Hunting ghost ponds

Patrick Galbraith laments the loss of a rich wildfowl habitat

THE OLD NORFOLK gamekeeper, who was sitting next to me in the Land Rover, shifted uncomfortably and adjusted his hearing aid. “Right, about this pond. There are ponds. There are plenty of ponds but they’re all overgrown. I can show you them. But to be honest it’s a waste of time.” Some months previously, the same gamekeeper had told me that over the years, it had frustrated him immensely that all the duck ponds on the estate had been neglected. What they needed, he reckoned, was a bit of love. They needed somebody to cut back the willows and dig out some of that sludge. But regrettably, my suggestion that I could be that person was going down badly. Seemingly, the only thing worse than the old ponds not being…

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The Critic (Digital) - 1 Issue, August - September 2023

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