Rut watch

Wednesday 3rd July 2019

Yesterday  I caught sight of an email from Knowsley Safari Park advertising an after hours Rut Watch. As I was free I decided to give it a go. We started with a half hour talk about the Pere David's Deer. They are extinct in the wild and Knowsley are part of the conservation project, with 58 deer in their herd. 

After the introduction we were taken out in the baboon bus and had an hour and a half to watch the deer, in the hope of seeing the rutting. We observed the males circling each other and chasing some of the females or younger males away, we heard the rutting cry but clearly the boys hadn't received the memo that they were supposed to fight this evening to entertain the audience! A few times we thought they were about to start but there was no clashing of antlers this evening.  

It was difficult to get shots through the window of the bus as it was dirty from the baboons climbing over it. I had to manually guess a focus and hope for the best. This and the two extras were the only good shots I got. The hour and a half seemed to fly by. It was interesting to hear the keepers talk about the behaviour etc. So glad I went, even if we didn't see the main event. 

I've also launched my own Photography and Spirituality website  as I've been asked to lead a week long photography holiday next year, with some spirituality included. This is something I'm really interested in as I find photography a very spiritual exercise. Do please check it out if you have time. Any comments on it gratefully received as it is the first time I have set up a website.