thephotosocietyのインスタグラム(thephotosociety) - 8月10日 05時20分

Photograph by @andyparkinsonphoto/@thephotosociety
It would be impossible for me to fully articulate just how comical and endearing mountain hares can be to spend time with. I’d found this hare up in the Peak District and whilst she looked full size her characteristics and apparently trusting nature led me to believe that she was a probably sub-adult. Not untypically I spent an inordinate amount of time with the hare before I even approached her for the first time, my usual routine consists of spotting a hare at a distance and then simply sitting down to have some food. Anyone who knows me knows that I like my food! This way I can introduce myself from a great distance, making sure that I reveal myself to the hare and that I pose no threat. I then shuffle closer over time, always watching her through binoculars to check on her body language and alertness to gauge her level of comfort. If her eyes open/body stiffens or ears go up I simply stop and watch from a distance until she relaxes again and even then it’ll take a while before I move again. My mantra is that it’s impossible for me to approach my subject too slowly! By investing this time on the first meeting I am always then afforded an extraordinary amount of trust which gives me a great deal more flexibility when I finally do get my camera out. I was privileged to be able to spend 4 days with her and I was increasingly amazed at how comfortable she was with my presence. At one point as she was wandering around the moorland I was walking just a few feet from her, as close to taking a mountain hare for a walk as I’ve ever been. I’m also a great believer in allowing things to happen organically and as the time passed she started to range further and further, exploring new parts of her moorland home. At one point as she trotted over a small ridge it felt right to me for this to be our last meeting and I never saw her again. I’ve posted this image because, even though I’d been sitting next to her for six hours, talking to her and waffling on as I do, every now and again she’d look at me with absolute surprise, like I’d suddenly beamed down from another planet. Two seconds later she’d be back feeding again!

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