TickTock and His Dominion, 2019, Archival Digital Photo

There he is surveying his protectorate always on duty.  TickTock is a perfect rooster and day in day out is vigilant about his hens’ safety.  Yes, his hens, male ownership, it wouldn’t fly in today’s awareness of gender equality.  He flew up to take a look at the goslings below, now almost grown and new tenants in the coop.   The hens, except for Clara Big Baby, don’t care about independence and seem to enjoy having a strong male to boss them around.

Apart from collecting eggs, feeding and cleaning duties, my visits to the flock are simply to enjoy and observe. These birds remind me of the basic pleasure of a day spent walking around and pecking to see what you can find.