Not much of a blip...

I hear you say, but hang on a mo! Read on.

So there I was, glass of wine in hand, watching 'The Cube' and trying to decide on which of a magnificent array of photos I should select for the shot of the day, when I looked out of the window (westerly aspect) and noticed the sky had turned purple.

It was raining.

With signs of addiction, I rushed out, camera in hand and ran (well kinda) through the garden, through the wood, to the edge of the meadow beyond, to snatch this blip.

I then dashed past the chicken run, the guinea fowl roost and pheasant pens into the meadow in hope of a better shot - always the optimist, me.

And thats when it happened at 9.28 p.m.

I saw an adult and 3 baby badgers absolutley sprinting across the meadow right in front of me. Something I have never seen before.

Like a true amateur I tried to take a shot without making any adjustments to the camera settings and ended up with a disappointing ghostly blurrrrr.

The evidence of badgers is common round here, a well worn path close to the house, their characteristic latrines, teeth marks in windfall apples, but in 8 years here, I have never seen a live badger - until this evening.
There is signifcant controversy over badgers being carriers of bovine tuberculosis, and I don't profess to know enough to pass an opinion, but what I can now say is they are fantastic looking animals and to see this was an absolute delight.

What is most surprising is the speed at which they can run. The whole episode was over in a few seconds, but it is something I will remember for ever.

Butterflies and Bees? You're fired!!