Sunday 22 March 2009

So much to see......

As I walked the lanes with Nella this morning, I noticed the rooks had lifted their nests. Country folk say that a long hot summer is ahead when this happens. I am a great believer in the old ways......
As I turned the corner I saw a vixen lying on the grass verge. Sadly she will not be hunting rabbits tonight. I hope that she did not leave cubs behind, they will not survive without her. As I walked away from her my heart felt heavy.........

Further along the lane I noticed these daffodils by the ditch.....I do love flowers and water...they always make an elegant combination.......


and I love these spring snowflakes around the old oak........spring, spring, spring....what a lovely time of year....
and ladies smock......I love these pretty flowers..... I hold my breath and wait for the orange tipped butterflies to come into the area....for the ladies smock is her host plant......
Many people keep ducks in this area.......whilst I enjoy seeing them, there is nothing like wild fowl.....

So when I looked through the hedgerow and saw the canada goose, I was so thrilled. We get a lot of them here....they often fly over the house. They were introduced from Canada in the 17th century and were mainly garden birds .....now they are quite common.......and can often be seen on fields in any part of the country........

I believe this beautiful pair are Pink footed geese....they visit most winters. They fly into Britain from Iceland and Greenland......I do love them. Their calls as they fly over the house is quite musical.
It was a pleasant walk in the spring sunshine.........
Rain is expected tomorrow.....and strong winds........well it was good while it lasted......


29 comments:

Monica the Garden Faerie said...

It's always nice going for a walk, but I'm so sorry about the fox. :(

o2bhiking said...

Love your photos and text, it is like making a little visit "across the pond." I spent the afternoon in a beautiful garden today - the local botanical garden. I blogged about it in my hiking blog if you wish to see photos.

It is always sad seeing a dead animal.

Liz said...

So sorry about the Foxie, must've been such a sad sight :(

I hope we have cubs this year, last year sadly there didn't appear to be any, yet we did have a pair... Adult and cub from the previous year? Unsure, but we did hear their calls a couple of months ago.

Lovely flower photos, it's all go!

I've also heard it's supposed to be a very hot summer this year, hard to believe considering the past two and the relatively harsh winter we've just had.

Wendy said...

I didn't know that about the Canada goose. Thanks for enlightening me! You took such a good shot of those pink-footed geese. They look a little startled as if to say "who are you?".

Poor little fox. How did you know it was a female? Are they smaller?

Your daffodils are lovely, and the water background is perfect.
Thanks for sharing your spring walk with us. Spring is my favourite season!

Lisa at Greenbow said...

Wow, you had an exciting walk Cheryl. Too bad about the fox. It is such a sorry sight to see a beautiful animal by the roadside.

I wonder how the Rooks know. Maybe the atmosphere talks to them. Or maybe the fairies tell them about important weather issues.

I thought of you today. I saw my first bee in the garden...finally.
There were actually lots of bugs buzzing about. Spring is so much fun.

beckie said...

Cheryl, a lovely walk. spring really has come to you. After your cold summer last year, a hot one this year seems very possible. Extremes usually follow each other. Love the geese and ducks. We ave Canadian geese here by the hordes! while fun to see, the do make huge messes around peopl's houses. Thankfully we don't have them in our town.

Thanks for sharing your walk and hope your waether doesn't get too nasty.

Cheryl said...

Hi Monica....lovely walk but I did feel very sad when I saw the fox.....

Cheryl said...

Hi Racn4acure....will pop over to see your post this evening....always interested in garden posts....tku for letting me know......

Cheryl said...

Hi Liz.....always sad to see such a beautiful animal lose its life.....

I have been watching the wildlife and have thought that a long hot summer is ahead........

Cheryl said...

Hi Wendy......your welcome.....

the fox was way to small for a dog fox.......she had a beautiful soft face to......
I have been trying to get a photograph of the pink footed geese for ages, it must have been my lucky day .....

Cheryl said...

Hi Lisa....Lovely to hear that you have bees in your gardens...it lifts my spirits knowing they are out there.....

Cheryl said...

Hi Beckie.....we only have a few canada geese, so it is ot really a problem....they do not come to the gardens as the fields are a better option.....

We are expecting rain today and a northerly wind....

