Country diary: the pond is a hive of activity

Sandy, Bedfordshire: I lean forward and the skater darts away in a series of fitful starts. A water measurer beneath my gaze stays put at the pond’s edgeA pond skater’s feet feel prey landing on the drumskin-tight surface of the water. Just how can this skater skate on thin “ice” while a fly the size of its eye falls through? Though the fly tries to drag its legs free, surface tension binds it to a sheet of elastic glue.I lean forward and the skater darts away in a series