Patter of tiny feet

We took a walk into the forest opposite our house this afternoon, in search of sloes for gin. On the way back I noticed this dry mud puddle full of wild boar prints. The big ones on the left are the mother's but just look at those tiny footprints on the right. They belong to very young stripey boar known as marcassin here in France. It rained heavily a couple of days ago, so these prints are pretty new.

I hope the boar enjoy their freedom in the sunshine while they can. From the end of the grape harvest in late September the hunters will return for at least five months. Their quest will be to reduce the boar numbers which have exploded in recent years. Wild boar have crossed with domestic pigs and now have much bigger litters. I like the boar and absolutely hate hearing the hunters shooting, but I do understand the problem. As a former vineyard owner I know the havoc wild boar can wreak.