New resident in the valley

I think this particular resident is probably not that new but his home is.

I discovered a while back a hole in the bank near the lake. It has gradually been growing, so my assessment of who was responsible has had to keep changing. My own dogs were the first potential culprits - usually following after the smell of a mole, they will dig down a bit. But no, the hole grew when they had not been near for ages. Rabbits usually leave little pieces of evidence around the burrow - none to be seen and the hole continued to grow in size, bigger than a rabbit would produce.

This process has been going on over a number of weeks, so it must be a weekend and evening project.

Finally I found fresh soil and some footprints - smudged by the rain but looking suspiciously like a fox. Not big enough for a badger - unless the hole continues to grow!

We will keep an eye on it to see if we can confirm just what is making the hole but apart from the fresh soil, so far we have not seen the excavator at work.