26 • Visit us @ www.ChampNews.com SF The <strong>Champion</strong> • Wednesday 4 September 2013You may qualify for a <strong>FREE</strong> boiler.If you, or a member of your household,receive one of the following: If you meet this criteria you may beeligible for a new <strong>FREE</strong> “A” rated boiler<strong>FREE</strong> under theDon’t cha wishyour boiler washot like me?With 10 years parts & labour coverNo depositonly£19 .99 per monthGo to www.theheatteam.co.ukor call 0151 329 02211119875
The <strong>Champion</strong> • Wednesday 4 September 2013SFVisit us @ www.ChampNews.com • 27THIS week we are back in Formby and itsbeautiful pinewoods and a very iconic speciesthe Red Fox.Red foxes are omnivores with a diet that canvary extremely, although they will primarilyfeed on small mammals such as voles, mice,rats and occasionally squirrels, if they cancatch them.They will also prey upon birds and alsoinvertebrates and will willingly eat plantmaterial including fruit, especially in autumn,usually consuming blueberries, blackberries,raspberries, apples, and even acorns.Red foxes prefer to hunt at dawn and duskand they are known to be exceptionallypossessive of their food, and will even defendtheir caught prey from dominant animals.They have been recorded to carry out excesskilling; during breeding season, losses topoultry and other penned game birds can beconsiderable due to this behavioural trait.Although a bad name is attached to foxes dueto this, it is not a year long event, and let it beknown that not all foxes will have to carry outthis behaviour.The red fox has an elongated body andrelatively short limbs, with a tail longer thanhalf the body size and usually a dusty red coat,although different colours such as silver andblack do occur in the wild. Interestingly theforepaws have five digits, while the hind feethave just four and lack dewclaws, common indogs. Foxes are superbly agile creatures, andare accomplished jumpers; they are known tobe able to leap fences as high as two metres andcan also swim very well.On average, adults are around 35 to 50 cmhigh (shoulder height) and approximately 45The Red Foxto 90 cm in length, not including their longtails, which measures usually between 32 to 53cm.They weigh between 2.2 to 14 kg, with vixenstypically weighing about 15 to 20% less thanmales and can move surprisingly fast with a toprunning speed of 50 km/h.Red foxes can be found right across our area,along the coastline, within Formby Pinewoodsand even in the Town Centre of Southport andsuburbs of Birkdale, Kew and Ainsdale.Due to the close proximity of these locationsto the beach I wouldn’t necessarily classifythem as Urban Foxes.So as always get your camera out and send meyour snaps of our Red Foxes and alwaysremember never to disturb the animals; onlytake your photos if you see them roaming wild.You can send your pictures to me via twitter@graeperry with thenaturetrail hashtag.• Next week I will introduce something a littledifferent – a habitat, and this week’s clue is“Between these dunes its rather lazy.”The new ŠKODA range is availablefrom £0 Advance Payment1121917Citigo from£0ADVANCEPAYMENTFabia from£0ADVANCEPAYMENTRoomster from£0ADVANCEPAYMENTRapid from£0ADVANCEPAYMENTOctavia from£0ADVANCEPAYMENTYeti fromADVANCEPAYMENT£0Alex Lawrie38 Sandhills Lane, Liverpool L5 9XN0844 209 8083 www.alexlawrieskoda.co.uk1121652To qualify for this offer you must be in receipt of the Higher Rate Mobility Component of Disability Living Allowance, War Pensioners’, MobilitySupplement, Personal Independence Payment (PIP) or Armed Forces Independence Payment (AFIP). Advance Payment (AP) valid for applicationsto Motability from 1st July to 30th September 2013.Official fuel consumption in mpg (litres/100km) for the ŠKODA range: Urban 19.2 (14.7) – 68.9 (4.1), ExtraUrban 36.2 (7.8) – 94.2 (3.0), Combined 27.7 (10.2) – 83.1 (3.4). CO 2 emissions for the ŠKODA range 237 – 89 g/km. Standard EU Test figures for comparative purposes and may not reflect real driving results.Classifi ed advertising works … call us now 01704 392392or see our website www.champnews.com
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