I decided to set out on my daily exercise walk earlier than usual so that there might be a greater chance of seeing some wild life. There were certainly fewer dog walkers about and no families walking at breakfast time. Wild flowers were showing well in the hedgerows and birdsong drowned out most residual traffic noise.
I was heading for Codmore Wood which involved skirting the former Meadhams Farm brickworks site. A goldcrest teased me by calling from the trees above my head, skipping from branch to branch without coming into sight. A few minutes later I had a short glimpse of a small animal vanishing into the long grass at the side of the path. I think that it was most likely a bank vole but still with less than 50% certainty. There were also canada geese on nearby pasture, this is the second time in recent days that I have seen them on the dry upland fields around here.
I had Codmore Wood to myself. Having seen deer before at times like this I was being as quiet as I could. Passing one of the old clay pits which had a pond at the bottom I heard a scrambling on the far bank and stopped. A roe deer came up the bank then turned to see what had disturbed her. With the wind on the quarter she couldn't smell me and I froze, not daring to reach for my phone to capture the image. For a couple of minutes we stared at each other as she tried to determine if I was a danger or just a new type of tree. Eventually she seemed to decide that I wasn't going to attack and walked a few steps before pausing again, this time side on to me. Finally she suddenly bounded off although with no hint of panic and I finally unfroze.
The bluebells on the other hand weren't going to run away. I have seen them look better here but still a sight to raise the spirits.
The path back to Ley Hill Common goes along the top of a wooded bank that an old map names as Long Knotts. A buzzard came out of the trees and started circle to gain height over the field where I was. Suddenly a red kite appeared and started mobbing it. The two of them circled, each trying to gain height over the other giving an wonderful display of the tactics of an arial dogfight. I think kites must have been nesting in the wood as another came out and circled over me giving the feeling that it was trying to determine if I was a threat. I did try and get a photo of the two combatants but they never stayed in shot long enough.
I was heading for Codmore Wood which involved skirting the former Meadhams Farm brickworks site. A goldcrest teased me by calling from the trees above my head, skipping from branch to branch without coming into sight. A few minutes later I had a short glimpse of a small animal vanishing into the long grass at the side of the path. I think that it was most likely a bank vole but still with less than 50% certainty. There were also canada geese on nearby pasture, this is the second time in recent days that I have seen them on the dry upland fields around here.
I had Codmore Wood to myself. Having seen deer before at times like this I was being as quiet as I could. Passing one of the old clay pits which had a pond at the bottom I heard a scrambling on the far bank and stopped. A roe deer came up the bank then turned to see what had disturbed her. With the wind on the quarter she couldn't smell me and I froze, not daring to reach for my phone to capture the image. For a couple of minutes we stared at each other as she tried to determine if I was a danger or just a new type of tree. Eventually she seemed to decide that I wasn't going to attack and walked a few steps before pausing again, this time side on to me. Finally she suddenly bounded off although with no hint of panic and I finally unfroze.
The bluebells on the other hand weren't going to run away. I have seen them look better here but still a sight to raise the spirits.
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