Courtship in the dark



The strange fog decended after dark

 January is the month that foxes mate.
They are noisy about it too and the vixen will yowl , yap and scream at the dog for what seems like an eternity during their, shall we say....courtship!
Last night the guinea fowl started their high pitched screaming around nine pm, so I darted over to the field in a strange , heavy fog to check if everything was ok.
In the odd glow of the moon I could make out two foxes. The vixen was yapping away at the dog and both animals darted back and forth through the hen houses in a desperate courting race.
They obviously didn't notice  me, or indeed the little knots of birds hiding away within the hen houses, they just had eyes for each other, and I must admit that even though I hate the buggers, I thought that the ghostly spectacle of these two graceful animals galloping in the moonlight was rather moving.


At one point the vixen leaped on top of the runner duck house roof with a clatter causing a sudden burst of frightened quacking from the occupants, but the foxes weren't interested in a ducky meal and just carried on their playtime game of chase me.
Finally I had enough of their over familiarity and shouted out loudly whilst clapping my hands.
They stopped for a brief second , both turning in my direction,  then they were gone, slipping through the hedge into the dark like thieves in the night.
The field population let out a collective sigh of relief I am sure and even Albert padded over from his hiding place on top of the church wall to rub himself anxiously against my legs as I walked back to the cottage in the cold