Rat

But lucky to see this cute little fellow, I love rats, they are so clever too…. Love your photo.

Yes, he was hanging around underneath the bird feeders picking up the seeds etc, that the birds dropped. Thanks for commenting Isabel.

A smart and lively look
Well caught, Keith!

Thanks very much Judite.

O-O

:-))

Schitterende opname, Keith.
Deze zijn heel schuw en moeilijk te fotograferen !

Thank you very much Frans....I'm glad you like it.

You have captured the rat's eye and fur in lovely detail Keith. I can't say I'm too fond of them, but I like your picture very much. We used to get them when we kept chickens. Oh just noticed those whiskers! An excellent shot!!

Thanks Rosa...........I'm pleased you like this one.........well, the photo at least :-)). Glad you noticed the whiskers.

We had to stop feeding the birds for a while last year because we were attracting rats. I haven't seen one for ages now though. Apparently they live in the drains of the car park at the back of our house :-(

It's a shame that they've got bad press - I think they're sweet (of course I don't know any which are wild and encroaching other peoples' properties). They are supposed to be extremely intelligent and I've seen pet rats which are fantastic. The picture is great, especially with the focus on the eye and the whiskers.

Thanks for commenting Jenny.............I don't mind them in the wild, not keen on them in the garden though. Apparently they make great pets and are very affectionate and clean.

Glad you like the photo.

Great encounter, Keith !

Thank you..........I was lucky to get the shot as it popped it's head out of the hole and went back inside quite fast.

Da ist dir eine fantastische Aufnahme gelungen, Keith! Dein Tele zeichnet wirklich sehr scharf.

Thanks Wilhelm. I was able to balance the camera on a fence to take this shot.

Je ne pense pas que c'est un RAT..
c'est un campagnol différent de celui que tu attendais..
pour moi et j'en ai déjà vu.. les Rats sont plus grands plus noirs
et la tête plus longue... mais bon... tu peux avoir raison... ça peut être un rat

It's definitely a rat Roland...............there are quite a few around this wetlands site. Water voles are very different.

The rat has a pointed face with obvious ears and large eyes; the water vole has a rounded muzzle and ears which are half hidden in fur. The water vole has a smallish tail while the rat's tail is normally the same as it's length and has no hair.

Glad you like the photo though and thanks for commenting.

Photographed like this even a rat looks cute! Yet I hope I'll never see one inside the house;-)

Thank you Gudrun...........there are a few in this wetlands site............but that's to be expected, and there's plenty of bird food around too. The one in this photo was scavenging underneath some bird feeders.

Ich mag Ratten, solange sie sich im Freiland aufhalten und nicht in Massen auftreten. Eine ausgezeichnete Aufnahme mit feinen Details, trotz ISO 6400!