Thank you ...
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Serendipity7000, I did struggle trying to take a clear focused photo of a squirrel as they were moving around too much (and I thought Pumpkin was difficult to photograph). I didn't want to get too near to the squirrel just in case I startled them but fortunately my camera has very good optical zoom therefore I could manage to get a good photo at a distance away.
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cypher, I hope spring reaches you soon - I have been eagerly waiting for spring so I can get wildlife photos and to start sowing my seeds. I loved the texture of the lichen and is something which most people would ignore. I was surprised by the amount of wildlife that was out and about during my afternoon stroll.
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BorisPasha, Mr. Duck does look serious in that photo - although the other ducks where sleeping so he might have just have woken up. I hope you start seeing more bees soon - I have been seeing loads over the recent weeks especially big bumble bees - I even had to rescue a bumble bee who became stuck in my greenhouse behind the bubble wrap took me a little while to get it out the door to freedom.
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Drago, for your lovely compliment I do thoroughly enjoy taking photos and experimenting with different subjects . Male pheasants look so majestic and I was also fortunate to see a female too as they are often a lot more harder to see. The male did try his best at trying to get the attention of the female but she wasn't interested and ran off.
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dreamtree1234, I don't think I have heard of that book before but whenever I see ducks I always call them Donald and Daisy. I was amazed by how many squirrels I saw as I don't have any that come into my garden they always captivate me with the agility and their excellent senses to find their hidden treasures.
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Close Encounter of the Furry Kind and Red Leicester the Rat
This week whilst out doing my wildlife conservation voluntary work and I was sitting down having my lunch all of a sudden I see the tarpaulin which had our bags on beside me suddenly moving. At first when I saw the grass moving I though it was a big spider but then an adorable little face appeared - which instantly melted my heart especially as he looked so overcome in fear of all the people around. Initially I thought this cute face belonged to a mouse but turned out to be a vole. The vole kept me amused for a while rustling the tarpaulin from underneath and peering out every know and then - he didn't know where to go as the tarpaulin was surrounded by us all eating our lunch but eventually it found a large enough gap to make a run for freedom. This was the first vole I have ever seen in person so it was so lovely that it was such a close encounter only about 10cm away from me.
As well as the vole my other rodent friend my garden rat Red Leicester has been keeping me amused and entertained with her antics. Today she decide to climb up the tree in my garden and was having fun climbing up and down the branches after all that fun she climbed up the bird feeder pole and tucked into the suet pellets. Luckily today the birds let her enjoy some food as the other day a starling pecked her tail so it could get to the food - she didn't hang around and quickly disappeared. After that encounter Red was being more cautious and was listen out to the bird calls making sure she was safe. She stayed around long enough to get some good photos though before vanishing again ...