France in Focus

Our bone dry 'orchard' is covered in hundreds, probably thousands, of small 3 - 4 inch x about 1 inch deep scrapes. The grass is mostly burnt to a crisp but oddly a small greenish patch, always in the shade of trees is untouched. Plenty of windfalls around but largely unmarked.
The adjacent 'lawn' which is similarly dry & scorched but protected all round by a green wire mesh dog proof fence & buildings is untouched. Our smallish cat can get through the fence so logically whatever is making the orchard scrapes is bigger than the cat & can't get onto the lawn.
Any ideas what's doing this?

My first thought was wild boar. Normally the mess they make is much bigger and deeper, but with everything so dry, perhaps that is all they can do.
Alternatively, badgers looking for worms - with probably the same issues of baked-hard ground but why no attack on the obviously moister ground??

exile wrote: ↑Tue Aug 25, 2026 6:36 pm My first thought was wild boar. Normally the mess they make is much bigger and deeper, but with everything so dry, perhaps that is all they can do.
Alternatively, badgers looking for worms - with probably the same issues of baked-hard ground but why no attack on the obviously moister ground??

let the dog out this morning & she stood on terrace looking towards orchard barking.
Investigation showed this hole about 6"x6"x6" with lots of black poo at bottom.
Must have scared of animal as gone when I looked so still no idea.
Edit. just asked Google lens which said it was a black bear or coyote. oo- er!, scary

That’s badger poo. He/she will return to fill the hole with more poo and the dig another hole and start again. Get a trail camera set up to see nature being natural.

Polarengineer wrote: ↑Wed Aug 26, 2026 10:19 am That’s badger poo. He/she will return to fill the hole with more poo and the dig another hole and start again. Get a trail camera set up to see nature being natural.

Thanks for that.
We were thinking badgers although never actually seen one in the flesh in the 21 years we've lived in this house.
I've got a trail camera so if I can find it I'll give it a go.

I do so hope it's a black bear! Good luck.

We have recently been finding very black poo in the same place repeatedly. I clear it immediately but the critter keeps returning to "go" again. I was thinking maybe it was a stray dog, I guess not. We do also have boar digging up the lawn from time to time.

L Austin France wrote: ↑Wed Aug 26, 2026 11:38 am

Polarengineer wrote: ↑Wed Aug 26, 2026 10:19 am That’s badger poo. He/she will return to fill the hole with more poo and the dig another hole and start again. Get a trail camera set up to see nature being natural.

Thanks for that.
We were thinking badgers although never actually seen one in the flesh in the 21 years we've lived in this house.
I've got a trail camera so if I can find it I'll give it a go.

Well I found the camera which still had a memory card showing it's last use in 2014.
Filled it up with 12 x AA batteries & read the instructions again & again.
Far too complicated for the late hour so finally settled for just switching it 'on' which seemed to give me still photos only when tested.
Ventured out into orchard in semi dark & set it up looking towards the last poo scrape.
This morning I had a butchers but no new poo holes or large scrapes anywhere so just left camera alone hoping for better results tonight .
Bit of an anticlimax really