He was once Kleinwort Benson’s European investment strategist
He was once Kleinwort Benson’s European investment strategist.These days, since developing a brain tumour “the size of an orange”, he takes life more easily, but his mobile rings about every 10 minutes. And he’s limping, having fallen from his horse the day before in a drag hunt.He talks admiringly of Kodiak, the male wolf – all chest and bushy tail: a classic alpha specimen. Kodiak wriggles and quivers with energy, as if he could run for miles, which wolves can, almost tirelessly, at 25mph.Surprisingly, in view of current concern about the danger of dogs with wolf blood, Palmer says: “Away from his territory, Kodiak’s virtually like a lapdog. That’s why we can take him to a school, with 100 six-year- olds all crowding around him.”By contrast Kenai, the female, is highly strung: thin, nervy, terrified of cars, and submissive – up to a point. She killed Denali, the third wolf here, seeing her as a rival.Palmer sees the wolves as “living ambassadors for conservation – and they like it: they preen themselves and have great charisma when they’re visiting people”.But what’s the attraction of “adopting” a wolf? Colin Thorne, 36, an electrician, has signed up.
“Wolves fascinate me,” he says, “because they’re totally unpredictable.”The best experience I’ve had with the wolves was at the Newbury show. The huskies on the stand behind started howling, and then three minutes later the wolves answered It was awesome People started coming from every direction to see. You can understand why the Red Indians treated wolves as hunting gods’ spirits.”Palmer’s own involvement began during the late Sixties, at St Louis zoo. He says he “fell in love” with a wolf he saw, on account of its beauty and grace.And such qualities are certainly in demand Kodiak and Kenai are, in fact, film stars. Their screen appearances include Dracula, with Sir Laurence Olivier; An American Werewolf in London; and The Company of Wolves, where red signs warned: “Danger, wild wolves loose on set.” One wolf had to put its head in a little girl’s lap – two riflemen stood guard Were they prepared to kill? Palmer hesitates. “Yes.”He scorns such defence, emphasising that wolves rarely attack people. This is because, extraordinarily, they lack the protective maternal instinct.
So they don’t attempt to defend their young from a perceived threat Their main concern is self-preservation. Hardly surprising, since humanity has hunted them relentlessly; the last wild British wolf was killed in Scotland in 1743.Palmer supports the idea of reintroducing wolves in the Scottish Highlands, where they can prey on the deer that have run riot and are systematically stripping the forests. He feels such a move is almost inevitable, and could happen within the next 50 years.Meeting Kodiak, Kenai and Palmer has been an honour But one thing is missing: a howl. Eventually, before I leave, one echoes across the fields, surprisingly high and rounded – it’s more enchanting than menacing.For further information on the Wolf Trust, send an sae to UK Wolf Centre, Butlers Farm, Beenham, Reading, Berks RG7 5NT.. In our part of the world, this autumn has brought a tremendous harvest of acorns.
Does this mean, as traditional wisdom has it, that we are in for a hard winter? No, say professional foresters; it means the exact opposite – that we had good weather earlier in the year, and that the oaks enjoyed a favourable spring and summer The bumper crop has no bearing on winter. Yet in producing so heavily the trees may also have been reacting to the stress of drought in midsummer, and unconsciously seeking to ensure the survival of their kind by fruiting abundantly. Experiments have shown that if bark is deliberately removed from trees, causing stress, they often react by increasing their output.
Oddly enough, this season’s berry crop is poor: rowans and hollies are already bare, and some birds are in for a lean time. This scarcity reflects the patchiness of late frosts in April and May; blossom in some hedgerows escaped, but in others it was caught and blasted.. Taking in marsh harriers and ghostly churches, Emma Haughton takes a walk through the solitary landscape of Suffolk. This seven-mile walk hasn’t the advantage of being circular, but what it lacks in convenience it amply compensates for in diversity and beauty.
