Back Road

I’ve been to a meeting this morning, I took a different route home than usual,

instead of ‘the road to nowhere’ I took the back road, I saw a buzzard,  it’s only in the last couple of years I’ve been seeing them in this area,

I lack the equipment and patience to photograph them, or the kestrel I watched quartering for prey. It was cold and windy, bracing and the light was changing very quickly

I heard curlews calling you can listen to them here, but I didn’t see them, but I did see a flock of redwings

But sometimes nature isn’t pretty, I’ll warn you the next photo isn’t cute, I came across a rabbit, showing the signs of the virus Myxomatosis  it appeared to be blind and in a bad way, Philip Larkin wrote a poem about the plight of rabbits with this disease

If I had known how to kill it humanely I would like to think I could have put it out of its misery, I don’t imagine it will have survived very long, it’s just the sort of thing the buzzard will be looking for, as

prey up to 500g is taken by active predation, anything heavier is usually carrion or seriously enfeebled individuals. 

‘enfeebled’ just about sums it up; apart from the sick rabbit, I enjoyed my little detour and the afternoon brightened up to give another interesting sunset,

As I write this post at 9:30 PM, our kitchen is full of fell runners and there is a growing  atmosphere of nervous anticipation, but more about that tomorrow.