Evening Feed

The four stags have been up in the wilder territory of the section of Totley Moor to the west ever since they re-appeared a fortnight ago. There's no doubt now that there's been some measure of boycott operating here strangely comparable to trends observed by sociologists in human neighbourhoods. Sheffield Wildlife Trust have brought on their cattle and the native population has decamped to other parts. So where does that leave the astonishing policy of the conservation outfit? It was already shown to be hopelessly flawed. Now it simply exposes them to ridicule. But one has to examine it carefully to see that what they are doing is entirely consistent with their undeclared purpose. Over the ages man has regularly done this and that is what Sheffield Wildlife Trust wants to replicate. They are above all a Farmlife Trust - it is a fairly simple error that the word 'wild' got substituted. Everything they have done has been to this end and reading their statements leaves no room for misunderstanding. They are turning wilder land into farmland, the better to manage their agricultural operations. This marginalises the wildlife into becoming something like those bits at the edges of the fields that the farmer negotiates with Natural England to qualify him for agri-environment grants.

In the evening they can sometimes be seen feeding on the longer grasses and other green stuff on the unfarmed area. This morning they were there again before moving down into their favourite bracken stronghold. How long before that is taken from them?