29.
up a
Pheasant
(Phasianus
colchicus)
which did not
appear to be startled,
as was indicated by the
somewhat leisurely
manner in which it
flew off.
We stopped for lunch in
a small hollow near the
river and surprisingly
enough turkey sand-
wiches were the most
common. From here we
walked along by the
river, where a flash
of iridescent blue
was seen which could
only have been a
Kingfisher (Alcedo
atthis). The banks
of the river were
lined with teasels,
despite the efforts of the local water
authority to burn them down with most of the
other riverside vegetation.
As we continued along the river we inter-
rupted a party of men who were shooting
partridges. The men were somewhat irritated
at our presence but we did at least save a few
poor partridges from the pot!
Stephen King