At the back of my cottage is a field. It’s one of those nondescript patches of our landscape that sees little traffic other than the cutting of silage and an occasional foray from Oscar, my ever-attentive whippet. If there wasn’t a public right of way, I doubt there’d be a gate to the road.
And yet for all its isolation — or perhaps because of it — it’s not a silent or deserted place at all. If you were to walk there in twilight, you’d likely see badgers by the northern hedge, or perhaps the family of foxes that live nearby. There are rabbits too and an occasional polecat; there’s even, somewhere in the scrub, the remains of our tortoise, which escaped, never to be found again.
Often, as I write in my garden office, there are buzzards looking for a meal; kestrels too when the grass is fresh cut. Over the years I’ve seen dragonflies, woodpeckers, almost twenty different butterflies, an adder, many weasels and a stoat… The night brings owls and moths and who knows what…
I sometimes wonder if I should submit my sightings to a wildlife survey. But they are so fleeting and incomplete that instead I write blogs and essays, which I guess is a record of sorts. What’s interesting, is that there’s often as much to see from my window as there is when I go travelling.
If Oscar could talk, he’d say it’s all about paying attention – and no doubt waiting patiently too. Yesterday, as he sniffed the morning air, I glimpsed the unmistakable tail of a red kite hovering above us. When I first came here, the nests of these magnificent raptors were protected by the army; today, there are over 300 breeding pairs in Wales.
That progress should give us hope — and prompts me to muse, that perhaps my little tramped field is not so nondescript after all.
A version of this post was first published in the AAC(UK) monthly newsletter
Oscar looks like he could outrun my Charlie. A field like that is a gift, for humans but even more importantly for all the beings that call it home.
ReplyDeleteSuch an athlete with boundless..but brief... energy in his paws!!
ReplyDeleteWhat a sleek and focused being, your Oscar. Joy in motion.
ReplyDeleteOscar is magnificent in that photo. Pixie is correct, that field is a gift.
ReplyDeleteOscar looks FAST, and determined. We've discovered that by paying attention we see much more wildlife, big and small, than if we just pass through an area. Even in our suburban garden there are squirrels, rabbits, the occasional raccoon, lizards, and many insects. So much life abounds when we treat land with gentleness.
ReplyDeleteWhat a magnificent shot of Oscar. And he's right - it's all about paying attention.
ReplyDeleteHari Om
ReplyDeleteAs ever, your writing puts us right in the scene... YAM xx
I don't see any field as nondescript, really. There is so much contained within it that we have not yet discovered. (PS It is so good to see Oscar so active and alive after his injury. I tried to do math in my head...it's been a couple years?
ReplyDeleteI can never be quite sure what happens to my comments, whether they are lost forever in the mysteries of blogger or sitting patiently in spam. But in any case, I love the picture of Oscar running at full tilt. He has made a full recovery from that awful accident, which had to have been what? A couple years ago now? Time runs by as quickly as that dog!
ReplyDeleteIt sounds a good field for wild life, but hedgehogs seem to be missing. Oscar enjoys it immensely by the look of him.
ReplyDeleteInteresting that you say the red kites were protected by the army - I have heard that many of the MOD sites like Salisbury Plain, Otterburn, Dartmoor, parts of the Lake District have become wildlife refuges because development has been banned, public access and disturbance minimised.
ReplyDeleteDear Mark,
ReplyDeleteOscar is such a graceful creature. It must be wonderful to live in a place where one is surrounded by things in nature that feed the eyes, the ears, and the soul although we tend to lose this connection when life gets in the way. We can learn a great deal from a beloved pet like Oscar for his sustained attention as a way of being.
I've just managed to unearth your kind comment which went astray (instead of the pending folder) among my already published comments folder. I'm sorry for this delay. Wishing you a good week.
ASD
We have red kites flying over the house on a regular basis nowadays. Amazed at how they've spread this far from the Chilterns. I saw a badger on the way home from the pub last year just around the corner and there are stoats, hares and skylarks on the archery field by the rugby club. Even our urban fringe has delights if you know where to look x
ReplyDeleteNice post and an enviable piece of open ground.
ReplyDelete