I Wish I Could Fly

'I wish I could fly way up to the sky but I can't!' he squeaked. Mum, was staring with a benevolent and adoring smile at the antics of her offspring as she patiently waited for yet another egg to hatch under her. 

This tiny little gingery ball of fluff was causing both the crane parents concern with the overhead dive bombing of opportunistic gulls, along with the geese and swans with whom they had already had numerous run-ins to defend their clutch. They are wild.

This morning was a tad traumatic as staring out of the window I suddenly saw Tallulah chicken run off with one of my newly fledged robins in her beak!!! Banging on the window pane then shooting outside like a rocket I hot footed after her to try to make her drop it. Cleverly she went under the cypress trees and without giving a thought to the nettles, brambles and branches chased in after her. Unfortunately I was wearing shorts. She wasn't giving an inch but finally after my manoeuver that was reminiscent of a rugby tackle over the lower branches she was so startled that her beak dropped and so did the chick. Picking up the completely traumatised little thing I was then in a total dilemma. I think the robins now think I am the bad guy here as I held it to let it recover, took it over the fence and popped it in the grasses in the field out of the way of the marauding chickens, showing them it was ok as I did it.  

Coming home tonight I went into the field with trepidation - didn't find it but heard some anxious tweeting, then saw the robins come in with beakfuls of mealworms from the pot! Phew!!! I would add my legs are soo painful!