Packed together as tightly as something that’s packed together really tightly, the seeds of this Reedmace female flower head will soon be blown far and wide by the wind, but there was a time not so long ago that country folk would use them to stuff their mattresses.

The National Search And Rescue Dog Association is a voluntary organisation responsible for the training of rescue team members and civilians to become handlers of air-scenting search dogs, enabling them to search for missing persons in the mountainous, lowland, rural and urban areas of, in this case, Wales.

“March is the month that shows people who don’t drink exactly how a hangover feels” ….Garrison Keillor

!

I know that my photographic efforts leave much to be desired, but I can’t help observing and then trying to capture in some small measure the tremendous natural beauty I see in even the most mundane of things….Sunlight picking out a few grey, leafless branches growing from the twisted boughs of a moss-covered tree is more attractive to me than any sleek Italian sports car or self-obsessed, silicon-enhanced page three fame junkie could ever be and that’s the way I’ve…

….Still clinging to the trees in late December!

Close to freezing, five miles still to walk and only an hour or so of daylight remaining.

Part of the “A Sterner Test” series featured on the “Blue and Purple” page of www.wildliferanger.com

Taken from virtually the same position as the “Summerlake” shot below.

I took my wife to a place I know today where the Starlings gather in their hundreds of thousands at this time of year (see picture more or less opposite).

With lolling tongue and flapping ears  There’s nothing in the world she fears  Adventure fills her heart with zest and rarely lets her feel at rest A tough and very hardy soulShe’ll take on any action role And come foul wind or rain or hail She’ll bark defiance at that gale A dog for all the seasons she A soaring spirit flying freeYet, doubtless she will always be

With Lolling Tongue and Flapping Ears Theres Nothing in the World She Fears Adventure Fills Her Heart with Zest and Never Lets Her be at Rest

Interestingly, Tess picked up a tick during the course of the day….The first time I’ve known any of my dogs to do so smack-bang in the middle of winter!

Tess examines her third spraint find of the day. Otter spraint has a slightly musky (some say sweet) odour that isn’t the least bit unpleasant….unlike Mink scat which is foul-smelling and one type of faeces that Tess simply refuses to go anywhere near. I bag and tag all our spraint finds and send them off to our boffins for expert contents analysis.