Which way to the beach?
They say that only mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday sun... but what about badgers?
As these pictures demonstrate, at least one of the animals couldn’t resist hitting the beach on Gower to mingle with members of the public who had headed to Caswell during the recent burst of summer sunshine.
It is thought the badger emerged from the Bishop’s Wood Local Nature Reserve, which is situated behind the car park in Caswell. Before crossing the busy road the animal proceeded to stroll along the sand towards the sea for a quick dip amidst the amazed looks of hundreds of people on the beach.
The manger of the Surfside Cafe in Caswell said: “We first saw it when we arrived to open up and called the RSPCA, just in case it was in trouble, and they came and took it away around midday. They said that they would take it to a vet to be checked over just in case.
“It’s the first time I have ever seen a badger on the beach and I have been working here for seven years.”
She added that the animal didn’t appear distressed.
She said: “There must have been around 200 children on a trip to the beach and they were all taking its picture and it didn’t seem phased at all.
“It even went down to the water’s edge and splashed about in the sea.”
Sadly, a spokesman for the RSPCA said: “The RSPCA were called to a badger that was seen wandering along the beach at Caswell Bay.
“Animal collection officer Andrew Harris collected the badger after finding it in a cave on the beach. Sadly, closer inspection revealed the badger had suffered a significant head trauma and was rapidly deteriorating, so was therefore put to sleep on welfare grounds.”
