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Yes I know there is a different fauna in the south of France but……

We were in our house in Thezan (briefly) last week -of which more in the next few days- sitting on the terrace when we had a strange and close encounter.

I had been hearing a pecular hooting noise and had assumed the the child next door had got a new noddy car, and was parping away, when with a certain ungainly crash of feathers this creature arrivend on the wall over our terrace and stared malevolently at us through the wires on which we hang our sunshade.

A peacock!

Before I had time to do much more than reach for the camera there was a second rattle of feathers and his brother, with a far prettier neck, landed next to him.

Then the two of them proceeded to eye our tiny garden with much interest.
(It is the only patch of green in the centre of the village)

Having seen how awkardly they flew, and knowing how vicious they could be when crossed we were rather unwelcoming and-to avoid having two huge monsters squatting in our patch of turf- we took the brush to them and persuaded them to move on.

With some reluctance, and a great show of elegant dignity, our two beauties picked their way off over the tiles.

Where they had come from nobody seems to know, they must be from some local chateau kept for their decorative value. neither had a tail which made us think at first they must be female but according to the books they were much too gaudy to be hens.

Are we going to find them ensconced in the garden on our return?