Starducks

Blimey with this run of posts on the natural world and all creatures great and small you could be mistaken for thinking that I've turned into James Herriot or at least Trevor Beer! I fear I must make one more observation on the natural world in North Devon, I'll think I'll leave the Yeo Vale ostrich for another day, and this concerns Star the duck.

Star - a dapper little fella

To the people of Barum I'm sure *Star* needs no introduction but for my wider readership, "Hello Slovenia!" he is an Indian Running Duck, a breed of duck which actually comes from Asia not India and does not waddle it jogs, who has made quite a name for himself by pattering about the High Street while his handler collects money in a bucket ostensibly for the North Devon Children's Hospice. Of course, Star doesn't make his own way into town, he is driven in by his owner who takes him out of the boot of his car and lets him patter up Holland Walk to Red Lion cross as I call it or outside Etams as the spot is more commonly known, where he is usually to be found. And I can tell you on any given day he can draw quite a crowd sometimes even bigger than the awe-struck one that the bloke in the market who demonstrates the flying toy helicopters pulls in and that's saying something.  I have to admit Star, with his little bow-tie, does look like a rather dapper little fellow and the kids love him. The adults, local and visitor alike, will stop and have a chat with his handler, Barrie a rheumy eyed, florid faced chummy sort of chap He isn't a local and has one of those odd sort of Northern accents which I find hard to place. Stoke it could be.
Over the past few years he has achieved celebrity status and has appeared several times across the local media. Recently,  I see that he has become a regular at the Old Courthouse Inn over at Chulmleigh. Now, I haven't been out there for a few years. Previously, you could come across the pair of them out at the Westleigh Inn.  It turns out Star, and I suspect Barrie, likes a drop or two of ale. They don't seem to mind this sort of thing out Chulmleigh way as I caught the landlord was on BBC Spotlight and seemed very pleased to have his custom.  However, I must say,  I don't think that I'd be too happy if I was sitting in there quietly reading Devon Life and a duck came waddling or running along the bar and stuck his bill in my pint, not at over £3.00 a pop. Takes all sorts I suppose. Star's media presence hasn't all been fun and games as he first came to prominence over the small matter of whether or not he required a license for street trading. The Council said he did and Barrie was adamant that he did not and was beyond the reach of such law as he was collecting for a children's charity. I'm not sure what the upshot of all this was but I did here that he may have to use a different sort of bucket. Anyway, whatever 'twas I'm glad to report that Star is still out and about. If you were being picky he could be viewed as a health hazard as just the other day I saw him projectile vomiting a sticky soup of partly digested meal worms and duck bile right outside the entrance to WH Smith which anyone could have slipped up upon. Obviously he'd had one drop of ale too many the night before.

Enjoying a pint of St Austell Doom Bar

All of this has put my mind to thinking about the presence of animals in town centres in days gone by.  Suffice it to say it would not have been unusual to see flocks of ducks and geese being led through Barum on their way to market especially at this time of year fattened up for the seasonal feasting. I remember as a bey seeing ducks in pens down the cattle market and doubtless the poor little buggers fate wasn't to grace an ornamental pond in someones garden. Also seeing as we are surrounded by rivers and wetlands and are on the migratory routes for geese such birds are a very common sight in the area. Infact, recently I saw a family of mallards happily waddling up the High Street between Warrens and Iceland no doubt they were enticed by the pasty crumbs falling off peoples coats.
Of course in the Middle Ages dancing bears were a common sight on our streets and in some places they can still be seen. I just read that one was reportedly seen in Spain quite recently. Well it's similar, an animal in an unusual setting, out of water so to speak, doing activities while money was collected. I don't think people would have a problem with that if the bear trainer had a license and it was all in aid of a good cause.Thinking about it I suppose this could be the origin of Pudsey the Children In Need mascot just back then it was a real bear thrilling the kids rather than a deputy shop manager in a manky yellow fur fabric onesie. A few years back in Spain, again, I was tickled by the organ grinders and their monkeys' with their fezs and little cups turning tricks strung out along Las Ramblas in Barcelona. Itinerant dog entertainment acts have also been popular in the past I was watching a Mexican film I got from the library a BFI classic and it had two little chihuahua dogs dressed in mini sombreros and ponchos dancing on their hind legs to a blind bloke playing the trumpet they seemed to draw quite quite a crowd and I'll vouch for the fact that it was lot more entertaining than the Big Issue seller's two great hounds lying comatose outside M&S. (I never can quite fathom what the bloke hopes to gain from this as they really are a couple of mangey beasts and the generally held suspicion although to my mind unfounded that he dopes them up probably does his trade more harm than good). Mind you in the film there was a dwarf going around cutting open peoples bags. A word of caution these animals can also be used as decoys. So the next time you are drawn towards such a spectacle, bears, ducks or monkeys or even dogs hold on to your shopping to make sure no one has it away with your beans!

A dancing chihuahua souvenir from Mexico

 Blimey, I remember being harassed by a capuchin monkey over at Barnstaple Fair. It just jumped out and me and started clambering up me leg, his fingers and toes were like little needles and he had them all over the place in me pockets he went all up over me back and me head. He was a lively little fella to say the least with his stripey jumper and little bowler hat but he stunk to high heaven and when a bloke with a camera suddenly appeared I gave him short shrift as buggered if I was going to pay for the privilege of being photographed with the malodorous tyke.
So although in this day and age Star the duck is considered something of a charming curiosity he is infact part of a tradition of the commercial exploitation of animals in our towns and cities which goes back into the realms of history and maybe should be consigned to that place. I think I'll raise this as a topic for debate down at The Reform Thursday lunch club. I reckon I know what Annie Cawood will say on the matter as Star had a go at her dog as they walked by a few weeks back and she wasn't happy.