One or two young green woodpeckers feeding on the ants in the field featured in the previous post. The feeding was a bit far away to be sure, but the bird which was there when I returned to the field after a half hour or son break (last few pictures in the set) seemed to have less marked plumage on its head.
One small field on Mary Arden’s Farm has very prominent ridge and furrow. It has probably never had crops grown on it since it was enclosed from being part of Wilmcote village’s open field to the farm’s sheep pasture, possibly a couple of generations before Shakespeare’s mother was raised on the farm.
The ridge and furrow is itself frequently interrupted by a large number of anthills rising prominently.
Young coots standing out of the water of the Avon on a stone in Stratford, while a parent bird in the water was feeding another of the brood.
A tiny water snail in the middle of a bullrush leaf on Compton Park pond. The snail’s head was poking out, and a small blob of slime is visible behine it.
Shottery Brook, a few minutes walk from Anne Hathaway’s cottage. The footpath along the stream passes through a small wood.
More of the characterful rare breeds stock from Mary Arden’s Farm. This time a English longhorn bull and cow (possibly a heifer). Once again, it is a breed mainly raised for its meat.