PIG: merrily rooting out a live grenade
GUZZLING and arguing their way through life, pigs have often seemed the most 'human' of all farm animals to me. Medical science obviously...
NETTLE: the stinging friend of butterflies
JOLTING the unwary with its painful sting, the common nettle is one of our most unpopular weeds so it may come as a surprise that...
LAPWING: stop-go scurry caught Shakespeare's eye
ELEGANT but noisy, lapwings used to be a common sight in our countryside where they gathered in huge flocks on open fields and...
SPARROW: garden mystery leads to double blow
THE humble house sparrow has declined so sharply in recent years that fears have been raised for its long-term future - unthinkable a few...
DORMOUSE: rural encounter on a freezing day
NOCTURNAL and secretive, the dormouse has always been one of the more difficult creatures of the countryside to spot. Whenever it does...
SEAGULL: noisy cries and a defiant parrot
SEAGULLS are perfectly designed for life at sea which makes it all the more surprising that so many now choose to live much of their...
OSPREY: fatal greed of a fish eater
SHARP-EYED and deadly, the osprey is a spectacular hunter of unwary fish which make the mistake of swimming too close to the surface....
GOLDCREST: a towering giant at survival
TINY and shy, the goldcrest may be Britain's smallest bird but it is undoubtedly a giant when you consider its survival skills. No...
BUTTERFLIES: flying into harsher days
BEAUTIFUL and delicate, butterflies have been celebrated for bringing summer colour into our lives since records began but now their...
BUZZARD: striking at a running two-legged target
WHEELING and soaring above open country, the buzzard is an expert scavenger of carcasses and hunter of rabbits. Its large broad wings,...
