After many years of setting up cheap trail cams in places frequently visited by wildlife, shooting some absolutely fascinating scenes in absolutely lousy quality, I longed for something better. While googling on the subject, I stumbled across camtraptions and in particular across their Ebook, which you can download for free, offering a plethora of fantastic advice on camera trapping. After a pleasant email exchange with the folks there, I pushed the button and ordered the wilderness camera trap bundle.
In order to get familiar with the technology, I set it up in my backyard, had it run for a full week and finally got some high quality full frame pictures of the animals visiting mostly during nighttime. As with all new things, there is a learning curve. Knowing animal behaviour is key, yet you still get a fair share of furry butts instead of faces 🙂
This picture series featuring a fox attacking a hedgehog was a bullseye though!
Round 1
Not sure if it was a first attempt for the fox or if he simply was willing to give it another try. The hedgehog is clearly not amused, showing his teeth and probably offering his best war cry.
Pretending not to be interested at all makes for a great strategy, so the fox probably thinks. The hedgehog is clearly on alert and ready to roll up into a spiky sphere in a split of a second!
Attack!
42 canine teeth against 7’000 spikes, each spike controlled by an individual muscle.
Ouuuuuch!!!
That hurt! Some gentle paw strokes to the nose might do the trick.
Round 2
Here we go again, this time with eyes wide open…
…and ouch again!
Come on, give me a break! Show your face, dude!
And so is this nocturnal fight ending with a tie. The fox moves on with a nose that will probably hurt…
…and the hedgehog with a bloody wound. He recovered nicely, and was seen on camera the following nights, in good health.
Cam trapping definitely got me captivated and I cannot wait to take this new piece of tech into our forests. It has become a lot trickier though, the successful return of the lynx into our region changed game behaviour significantly; no more using the same routes and places day in and out, which allowed me for capturing great scenes in the past.
Keep you posted!
Should you be interested in bringing your photographic skills to the next level, just contact me for a custom tailored training session. I am happy to share my trade secrets with you in a friendly and fun atmosphere.
