Lose Ends

I know that I have been very remiss about posting of late. But I have been busy, also I have not really had that much to say. I am sure that my long suffering reader would have got very bored with me just saying it raining yet again. While the village is over 2000 feet above sea level, I have been expecting the beach to arrive any day now for weeks.

However, the moist weather has been good for amphibians. I have seen far more Frogs and Toads about than I have seen anywhere. Part of that could be that the insects that would normally feed them have been lacking simply as when it is wet and raining the insects can not fly. Therefore the extra moisture makes foraging easier for the frogs and toads.

Another effect of the wet weather has been the number of slugs and snails that I am seeing on the paved path alongside the road when walking between villages. It was while walking there on Saturday morning, I was keeping an eye on the path. While mainly to ensure I did not end up with my shoes coated with slug purée but also because the species mix here is different to the mix where I used to live. While walking I had to double back a couple of steps as I realised that what I had initially registered as another slug was in fact a tiny newt. By tiny I mean the body length was less than an inch about 20mm. It was the slow realisation that the slug had legs that made me realise it was actually a newly emerged newt.

While I was looking at this, a car slowed down and stopped and someone I vaguely knew asked if I was all right. I think it was a look of pity I saw on their face as they drove off. I already knew that my interests and personal attitudes were not shared by some in the village, but I was told I should just step on it and get rid of it.

Perhaps my reader will understand why I have been slow in posting here, when I have attitudes like that to contend with.

On a different topic, the Ring Ouzel. For my American reader, they are migrants from Africa that nest here. They are very similar to a Blackbird, but with a longer body, kind of like a blackbird with a long wheel base. Also the male has a bright white ring around the throat. They are also quite shy, so while distinctive they are not always that easy to see. The name Ouzel comes from old English and means Thrush. Therefore its actually a Ringed Thrush.

On a serious note, the rain that the shifting of the gulf stream has brought to Britain is an effect of the changes that Climate Change will be bringing for many Decades. If the folks in my local pub is anything to go by, I am alone in understanding that the climate is changing. As this is a farming community, I would have thought folks would have been better informed. But all I hear from them are the same old arguments peddled by polluting industries and the Right Wing Press. Yet when I suggest that they only need to look at the weather patterns and the extreme levels of rain, but this doesn't change their minds. As the village is located in the middle of a wind farm, I would have thought that people would at least be more open minded, but the beliefs are entrenched.

Curlews And Kestrels

I know its been a while since I posted here, but there is a good reason for this, the need to protect a rare nest.

As my regular, well only reader will know, I moved to an upland area nearly two years ago. I arrived in the Winter so the first spring and summer I was just finding my feet here. As the landscape could be used to film Wuthering Heights, it should tell you exactly what it looks and feels like. Also where the village I live in is rather exposed the default setting for the weather will uncombe your hair the moment you step out of the door.

I rather quickly discovered that there were Curlew in the area. This is a bird of concern and the RSPB estimate there are less than one thousand pairs nesting in the UK. So this spring when I realised I was seeing at least a couple of pairs that appeared to be nesting, I started to investigate.

While the weather has been less than clement this summer, the spring started out as being rather good. Therefore, early in the year I was rather surprised to find three definite nests and another possible nest. But then came the rain, and a bit more rain, and more than a bit more rain, so much that I was waiting for someone to open a beach resort here.

When I was able to look again, I discovered six Curlew nests. With its curved beak made for probing in wet mud, the rain had delayed breeding but it also made spotting the Curlews feeding rather easy, and tracking them back to the nests was relatively easy. So I had over a half a percent of the British breeding population on my doorstep.

However, while looking for one species of bird and its nests you inevitably notice other things too. The Lapwings and the Hare being two of the most numerous sightings. But sight is not the only sense used and I was hearing a bird that I could not identify. I am always cautious about identifying any bird just from its song or call, as Starlings can and do mimic.

The effect of the weather, had its effect most noticeably on the Kestrels as the rain was effecting the activity of the mammals they feed on. They moved to the higher parts of the land and locally that is often the road verges. After having had several days of rain, walking into the next village and back, I saw three individuals hunting over the verges. Then the following day, while on the top deck of the bus retuning from a food shopping trip I had a close up view of a Kestrel that had to manoeuvre out of the way of the bus. It was a brief sighting but a spectacular one. When a week latter I saw a Kestrel drop to the verge, I thought of that sighting and I thought I would never see anything closer than I had on the Bus. But as I crested the hill and walked along the road I saw the Young Kestrel covering, trying to hide its meal from me, with its wings as I walked past it less than four feet from the bird.

