The horse, the fox, the mole (hill) and the 58 year old boy.

 Apprently last night there was a glorious aurora borealis, an excited friend called me at about 11pm to advise me of the event - I was a sleep as it happens and all I really took in from the call was 'Boris' - needless to say without much thought I promptly returned to my slumber - Boris has no place in my heart or my dreams and certainly was not worthy of getting out of bed for.  Turns out I missed quite an amazing event, however the 'runes' suggest that there may be a repeat celestial event tonight, so stay tuned!  Anyhoo, back to this morning's event... The sun was quietly but determinedly burning away the morning clouds so I crept down to the pond with the Nikon, could I catch a snap of the noisy reed warblers and blue tits that were breaking the silence of the day?  I half caught the warbler and got a distant shot of the Blue tit which was engrossed in obliterting the last of the seeds on an old reedmace stem.  

Where is Wally (Warbler)? - Look closely now. (Click Picture for a zoom if you have bad eyes!)

and so, two not so great pictures in the digital can, I decided to take a walk around my little piece of England "that there’s some corner of a foreign field that is for ever England. There shall be in that rich earth a richer dust concealed"; but I digress, apologies...

I slowly mooch over to old Jack, a horse that is not mine, but he has a natural way about him which means wanders where he pleases, without regard to land title or such trivial issues of ownership.  Jack was, as you can see below, enjoying his morning constitutional 'free' meal of grass and thistles. 

As I pondered Jacks inability to see his morning breakfast due to his rather hirsute headress, a glimpse of rusty red caught my eye...

Aha! thought I, I've missed him again as Mr/Mrs fox headed for deep cover.  Dispite the earlyness of the hour, I remembered an old trick I had read about which is sure to catch a foxes attendtion - even if only momentarily;  I made a squeeking noise by sucking the back of my hand, and sure enough Mr fox took the bait (so to speak) and made a beeline towards me to investigate the noise. Who's cunning now eh?

I tracked the fox with the lens and sure as old Jack likes a free meal, the fox came out of the tall grass and cow parsley curtains to show himself.  The rest as they say, is history; these are the best foxy pictures I have captured so far, at Long Beach Farm, correction, - anywhere! Slap me on the back and call me Sally, I don't care, today is a good day. 

and the mole? - Well, just hills on the lawn thus far, but I'm happy with my days work.  May even try to stay awake to see Boris this evening!

PS. Next day update: Seems Boris was a bit of a damp squib - should have expected it, when has Boris ever over promised but under delivered?

Blue and Long Tailed Tits were out today.

 Dinah Beautiful Blue... 

Dinah and the beautiful blue
In the fields
They will sing for hours
Dinah and the beautiful blue
Letting through
All the hidden powers
Dinah and the beautiful blue
With the force
Of a million lifetimes
Dinah to the beautiful blue
Bring me love
Make me smile again

(Song by Anywhen).

The beautiful yellow waistcoat of this bird magically matches the yellow lichen on the stems of the viburnum shrub in which it pauses, ready to return to the freshly stocked bird feeder situated just a few meters away.

Long tail, 'Does What it says on the tin'

Peach / Apricot highlight over the eye.

Bank Vole ( I think due to the chestnut colour)  was doing a little house keeping in one of the habitat stacks. 

And the fox skulked by on the far side of the meadow, while I was tucked away inside the pop up hide...

Short Woodland Compilation from Camera Trap

 

Boisterous Foxes out at night!

Paw prints around the pond and fox scat were the only evidence they were there the next morning!