found a huge drop in video quality lowering it to 720p and I much prefer the smoother looking video at 30fps. However, it's all down to personal preference and what works best for you. Hope you have fun experimenting, let us know your findings. (y)
 
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I've switched to always on this morning and reduced the quality to 720 to see what it's like.
Anyone else using rechargables ... what sort of battery life with video?
 
Great news on the birds too Roger, Cuckoos are appearing all over Exmoor now too. I heard the first one on Monday in my home village of Challacombe and last night on my bike ride/dog walking could hear them up higher on the hills where they usually are each year which is great news
 
I never bother with still photos on mine, I use the video only setting. There are a couple of reasons for this, firstly, I find I have more chance of spotting a distant or peripheral trigger animal if it's moving, rather than playing 'where's Wally' with a grainy night vision photo and not seeing that tiny wood mouse in the leaves at the edge of the frame, etc. Secondly, trigger rate; it takes the photos first, then the video, and by the time the video has started the trigger animal may well have left the frame. Add to this the fact that photos + video will also fill the SD card up and drain the batteries quicker.

The only time I might consider using photos, would be the '3 photos' only setting if I had the leave the camera out somewhere for a month or two without returning to it, purely to stop the memory card filling up too quickly in the hope that it remained operational throughout the full period. I've not found a huge drop in video quality lowering it to 720p and I much prefer the smoother looking video at 30fps. However, it's all down to personal preference and what works best for you. Hope you have fun experimenting, let us know your findings. (y)
That's useful to know about the still images... I might just reset both cameras when I check them tomorrow. Because it's taking those first few images and the field of view is not very big so I do miss a lot, especially as there is a lot of undergrowth.
This is the doe and you can just make out she has a very young fawn(it's early for a roe fawn, so hadn't had chance to set up in the best spot).


One of her during the day a few days earlier
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k4eo-AQcX0Y
 
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That's useful to know about the still images... I might just reset both cameras when I check them tomorrow. Because it's taking those first few images and the field of view is not very big so I do miss a lot, especially as there is a lot of undergrowth.
This is the doe and you can just make out she has a very young fawn(it's early for a roe fawn, so hadn't had chance to set up in the best spot).
Video marked as 'Private' :(
 
I've switched to always on this morning and reduced the quality to 720 to see what it's like.
Anyone else using rechargables ... what sort of battery life with video?

I use Eneloops and get three days and nights so far, I might do a test tonight. I suppose it depends how may times it gets triggered
 
I use Eneloops and get three days and nights so far, I might do a test tonight. I suppose it depends how may times it gets triggered
That's interesting, I'll see how mine compare :)
 
Not a great deal of activity sfter teatime last night but at least I know that the dog fox is still okay and so is the badger (at least one of them anyway). Nothing recorded after around 4am so the activity of the foxes has reduced quite considerably over the last few days, as I was getting multiple night visit ... only two sightings of the dog fox last night..
@sphexx Notice the not-so-neat garden :oops: :$






I'm not going to leave the trailcam on all day though now, for me too many 'false' activations probably due to moving vegetation, with other clips of the odd small bird and neighbours cats. I'm not sure that the drop in quality to 720 makes a great deal of difference on first viewing either but maybe I'm just missing something?

One notable absentee was the rat from the side hedge ... did the vixen have it the other night?
Time will tell :)

Nothing in the rat trap either this morning.
 
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720p doesn't seem to make much difference in terms of picture quality, but it's got double the frame rate so any motion should look smoother and less jerky.
 
Just seen all your footage,Roger. Really good quality. I don't usually come into this thread hence not seeing it. You avatar just caught my eye. That will keep you occupied in lockdown.lol The fox looks very healthy too.I wonder if they move on around a large patch ? You mentioned not seeing it so often.
 
Just seen all your footage,Roger. Really good quality. I don't usually come into this thread hence not seeing it. You avatar just caught my eye. That will keep you occupied in lockdown.lol The fox looks very healthy too.I wonder if they move on around a large patch ? You mentioned not seeing it so often.