It was possible to tell that it was a newly fledged bird as it still had the last traces of the gape visible and there was another Kestrel very close by that could have been one of its parents. It was when I had passed this that I heard the call that I had been wanting to identify again, but this time actually seeing the bird. A Ring Ouzel.

As I had things to do I could not stop and watch but as I walked back I kept my eyes and ears open. It was funny, but that day I had three offers of a lift back to the village that I had to refuse. I am glad I did as I did see the bird again. He was picking caterpillars off the vegetation at the road side.

I did try tracking the bird but lost sight that first time. But over a couple of days I repeatedly saw him and what I latter realised was the female, and discovered where they were nesting. It was because of this nest that I kept quiet here, as had hoards of bird watchers descended on the area, the nest of a very rare bird would have been disturbed, as well as the nest sites of the Curlew. Further, by keeping quiet about this until “The Glorious Twelfth” as I was asked to do by the Farmer, across who's land I had to cross to get close to the nest, I got to see a seventh Curlew nest as well as a Little owls nest too.

Buzzard

I just had to let all my readers, okay on person and four cats, that on Tuesday I had a sighting of a Buzzard over one of the fields near my home. It was rather brief but was quite near. It disappeared over the crest of the hill. Then yesterday, Thursday, I was walking to the next village and as I neared the top of the hill that I climb on leaving the village, if I went the other direction there is another hill too, I saw a Rook that suddenly too to the air. Then right at the crest of the hill this Buzzard glided over the crest of the hill. It was no more than four or five feet from the ground and as it passed me it was no more than fifteen feet from me and the edge of the field. It is the closest I have ever been to a Buzzard and the best sighting I have ever had.

The Cheap Food Divide

One of the great benefits of the internet is we can all discover a different view or approach to obtaining a similar goal. The talking Trees comment on my previous posting shows that we are all trying to achieve the same thing. While also highlighting a different set of problems.

The neighbour who sees anyone selling any food as unfair competition, although I might suggest that hot-dogs etc, might not be real food. Although perhaps that is the real problem as selling real food highlights the problem that far to often it is cheap “Junk” food that is what is most often sold.

It is this often the low cost of the cheap junk that distorts the market. Making real food appear more expensive. In the convenience shop in the large village close to my village, there are no shops in my village, it is possible to buy a pack of sausages for £1.00 that’s about $1.60 us, for eight of these things. I call them things as they should not be called sausages as they only contain 9% meat the minimum the law allows. Often if you eat in a café it will be this type of sausage that is served. So even if folks make a contentious choice to avoid this type of food in their shopping basket, you can get caught out when eating out.

However, when there are sausages like this, the high quality products that are sold at Farmers Markets and Food Festivals, will look expensive. But the point I was trying to make in the previous post, was that many Producers and Farmers are often reliant upon the advice of a small group of advisor’s that will say “charge more for your product”. While they do need a fair reward for their time, effort and product, far to often the prices are just to high. I have seen Sausages at £6-7 per pound ($10-$11.50) at Farmers Markets. Yet I have also found a couple of local butchers who are using local animals, making their own sausages and selling them at a reasonable cost. They are still getting a premium, but they understand their customers and that folks do not have unlimited funds.

Further, I would love to see the diversity that the talking tree has at her small market. There is nothing wrong with having several Farmers selling similar products, but so often it ends up being the premium products. Such as Venison, Game, or premium cuts of meat that are fine for restaurants, but most people can not afford to buy that often.

Apart from one or two exceptions, there are very few of the farmers that will bring along any part of the fifth quarter, the offal. I know that here there is a cultural divide between the US and the UK, but offal can and does make some wonderful dishes. In fact it has just occurred to me as I write, I did not see any liver pate. Something that can be a great product and one that earns a decent premium especially if done well.

Yet the main point is that most of the farmers at the Food Festival were not really selling everyday food, nor at prices that will garner them regular sales. While Farm Shops can be a great Tourist Destination where you can also do a bit of shopping, they have very little to do with the real food shopping that we all have to do. Most of the Farm Shops also have a Café, and are frequently away from the places where people normally go shopping. Thus the Farmers are often turning their farms into a visitors centres, rather than a place where people would want to go food shopping. It is this disconnection of Farming, Food and the Consumer that is being perpetuated by ignoring the vast majority of the population.

