SUMMERTIME

Yes, it seems that summer as we usually think of it, clear skies, hot sunny days, is here! Hooray, better late than never. To re-arrange the words of a famous song as regards our local farmers ... "Summertime and the living ain't easy."  Amongst all the sounds, the rumble of tractors busily cutting and turning the many acres of hayfields, ensuring winter feed for the herds of cattle and flocks of sheep. Making the most of a short window of opportunity, our farmers were too busy even to go to the pub for the usual Sunday get together. Everywhere, the scent of freshly mown hayfields filled the breeze blown air.

Another sound caught my attention today, that of young fledgling Meadow Pipits. They seemed to be everywhere, their calls less strident than their parents and it was amusing to see some of them learning how to balance on fences and use their newly grown wings.

Unlike the more wary adults, this adventurous youngster

<<< was not camera shy and I watched it closely for almost quarter of an hour. Unfortunately these are the best photographs I could get with my small digital camera and using the zoom facility, but this young bird kept me enthralled as it seemed to be learning the tricks of how to balance and fly in the increasing breeze. It flitted from fence wire to post, as if practising it's landings, some of which were a bit wobbly, but when successful, it burst into immature song as if chuffed with it's progress. It has a lot yet to learn to survive but at least, unlike my  sadly rejected nest of eggs, this youngster has a chance of survival. Now onto bigger beasts ...

Heading back home I saw these local cattle enjoying the sunshine, including this big Limousin  bull who ... previously has been camera shy ... not today. I guess he's got used to my various attempts to catch him on camera, usually he runs far away when I try to photograph him, not today. He even seemed curious about me ... 

He is one big hunk of beef and a wonderful example of the breed. Bought just last year, he has already been busy siring offspring, but now they are all growing in size, he can just be content with grazing peacefully in the late summer sunshine. All around him mothers, daughters and sons were all peacefully grazing. It made for a lovely rural mountain scene and ... a change from sheep related things (though this farmer and his son run both ovine & bovine.)

As he peacefully grazes, a gentle mother nuzzles one of his sired calves. She was licking and nudging this calf, which seemed to be quite content just to lay down in this long awaited summer sun. Meanwhile other calves, as curious as most youngsters are, were gathering together to explore the hedgerow and looked bemused as this strange looking, two legged creature, stood behind the fence, with camera at the ready.

So there you go, it's not just the sheep that catch my eye, but they are a lot easier to take photographs of. They seem less camera shy than cattle, take these two ... oblivious to me ... 

they were licking the salt from a council road gritting salt box! Hopefully before winter sets in and we need it, this will all be replaced. But we have Autumn to enjoy before that!