168. Is the Grass Greener? Mrs Pheasant’s heroics

Monday 17 July 2023

It’s just gone 07:00, it’s sunny, about 10°C in Scottish Borders, and I can see and hear Mr Pheasant in the garden and see our extremely tall, thin heron nearby. Chris and I drove back from Lewisham yesterday, the shortest driving time ever and not a single hold-up and hardly any red traffic lights in London or anywhere else. We did stop for a long break and again for Chris to collect his car (he’d driven to Lockerbie station on Tuesday) but the actual driving time was a few minutes under six hours. Such a shame we couldn’t guarantee those conditions every time. Despite the good driving conditions, we were both exhausted when we got home after unpacking and eating lunch (we left Lewisham at 06:50) and had a mini-sleep. As our water tank was full still, hurrah, I ran a bath. Hot bath-sleepy; I don’t remember turning my light off to go to sleep. I totally zonked and have yet to get lively.

I saw Mrs Pheasant with two of their seven chicks out the kitchen window earlier, now I can see Mr Pheasant with two chicks and the heron still standing around. It’s a bad sign for the other five chicks. We’re amazed Mr and Mrs Pheasant are still alive and any of the chicks. I’m not sure we’ll see more than two again. Unexpected update: a few minutes later and Mrs Pheasant with all seven chicks appeared in front of the heron, there was a dramatic face-off, then Mrs Pheasant went for the heron, screamed at him and the heron flew off. Go Mrs Pheasant – I do have it on video but I’m not sure there’s a market for Pheasant-heron bird-offs.

Mr Pheasant with heron on bank
Mrs P having just chased away heron (above her, about to swoop at chicks. Mr P at back)

This week, I have a lot of writing to do – I’m kind of looking forward to it, I really enjoy writing from my office here, though the birdlife outside my window is very distracting – and I will probably go to Edinburgh for a day on Thursday and, tomorrow, Tuesday, we have some visitors.

Our visitors are related to this house in that the man we have been in touch with from New Zealand is coming with his son, daughter-in-law and two grandchildren from the US and that he and his son’s family history goes back to the first few tenants of this house when it was a huge farm from the 1760s when it was built. They’ve visited the house before with the previous owners and he’s sent us some information about the house in the context of his family history (which I will read properly before they arrive). When we first moved here, Chris and I had wondered about previous tenants, so we do at least have an idea about the first two or three generations who lived here, being his family of tenant farmers for the Duke of Buccleugh.