Farmer hatches bird scheme

A tiny robin which has built its nest in a farmer's vehicle will be able to hatch its eggs without being disturbed.

The lucky redbreast chose Neil Smith's all-terrain vehicle (ATV) for its home and the tender-hearted farmer just could not bring himself to use it while the bird was sitting on the nest.

So he called on his ATV suppliers, Smithfield Tractors in Builth Wells, to see if the firm would lend him a replacement to use so that the three eggs in the nest underneath the handlebars of his machine were not disturbed.

"I have been using my Honda ATV every day recently because it is a busy time here due to lambing," said Mr Smith, of Lower House Farm, Pantygelli, near Abergavenny. "I park the ATV in a shed on the farm overnight and didn't notice the nest had been built between the handlebars and the top of the engine until I saw the eggs," he added.

Mr Smith, who is the Farmers' Union of Wales Gwent county executive officer, said: "I have always bought my ATVs from Tim Hughes, of Smithfield Tractors, Builth Wells, and I was pleased he felt the same as I did towards safeguarding the nest."

Mr Hughes said he was only too pleased to cooperate. "Farmers are often criticised for not showing compassion to animals, but Neil proves this is not the case," he said.

By Deborah Knox