look what we found

One of the ducks went AWOL . We discovered that she had been sitting on eggs, well hidden in the undergrowth .And when one day she didnt come out as usual we went to explore and saw the duck with her chicks

 

chicks under duck

 7 Chicks in total .


 As they wouldn't find water from where they were, we decided to move them into a run until they are a bit bigger

 
 And the very well-made nest where she has been sitting  on the eggs for the last 4 weeks

  and the other ducks thought they would go and  see what was happening - hence the protection round the run

Anyone want some ducklings   ?

The egg stealer

we have been suspecting that  something has been taking eggs. We thought it might be rats  - so we set some rat traps. But still the eggs were disappearing.





We spotted  some new suspects hanging around.





And now  we have got evidence .

Trimming the Bank.

We have a small bank that is difficult to trim. So we use sheep. last year we put put two  on was successful, except when she escaped . So this year , a different approach

 Some hurdles to let them in and direct them to the correct place.

And then a mass grazing, whilst we kept an eye on them in case one decided to go exploring .

But there was too much to keep them busy .

To be repeated

the duck that went AWOL

Dense undergrowth 

We've had a problem over the last few weeks with one of the ducks persistently escaping after they have been fed and locked up for the night . And we have found  out why. 

She has been broody, made a nest  and may be sitting on some eggs. 

If we look  closely in the dense undergrowth 

You can see a duck !


And if we loiter between about 1810 and 1845 every day we can capture the proof.  She comes out feeds, has a little dip in the pond and then goes back

So in a week or two, we may have a few additions to the crowd. 

Of course she could be following the example of the gees and either sitting on a plate  or sitting on a pile of leaves.

The lamb gang

A common occurrence in the evening . The lambs clearly need to run off some excess energy !

Geese

We've got a couple of geese.  One of them went AWOL a while ago  and has been spotted occasionally on the moorland.

And the other one has a nest.  last year the goose tried to incubate a plate .
this year the remaining goose has a nest  but  isn't sitting on  anything this year

The one on the moor may come back sometime .  This one will get fed up of sitting on nothing and start hanging around again with the ducks .

Midnight Sun

We arent far enough north to have a polar day , but  on a clear night there is still quite a lot of light about at midnight at this time of the year. Its also known as the Simmer Dim 

Like this - just after 1am on 6th June , looking North

Hoppy the pheasant

the limping pheasant was first spotted at the start of May.
He is still around.