Snow and the Muntjac

Another day of frozen landscapes all around the village with ice on all the roads - no sign of any gritting on Heath Road, of course.

Lesley and I wandered out to feed the sheep at the Hanglands and Blacklands this morning. Nothing much to report but a beautiful morning, with clear blue skies above the glittering snow. The sheep stood out starkly against the snow.

This afternoon, I wandered around the very cold Maxey Pits. The western pit was already freezing over fast and sadly, I watched as a muntjac deer failed to break back out of the ice having tried to get across the cut in between the main and western pits. It was stuggling to and fro trying to break the ice and get back on the shore, but to no avail, I am afraid. I walked round to see if there was anything I could do, but by the time I reached the nearest point on the bank, there was no sign of the deer. And with the ice unbroken, I can only assume the worst.

There was also a kingfisher on the Cut and 4 snipe overhead, with hundreds of fieldfare chattering from the hedgerows. Also a flock of 38 skylark overhead.