By Bernie Bell

The other evening, we looked out the window, and saw a bunny in the garden.  I made “Aaaaaah” noises, while Mike called it bad names – he doesn’t approve of bunnies in the garden.  I say, that as long as he keeps the gate to the veg. patch shut, he has nothing to worry about.  The garden plants are now mature, and can take a bit of bunny nibbling – natures pruning.

We watched the bunny hippety-hopping round the mound by the pond, then……it was running, full belt back across the garden, with a blackbird flying low, nearby. I thought – surely the bunny isn’t running from the blackbird? Then, we saw Mr. Harrier, swooping low over the garden, presumably in pursuit of the bunny.  It was a big bunny – I don’t know if he would have managed, if he’d caught it!  Bunny reached the safety of the jungle which is at the left-hand side of the garden, as did the blackbird. Mr Harrier swooped away. Then, bunny came back out, sat for a bit, looking about him, and carried on nibbling dandelions.

This is the kind of thing you can see, looking out of an Orkney window. Wild things. I know that bunnies are cute, and folk are used to seeing the ’tame’ ones, but – this is a wild animal – it wouldn’t let me near it, if I went out into the garden, and this wild animal, with a small wild bird, was being hunted by a big wild bird.

Orkney – where the wild things are.