It's All About Pheasants and Other Birds with Suicidal Tendencies

We have had some of the funniest time with pheasants.  No offense to any males reading this, but it is the males that seem to get squished, squashed or flattened in the road because they love to strut their beautiful feathers and colors for all to see.

There is an interesting factor here....there used to be a pair that were known to be in our backyard here at the Larkbeare Grange.  We have not seen one the entire time we have been here.  The entire living area of this house is glassed across the back overlooking the ponds, trees and grazing land for the sheep.  They have huge birds in this part of England.  We have some blackbirds who routinely try to fly into the glass doors.  This loud banging noise at first was a mystery to us as it happened when we were each in our bedrooms which also have glass doors.  We would come running out asking "what was that?" but until a few days ago we had no idea.  Kay actually saw it fly into the doors in her room and yesterday we saw a pair fly into the ones in the living room!  I am surprised that they have not broken the glass yet, but the sound alone is frightening.

Ok, back to the pheasants.  We have never seen one in or driving around this area at all.  Everywhere else we go, they are as they were in the Cotswolds...everywhere.  I don't know why Kay and I find them so amusing but we always have to try to capture a picture everytime we see them.  Sometimes we can catch them and others they run into the hedgerows before we can capture the moment.  Yesterday on our drive around Dorset we saw many both dead and alive.  One in particular caused us to laugh hysterically.  We were on a single lane road and rounded a bend... he was standing in the middle on the grassy area.  Kay slowed to a crawl while we quickly grabbed our cameras.  He continued to walk down the middle and as the car picked up a little speed, he began to trot, then run.  So Kay was playing with him....slowing the car then he would slow down, then slowly moving faster until finally he saw his break between the hedgerows and took off.  We just could not stop laughing.  We tried to video it but were laughing so hard only we could enjoy it.

This year and last Kay and I have seen several Magpies.  They are illusive however, and obviously don't like to be photographed.  Last year I managed to get one from a distance, but not one really clear shot.  When we visited A la Ronde, when we pulled into the drive, Kay spotted one in the grass.  No one was behind us so she stopped and I handed her my camera and lo and behold when she put the window down...he stayed there and she got this photo!  It is a good one too.  Yay Kay.  She and Lindsay are very good spotters!

Today we are going with the flow as Bert says on Doc Martin.  We think we will go to Bicton Gardens today.  It has been a very foggy morning so far but the sun is out now burning off the fog.