I'm sure that it has its 'territory' John but how far ranging it is I am not sure.
I feel certain that the den is somewhere near us, as under normal circumstances, we get multiple visits each night, and sometimes day, at this time of the year. There is a definite defined route through our back hedge and even though I have stuffed old tree cuttings etc into it over the years it has never discouraged the visits and the trail persists.
We noticed the badger diggings about 9 months ago and assumed it was the fox trying to dig under the fence but a while back I ruled that out when he was in the garden marking his territory and I saw him jump it. (it's 4' 6"-5' 0"high) and commence marking in the neighbours garden.
I had never actually seen the badger (indeed two of them) until this lockdown and using the trailcam, it's quite exciting to see we have two visiting but not doing much for the top teir of the garden ... or maybe I should view it as a rotivator option if it keeps going uniformly! :LOL:
 
I think foxes have regular opportunistic “patrols” in urban areas. I’ve always had fox ”visitors”, as I can see when it occasionally snows. They come in & check the hens (successfully thrice, from their point of view :() and pass on. I once saw one casually hop over my gate at 0600 in daylight and just pass on to to next door.

There is farmland about 30 houses up the road and when it snows one can see that is where they are coming from rather than other gardens. One was run over at my front garden entrance. 40 years ago when I first moved here a fox had a brief dust-up with one of my basenjis, bit it on the back (not badly) and made off. They were more circumspect in daylight after that :).

Mallards regularly lay in this and neighbouring gardens and also bring their ducklings through on the way to the river and the fox (probably fox) has had eggs & ducklings on occasion.
 
I think foxes have regular opportunistic “patrols” in urban areas. I’ve always had fox ”visitors”, as I can see when it occasionally snows. They come in & check the hens (successfully thrice, from their point of view :() and pass on. I once saw one casually hop over my gate at 0600 in daylight and just pass on to to next door.

There is farmland about 30 houses up the road and when it snows one can see that is where they are coming from rather than other gardens. One was run over at my front garden entrance. 40 years ago when I first moved here a fox had a brief dust-up with one of my basenjis, bit it on the back (not badly) and made off. They were more circumspect in daylight after that :).

Mallards regularly lay in this and neighbouring gardens and also bring their ducklings through on the way to the river and the fox (probably fox) has had eggs & ducklings on occasion.

I've just Googled Basenjis as I hadn't heard of them before. A wonderful dog. So that you know what I read,Richard...https://dogtime.com/dog-breeds/basenji#/slide/1

Re ducklings. We saw a female mallard making a real racket (distress, agitation,really)on top of our garden shed at 8.00am on a Sunday morning. Cut a long story short she was calling to her brood. Four in next door's back garden and seven in other neighbours' gardens. I went next door and with our neighbour got the four ,with mom by now, from the back garden to the front and then 25 metres to the nearby brook. I then got a green recycle box and went in to the Close behind and knocked on doors there and had people let me into their back gardens. It took a while but between us all we got the other seven. I walked to the brook with them in the box with the lid on and saw 'mom' down in the brook with the other four. As I neared her I lifted the lid and the ducklings chirped and she raised her head, listened and legged it up the shallow embankment. I tipped them out onto the grass, gently of course and the last one came out head over heals like Dopey from the Seven Dwarfs ..so funny. By then several ladies..yes, it was all the wives and sometimes an accompanying daughter all in dressing gowns..lol.. were having a cuppa made by someone as it all took a good while. The ducks made their way along the stream to the local pond.
 
Well I've just had a 5 min encounter with the dog fox but sadly he has injured one of his hind legs.
I was putting some food and water out when I spotted him on the lower level, after a moment he walked up and took a bit of the food, smelt but ignored the water and just hung around me sniffing at the lawn and taking a small amount of the dried dog food.
About 3 feet away most of the time until he sloped off up the track and through the back hedge.
Hope the hind leg isn't serious.
 
