In Search of the Elusive FOD Boar

Its Monmouth Music Festival Week and always good fun right in the centre of the town, Saturday night its "Michael Jackson (Forever Jackson) live !....but whilst I'm whooping it up at the music festival I'm also determined over the weekend to track down the sometimes hard to see Forest of Dean boar.

An early 5.30 am start I head into the forest, its a fantastic morning with the sun is just starting to appear, in the deathly silence I pick up the calls of Stonechats, I locate two, a male and a juvenile sat on the top of some flowering plant, I watch for a few minuets and grab a couple of distant shots with the 500 mm in the low light, but I'm not here for Stonchat's and I push on.

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Juvenile Stonechat

In a plantation clearing I locate three Fallow Deer, a young buck and a doe with a quite large fawn, I anticipate they are likely to cross the path I'm located on so I settle down and wait, the doe appears checking its safe to cross, the fawn follows then the young buck...click ! I get some distant shots, not the best but its a start, time to move on..

I'm now in another part of the forest for reliable sighting of Fallow and Roe Deer. Big thanks to RW for his expertise and local knowledge without I would be completely lost, thank you again.

In a small plantation a group of about eight Fallow Deer are getting on with their morning, I locate a buck with quite a nice set of antlers so I wait for a mega shot. As the deer make their way through the long grass they occasional look in my direction, just the look that tells you we can see you! then the largest buck crosses the track but first pausing to look our way, that was the shot..I missed it, the others follow not stopping and its all over, time to move on to the next location

I'm now in a part of the forest where there are reliable sightings of Adder and Common Lizard, as we approach on the top of small ant hills and areas of bank where there is short grass I count around five different Adders, they are quite timid and detect our presence quickly disappearing into the undergrowth. 

From a distance I manage to get some record shots as this will bey first encounter with Adder in a very long time

Continuing our search for boar we pass an area where trees have been previously been felled which the ideal location for young Common Lizards to basked in the morning sunshine. Black to brown in colour of the they are no more than around 50mm in length. 

My visit for the weekend is nearly up with just enough time to search in one more location for boar, again extensive indication boar have been active during the night but no sighting. As we end our search there is just one more photo op with a doe Fallow Deer. 

See you next time...