Bishop Auckland Food Festival

Yesterday, I went to a Local Food Festival. I was fairly lucky regarding the weather, as while it had rained earlier, while wandering around Bishop Auckland Castle, the home of the Bishop of Durham, the rain held off.

It was a very well attended event and while I made some wonderful discoveries, there is a sameness to many of the exhibitors. While I am very much in favour of good well produced local food, often the farmers are making and producing rather similar products. Sausages, Cheese, Bread.

Part of the problem seems to be that Farmers have been encouraged to diversify and add value to the food they produce and sell. However, as the people providing the advice and guidance are a small pool of people, all the farmers are often given the same suggestions. Therefore, the farmers and producers end up creating products that are very similar. As long as there is a demand for these products then the Farmers will have created long term businesses. But I am often left wondering who buys, or should that be who can afford to buy many of these products. As frequently there are healthy premiums placed on these foods.

While there are plenty of people that are interested in good food, this was evident by the 30,000 people who attended the festival. However, while folks were buying the foods and products, I was also constantly overhearing people complaining about the prices. As people will buy many of these products as an occasional treat, or for a seasonal festival such as Easter or Christmas, these are far from everyday foods.

I am well aware that markets like the Bishop Auckland Food Festival are a place to showcase what the Farmers and Producers create, there was no one there selling or promoting everyday foods. There was no one selling locally grown Vegetables as an example. Most were promoting their Farm shops. As the name imply's, these are shops that are based on the farm. Therefore, to sell their produce requires people to travel to them. With the price of travel going up as well as people starting to genuinely reduce their travel for environmental reasons, the logic of having a “Farm Shop” on the farm starts to look less logical. This comes back to the same small group of farm business advisor’s “Selling” everyone the same ideas.

Sooner or latter there will be a farmer or a group of farmers that will see the logic of opening Farm shops in towns rather than on the farm. And not just looking only at the premium end of a saturated market but the majority market products that most people can afford.

I personally love Farmers Markets and Food Festivals, they are far away from the food(s) that the majority eat regularly and the way the majority shop. While Farmers Markets and Food Festivals are a great way for Farmers and Producers to meet the public and their customers, far to often the people that will visit a food festival are the affluent. The normal person can not afford these foods. I can see a growing gulf between the Farmers and the real consumer rather than these markets and festivals closing the gap.

There were a couple of exceptions at this Food Festival and one of them was a company supplying Pink Veal and you can read my posting on them at http://wearvalleyherbsandspices.blogspot.co.uk/

Migration and Immigration

One of the problems of working for yourself, especially if you work alone, can be simply that you do not have someone to bounce ideas off. Additionally as I have been working like a Chinese worker in an iPhone factory, I don’t often have the time to think ideas through.

Therefore, I took some time out yesterday to get out and away from the core work and just mull over a few ideas. As the business has been growing slowly but steadily, I wanted to try and work out what my next goal needs to be. While I have a few options, I wanted to think the ideas through.

So I headed into Bishop, as I wanted to look critically at the option of taking a shop. While there are a number of empty retail units about, the owners of these premises are totally unrealistic about the rents they expect. This frequently is why they are empty. Thus, I wanted to see if there were any gaps in the types of products I am selling or in allied areas. So I decided to just wander all along the main shopping area and even further along.

This brought a rather wonderful discovery for me. First was a very good “Greengrocer”. While I have found some good ones, this stood out as being a couple of steps better. It was while in there that I started to talk to the woman who was managing this shop. Anyway, when I mentioned that I was selling herbs and spices, this was just in conversation, she was asking for my contact details to pass on to the owners. It also emerged that they had a butchers shop opposite and I went across there after I left there. Again I was impressed by the quality I saw in there. Further, as they were emphasising that the meat came from local farmers, they were ticking the right boxes for me.

Anyway, with my shopping completed, I made my way home and by the time I got home I had a clear plan of what to attempt with the business. As well as a couple of meal ideas for the next couple days too. The sausages from this new butchers were excellent.

Now in true Monty Python fashion, here’s something completely different. When I got home, I had not been in for ten minutes when the phone went. I had spotted an Osprey a few days before and it was such a close clear sighting that I had been able to partial reading of the rings. This was important as there are now Two Pairs nesting in Northumberland, and it looks as though this was one of the females that I saw.

