Oak Grove Retreats

The Old Railway Caravan Park, Doldowlod, gateway to the Elan Valley, Mid Wales - Luxury Caravans and Tipis for idylic breaks in the beautiful Elan Valley

LOCAL MAMMALS

Oak Grove Retreats self catering for holidays in Mid Wales

We are located a stone's throw from the River Wye

Near Rhayader & the Elan Valley in the Wild heart of wales!

Doldowlod Caravan Park is a great base for wildlife lovers.This really is a wildlife hotspot so bring your binoculars and walk quietly and prepare to see a wide variety of native mammals.

We have such a rich variety in the Rhayader/Elan Valley area and the only inland mammals not recorded are the harvest mouse, dormouse, fallow deer and red squirrel.

grey squirrel

Grey Squirrels are common and easy to see, they come originally from America and are larger and more adaptable than the native Red Squirrel. There are no records of reds since the 1960s.

fox

foxes are night time visitors along the baks of the Wye just 200 yards from Oak Grove Retreats.

Foxes mostly live alone and usually adapt old rabbit or badger burrows into earths which are used for shelter and for females to raise cubs in.

Deer are uncommon but there have been recent sightings of muntjack and roe in the Rhayader area.

muntjack deer roe deer

muntjack are infrequent visitors but have been reported in the area around Oak Grove retreats.

roe deer are infrequent visitors but have been reported in the area around Oak Grove retreats.

stoat weasel

weasel are sighted within 6 miles of Oak Grove Retreats.

stoat are sighted within 6 miles of Oak Grove Retreats.

Stoats and Weasels are all members of the weasel (mustelid) family. Stoats and Weasels are often confused, both are chestnut brown with a white belly but Stoats are larger, with a black tipped tail and the line where the brown fur meets the white fur is straight. Weasels have a shorter, untipped, tail and a wavy line between the brown and white.

polecat

Polecats are uncommon in the UK outside of Wales and its bordering counties but are sighted here and the population is spreading. They are the wild cousins of domestic ferrets with which they will interbreed.

american mink

American Mink (none native mammal) escaped from fur farms mostly during the 1960s and 1970s, they bred in the wild and spread into the area in the late 1980s. They are found near to water where they prey on birds, small mammals and fish. Ground nesting ducks suffer from predation as the mink take eggs, chicks and adult birds.

badger

Badgers are widepread and live in setts as family groups. As well as the main sett which is always in use, they may have other smaller setts in their territory which they only use occasionally.

otter water vole

water vole are breeding in Gilfach Reserve, just 4.5 miles from Oak Grove Retreats.

otters hunt the river just 200 yards from Oak Grove Retreats.

Otters occur frequently on the River Wye which they use as fishing grounds for their favourite brown trout.

Water voles numbers have reduced nationally in streams and rivers where mink occur but they are successfully breeding at Gilfach Reserve near Rhyader thanks to an active conservation scheme.

mole

Moles are surprisingly common here both in the Wye and Elan Valley areas and even up on the highest moorland.

hedgehog

Hedgehogs are uncommon on the Elan Estate but more common around Rhayader. Their main natural predator in Britain is the Badger.

rabbit

Rabbits are widespread but uncommon because they have many predators here including foxes, polecats, buzzards and kites.

brown hare

Brown Hares are rare but have been sighted here last year and in previous years.

common shrew

brown shrew may be seen in the Oak Grove retreats area.

shrews are insectivores with very large appetites, they need to eat every 3-4 hours. We have 3 types of shrew, the Common, the Pygmy and the Water Shrew which has been found at Dol-y-mynach.

pigmy shrew water shrew

pygmey shrew may be seen in the Oak Grove retreats area.

a water shrew may be seen in the Oak Grove retreats area.

a wood mouse may be seen in the Oak Grove retreats area.

Woodmice are common especially in broadleaved woodlands on the Elan Estate and around Rhayader. Theyprovide an important source of food for Tawny owls.

Voles: Bank, Field and Water Voles. Field or Short-Tailed Voles are an important source of food to many upland animals and birds of prey. Changes in their numbers can have severe effects on their predators.

field vole bank vole

bank vole may be seen in the Oak Grove retreats area.

vole may be seen in the Oak Grove retreats area.

daubentons bat long eared bat

a long eared bats are found within 6 miles of Oak Grove Retreats.

daubentons bats are found within 6 miles of Oak Grove Retreats.

Bats: Whiskered, Natterer's, Daubenton's, Pipistrelle, Noctule and Long-eared Bats have been recorded on the Elan Estate. Gilfach tunnel, just outside of Rhayader is a noted bat reserve of national importance. Roost sites include tree hollows, natural caves, mines, houses, bird hides, railway tunnels and bat boxes. Pipistrelles can be seen in Elan Village feeding on flying insects around the street lights in summer, we also see them on site here in Doldowlod and also of course on the Gilfach Nature Reserve. Daubenton's bats occur close to water, and often feed on insects over the reservoirs, especially Caban coch.

noctule bats are found within 6 miles of Oak Grove Retreats.

pipestrelle bat

pipestrille bats are seen at dusk around Oak Grove Retreats.

House Mice and Brown Rats are rare here.

ahouse mice are uncommon inthe area of Oak Grove Retreats due to large numbers of predators.

brown rat are uncommon in the area of Oak Grove Retreats due to large numbers of predators.

housemouse brown rat

Thanks to yahoo image gallery for photos