This totally made my day. I looked up from my usual morning crossword and coffee to see at 7 am, to my amazement, a male muntjac deer just a few feet from the window of my summerhouse. When I first saw him, I ruled out muntjac on the grounds of size – he seemed enormous. A trick of the mind caused by intense excitement I think and the fact that this is not an especially large garden. He did surprise me with both his solidity and his great beauty. He was clearly looking for a way out and seemed to be in a bit of a panic. I think that whenever he headed up to the garden gate, human or vehicular noise were scaring him back down to me. At one point he was just inches from me and our eyes met and locked. I remained pretty much still and silent of course, although I was lucky enough to get a few photographs.
The hours I have spent watching the birds have continued to be an endlessly fascinating education and source of wonder. The sparring male Blackbirds now seem to be getting along just fine although there is the occasional minor spat (what is, actually, going on?), I have come to love especially the soft, subtle pink of the breasts of the Wood Pigeons but I do still miss the rowdy rabble of Starlings, who a few years ago would come in such numbers if I put out mealworms that I was worried we might get noise complaints.
Blackbirds seem to be the least shy of them all – it is possible to be very close to them without their seeming to give a fig. And the Great Tits – they just look so smart.
Then there is the literal pecking order on the ground, which has also greatly surprised me. The Wood Pigeons rule, after them the Collared Doves. Third in line are the Jackdaws – they are of course much bigger than the Doves but they will jump back if one of them takes a step towards them, followed by the Magpie, who will not even come down to land from the tree if the Pigeons or Doves are around.
UPDATE. I still made a wrong assumption. The Collared Doves rule. I have just watched one have a go at a Wood Pigeon and win. The Wood Pigeon tried to stand its ground and fluttered its wings right back at the dove, but then gave up and flew off. Then, once the doves have gone, the Magpies (there are two visiting now) dare come down.
Meanwhile the consensus and some googling suggest that these mysterious little holes in the grass are made by squirrels.
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