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Sussex Ouse
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| The beautiful Sussex Ouse above Hamsey |
| Flora |
| Flora is another collective term but this time relating to plant life in a particular area or region. |
| Plants & Flowers |
| Trees |
| Fauna |
| Like flora, fauna is a collective term for animal life inhabiting a particular area or region. |
| Birds |
| Fish |
| Mammals & Amphibians |
| Mammals, Amphibians & Reptiles |
Water Vole (Arvicola terrestris) Appearance: A somewhat blunt face and with shaggy dark brown coat which nearly hides the ears. The length of an adult's head and body is 120-235mm, with a tail length of 40-145mm, weight up to 320gms. Four toes on the front feet and five toes on the back feet.Habitat: Always close to water, ditches, slow rivers or lakes. Prefers steep banks with layered vegetation. Normally burrows in the stream bank and entrance can be above or below water level. Mainly active during the day. Found in the middle reaches of the Sussex Ouse and headwaters of the Uck. Food: Mostly vegetarian including grasses, sedges, roots and some farm root crops, but will also eat fish. Did you know? The Water Vole is the character “Ratty” as featured in Kenneth Grahame's book The Wind in the Willows . Not to be confused with the Brown Rat that is larger and also swims well; the rat has a more pointed face, larger ears and with a longer tail. Populations of these voles in Sussex are fragmented and vulnerable to extinction; the American Mink is a serious predator. Another amazing fact - water voles are very active and need to consume 75-80% of its body weight in food every day! Common Frog (Rana temporaria) Appearance: Known as a Brown Frog and has a dark “mask” on each side of the head running back from the eyes. Usually brown or greyish mottled colour with yellow flanks; breeding males have a bluish tinge and breeding females pearly granules on their flanks. Should not be confused with the Water or Green Frogs that do not have a “mask” on the side of the head. Adults up to 100mm long and weight about 23gms.Habitat: Spends most of its time on land but is a strong swimmer and enters the water to breed. Often found by garden ponds. During winter can hibernate on land, or under water breathing through the skin. Common throughout the Sussex Ouse catchment and tributaries. Food: Slugs, snails, worms and a range of insects. Did you know? In early spring large numbers travel together at night, sometimes for many kilometres to get to their breeding waters. Females lay clumps of “frog spawn” containing up to 4,500 eggs in shallow water. These hatch as “tadpoles” that then turn into frogs after about 3 months. Grass Snake (Natrix natrix) Appearance: Known as a Water Snake and usually olive grey, brown or greenish. Has a light yellow or whitish collar behind the head and dark vertical bars on sides; underside generally whitish or grey. Quite a thick body and normally up to about 1,200mm long. If disturbed it may hiss and strike, but rarely bites and is not venomous.Habitat: Found in moist places or in water, a good swimmer and can remain submerged for up to half an hour. Common throughout the Sussex Ouse catchment and tributaries, this picture was taken at Isfield. Food: Mainly eats frogs, toads, newts and occasionally small mammals or birds in the nest; baby snakes will eat tadpoles and insects. Did you know? Will shed its skin once or twice a year and may travel up to 300 metres in a day. When mating, a number of males will usually form a ball around a single female and wrestle each other as they try to mate with her. The female lays about 30 white eggs in holes, under stones, or in fermenting compost so that the warmth helps incubation. |
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