We spent most of January in Ethiopia and my thoughts keep returning there. One vivid memory is of a young barefoot boy, dressed in rags and none too clean. We had stopped at some random location in the rocky highlands and, as always happened, people just materialised out of nowhere. He was not begging but merely sought the comfort of standing next to someone other than from his own tribe. His life is harsh. He lives, as so many do in those remote areas, in a thatched, mud hut bare of anything except for a cooking pot and some bedding. His first task as day breaks is to carry home a heavy container of water which is strapped to his back forcing him to bend double, after which he forages for wood, returning at dusk staggering under the weight of a huge bundle across his shoulders. Here there was no farming 
mechanisation and all harvesting is done by hand, squatting down with a tiny billhook to cut acres of wheat. This young boy had nothing and it brought it home to me just how much ‘stuff’ I have but, more importantly, it made me realise the things that are most precious to me in life: my family, my friends and my health.
There are many iconic species. The Ethiopian Wolf (above right) is highly endangered with possibly no more than 200 still living in the wild and we saw three one morning. Another is the vegetarian Gelada Baboon (left), which hangs out along the rim of the Rift Valley, and we had amazing close views of Spotted Hyenas (above left). We had travelled to Ethiopia in search of its exotic birdlife. In the Bale Mountains we encountered Ruspoli’s Turaco (right). A genuine 
member of avian royalty, its underwings flash crimson in the sunlight as it flies. It is 
one of the most beautiful birds in the world and incredibly endangered. For years I have wanted to see such beauties as the Northern Carmine Bee-eater (left) and was rewarded with amazing views and there were countless others: Hornbills, Goshawks and Bustards, to mention just a few. One of the things we did was engage in a 400 mile round trip to see just one very rare and endangered lark. How crazy can anyone get!
In the meantime, Brian Hill in Colestocks has reported the amazing sight of 21 Blackbirds in his garden all feeding at the same time and here at Moorside our robins started to nest build on 4 February.
Paul Lister 841696