I've just Googled Basenjis as I hadn't heard of them before. A wonderful dog. So that you know what I read,Richard...https://dogtime.com/dog-breeds/basenji#/slide/1

Re ducklings. We saw a female mallard making a real racket (distress, agitation,really)on top of our garden shed at 8.00am on a Sunday morning. Cut a long story short she was calling to her brood. Four in next door's back garden and seven in other neighbours' gardens. I went next door and with our neighbour got the four ,with mom by now, from the back garden to the front and then 25 metres to the nearby brook. I then got a green recycle box and went in to the Close behind and knocked on doors there and had people let me into their back gardens. It took a while but between us all we got the other seven. I walked to the brook with them in the box with the lid on and saw 'mom' down in the brook with the other four. As I neared her I lifted the lid and the ducklings chirped and she raised her head, listened and legged it up the shallow embankment. I tipped them out onto the grass, gently of course and the last one came out head over heals like Dopey from the Seven Dwarfs ..so funny. By then several ladies..yes, it was all the wives and sometimes an accompanying daughter all in dressing gowns..lol.. were having a cuppa made by someone as it all took a good while. The ducks made their way along the stream to the local pond.
Mallard are great fun. The Mallard ducks (as opposed to drakes) all look alike to me so I can’t be sure how many I’ve had dealings with but they’ve mostly been very relaxed and appear to recognise me (I do feed them if they visit without ducklings). On a couple of occasions I’ve had one on the other side of the road (quite busy A road) and I’ve had to go over and stop the traffic to shepherd them across. Though, I’ve some experience at this as my Black Rosecomb Banties used to explore the grass verge and sometimes managed to get “stuck on the other sise and Id have to go and rescue them, to the amusement of drivers no doubt :).
 
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Mallard are great fun. The Mallard ducks (as opposed to drakes) all look alike to me so I can’t be sure how many I’ve had dealings with but they’ve mostly been very relaxed and appear to recognise me. On a couple of occasions I’ve had one on the other side of the road (quite busy A road) and I’ve had to go over and stop the traffic to shepherd them across. Though, I’ve some experience at this as my Black Rosecomb Banties used to explore the grass verge and sometimes managed to get “stuck on the other sise and Id have to go and rescue them, to the amusement of drivers no doubt :).

Well done re the assists. It reminded me of when I was returning from photographing steam trains on the Severn Valley Railway and en-route home I saw a parent starling squawking at a fledgling that was sitting dead-centre in the road. Each time a vehicle came close it flew off.It was a very busy main road and fairly narrow too for a main road. I stopped,parked half on the footpath and caused all the traffic to stop by going to the bird, picking it up..noisy sod it was..lol. I placed it in the hedge where the parent was BUT..a bus was held up and the driver scowled at me as he drove off.

Our visiting mallards..Mr & Mrs Duck as my wife calls them..lol ..see me in the lounge (from the dining room patio window) and hit their beaks on the glass, see me get up and go to the conservatory door to meet me to get some seed. Lol. They run to me from the bottom of the garden too. They swim on our large pond so that's the attraction. Visitors love to see them.

Hope Roger doesn't mind the intrusion. No..I'm sure he won't..:)
 
Well I've just had a 5 min encounter with the dog fox but sadly he has injured one of his hind legs.
I was putting some food and water out when I spotted him on the lower level, after a moment he walked up and took a bit of the food, smelt but ignored the water and just hung around me sniffing at the lawn and taking a small amount of the dried dog food.
About 3 feet away most of the time until he sloped off up the track and through the back hedge.
Hope the hind leg isn't serious.

Oh..that's sad, Roger. :( I hope he hasn't been struck by a car. At least he's walking so maybe a temporary loss of movement and he doesn't need to forage so that's good. Keep us informed.
 
Well I've just had a 5 min encounter with the dog fox but sadly he has injured one of his hind legs.

One of the foxes I have visit injured her back leg early this year, couldn't walk on it properly but is now fine
If he he is moving about ok I would hope it's minor, that said no way would one of ours get that close or hang around
 
One of the foxes I have visit injured her back leg early this year, couldn't walk on it properly but is now fine
If he he is moving about ok I would hope it's minor, that said no way would one of ours get that close or hang around
Let's hope this one recovers use of his leg ok too Ingrid ... haven't been so close to a fox since the visit to the British Wildlife Centre :)
 
I've just Googled Basenjis as I hadn't heard of them before. A wonderful dog. So that you know what I read,Richard...https://dogtime.com/dog-breeds/basenji#/slide/1
.
Nearly everything at your link as either wrong or misleading. Proof is that you have read it and told me it’s “A wonderful dog”. Well, they are but if the info were accurate you would come away with the impression that they were very interesting but very difficult dogs and probably not for you :). I’ll send you a PM rather than hijack @gramps ‘s thread — oops! done that already :(.
 
