Swift Half update - 2nd October 2010

• This squally weather has taken a almost all of the very ripe pears and lot of leaves from our trees and turned most of the rest yellow. Won't be too long before all our lovely foliage has gone (my least favourite time of year!) and the rear (rear) rear garden at present smells like perry with all the alcoholic pears on the ground!


• Bad news from the immediate Swift Half environs also, as I spotted an old fox (photo above) calmly walking through our neighbours' garden at noon today and spend a good few minutes scratching itself, pressed right up against their patio doors (they were out I guess at the time).


• The fox is covered in sarcoptic mange, which is very uncomfortable for the fox and makes it less fearful of humans (walks around at noon etc...) because it has to "keep on the move" and "keep scratching".


• I hope because it wil have to keep moving, it will move out of the area -as I'd rather not keep the hens locked up constantly - as it was today on the girls' "day off", as soon as I spotted the manky fox, I had to rush to lock them up, as they were free-ranging at the time. I've seen many foxes at Swift Half (we even have two old dens in the rear (rear) garden as some viewers to this blog might know), but I've never seen a fox in bad condition here before.

• Strange that the honeysuckle and water lily are flowering again here at Swift Half, so late in the year?


• The buff ermine moth caterpillar that I photographed the other day, has spun itself a cocoon and will remain in that state until around about May 2011. I fed it nettle leaves for about a week and it seemed to like them. If we're still around here in May (for the return of the swifts also!?) I'll update you then on our buff ermine cocoon...


• On the subject of caterpillars, I've also found what I think is a Sallow Kitten moth caterpillar - which is feeding on willow as I speak - again this should become an adult moff in May...