Mist in the valley, very early in the morning and no cars on the road yet; it feels like the countryside should do, just for an hour or two!

What I find amazing is that despite the hundreds of lorries and cars that go up and down the road all week and are joined by the roaring motorcycles and banks of cyclists at weekends, the wildlife on the farm carries on regardless.

The skylarks along the roadside fields can barely be heard after 7am and I wonder how the noise of traffic might affect their ability to hear the male’s mating song which can last up to 20 minutes.  However they seem to cope, maybe to an extent due to their early rise beating the noise of traffic and possibly due to the height the male reaches during his song flight.

Just over a week ago I took some distant pictures of a second brood of swallows on their maiden flight from one of the many nests in our barns and buildings.  The numbers of birds returning each year has increased and they are having 2-3 broods each.

They are a joy to watch and will soon be preparing for their long flight south. It is incredible to think of these tiny birds flying 200 miles a day as they travel to their winter feeding in South Africa.