I was strange how this sighting came about, as one of my fellow villagers had said they had seen an Eagle. I was told it must be a youngster as it was still small, and it look shabby and tired. Well if it was a bird on migration the shabby and tired could apply, but as juveniles are the same size as the adults, I had my doubts about it being an Eagle. Also the general location just did not appear to match my understanding of roost sites. So early the next day I went out to look and see if I could spot the bird. I was all but ready to start heading home when I thought I would look at the sort of locations I would have expected an Eagle or a Hawk would have roosted. Within ten minutes, I had spotted the Osprey. It was not tatty or shabby, in fact it looked in quite good condition. I had about seven or eight minutes of good observation before the bird stretched its wings and took to the air from the tree it had roosted in. I was not really in a good position to observe the flight away, but at one point it did look as though there were two of them in the air. Now that would have been very unusual as the male and female normally make their own (separate) migration. Meeting up at the breeding site. However, I am now informed they may have joined together and were looking for potential nesting sites. So I don’t know if this is what I had observed.

Going back online and looking for the news story again, I spotted a new news story. This one was about a Hawk that had been rescued from a tree. I had to read this as in my mind birds are often found in trees.

However, it was true. As it was a captive bird, and the Jessie that are fitted to the legs of Falconry birds had become entangled in the tree. Further it was a Red Tailed Hawk, not a native British Bird but an American one. As I knew the location and I had lived very near there.... Well if I had not moved that would have been a new sighting for me. But at least the headline made me smile.

Spring Lambs and Food Policy

Living in a Sheep farming area, it is the arrival of lambs in the fields that really marks the arrival of Spring. Last week I started looking out for spotting the first, there were none. Even when I went into town and lost altitude, in the fields around town were empty of lambs. Then suddenly on Thursday I spotted not just one but several in the local fields. Therefore officially spring has arrived.

While I guess this may upset the vegetarians, it does get me thinking of cooking and the aroma of lamb cooking. But as the sheep would not be there if they were not kept as part of the human food chain, I can appreciate the beauty of new and renewed life, I can also appreciate the human food they represent as well.

As the weather conditions and the soil here are only suited to growing grass, the local hills can only support livestock farming. Therefore this really means Sheep, especially on the hill tops. My village is the highest point of habitation in the county, therefore sheep are my closest neighbours. I have learnt a lot about the behaviour of sheep just from watching them as I was walking past them over the past year. The play fighting amongst the young males. There was one trio that I saw running back and forward, effectively playing chase. At first, I had wondered if something had spooked them, if I had spooked them. Then I realised that they were just playing, having fun. That is not putting human attributes upon them, they really were like any bunch of teenagers running about having fun.

Therefore when I buy lamb from my local butchers, as they post details of the farm and abattoir where the sheep was grown and slaughtered, I can know the animal was well cared for before it reaches my plate. As my regular reader may remember I was a Vegetarian for a number of years as at that time people just did not know where their food was coming from. Once this changed and I could buy meat that was from high welfare sources and not “Factory Farmed”, the best way of supporting this was to revert back to eating meat. Because I was a vegetarian during the time when the worse practices were in place, the ones that resulted in BSE and salmonella in Chicken, I avoided many of the health risks.

Many of these practices were the results of the constant downward pressure placed upon food prices by big businesses. The supermarkets, the food processors and the land investors who see anything goes as long as it makes a profit.

However the policies of the supermarkets have now started to bite them back. A couple of years ago the supermarkets had to develop direct contracts with milk producers and pay a much more fair price. As in Britain so many farmers were leaving milk production as the farmers were loosing money. This lead to a shortage of milk and to maintain supply the supermarkets had to pay a bit more and contract directly with the farmers. This was blamed on the growing prosperity of the Chinese, but the reality was the supermarkets were dictating the low prices and buying cheaper milk from other parts of Europe if the farmers would not accept the low prices they would pay. So while the Chinese were buying from the same parts of Eastern Europe, they were willing to pay a fair price and not the rock bottom prices the supermarkets were willing to pay.

While the supermarkets and food processors realised the danger there regarding milk and cheese before there were real shortages, aided by the credit crunch, the polices of the supermarkets are again biting back again, this time on fruit and vegetables.

As the effects of climate change are now effecting weather patterns and rainfall creating drought in parts of Europe and noticeably in the South of England, the policy of wanting only cosmetically perfect looking Fruit and Vegetables means that other nations are offering more money and are willing to take items that are less than perfect looking. Therefore, leaving the supermarkets without supplies.

