D. Makavičius told the tv3.lt news portal that at the beginning of March he walked in more secluded places that are not attractive to other people, because there are no roads suitable for walking or access, so that he could observe what lives in nature and look for the habitats of the inhabitants.
In the forest – a fox frozen in water
At that time, he was walking on the other side of the town of Mažeikiai, separated from it only by the river Venta, when he saw an unusual sight – a fox frozen in the water in a large puddle in a swampy area (he thinks that someone might have dug a hole in that place earlier).
“The fox was found in such a way that it looked like a plush toy was placed in the water – with erect ears. It’s strange, because usually the ears of a dead animal are rarely erect, but here you can see that they are erect, as if the animal were alive,” said the naturalist.
D. Makavičius says that there are many different versions of how it happened, but without removing the animal and physically examining it, it is difficult to say what the real reason is. One thing is clear – the fox got into the water when there was no ice yet:
“Death must have come unexpectedly, suddenly, because it is not seen that there were any convulsions, convulsions – she would not have been in such a position, because she got into the water before there was any ice, besides, she would still have tried to dig, scratch, the position of the body would have been different, but that someone would bring it and set it up on site is unlikely, as there are no paths or accesses around.
Maybe unless some hunter or something hurt her, but we didn’t pull her out to see if there was any kind of wound on her belly or anywhere else. Unless she was injured, ran, fell in before there was ice and ended up dying quickly, and then the morning frost covered the ice around – that’s one of the versions.
But the death had to be quick in any case, because the animal seems to be healthy, strong, which can still live a long time, not sick, not infected with scabies, because the fur is beautiful – an animal almost in the prime of its life. He probably couldn’t have fallen in and drowned. It’s a mystery how that could happen.”
How it happened is difficult to explain
The naturalist adds that he has seen a similar recorded case abroad, and also heard a story of how a man found a fox and a bird of prey in an open well, but he notes that in this case there are no signs of a struggle around – no broken branches, no claws damaged shoreline.
“Unfortunately, there was no snow and no tracks were visible – we could have traced where they came from, how and what happened here, but there was no snow, only the surroundings did not show any signs of a fight.
But it seems that someone brought the fox, stepped on it in a puddle and left it, but, of course, this is illogical, but that it was a natural death – I doubt that the fox would have dug itself out of that puddle, something must have happened to it”, added D. Makavičius .
The naturalist adds that, if there is an opportunity, he might go to inspect the animal’s body: “I doubt that there would be any physical injury after examining it, if it could not be seen, the body itself would need to be examined in a laboratory, and if that does not show that there are any changes, at all it’s hard to say something.”
D. Makavičius also added that the animal’s body will be there until it is found by predatory animals or birds, because, according to him, nothing is lost in nature.
Encourages to observe and be interested in nature more often
He encourages others not only to go out into nature for a walk, but also to observe it, to get to know the plants, mushrooms, and animals that surround us. In addition, the naturalist adds that Lithuanians are lucky because of one thing – that we have four seasons and we can see how nature changes:
“People should be encouraged to take more interest in, walk, observe and get to know nature, that there are not only crows among the crows – there are also crows, magpies and other birds. The more you know, the more observant you are, the better you will be.
Here it is the same as reading a book – if you read, a person trains his brain, prevents it from falling asleep, so he will be more receptive to everything for a longer time. It is necessary to observe, analyze, and in this way it is possible to help science, because the information collected and presented to scientists complements the available data, thus contributing to the preservation of certain groups of animals or plants.”
D. Makavičius adds that in order to collect the recommended 10 thousand steps, this process can be further enriched by constantly changing the usual route and observing nature and its inhabitants. If you don’t know what you have found, there are many specialized groups on social networks where specialists will help you find answers to the questions that arise.
Also, sharing footage and information in such groups not only satisfies curiosity, but can contribute to the study and possibly conservation of the species, and may also help to add to the species’ distribution map.