After last evenings encounter with the dog fox, which was a lovely experience, last nights trailcam footage was fairly disappointing.
Next doors rat evidently wasn't caight by the fox, as I had thought, but lives on to panic-buy the dried dog food that I left out for the foxes & badgers, totally ignoring the peanut butter in the trap inside the tunnel!

The badger did come, late into the night, or rather early morning, and stayed for a few minutes picking up a few bits of dog food, checking out and ignoring the water, scent-marking and then disappearing ... no visit at all from either of the foxes and, as the night before, no more activity after around 4am.

Evidently the foxes and badgers aren't particularly hungry or thirsty, or they just don't like either type of dog food I've put out ... which I guess does mean that they aren't particularly hungry.
The rat on the other hand takes a liking to filling its larder with anything available ... oh apart from peanut butter! :banghead:

 
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Good video, Gramps.

Something that I've found is eaten by both foxes and badgers are peanuts. Scattered around they keep the badgers rootling around for a good while.

They will also be eaten by rats, but then so will just about anything, and if there are any left in the morning the birds will take them.

Dave
 
A question....
I have watched @gramps videos, so, why am I not getting the quality that he gets...?
I'm getting decent clips when it's nearer daylight, but in the middle of the night it's very grainy and my 'light' that's cast seems to take over...is it because I have my camera set quite high, is it because it's darker...or the terrain is not helping?

Fox

Female deer
 
After last evenings encounter with the dog fox, which was a lovely experience, last nights trailcam footage was fairly disappointing.
Next doors rat evidently wasn't caight by the fox, as I had thought, but lives on to panic-buy the dried dog food that I left out for the foxes & badgers, totally ignoring the peanut butter in the trap inside the tunnel!

The badger did come, late into the night, or rather early morning, and stayed for a few minutes picking up a few bits of dog food, checking out and ignoring the water, scent-marking and then disappearing ... no visit at all from either of the foxes and, as the night before, no more activity after around 4am.

Evidently the foxes and badgers aren't particularly hungry or thirsty, or they just don't like either type of dog food I've put out ... which I guess does mean that they aren't particularly hungry.
The rat on the other hand takes a liking to filling its larder with anything available ... oh apart from peanut butter! :banghead:

Rats (& mice) will carry off and store up food if there’s more than they can eat.
 
A question....
I have watched @gramps videos, so, why am I not getting the quality that he gets...?
I'm getting decent clips when it's nearer daylight, but in the middle of the night it's very grainy and my 'light' that's cast seems to take over...is it because I have my camera set quite high, is it because it's darker...or the terrain is not helping?

Fox

Female deer

I had to lower my camera to avoid 'fogging' from the infrared.
Rats (& mice) will carry off and store up food if there’s more than they can eat.
Well stocked up after last night unfortunately :(
 
.
Well stocked up after last night unfortunately :(
I don’t think rodents have “well stocked up“ mentality ;)

Some years ago I had dried dog food in a bowl near the gas fire in the living room which communicated through 3 doorways to the garden, the garden door usually being open all day in good weather. I found a large stash of food behind the fire but no sign of any mice. Then I searched the next room and found another stash behind books in a bookcase about half-way to the garden door :). Seems like they were serially transporting it from bowl, to fireplace, to bookcase, to garden. Resourceful and smart little buggers. I have house mice and wood mice in the garden, don’t know which It was.
 
I had to lower my camera to avoid 'fogging' from the infrared.

Well stocked up after last night unfortunately :(
Thanks.... this is my second attempt at placing it in a suitable spot. The first saw me with 48 videos of passing traffic on the A38 :LOL:.

The only way to cure your rat problem is not to put out food. Failing that have you tried chocolate spread in your trap?.
 
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