This has been a good year for privet berries – a small selection here at different stages of ripening.
Long-tailed tits above
Long-tailed tits in semi-silhouette, one of a small group which carried on flitting about in the tree even when I was standing directly underneath.
Rabbit running for shelter
Young rabbit running for the shelter of a hedge.
Swallows on wire, getting ready to go
Swallows on a telephone wire as they prepare to set off on their long journey to southern Africa, resting and occasionally preening their feathers.
The middle bird was an adult, the others this year’s young. Occasionally, one of these young would make a cry demanding to be fed. The parent made no response.
Arapawa goat, Mary Arden’s Farm, portraits
The rarest of the rare breeds among the livestock on Mary Arden’s Farm at Wilmcote. Arapawa goats come from a tiny island of the same name off New Zealand. They are thought to be descended from old English goats left on the island by Captain Cook.
Young tufted duck diving, River Avon
Young tufted, one of a group of five or six birds including the adult in the previous post, swimming on the Avon, and a view of its tail as it dived under the water.
