Since coming across the pheasants recently, I’ve been keen to return and see how they are doing, indeed if they’re still there. I can’t see them moving on though, as they’ve got everything that they need.
There are lots of foxes in the area but these are wild birds – as opposed to the semi-tame hybrids that you see released for shooting – so they will have enough natural instinct to stay one step ahead.
I did see a fox first, lying down in a field, enjoying the late evening sunshine. Then, some distance on, I spotted the pheasants as they made their way along another field, feeding as they went.
It was great to see them again, they look well and truly settled in. Normally you wouldn’t get excited about a pair of pheasants, but due to the location, I’m extremely thrilled.
The full list of birds seen in the short walk was as follows: wood pigeon, magpie, blackbird, robin, long-tailed tit, chaffinch, great tit, goldfinch, carrion crow, pheasant, grey heron, pied wagtail.
The wild flowers are beginning to show well and there are small groups of bluebells everywhere. In addition, it’s great to see decent numbers of yellow archangel (lead image) and lords and ladies in the hedgerows of the lane itself.
As you can see in the accompanying video, I got some nice slo-mo footage of a bee. I’m pretty sure that it’s a buff-tailed bumblebee, however I’m more than happy to be corrected if that isn’t the case.
Although I’m a keen naturalist, birds would be my number one in terms of knowledge and experience.
No-one knows everything and with butterflies, fungi, moths, trees, flowers and insects in general, that’s a lot of ground to cover. Even at my age, I’m still learning.