This will not mean that there will be immediate shortages on the shelves but I am willing to bet that prices will start to rise. There are even Growers and Farmers in the South and East of Britain that will not be planting and growing crops because of the drought. Simply as if the crops will fail due to lack of rain, why even try to grow them. Although the crops will not fail, they will not be the “perfect” that the supermarkets demand. The major retailers have so much power that this dictatorial specification of cosmetically perfect Fruit & Vegetables has locked Farmers and Growers into the high cost chemically driven form of farming. As to produce the cosmetically perfect Fruit & Vegetables relies on the use of pesticides.

This policy has resulted in the small growers that used to produce the majority of the nations fresh food, have simply gone out of business. Even the the larger growers who discover their crops have not matched the stringent requirements of the major retailers, often find there crops will go to waste. At best getting composted if not sent to landfill. Therefore a lot of food goes to waste, just because it doesn't look good.

Anyone who has grown their own, and I know that includes my reader, knows the shape doesn't effect the flavour. In fact often with far fewer chemicals used in the average Vegetable Garden, they often taste better.

I do not have any simple nor simplistic solutions to these problems. And while I do understand that businesses need to make money, the major retailers have only ever had their interests in mind and their customers and suppliers have been ill used at the very least. Our governments have left the matter of food to the supermarkets and now we are facing potential shortages and price hikes that will effect everyone.

There will be folks that will read this and say that it should just be left to the market, and governments do not have any role to play. But when we all pay for the effects of shortages and the health effects of the poor diet the major retailers have foisted upon many, the supermarkets will soon find they have questions to answer.

While I can still afford to I will enjoy watching the sheep and cooking with the Vegetables I can afford and making sure my freezer is well stocked.

Mad as a March Hare

When I first moved here to the high fells of Country Durham, I was pleased to discover that I was in hare habitat. While I had seen Hares before, they were illusive and often at a distance. The way they hug the ground to hide in hollows helps them disappear. Bringing to my mind the Celtic and magical myths of folk tales.

It was the myth of the mad march hare that got me confused last year as this was happening in February. My lack of skill watching Hares and the cold made trying to discover the puzzles much harder. Therefore I needed to develop my stalking skills and try to discover where the hares territories were. As here any wind below forty miles an hour is considered just a gentle breeze here, the direction of approach would often involve taking long walks well past these territories then doubling back.

Many of the attempts to observe were fruitless or very brief. This was until one day the observation of a buzzard alerted me to something near the site that had proved to be most fruitful. I then went a couple of days latter. Being May it turned out to be a delightful day and I stretched my legs among the wild flowers. I was allowing my mind to wander and nearly walked into the scrape where the leverets were laying out in the sun. I retreated to a point near a copse of trees. The mother was very close and must have been hiding too as she just popped up and I could not have missed her approaching as the grass and heather was far to short to have missed her movements.

Then the most dramatic part of the observations happened, a large bird of prey swooped down. It was targeting one of the young hares, and I thought it would get one but the mother reared up and boxed the bird. I think it just nudged the bird off taking one of the four young, so it missed a meal.

I am well aware that the natural world is lacking sentiment and there is a natural food chain, but I was really pleased that this juvenile Golden Eagle did not get a meal that day. As it was wearing tresses, it was a captive Eagle that someone was using for hunting. It flew off with empty talons and I could not spot where the falconer was. I have not seen the bird since. Also as the scrape was vacated days latter, I am guessing the mother moved her litter. While it was more likely because of the bird, I was worried that I had caused some disturbance myself.

It was not until the autumn that I started seeing hares again. I most of all wanted to work out where the females were resident. As the female is larger it is possible to tell the difference, but there appeared to be many more males about. Reading about hares told me that this is quite normal.

As last winter had been quite hard with plenty of snow, my initial spotting of hares had been quite easy. This time it was a bit more tricky, but I am learning. Therefore luck has been playing a major part in this too. As I was out watching a flock of Lapwings when I started to spot the start of the mating activity. This is where myth has been blurring the facts. As when I was a child, it was believed that the boxing behaviour was males fighting over females. When in fact it is the female fighting off unsuitable males, or over amorous males before she is ready to mate. So last year when I saw males boxing too, I was more than puzzled by this. As I said size distinguishes the males from the larger females. Also last year it was happening in February a good month before it was supposed to be happening.

By reading deeper than the myths and casual observations, I discover that most of the mating activity actually starts in February and it is normally only the un-mated males that are left fighting, boxing. Therefore while the classic boxing behaviour is the females fighting off males, the males do box too.

It was only because I had seen behaviour that did not match the facts that are often repeated on television and in books that I discovered the truth of the behaviour. At one point I had actually thought I might have discovered behaviour that had not been previously observed, but others had already seen and recorded it. The problem is the myths persist.

