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What am I gonna do?
Looks like something's been burrowing in our fruit cage. Hole size is 100mm or so. No sign of droppings nearby. Too small and not smelly enough for a badger, on the ground so I assume not a squirrel (we've got an oak tree so loads of them). Google lens suggests foxes, mountain beavers (must be a joke) and rodents. Our neighbours behind keep chickens so rats wouldn't surprise me.
Anyone got any ideas? How can I tell for sure?
Just replace whatever that mesh is with a bit of wire mesh, dug a wee bit into the ground. I had a couple of Siberian hamsters eating my compost, that got them to go elsewhere. Need quite a fine mesh mind.
Whatever you do DO NOT use poison, aside from being really nasty it causes so many problems further up the food chain.
Almost certainly a rat, they are everywhere.
Chickens and their food will attract them. Compost can attract them.
If you can get your hands on a camera trap you can be certain either way.
I thought I had a night time intruder and it turned out to be a badger
They can make a mess though!
Could be Eurasian beaver ?
This was taken by the local river in Stirling: 25kg of tree-chewing rodent (think an adult labrador with short legs and a big stomach). Magic!
We had a rabbit in our garden. Hole kinda looked like yours.
A wildlife cam is £45 on Amazon, will answer your question and give you a new hobby 🙂
If it's a beaver it's lost - we're on the top of a ridge! I've found an old Apeman action cam, I've set it on time lapse and I'll see what I get. Lots of black photos I think 🙂