All That Good Weather

The last three years have been wetter than usual which has resulted in more available food for creatures. Last summer the small birds around my farmlet nested three times and produced a fountain of babies. The single yellowhammer (or his descendant) that has appeared regularly for two decades, multiplied, and for the frst time ever I was seeing three of them arrive to steal the hens’ food. This year everything nested early and already nestlings are taking wobbley flights, crashlanding on the lawn and in the cat park. (If I move fast enough I can retrieve and release them safely elsewhere before Thunder gets to them,) and I still have three yellowhammers. While the late lambs that arrived on my neighbour’s place three weeks ago are already twice their usual size for that age.Last year hay contracters were going slightly crazy. There was far more hay needing to be cut and baled, but with the extra rain, it was difficult to find sufficient dry days to let the cut hay cure and do the baling. This year may not be any better. Which means that the 2012/13 summer could see myriads of small birds, very large lambs, and many frustrated hay contracters. No change there then.

 

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