Category Archives: Wildlife

Long-tailed tits

The Hogweed in the verges has now gone to seed and the Rosebay Willow herb is slowly dying back, leaving room for the bright yellow of Common Ragwort and the deep purple of Hardheads to festoon the road side. We … Continue reading

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Happy Yorkshire Day

It is with great relief that Little Owl and I have headed down to Yorkshire this week to visit family and friends. We are literally being eaten alive by midges on the farm (me especially). The wet, warm weather is … Continue reading

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Dusk

Our bedroom window opens up like a door and this week I’ve been enjoying sitting in my pyjamas, watching the valley as dusk falls. It’s been so still. I can hear the caws of the rooks in the trees behind … Continue reading

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Bird song

The verges around us are over-flowing with the frothy flowers of hogweed and meadowsweet. A multitude of insects busily attend them. Little Owl and I head down to the river again in the hot afternoon for some paddling. It’s becoming … Continue reading

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Kingfisher footage

Do you remember I mentioned that a kingfisher had been spotted on the river last week? It turns out it’s a nesting pair and the Farm Manager here, who is like our very own David Attenborough, caught some footage of … Continue reading

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Purple and gold

The fields on the farm are purple and gold with Timothy and Buttercups. If you look closely you find Doves-foot Cranesbill, Common Mouse-ear, and Common Speedwell hidden among the grasses. Beside the river all sorts of wild flowers fill the banks: Fairy … Continue reading

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Haring along

In the late part of this afternoon, on our way home from visiting friends, Little Owl and I encountered a hare on the road. He bounded out of an open gateway in the hedgerow before turning to gallop along beside … Continue reading

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Solemn business

As I write the sky is a soft blue streaked with pink. The windows of the house are flung open. It has been a beautiful summer’s day and the long hours of daylight up here turn the evening into an … Continue reading

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Taking a breather

Little Owl is on her Easter holidays from nursery for the next two weeks. She’s going to spend next week with her grandparents but this week she’s with me. Hence my degree work has had to come to a halt … Continue reading

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Hatchings

This week at Little Owl’s nursery they have had some eggs in an incubator and it has caused a major stir. Every day the children have been able to go and visit the eggs. Each morning Little Owl has been … Continue reading

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