Highland Cattle Douglas, shown here in front of Cowdyke Farmhouse, was on hire for almost 2 years, and has now gone back to entertain other ladies at Levisham Moor, above Pickering. Thanks to his efforts, we now have a herd of 15 Highlands.		Wildlife you might see at Cowldyke. Bats Badgers Fox Hares Moles Otters Rabbits Roe Deer Stoats Weasels Birds. Barn Owl Blackbird Canada Geese Cormorant Cuckoo Ducks Heron House martin Kestrel Kingfisher Lapwing Little Owl Oyster Catcher Partridge Pheasant Pied Wagtail Robin Tawny Owl Sand martin Swallow Swans Thrush Woodpecker Wren Fish. Trout Grayling.
Badgers. Though very elusive, badgers have been seen in the area. Mostly, we see them as "Road Kill" after they have been hit by cars. Deer. Deer have been seen quite regularly down by the river, and in our fields. Unfortunately, they always seem to see us coming first, so when we get within a few hundred yards of them, they show us a clean pair of heels, and some very nice white rumps!	Our Fox A vixen raised two cubs in a hollow Ash tree here last year. Our farm dog Maverick, a German Shepherd, had a close encounter with a fox whilst we were harvesting wheat last summer. The fox was hiding in the last patch of wheat to be cut, and as the Combined Harvester approached, he broke cover. Maverick was onto him in a flash and bowled him over, but in the cloud of dust, Reynard made his escape Maverick literally didn't see him for the dust.
Otters update. Our visitors occasionally report seeing otters in and around our part of the River Dove. Our otters are being monitored by The Otter Trust. Both adult and junior otters have been seen by the river. One of our visitors who was fishing our stretch of the River Dove, saw one pass so close to him that he "could almost count it's whiskers" !! Another visitor spotted one whilst on a family walk by the river. Swans. A pair of swans with cygnets on our part of the river. River Dove.

Kingfishers. If you are lucky, you may spot one of these by the river. They are quite small, but very brightly coloured.	Cormorants. During the last year or two, we have seen cormorants down by the River Dove. Although these birds are normally associated with coastal regions, we are only about ten miles from the sea as the cormorant flies. We are hoping they don't like goldfish.
Barn Owl. A barn owl has been seen patrolling the hedgerows looking for prey. Evenings are best for seeing him in flight. He is easy to spot as he is very white.	Tawny owls can often be seen around the farm. In previous years, they have been seen roosting during the day in our conifers near the farmhouse.
Jacob Sheep. Our Jacob ewes produced plenty of lambs again this year. We now "Rent a Ram" for our ewes. "Carlos" below, (in the centre of the picture with the large horns) has won prizes at The Great Yorkshire Show.

Hares. There are quite a number of hares in our fields and the surrounding countryside. They are easily distinguished from rabbits by their greater size and their larger upright ears. Also you will probably view them for a longer time as they are confident in open spaces and will settle down rather than immediately run for cover, as rabbits do. One of our visitors , from Norfolk, saw hares "boxing" in the field adjoining Rose Cottage whilst she was looking out of the cottage window..
Fruit orchard. If you happen to be here at the right time, we have an orchard with a surplus of eating and cooking apples, and plums. As a guest, you are welcome to "pick your own".	Wild flowers Our Countryside Stewardship Scheme is ongoing. Under the scheme, we have been planting 3 metre wide headlands round designated fields with wild seeds, and leaving up to 15 acres fallow each year. This is to encourage wildlife - plants, insects, mammals, etc. We now have a hectare set aside, planted with wild bird seed, and a grass meadow ley seeded with wild flowers. When we cut the ley for hay, the hay will be left and turned (as part of the drying process), long enough for the wild flowers to re-seed. John has been re-planting hedgerows, and has included trees that will not be cut, but will be allowed to mature. This should encourage a wider variety of birds and insects.
Wildlife Pond update. We are looking forward to a wide variety of pond life once again this summer. This frog had been spawning, and we found this newt in a trough, and put it in a bucket for this photo.

Farm Pond. We had quite an impressive shoal of brightly coloured Goldfish and Golden Orfe until either a Heron or an Otter plundered our pond last summer. We now have a smaller shoal, but they should continue to breed and build our stock up again. In addition to the usual selection of water beetles, water boatmen and pond skaters, turquoise, red, and brown dragon flies and damsel flies, we are hoping once again been lucky enough to attract a pair of Moorhens, which have nested in the reeds in previous years.