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Juejueb asks: "I noticed a windfarm in the background on Simon`s film are they a problem to the geese?" and "Would animals survive if they don't hibernate ie if conditions aren't cold enough?"

Interesting question. I've always been really worried about windfarms, especially at night at migration times BUT our excellent contacts at the assure us that generally wind farms are not a threat to birds, strikes are quite rare. However, for reasons no one yet understands, some wind farms seem to have high strike rates. There is one in Scandinavia, for example, that seems to attract big raptors. There the strike rate is much higher than normal.

I guess with more and more proposals for windfarms (and our electricity has got to come from somewhere) it's really important to find out why some sites are so much worse than others. The RSPB website has a lot of .

Would animals survive if they don't hibernate if conditions aren't cold enough? Humm... tricky! We spoke to St Tiggywinkles and they say hedgehogs can survive without hibernating if it's a very mild winter.

Bats are different, and it varies from species to species. It all depends if the bat can find food in winter. Many bats will carry on feeding right down to the tipping point of 6 to 8 degrees centigrade. Natterers and long-eared bats, for instance, will hunt for beetles and spiders on the ground rather than flying insects. Pipistrelles will hunt around lights at night, even in winter if it's not too cold. So it's not essential for these species to hibrenate in the UK.

But a bat like the Bechstein's must hibernate. It hunts in the tree canopy and if there is no canopy in the winter months it simply has no food. So it's really important for it to shut down and have a good long hibernation. In somewhere like Poland, with proper harsh winters, that's not a problem, but the UK it's a really difficult proposition for Bechstein's because we don't have reliably cold winters to ensure they go into full hibrenation. So it's quite a complex picture... Hope this helps a bit!

redtwitcher asks: "What is the actual definition of a bird of prey? Every possible answer of grouping I've thought of can be disproved!"

A bird of prey is defined by the BTO as "a bird that takes live, particularly vertebrate, food". That would include all raptors but also magpies, herons, woodpeckers etc. As with everything in nature, putting the natural world into nice neat watertight boxes never seems to work. There's always the largely vegetarian bear (panda), the vulture that feeds on palm nuts etc... You can't win!

katietatie93 asks: "Why is the red kite's tail forked?"

Very interesting one this. I think we will try to discuss it on Unsprung. It can't be for aerial agility, a sparrowhawk can turn on a sixpence but doesn't have a forked tail. Is it possibly for display? Humm... good question katietatie, we will look into this one...

petermaclean99 asks: "Who is the titles music by?"

The title music is composed by David Poore, but sadly it's not available to buy. David does have CDs of other music he's composed though.


catbuck asks: "Is it true that spiders hate conkers and if so why?"

I have absolutely no idea!! We will look into this as quite a lot of people seem to have heard this one...


explodingpotatoe asks: "In my small garden I've put some feeders with niger seed in and about 12 goldfinches feed regularly all at once....but is it possible to overfeed them? This morning a right little 'fatty' turned up infront of the kitchen window!"

Fascinating question, with a quite complex answer. The easy bit is, no, you cannot overfeed the birds in your garden. The "fatty" was probably fluffing up feathers to keep warm. Birds don't over eat (they generally have to keep their weight down) apart from small migrant like sedgewarblers and blackcaps who need to put on up to 50% over normal bodyweight in fat reserves to provide fuel for their long flight. The reasons why garden birds must keep their weight down, and why dominant birds are often lighter than the subordinate birds, are fascinating and so interesting I'm going to get to grips with them on this week's Unsprung!!! Thank you explodingpotatoe.

jacko1947 asks: "Are sea eagles, fish eagles and ospreys three different birds?"

Okay, ospreys are one separate species (rather an unusual one). Fish eagles and sea eagles are closely related but a group of birds rather than a species. For example, there are African fish eagles and the vast Steller's sea eagle. Here in the UK the names white-tailed eagle and sea eagle seem to be used interchangeably for the same eagle: Haliaeetus albicilla. It's the UK's biggest eagle and has been re-introduced to Scotland after becoming extinct. I've never seen one, but I think it would be amazing.

happykakapo asks: "Can hedgehogs climb over fences? I have a five pound bet on with my mum that they can't!!"


You may have lost your fiver! Hedgehogs are good climbers, especially if your hedge has a bit of ivy or climbing plant to hang on to. I think you might be surprised at what they can climb up. If the fence is fairly rough I think a determined hog could climb it. Sorry!