Hope the weekend with the girls was fun......

Rose said...

I enjoyed going on this walk with you, Cheryl. Poor fox--people around here don't like them because they can be destructive, but I've always thought they were beautiful animals. I love the ladies smock; that's a new name to me, I wonder if it is similar to what we call butterfly weed?
Last year we had a small flock of Canadian geese that came to forage in our fields, but I haven't seen them this year. The pink-footed geese are really interesting; that's quite an adventure for them to fly from Iceland and Greenland!

Cheryl said...

Hi Rose....there are a lot of people around these parts that shoot the foxes, altough, to be fair, I did not see any evidence of that...
I personally loves foxes and have always considered them beautiful. They are part of the eco system and have their place.....numbers have dropped significantly in this area and due to that there has been an increase in rats and rabbits.....
I don't think milkweed and ladies smock are the same plant Rose....if I remember rightly milkweed is a fairly large wildflower....ladies smock is very delicate and fragile looking......

Hope Dad is still doing well??

marmee said...

dear cheryl,
i loved walking with you this morning. seeing your wild fowl and the emerging spring flowers makes me sigh...it is a most welcome sight.
so sad the fox didn't make it.
we had canada geese here too i love hearing them fly overhead in the evening when the sun is setting.
very happy spring day to you.

NCmountainwoman said...

Beautiful sights to see. Except of course, for the fox. What a shame her life ended so.

I also believe in nature signs. Somehow the birds and animals seem much more in tune with Mother Nature than we despite all our sophisticated devices.

Cheryl said...

Hi Marmee....a cold wind and lower temperatures have arrived today, so everything will go on hold again. March is an unpredictable month......it always manages to tease us.....

Cheryl said...

Hello ncmountainwomen......I agree, we have so much equipment now and yet very often forecasts are wrong. I started watching the activity of creatures and have learned a lot....they very rarely get it wrong......

Anonymous said...

Lady's smock! I love it. Such an elegantly arranged little bloom. Should be out here on the Isle of Wight soon, I hope, in a lane I follow walking my daughter to school.

Zvrk said...

I am not a great fan of Canada Geese, last year they had goosling on our pond/lake and made an awful mess on the grass (poo mostly, which harbours lots of diseases).And they can be very intimidating when they have young.
Nice from the distance, not so nice next to us on a daily basis.

Cheryl said...

Hi Rob....ladies smock is one of my favourite wildflowers...I am fortunate that it grows wild in my garden to....
I love to see the orange tip butterfly on it...a beautiful match.....

Cheryl said...

Hi Zvrk....I understand what you are saying.....they can be aggressive and their dropping can harbour disease. I try to clean up most days.....I find it keeps the birds healthy and the garden clean.......

Ruth said...

Interesting that Canada Geese were introduced to your area. I don't know what "rooks" or "vixens" are. Something new to look up and learn!

Cheryl said...

Hi Ruth....rooks are large black birds belonging to the crow family.....and a vixen is a female fox......

fiona said...

Beautiful - especially the Ladies Smock. Hope you're right about the long hot summer!

Betty Jo said...

Oh I too hope the fox didn't leave cubs behind. How sad! The year we lived in England, there was a fox that came out every morning and sat in the horse pasture down the hill, in perfect view from the glass door in my kitchen. I watched her/him each morning as I sipped my coffee. ♥

Cheryl said...

Hi Hedgewitch.....how lovely to hear from you again....I to love ladies smock.....we will see, with regard to the long hot summer.....

Cheryl said...

Hi Betty Jo.....that sounds just so perfect....you sound as though you had a wonderful time together...beautiful memories.....

Q said...

Dear Cheryl,
A pair of Pink Footed geese live across the street from my house. I think they are so pretty. I too enjoy seeing the "wild" birds but those that have become comfortable living near man are nice too. I like nature all around me! Seeing the geese while you and Nella walk is nice.
I too believe in the olde lore.
There is a saying in our area, "Frogs look through glass three times before last frost." I think I have two more hard freezes.
I was raised by city people so I missed out on most of the nature folk lore. I will look for a book that has the olde sayings in it. I would enjoy that.
Lovely walk. So very sad for the fox. So very, very sad....I am sorry...
Thank you,
Sherry