Mice in the garden are an unpleasant matter for many people. But not for photographer Simon Dell. He recently discovered a family of mice that ran around in his garden. Instead of grasping after the traps, he decided to build a mini village for the little rodents. As a thank you, the mice posed in front of his camera.
A photographer feeds the mice in his garden
One day Simon was outside to photograph the birds in the garden. He noticed that something was moving in the lawn. He directed his camera on the floor and saw a very cute little house mouse that stood in the freshly cut grass like a meerkat. He was shocked, but also very happy.
The photographer immediately knew that the mouse was a real star and ran back to the house to get a few peanuts for it. It only took a few minutes for the mouse to get out. At that moment Simon thought that he would give him a little shelter and a safe place to hide and feed.
A sweet photo gallery with mice
Simon had a bit of experience withPhotography of animalsAnd even mice, since he used to have another mouse called Stuart who lived in my garden house and only came out after dark. He was once a single and left Simon's garden in early spring to find a partner. The photographer hopes Stuart will come back this winter and maybe he could get to know the new mice in the garden.
Other wild animals also visit the garden
All types of wild animals visit Simons Garden. These include many bird species such as starlings, house sparrows, blackbirds, robin and more. Even a gray heron who fished most goldfish from the pond. A fox, many hedgehogs and squirrels also come by every evening.
At first there was only one mouse. He had a cut in his ear and they called him George. In order to make him a little home, the photographer stacked a box of a box and covered with moss and straw. The pile of wood gave the mouse a little more security because the cats were only one meter away on the other side of a fence.
So that the cats could never get to the mouse, Simon Dell has reinforced his fence with wire. The photographer also has a little Jack Russell Terrier dog. So the cats knew that they were not allowed to come into the garden and the dog did not pay attention to the mice. A few days later, he noticed that more than one mouse lived in the stack of wood and it didn't take long for them to get both out to eat something.
Simon built a miniature village for the mice in his garden
The photographer decided to build the mice a home because he wanted to give them a safe place in the garden so that they did not fall victim to cats or other animals. As a photographer, he also wanted to create a nice background for his pictures.
The first variant of the hiding place was very simple and only took about an hour to build. When more mice came in the following days, he made changes and added more rooms. The structure now has 2-3 inputs and outputs so that you can flee if necessary. In the course of the weeks and months this isMini-Dorfcontinuously grown.
Simon added more space and prepared for a cold winter, so that the mice had the best possible chances of survival. He counted about five or more mice, and the female, mildred, looks very pregnant. At Christmas he hopes to welcome baby mice. Mice can have up to 14 babies, so it should build a lot more wooden stacking houses. However, he has space and it doesn't matter to live in addition to such cute and very photogenic little living beings.
The mice seem to love the houses and have not wasted the move in. They are wild animals and run away when the photographer comes too close or goes too fast. However, he managed to take a few photos with a zoom lens just a few meters away.
Simon Dell usually gives the mice very natural food. It picks or collects berries, nuts and fruits that grow wildly above the street in the Shire Brook Valley nature reserve. It also gives them the same mix of seeds that he together with sunflower seeds and other hazelnuts or walnuts on theBird feed stationlays. As a delicacies, he gives you a few mealworms of valley pellets.
Simon has always liked photography, but has only had a DSLR for 3 years. He slowly builds up his equipment to improve his skills and also take better pictures of the wildlife. Good equipment helps, but the most important thing is to properly operate the camera and understand the animal world.
The mice are still in the Simon Garden and lead a very happy life. It's winter now, so the days are shorter and they come out less frequently. As soon as it gets dark, it can be difficult to see them. However, they come out to eat a day and the next morning everything is gone. He also gives them a handful of springs from an old pillow, and they take them in to build their beds and keep warm on these cold British winter nights.
For more information, visit the Facebook pages: The Photography of Simon Dell and George the Mouse in A Log Pile House