The brown hare is far less numerous than it once was, so I am genuinely lucky to have seen these animals at all. To have seen them enough and for such prolonged periods to have been puzzled by the behaviour though was a real privilege.

Diets and Exploitation

As my regular reader will already know, I set up my own little business selling Herbs & Spices. This has been expanding so I now sell a comprehensive range of botanical's for healing too. From the moment I started selling these, I have had a steady flow of emails. The well known auction site requires that your personal details are there for all to find.

Initially this was useful as it gave me some vital clues regarding the herbs that people were looking for, and helped me expand the range. Even now I still have not got all that I would like to stock, but in time I will add to the range. However, the flow of emails has now become a flood. While I have always tried to be helpful to folks questions, and guide them in the right direction, there are limits to the questions I can answer. Further, it would be all to easy to just say buy this, or use this. When often the conditions they are seeking treatment(s) for are far to complex for simplistic solutions.

Here the law actually helps, as there are legal limits upon any claims that can be made for Medicinal Herbs. As while this can be seen as a cop out on my part, often I just can not treat people at a distance. If I had been calculating and cynical, I could have exploited this and sold loads more.

So it was with a degree of concern that I got an email from a woman asking for herbs to treat two conditions. As with all complimentary forms of healing, I could see the two conditions were linked and there was also a third issue that probably needed addressing too. I replied but said that I just do not have the time as her conditions were far to complex for simplistic solutions.

The reply I got back was hostile and hurtful, but I am a big mouse now, and while it hurt I will get over that. However, it highlights the problem of people wanting “Quick Fixes” for problems.

One of her problems was that she was overweight. While there are people that will sell herbs that are supposed to “make the pounds fall off” I know that it really needs folks to change eating patterns and habits for people to loose weight and keep it off. Therefore my ethics just stop me from exploiting people like this. This is why I will never be rich.

While I do not want to, nor am I intending to offend anyone, but unless you are one of the rare people who have an under active thyroid, the reason you are carrying a few extra pounds is you are consuming more calories than you are using. Therefore, it is each individual that can control their weight. I know that is far more easier said than done, and it is often a positive supportive friend that people need more than wasting money on supposed quick fixes.

Further, many of the health problems that people suffer from would be greatly reduced and often eliminated. Therefore my general advice regarding diet is find a supportive friend and eat yourself well.

Curlew & Hare

Hello dear reader, have you missed me? Oh you had not noticed I had gone.

Well as I have been busy, I just have not had the time to put much up here. Also there have been some changes in my life that meant I was not inclined to say much here, as I just did not want to bore folks.

Anyway, a few wildlife observations, a few weeks ago when it was really cold here, snow and all that, there was a rather large flock of Goldfinches about. I would estimate about fifty plus feeding on some Teasel that grows in the corner of one field close to the village. Also during the cold winter weather I was regularly seeing a couple of Grey Shrike. This was a life bird observation, so I was pleased to see them. As my cameras have both died, no pictures for the moment and as soon as I can afford to get a new camera... Well who knows what images may turn up here.

It was the observations that I made this last week that tells me that spring is coming. Although with another cold snap just hit, that seems longer away than it did on Thursday. When I saw the first Skylark making its courtship flight. It was a male and they sing while flying, rising from the ground and singing while in flight for a good minute at a time. The next observation made just ten minutes latter was of a Curlew. I had heard it while I had watched the Skylark but no matter how hard I scanned I could not see him. Then as I walked nearer the crest of the hill before entering my village, he flew across the road just fifteen feet ahead of me. He was going to a patch of land where a farmer had been keeping some manure and now cleared is clearly a good spot for them to feed.

However I have also been watching the Brown Hares. While I have seen hares before, it has only since I have moved here that I have seen them as frequently and in greater numbers than I have ever seen them. Also many of the observations have been closer than I have seen before too. Although I have had to learn how to observe them without them seeing me and going to ground. I can see where the folk legends of them being mystical and magical creatures arise, as one minute you can see them then in the blink of an eye they are gone, disappeared. They huddle in scrapes in the ground so they literally do disappear. While trying to watch a female hare recently, I came across a Lapwings nest. While there were no eggs in it yet, he or she was so settled that it was not until I was seven or eight feet from the bird that it took flight.

There have been times when it appeared that the local landscape was barren of wildlife, but it is there it just hugs the ground so tightly that mostly it goes unobserved.