Most of our travels have been to exotic places in the world. Sometimes, thanks to visits with family and friends, we have had the chance to observe local wildlife and photograph them. Alpine ibex and marmot have been popular subjects when visiting my parents in the French Alps. Chamois and mouflon have been more challenging to find and those that we did manage to see tended to be far away. Chamois are particularly difficult to approach because they are a hunted species, so they have a short flight distance. 

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In recent years, we have had the opportunity to visit La Brevine, which has the notoriety of being "the coldest place in Switzerland". We actually travelled there to test out our boots and other winter equipment for an upcoming trip to Ellesmere Island in Canada. It was here that we observed the wild little stoats, a tiny and bouncy little mustelid which had a white fur coat in winter. Stoat or ermine fur was commonly used in ceremonial robes of members of the House of lords in the UK. They are now listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red list of Threatened Species (henceforth IUCN Red List) and are found all over North America, Europe and Asia. La brevine was also where we spotted the long-eared owl...in someone's garden! Long and short-eared owls have tufts on the sides of their heads called “plumicorns” (“feathered horn” in Latin). Although they resemble ears, their function lies exclusively in camouflage and communication. These horns have nothing to do with the birds’ ears. When a long-eared owls plumicorns are erect, it means they are wary and alert. The colouring of owl feathers is equally fascinating. The intricate pattern is created by mineral deposits and pigmentation. Darker colour feathers are heavier, and the colour stems from mineral deposits including calcium, cadmium, and zinc. But it takes a lot of energy to produce these feathers and moreover, because owls digest calcium less efficiently than other birds, it requires a considerable effort to obtain this mineral. Therefore, the general colouring of owl feathers is light as it is easier to grow, and the dark feathers are more often found in their wingtips which make them strong especially against wear and tear. Long eared owls are threatened by feeding on poisoned rodents due to the use of pesticides and rodenticides. Loss of habitat, road kills due to the high vole density along highways (especially in France), and collisions with vehicles are some of the other threats to owls. In Switzerland, in a bid to increase the survival of long-eared owls, individuals that winter in some towns and cities are provided with white mice daily. With more people feeding birds during the winter, the local passerine population is stable and provides a good alternative to the rodent diet.

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European hamsters seem like an unlikely subject for wildlife photographers. These critters which look awfully like the hamters people keep as pets, have a large distribution (from Belgium to the Altai Mountains and yet are listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red list. What makes them Critically Endangered? Short answer: pesticides, monoculture and indiscriminate agriculture machinery. In 2020, they were declared to be the rarest wild hamster, likely to go extinct in the next 30 years. A keystone species, they are an important source of food for many predators, including birds like owls and mammals such as foxes. In fact, the European Union's highest court fined France for not taking active measures to protect this species. As a consequence, France was forced to pay 24.6 million Euros (Wikipedia) and subsequently initiated a captive breeding programme with the aim of releasing 500 individuals each year as well as changing their agricultural practices. Today there are There are programs in Belgium, France, Poland, Germany, and Ukraine to rewild these lovely creatures. 

We photographed the European hamsters in a highly unusual place: the Central Cemetery in Vienna! We arrived at the cemetery at 7am full of confidence that we would find them easily, but an hour later, sweaty (it was over 30 deg C) and carrying heavy camera equipment, we were yet to spot one! After asking one of the cemetery employes for some help, we finally found a grassy patch where two partially camouflaged hamsters were looking at us. We sat down, let them get comfortable and get back into their routine before taking the camera out. We then spent a wonderful two hours with them, watching them go about their lives, undisturbed by us.

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