Ashridge - Fallow Deer Buck Looking after his Harem

A trip to Ashridge yesterday afternoon to take photos of the Fallow Deer Rut.

 

A buck chases a hind back to his harem with some gusto!

 

Possibly with gusto because there was another buck in the field shown in the wider view of the photo above.

Ashridge: Fallow Deer on a Misty November Afternoon

A walk in Ashridge in the afternoon in November a few days ago when the morning mist had not cleared completely.

 

The main rut was over with only a few bucks with the beautiful full antlers.  However this less mature buck was on the edge of the herd of deer hoping for some luck.

 

An old hand in the thickening mist.

 

The beautiful autumn colours earlier....

 

.....becoming hidden and muted as the mist appeared and the sun went down.

 

The mature buck on his stand calling with his deep throaty growl.

 

A strange silhouette

 

The herd were beginning to disappear into the mist and darkening light as we left.  The photo is a bit grainy (as nearly all were due to the light levels)

Summer Harvesting below Steps Hill

Photos of the wheat harvest in the fields below Step's Hill, Ashridge, taken in 2011. 

 

Combine Harvester making patterns in the field 

 

Loading the grain

 

A dusty business

 

Ashridge - Mid-January Hoar Frost and Light Snow

Now back after a month without a working PC.  Problems hopefully sorted out.

 

A foggy morning leaving a heavy hoar frost on the trees in Ashridge on top of the previous day's light snowfall.  Photos with my little pocket camera.

 

The fog now a mist with light  starting to break through...

 

....waiting for the sun

 

The dog enjoying a rest...

 

....and now the sun is at last shining on the foreground.

 

The beautiful Hoar Frost.



Muntjac in Ashridge

Last weekend in Ashridge...

A Fox?....





No, a young male Muntjac...



..slipping off slowly through the bluebells.



It was remarkably unconcerned about our presence.  I wonder if it had been hand reared.







A Walk In Ashridge

The cloudy skies lifted this weekend.  In Ashridge some signs of summer and a reminder of last winter.

A Caddis Fly with silvery golden wings

A Seven Spot Ladybird on a Bluebell.





Excitement as we spotted a Tawny Owl.  It quickly flew off before we could get closer

The skull of a Fallow Deer that died last winter on Step's Hill, with a Cowslip poking through the eye socket

Fallow Deer Coat Variations - During the April Moult

Some photographs showing Fallow Deer Does losing their winter coat on the Ashridge Estate.  These deer are wild and not fenced in, and are not owned by the estate.  They can be seen regularly in the farmers' fields that border the forest.

A leucistic (white not albino) doe...



... whilst the darker melanistic deer shows a darker, almost black coat emerging from under their moulting coat.



Part of the herd with 2 leucistic deer and a flock of Wood Pigeons in the tree beyond.









Fallow Deer Bucks at Dusk - Ashridge

Fallow Deer on the skyline at dusk yesterday evening

Incombe Hole Ashridge: Birds and View

A walk at the end of February over the Chiltern downland Steps Hill to Incombe Hole

A pair of Kites flying over

A Kestrel hovering in the wind

Noisy Jackdaws

Belted Galloway cattle feeding on the rough pasture on the edge of the lower slopes into Incombe Hole

Ashridge Chalkhill Orchids (Pt 3 and final)

The third and final part of Orchids discovered on Ivinghoe Beacon and Steps Hill during the summers of 2010 and 2011.

Pyramid Orchid bud

In full flower. The Pyramidal Orchid was fairly common in both summers
The rare Frog Orchid. Two plants discovered in the summer of 2010.

Difficult to spot being green

A detail of the individual flowers

Disappointing to find no sign of them in 2011. Lets hope for 2012.

Snow on the Ashridge Estate

A visit to the Ashridge Estate following snow overnight on Saturday.

Beech trees disappearing in the mist

The hoof of a dead Fallow Deer doe buried in the snow on Steps Hill
Posts in the snow

Conifers in the snow

A lone walker on a forest path

Ashridge Colours in May

Unfortunately not a native Ladybird species, these Harlequin Ladybird colours are dramatic.

Fly on Oxeye Daisy
A brightly coloured Froghopper

Ashridge Chalkland Orchids (pt 1)

We found six species of Orchids on the chalk escarpment around Ivinghoe Beacon over the last two summers. Below are two species:

Firstly, the Bee Orchid

The detail is worth a click for a closer look.
Secondly, the Fragrant Orchid, a number here colonising a bank and perhaps past their best, but still impressive

A white variety of the Fragrant Orchid

The other species to be shown on further posts